Arrows Earn Record-Breaking Win Over Seawolves

Toronto got off to a winning start in its first ‘home’ game at its temporary base in Atlanta, showing no signs of weariness with the early kickoff time to defeat visiting Seattle by a resounding score of 52-7.

The victory was one for the MLR record books: at 45 points, the gulf dethrones the previous mark of 42 held by both the Seawolves (2019) and the now-defunct Glendale Raptors (2019).

The Arrows stormed out of the gates, with Joaquin Tuculet finding a gap in Seattle’s defensive line in the opening seconds of the match; a pin-point pass from Tayler Adams beckoned the 56-cap Puma to stroll in for his first MLR try.

A near-identical play executed minutes later produced the Arrows’ second try. Known finisher Manuel Montero turned provider, gliding through the midfield to spring Ben LeSage for the five-pointer.

Adams – perfect with his boot on the day – tacked on a penalty before a Toronto crossed the whitewash for a third try shortly after the first-half hydration break. A wave of Toronto backs contributed to a try-of-the-season-type score, with Ross Braude finishing a well-worked passing masterpiece to muscle the ball under the posts for his first try in North America’s top flight.

The Arrows started the second half in a similar fashion to the first; a flat pass from Braude was corralled by man of the match Patrick Parfrey, whose dive between the posts put Toronto ahead by 31 points.

A try from Seattle’s Mike Shepherd, followed by a subsequent conversion from Ben Cima, trimmed the Arrows’ lead to 24, but that would be as close as the Seawolves would come to closing the gap. Minutes later, Montero broke Seattle’s line to provide Jack McRogers with a clean road to the try zone. A Manuel Diana intercept turned into a try for substitute Jason Higgins, and Gaston Cortes completed the seven-try effort with a late barging tally.

Toronto enters Week Six of the 2021 season with an away clash against the Eastern Conference-leading Rugby United New York (3-1; 15 points) on Sunday, Apr. 25.

Toronto Arrows Stat Leaders

Ball Carries: M. Diana – 18
Carry Metres: G. Mieres – 114
Tackles Made: T. de la Vega – 18
Offloads: G. Mieres – 5

Seattle Seawolves Stat Leaders

Ball Carries: R. Hattingh – 11
Carry Metres: M. Turner – 104
Tackles Made: T. Clark – 12
Offloads: Eight Players – 1

Toronto Arrows Score Report

Tries: J. Tuculet (3), B. LeSage (9), R. Braude (28*), P. Parfrey (45*), J. McRogers (56), J. Higgins (61), G. Cortes (74)
Conversions:  T. Adams 5 (4, 10, 57, 62, 75)
Penalty Goals: T. Adams (16)
* = seven-point try

Seattle Seawolves Score Report

Tries: M. Shepherd (53)
Conversions:  B. Cima (54)

Toronto Arrows Lineup vs. Seattle Seawolves

1. Cole Keith
2. Jack McRogers
3. Tyler Rowland
4. Mason Flesch
5. Paul Ciulini
6. Tomas de la Vega
7. Lucas Rumball (C)
8. Manuel Diana
9. Ross Braude
10. Tayler Adams
11. Manuel Montero
12. Pat Parfrey
13. Ben LeSage (C)
14. Gaston Mieres
15. Joaquin Tuculet
16. Pat Lynott
17. Andrew Quattrin
18. Gaston Cortes
19. Adrian Wadden
20. Marcello Wainwright
21. Jason Higgins
22. Leandro Leivas
23. Spencer Jones

Header Photo Credit: Ben Weitz