By Aaron Wilson
Pote Human will continue to lead the Western Conference division champion SaberCats as their coach and the man responsible for daily operations involving the players and coaching staff.
The SaberCats set a franchise record for victories this past season with a 14-2 mark as the top seeded team in the Major League Rugby playoffs.
And Human has been an instrumental piece in the growth of a team that has made three consecutive playoff appearances and continues to grow in popularity and support from the fans and business community.
“We are extremely excited to have Pote in the position of leading our players, and coaching staff,” SaberCats team president Michael Sheehan said. “He brings a depth of coaching experience and knowledge of the game of rugby. Beyond rugby, Pote is a natural leader who over his three years here with the ‘Cats has built tremendous relationships with our players. We are excited about the 2025 season, and we all wish we were starting again right now. We are in great hands with the leadership of Pote.”
Human has coached the SaberCats for the past three seasons. During that span, the team has displayed major improvements to the roster and culture of the organization with strong teamwork and camaraderie fostered by him and the entire franchise.
The SaberCats’ season ended abruptly in the Western Conference division semifinals with a loss to the Dallas Jackals. That setback provides more motivational fuel for the squad moving forward.
“The coaching staff and players are really excited for next year,” Human said.
About 70 percent of our players are coming back. The players are very motivated to rectify the loss to Dallas. We will work harder and smarter. The coaching staff, all of them stayed, except for our strength and conditioning coach going to work with the Navy Seals. The rest of the people are all still here and looking forward to a great season.
“This was our best season at 14-2, and it was unfortunate to lose our playoff game to Dallas. It really hurt. Most of the guys are coming back. The talent is here. We just need to work a bit harder and smarter. I’m sure we are capable of winning the shield.”
Over the past three years, the SaberCats have made exponential progress.
They’ve qualified for the playoffs each of those years.
They had the best record in Major League Rugby this season.
Now, Human and the SaberCats are looking for even more from themselves as they pull in the same direction again.
“For me, everybody must buy in and it’s about we, not me,” Human said. “It’s about the group, not the individual. If we can get our culture going the same as always, like a family and look out for each other, I really like what we can do together.”
All of that momentum came to a screeching halt in the playoffs, ending their season.
The future is still xtremely bright for the SaberCats, though.
“I think if you were to take a look at where we’re at now versus where we were three years ago, you could really tip your hat to everyone involved, players, coaches, management, it’s awesome to see the growth of this franchise in the last three years,” Christian Dyer said. “Our goal is to win the shield, and we came up short.”
While the roster always changes from year to year, another big change for the organization is the departure of accomplished director Heyneke Meyer. Meyer’s contract expired and he opted to return to South Africa to pursue coaching opportunities in his homeland.
“I’ve known him for a long time, and he’s an amazing person, an amazing coach,” Human said. “His knowledge is incredible. He’s really one of the best coaches in world rugby. He was awesome for the guys. They really bought into his vision and his presence was phenomenal for us. He was great. He asked me to come with him to America. I love Houston. I love the people here, and I’m thankful for him.”
The SaberCats’ fan base is growing, as are their increasingly creative partnerships and promotions.
“We want to do it for all our supporters and our ownership,” Human said. “We owe them. They put a lot of money into this. The only way we can repay them is by winning.”
With a talented roster and several players looking forward to completing unfinished business, the SaberCats’ next step is improvement in the postseason.
They were eliminated in the first round this year and last year, losing to the Seattle Seawolves in 2023. Three seasons ago, they qualified for the Western Conference finals only to lose to Seattle.
“I think it’s definitely a bright future,” leading scorer Davy Coetzer said. “Every year, we’ve improved and we have better players, better support. It’s about figuring out how we can win games in the playoffs. Unfortunately, we didn’t win this match. We keep on building. We take lessons from this year and we look forward to next year.”
