By Aaron Wilson
For the Houston SaberCats, a second consecutive loss has prompted an introspective reaction to the latest setback.
A 31-22 road loss to the Miami Sharks dropped the SaberCats to 5-3 overall. While they remain narrowly in first place in the Western Conference division, this isn’t the kind of rugby the defending division champs expect from themselves.
“We didn’t do a whole lot,” team captain Nathan Den Hoedt said. “We did a few things, some tries, and we set up some good plays. For the most part, we were very passive on defense. We were quite soft, had a lot of soft tackles and allowed them to skin us on the edges quite a few times. We didn’t play at all like we had planned on playing and trained to play. It was a very disappointing performance, all in all.”
Den Hoedt scored a late try in the 79th minute to close the gap, but it was a case of too little, too late for the SaberCats.
Kicking game issues for the second week in a row were a factor in the loss.
Rufus McClean scored a try in the 66th minute before a missed conversion.
Drew Wild also scored a try in the first half.
“We just didn’t show up,” Wild said. “Mentally, we weren’t quite there. We just didn’t show up, really. It was just one of those days. We didn’t have our ‘A’ game and now it’s been two weeks in a row. We didn’t put out a performance we’re proud of. We really need to get on top of that Monday.
“I’m quite frustrated, but, then, again, we’ve shown so much potential in previous weeks. We need to show that every week. We’ve beaten top teams. We need to play that way every week. I can’t pinpoint one area of the game, but we need to tune up and be better in the moment.”
Sam Tuifua led the SaberCats with 21 carries followed by 15 for Wild and 13 for Johan Momsen.
Wild led all players with 117 meters made, and Andre Warner led the way with 91 passes.
Emmanuel Albert led the SaberCats with 11 tackles.
The SaberCats return to action Saturday at home against the Nola Gold.
“It’s absolutely correctable,” Den Hoedt said. “I actually don’t think there are a lot of things we need to change. As far as the mental space, we just need to be ready from the first whistle to the last whistle and switch that on completely. If we approach every game like it’s a final, that mentality will steer us.
“We have the blueprint week in and week out from the coaches giving it to us. Mentally, we’re not there 100 percent right now. It’s been pretty evident the last two weeks. We certainly have the players capable of doing what we have to do to perform.”
