Toronto Arrows Name Lineup for MLR Season Opener Against NOLA Gold

25 January 2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TORONTO, ON – Toronto Arrows Director of Rugby Chris Silverthorn has named his starting lineup for Saturday’s away match against NOLA Gold, marking both the club’s season-opening squad, as well as its inaugural Major League Rugby matchday lineup.

The Arrows will run out a heavily Canadian lineup for the League’s kickoff match at New Orleans’ Gold Stadium, with Silverthorn selecting 10 full Canadian internationals to his matchday squad.

“We’ve had this match circled on our calendar for weeks now,” said Silverthorn. “These last few training sessions have had some extra zip to them as we’ve gotten in our final preparations for our season opener. The guys have worked extremely hard to get to this point, and after months of putting in the hard yards, we’re eager to get the season started.”

Saturday’s game is the first of eight consecutive away matches for Canada’s first professional rugby union team. Toronto’s extended road trip will be followed by eight consecutive home matches between April 7 and June 2 to close out the club’s regular season.

“Starting our season with eight straight road games will be a tough test, but we want to prove that we’ve built a program that’s up to the challenge,” added Silverthorn. “There are no easy matches in Major League Rugby, home or away, so we’ll take it game-by-game. NOLA will be a great test out of the gate, and will give us a good, physical match to set the tone for our season.”

Squad Notes:
– First MLR matchday squad in the club’s history
– Ten squad members are full Canadian internationals: Brouwer (9 caps), Ciulini (8 caps), Dolezel (16 caps), Ferguson (11 caps), Keith (9 caps), Lloyd (7 caps), Moonlight (23 caps), Moor (14 caps), Rumball (26 caps), Sheppard (3 caps)
– Fourteen players selected to the starting 15 are Canadian; lone exception is Sam Malcolm (New Zealand)
– Seven squad members are Canada Under-20 program grads: Ciulini (2015), Ferguson (2012), Keith (2017), Milazzo (2016), Ng (2017), Quattrin (2016), Rumball (2014, 2015)
– Average squad age is 25 years old

The Arrows enter the match having finished their pre-season with victories over the 2018 MLR Championship runners-up Glendale Raptors (40-18) and 2020 expansion team New England Free Jacks (40-14) in a pair of autumn fixtures.

NOLA Gold ended the 2018 league season as the sixth-place finishers in the seven-team league, having earned a 3-5 record.

Saturday’s match will kick off at 3 p.m. EST.

The game can be watched live on GameTV, streamed live through the Arrows’ Facebook page, and enjoyed amongst Arrows fans at the club’s official watch party held at Toronto’s Irish Embassy Pub & Grill.

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Toronto Arrows Lineup vs. NOLA Gold

1. Rob Brouwer
2. Andrew Quattrin
3. Cole Keith
4. Mike Sheppard
5. Paul Ciulini
6. Peter Milazzo
7. John Moonlight
8. Lucas Rumball (C)
9. Andrew Ferguson
10. Sam Malcolm
11. Kainoa Lloyd
12. Jamie Leveridge
13. Spencer Jones
14. Dan Moor
15. Jack Evans

16. Steven Ng
17. Tom Dolezel
18. Morgan Mitchell
19. Kolby Francis
20. Marcello Wainwright
21. Riley Di Nardo
22. John Sheridan
23. Shawn Windsor

STAFF
Vice President & General Manager: Mark Winokur
Director of Rugby: Chris Silverthorn
Coaches: Aaron Carpenter, Cory Hector, Peter Smith
Performance Analyst: Rodin Lozada

About Toronto Arrows Rugby Club:

The Toronto Arrows Rugby Club is Canada’s first professional rugby union team.

Competing in Major League Rugby, the team is equipped to compete against top-tier North American 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]

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Header Photo Credit: Red Gown Photography