Arrows Overcome in DC

News Mar-19-2023

An injury-reduced Arrows side was bested on the road by Old Glory DC on Saturday evening, with the travelling Canadian outfit falling to their Eastern Conference rivals 29-3 at Segra Field.

Sam Malcolm‘s early penalty goal put the Arrows ahead just minutes into the match, but the hosts found their groove shortly thereafter and never looked back.

Mere moments after the opening kick, a mishandled DC ball was plucked up by Lolani Faleiva, who proceeded to rampage 50 metres up the pitch to settle his side deep in Old Glory territory. A penalty from the DC defence allowed Malcolm to kick for points, but the play proved costly, with Noel Reid forced to exit the match due to a blow sustained in the build-up.

Old Glory found their response 10 minutes later, with Nic Souchon the one to crash over off the back of a driving maul. Diaz Bonilla added the extras, the first of his nine points on the night.

After gaining big territory off a lineout drive of their own, the Arrows looked to have answered back with a try, but possession was lost when Mitch Richardson‘s dive into the in-goal area was cruelly curtailed by the post pad.

With Mitch Eadie dispatched to the sin bin for being judged to have killed a deep DC scoring drive with enthusiastic hands in the breakdown, Diaz Bonilla booted a penalty goal to put the hosts ahead 10-3 leading into the interval.

Old Glory’s momentum carried over into the second half, with Marcos Young dotting down in the corner four minutes after the restart. The double-whammy scoring play also resulted in the departure of Tautalatasi Tasi; the centre, who had played every minute of the 2023 season up to that point, was unable to continue after taking a knock.

Minutes later, DC had their third try. A 50-22 earned the hosts an attacking lineout, and William Talataina inflicted the damage after forcing his way through the defensive line for the tally.

DC kept up the pressure throughout the second half, which soon saw a lineout steal and a cross-field kick releasing Tevita Naqali along the touchline. James O’Neill stormed back to hunt down the charging lock and prevent a try, but Kobe Faust‘s efforts to snuff out the ensuing offload was deemed cynical, and the wing was issued a yellow card.

Old Glory made the most of the late-game man-advantage, with Danny Tusitala crossing over for the bonus-point try a few minutes prior to the final whistle.

Mike Sheppard, who led Toronto with 16 tackles over his 80-minute shift, became the second Arrow to reach a half-century of appearances with the club. His 50 games played brings the vice captain level with Paul Ciulini for the most caps in franchise history.

2022 first-round draft pick Owain Ruttan made his MLR debut when he entered the match in the 75th minute.

Seven Arrows were unavailable for the match due to injury.

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Toronto (1-3; 5 points) enters Week 6 of the 2023 season with an away clash against the Utah Warriors (2-2; 9 points) on Saturday, March 25. The Arrows won their lone encounter with the Warriors in 2022, earning a memorable 27-24 road victory that was punctuated by a fierce last-minute goalline stand. The cross-conference meeting at Zions Bank Stadium in Herriman, UT, will kick off at 4:30 p.m. ET.

Toronto Arrows Stat Leaders:

Ball Carries: Ramon Ayarza – 13
Carry Metres: Ciaran Breen – 143
Defenders Beaten: Ciaran Breen – 5
Tackles Made: Mike Sheppard – 16
Offloads: Ramon Ayarza, Mitch Eadie – 3
Attacking Breakdown Arrivals: Adrian Wadden – 28
Defending Breakdown Arrivals: Lucas Rumball – 10

Old Glory DC Stat Leaders:

Ball Carries: Jamason Faanana-Schultz – 20
Carry Metres: Marcos Young – 128
Defenders Beaten: Jamason Faanana-Schultz – 4
Tackles Made: Jamason Faanana-Schultz, Nic Souchon – 18
Offloads: Marcos Young – 4
Attacking Breakdown Arrivals: Ramiro Herrera – 20
Defending Breakdown Arrivals: Collin Grosse – 13

Toronto Arrows Score Report:

Penalty Goals: Sam Malcolm (3′)

Old Glory DC Score Report:

Tries: Nic Souchon (14′), Marcos Young (44′) William Talataina (50′), Danny Tusitala (73′)
Conversions: Joaquin Diaz Bonilla 3 (15′, 51′, 74′)
Penalty Goals: Joaquin Diaz Bonilla (36′)