By Aaron Wilson
Davy Coetzer lined up the kick, getting his steps just right before calmly splitting the uprights to deliver the game-winning points in the final seconds for the Houston SaberCats.
It was hardly a routine road win for the SaberCats as they defeated Rugby Anthem Carolina in Charlotte, N.C., on Coetzer’s penalty kick before running out the clock to close out their opponent.
A 46-45 win boosted the SaberCats to 4-1 overall for the season as they won their fourth match in a row.
“Once we got the penalty kick, I knew we were good,” said Emmanuel Albert, who led the SaberCats with 19 tackles. “I knew Davy would make it. I have trust and faith in my teammates and our ability to pull it out and finish the match.”
The SaberCats built a 24-19 halftime lead that included tries from Seth Smith and Seimou Smith.
Coetzer led the SaberCats with a dozen points, including one try.
“I think everyone’s role has been a theme throughout the season,” Coetzer said. “You try to make an impact. Everyone does their job.”
Overall, it was a challenging match as Carolina has absorbed several close losses this season.
The SaberCats needed every point they could muster to triumph on the road and reach second place in the Western Conference division.
The high standard established by the defending division champs, a 14-2 squad last year, wasn’t quite where the SaberCats hoped it would be in this match.
“Definitely, Carolina has grown a lot since last year,” Coetzer said. “We just didn’t perform to our ability. Discipline wasn’t great. Physicality wasn’t there We got the win. We showed some character. We have to be better to go from good to great. We have to be more technical and clean up somet things. What’s evident in this league is if you’re not on top of your game, you can have a surprise loss.
“It was quite stressful. We just try to do our job. We won the game, but it’s more of a relief. We have standards and the team didn’t play to our ability. It’s good to know everyone feels that way. We can get a win and learn our lessons.”
The SaberCats experienced that during a season-opening setback to the Chicago Hounds after dominating one week before during a lopsided preseason scrimmage.
Nonetheless, the SaberCats earned this win.
They had 10 carries from Albert and nine apiece from Seth Smith and Louritz van der Schyff, who led the team with 60 meters made.
Juan-Dee Oliver had a team-high 60 passes.
And the SaberCats also got tries from Coetzer, Johan Momsen, Juan-Dee Oliver, Jeremy Misailegalu and Ronan Murphy.
“I definitely agree with Davy,” Albert said. “We definitely didn’t perform up to our standards and what we know we can bring to the table. That’s not to discredit Carolina at all, but we didn’t play up to the standard of our team. It just wasn’t gelling. To come out with the win, I’m truly grateful for that learning curve.”
The SaberCats have built a winning streak and still haven’t played their best rugby yet.
“We definitely haven’t put on a full 80-minute performance and done what we know we can bring to the table,” Albert said. “We’re building. The season is long. We need to keep it up and keep building as we go forward.
“We got a little bit lax in our thinking that we had the win in the bag. They scored late to put them up, but we did well to win and we have that willpower.”
The SaberCats are back in action and back at home against the undefeated San Diego Legion, the leaders in the Western Conference, on Saturday night, which features and International theme.
“We can’t wait to get back out there in front or our fans,” Albert said. “It’s always heartwarming to play in front of our crowd.”
