By Aaron Wilson
‘Moose’ took a direct path for one of his pair of tries, plowing ahead through the scrum for the score Saturday night for the Houston SaberCats.
“Our captain, Moose, had a hell of a game,” Jeremy Misailegalu said. “He scored the most.”
SaberCats team captain Nathan Den Hoedt, also known as ‘Moose,” scored two tries in a home win over Old Glory DC.
Den Hoedt also contributed six tackles, 20 breakdown arrivals, one charge down and two carries.
For his performance, Den Hoedt was named the Man of the Match.
“Honestly, it was a bit of a shock,” Den Hoedt said. “I think the boys did a good job of getting us down there, and I was sort of there at the end to finish.”
The SaberCats overcame a slow start to pick up their second consecutive win. Now, they’re looking for three in a row Saturday on the road against the Eastern Conference leading New England Free Jacks.
“We didn’t start the way we wanted to,” Den Hoedt said. “D.C. obviously had a great start to the game. We had a water break and we really started to buy in and focus on ourselves. I think we saw that switch we made showed up for us. Obviously, it’s a good win.”
The SaberCats lead the Western Conference division by a narrow margin one year after winning the division and qualifying for the playoffs for the third year in a row.
A towering sturdy presence, Den Hoedt is one of the most imposing players in Major League Rugby.
Den Hoedt has provided a physical, heady presence for the past three seasons for Houston’s rugby squad.
At 6-foot-6, 255 pounds, the veteran lock has ideal size and experience.
One of the 50th Cap milestone achievers on the roster, Den Hoedt gives the team leadership and experience and a big, physical presence.
“Having ‘Moose’ as cappy, he has judgment on calls and we back him 100 percent and trust his judgment,” Dominic Akina said. “His game play is really good. It helps to have a big guy like him for our line outs and scrums. He really pushes us to be better. He’s nonstop moving for 80 minutes. To have big guys like that moving for us smaller guys, there’s no complaints.”
Leadership has been paramount for the SaberCats’ success.
“Absolutely, there’s a quite a few of us all buying into the same thing,” Den Hoedt said. “We have multiple leaders on this team, all buying in. We all work well together.”
Den Hoedt signed previously with LA Giltinis in 2021 after playing for a national rugby championship for Brisbane City and NSW Country Eagles.
Den Hoedt played 987 minutes in 14 starts in 2023 for the SaberCats.
He played 841 minutes in 16 starts with one try in 2022 for LA. He had 13 starts with one try in 1,107 minutes and 16 matches in 2021
The Brisbane native from Queensland, Australia has also played for Sunnybank, the Randwick Rugby Club and was a team captain in the Shute Shield.
He has instilled leadership into the SaberCats this season again.
“I’ve had more of a leadership role than anything,” Den Hoedt said. “It’s all about the team and what’s best for the team.”
The SaberCats have set a goal of winning the Shield for the first time, and ‘Moose’ is an important part of the push for the postseason.
“There’s plenty to work on,” Den Hoedt said. “We created some great tries, but there’s certainly still some stuff to work on.”
