Tag: Jean Droste

Can Seawall defense be Man of the Match?

Can 15 men be named Man of the Match? Or 23? If so, then the Seawall defense was the Man of the Match in the Seawolves 29-21 win over the New England Free Jacks on Saturday.

You could look at New England’s 21 points and ask how that justifies praising the Seawolves defense. But those points included a penalty try and another try scored when the Seawolves were down to 14 men after a yellow card was given to Seattle for collapsing a maul (the penalty try). That happened at the 67th minute of the match. The Free Jacks scored a try and conversion four minutes later. Take away those scores and we’re back to 26-7 where the game stood at the 56th minute mark.

Mack Mason helped the Seawolves build those points with three penalty kicks in the first half. Two minutes before the half, Conner Mooneyham, who’s been on the sidelines since last year, reminded New England of how fast he is and why he shouldn’t be left alone out on the wing. A 40-yard run by Mooneyham, a ruck cleared by Riekert Hattingh and the ball out to Mason, then to Jean Droste (love second rows in the back line!) and then an offload to Dan Kriel, who used his right shoulder to floor New England fullback Reece MacDonald while plunking down the ball with his left hand for the try. At the half, Seattle led 14-7.

Twelve minutes into the second half, after more than a dozen rucks near the New England try line, Kara Pryor dived over for a Seattle try.

Hattingh, not to be outdone by Droste filling where a center should be, lined himself up at wing  and the overload gave him a green-grass path for an untouched run for a try.       

There the game stood at 26-7 before New England collected their yellow card advantage. Mason added another penalty kick with 10 minutes left in the game, contributing 14 points to the Seawolves 29-point total.

Back to the defense. New England scored seven tries when they defeated Houston; three against Seattle including a penalty try. Wayne Van der Bank scored three tries against Houston; one against the Seawolves. Jayson Potroz scored 17 points against Houston, four against Seattle. The Seawall defense was up quickly on the New England backline, giving them no room to spring their fast backs. And the defense kept New England eight points back, no bonus for being within seven.

Best Seattle defense: Divan Rossouw’s try-saving tackle on the try line.

Seattle has collected 33 points in the Western Conference standings, four up over second-place Houston. New England has a one point lead over Chicago in the Eastern Conference, 24-23.

Seattle gets a week off and returns to Starfire on Friday night, May 3, at 7:30 against the Anthem. Not a time for mercy.

2 Seawolves’ forwards on Week 2 Top 15

Looks like the forwards cornered all the Seawolves’ Top 15 for the second week in Major League Rugby. Here’s what they said about Sam Matenga and Jean Droste:

Tighthead Prop, Sam Matenga – Seattle Seawolves

  • 21 Meters Gained
  • 15 Ruck Arrivals
  • Four Tackles Made
Right Lock, Jean Droste – Seattle Seawolves
  • 30 Meters Run
  • 19 Ruck Arrivals
  • Five Lineout Takes

I was happy to see that Martin Vaca made the list. How could he not? He was a huge factor in Old Glory DC overcoming the New England Free Jacks, a team I predicted would not be beat by anyone in the Eastern Conference, except for maybe the New Orleans Gold. And that match is on at 11 a.m. PDT on The Rugby Network. New Orleans will be without Olajuwon Noa, who received a red card and is suspended for four weeks. He won’t be back until April 20 against the Miami Sharks.

I’m not even going to make a prediction.

Hooker, Martin Vaca – Old Glory DC  
  • Three Tries Scored
  • 45 Meters Gained
  • 11 Tackles Made