By Aaron Wilson
It was a frustrating night Saturday for the Houston SaberCats, and a reminder of what it takes for them to win every week in Major League Rugby.
The defending Western Conference division champions’ five-game winning streak was snapped by Rugby FC Los Angeles, absorbing a 24-22 loss at home.
Falling to 5-2 overall for the season, the SaberCats had their opportunities in the second half after playing to a 10-10 tie by halftime.
Their 17-10 lead, built on a try by Tautalatasi Tasi and a conversion by A.J. Alatimu was short-lived, though.
Los Angeles scored the next 14 points before the SaberCats answered in the final minute on a try by Pita Anae-Ah-Sue.
Alatimu’s conversion try sailed on a misfire as the match ended.
The biggest difference in the match: a lack of consistency from the SaberCats.
“‘It’s really hard to tell you,” said team captain Johan Momsen, who scored a try. “A lot of things went wrong. I didn’t think we were physical enough. I don’t think we stuck to our plan on attack. A lot of things went wrong. It’s hard to pinpoint now. We were not good today. We tried to fight back at the end, but it was too late. Too many mistakes, especially on defense. It’s just not good enough.”
Tackling wasn’t up to the SaberCats’ usual standards, too.
“100 percent,” said Davy Coetzer, who earned his 50th cap milestone. “I think we are a physical team, but we were way too soft at times. We let them have too many meters. It’s disappointing. Still a lot to work on. This team always bounces back really well. We’ll take the lessons from this game. I don’t think we need to focus on winning as much as we need to focus on the process. We need to stick to the process and winning will take care of itself.”
Andre Warner scored the first points on a try.
The kicking game made the difference in the game as missed conversion attempts cost the SaberCats valuable points.
Los Angeles’ passing game and superior spacing made a difference, too.
“We knew that was coming,” Momsen said. “They like to play the ball wide to wide. Our tackling, we slacked off and they got meters after contract. Our tackling wasn’t good enough today.”
Billy Meakes scored the go-ahead try for Los Angeles followed by a conversion from Reece Macdonald in the 71st minute. They previously tied it on a Will Leonard try and a Macdonald conversion.
Dom Akina led the SaberCats with 15 carries, and Warner had a game-high 70 passes.
Tasi beat seven defenders.
The SaberCats will get back to work Monday.
“We’ll start a new streak,” Momsen said. “We’ll improve. The challenge for us is we can’t have off-days. If you’re going to be a championship team, you can’t have off-days.”
Anae-Ah Sue said the SaberCats need to focus on themselves.
“Most definitely, every week, we want to get better,” he said. “Little errors, our own mistakes cost us the game. Credit to LA, they’re a good side, but we didn’t play to our potential. We need to stick to our process. It will be a hard review Monday, but that’s a start.”
