Arrows Announce Lineup for 2022 Season Finale

LINEUP UPDATE: Kobe Faust will now start at #14 in place of John Sheridan, who is a late scratch.

Sheridan has been placed on the injured reserve with an upper-body injury.

Faust will make his season debut as a starter after recovering from a lower-body injury that has kept him out of lineup for the entirety of the 2022 season up to this point. The 20-year-old was activated off the IR earlier this week following his lengthy rehab.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TORONTO, ON – Toronto Arrows Head Coach Peter Smith has named his starting lineup for Sunday’s season finale clash with Old Glory DC.

Highlighting Toronto’s roster sheet is lock Paul Ciulini, who will become the first player in franchise history to make 50 appearances for the club. The durable Maple, Ontario native — who will have appeared in 50 of the organization’s first 54 matches — will be celebrated immediately following the final whistle with a capping ceremony to mark the iconic half-century achievement.

With Ross Braude picking up a knock in last week’s defeat in Atlanta, Arrow #36 Jamie Mackenzie will notably make his first appearance for the organization since Feb. 16, 2020 — Week 2 of 2020 season — after coming out of retirement in May to assist the club following a spate of injuries at the scrum-half position.

It’s wholesale changes across the front row, as the trio of Faleiva–McRogers–Rowland have been called upon to start the season finale. Tomas de la Vega has been elevated from the bench to begin the match, and the now-recovered Gaston Mieres will return to the fullback position in lieu of the injured Matt Hood.

With club captain Mike Sheppard also ruled out due to injury, Lucas Rumball will assume captaincy duties. Thirteen players are currently listed on the injured reserve and are unavailable for selection.

Squad Notes:

• Ciulini will feature in his 50th match for the club, becoming the first player in franchise history to hit the half-century
• Mackenzie will make his season debut as a starter
• Rumball is third in the league in defending breakdown arrivals (120)
• Malcolm is fourth in the league in goals (36); fourth in the league in points scored (92)
• Quattrin is fifth in the league in carries (148)
• Ciulini is sixth in the league in attacking breakdown arrivals (291)
• Nine squad members are full Canadian internationals: Baillie (34 caps), Ciulini (8 caps), du Toit (14 caps), Keith (24 caps), Kelly (1 cap), Mackenzie (21 caps), Quattrin (13 caps), Rowland (6 caps), Rumball (43 caps)
• Two additional squad members are full internationals: de la Vega (12 caps; Argentina), Mieres (78 caps; Uruguay)
• Thirteen players are on the injured reserve and are unavailable for selection: Bell, Braude, Brown, A. Ferguson, B. Ferguson, Flesch, Hood, Jones, Richardson, Sheppard, Stevenson, S. Vikilani, Voralek

The Arrows (8-7; 40 points) are undefeated against Old Glory (2-13; 18 points) in MLR play (4-0 all-time), and have taken down their rivals from DC twice so far in 2022: a 29-5 road win in Week 4, followed by a 32-27 home victory in Week 10.

Sunday’s game will kick off at 12 p.m. ET at York Lions Stadium, with tickets starting at $15.

The Eastern Conference tilt will feature on TSN5 and stream on TSN.ca and the TSN App for Canadian audiences, and will be available on The Rugby Network for international audiences.

Toronto Arrows Lineup vs. Old Glory DC:

1. Lolani Faleiva
2. Jack McRogers
3. Tyler Rowland
4. Adrian Wadden
5. Paul Ciulini
6. Tomas de la Vega
7. Lucas Rumball (C)
8. Ronan Foley
9. Jamie Mackenzie
10. Sam Malcolm
11. Dennon Robinson-Bartlett
12. Guiseppe du Toit
13. Ueta Tufuga
14. John Sheridan Kobe Faust
15. Gaston Mieres
16. Andrew Quattrin
17. Cole Keith
18. Isaac Salmon
19. Kyle Baillie
20. Marcello Wainwright
21. Sam Reimer
22. Will Kelly
23. Conor McCann

About Toronto Arrows Rugby Football Club:

Established in 2018, the Toronto Arrows Rugby Football Club is Canada’s first and only professional rugby union team.

Competing in Major League Rugby, the team is equipped to compete against top-tier North American professional club teams, providing emerging Canadian talent with enhanced and more frequent opportunities to hone their skills at an elite level.

For more information, visit https://torontoarrows.com/

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For more information, please contact:

Brock Smith
Communications Manager
Toronto Arrows
[email protected]

Header Photo Credit: Kyle Gilmor