Seawolves shutout Houston SaberCats from try line in 14-9 victory
Seattle breaks down Western Conference leader
By Uriah Aguon, edited by Charles Hamaker
Tukwila, WA - Our Seattle Seawolves love to keep their fans on their toes.
Seattle defeated the MLR Western conference leading Houston SaberCats by a final score of 14-9 on Friday, May 23rd, at Starfire Stadium.
Before the match, Seattle inducted its co-owner and founder, Adrian Balfour, into the Seawolves Legends Series. Balfour hails from County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. He was one of the founding members of the Major League Rugby board before establishing a franchise in Seattle.
Seattle needed a win to stay in the running for the postseason. Recovering from a lost lead, the Seawolves did what they needed to do and kept their hunt for the postseason alive. With this critical victory and their recent surge, the Seawolves have pushed themselves up into the third seed of the Western conference
Match Recap:
Houston built its lead on Seattle's small mistakes, earning two penalty kicks in the tenth and 22nd minutes.
The first penalty was for the Seawolves not releasing in the ruck. Forced within ten meters of its try line, Seattle kicked for a lineout on its 22-meter line. Team captain and openside flanker Riekhart Hattingh knocked the ball back to lock Rhyno Herbst and blindside flanker Charles Elton, but the backrow forwards were locked in a contest for the ball against Houton’s tighthead prop Pono Davis, lock Nathan den Hoedt, and blindside flanker Johan Momsen.
Seattle's second penalty was for collapsing the scrum. Houston drove within inches of the try line through phases, but the ball was deemed unplayable when scrum-half Jay Renton struggled to access it in the final breakdown of the play. The SaberCats were awarded the scrum, which collapsed twice before the penalty was called.
Houston's fly-half, and former Seattle player, AJ Alatimu was handed the ball for both kicks and scored the opening points of the match.
The match quickly turned into a battle of physical wills, each team trying to outmatch the other in strength, speed, and endurance. Seattle’s play action on offense was intense and focused on gaining distance with shorter runs and passes than in previous matches. The most notable runs for distance in the first half were down the touchline by right wing Mikaele Kruse, splices down the middle by Orr and Boyer, and box kicks by fullback Duncan Matthews.
Fierce as ever to stay in the game, Seattle took the lead in the 36th minute, scoring just left of the goal post via scrum-half Nick Boyer. Overtaking Houston territory ruck by ruck, the Seawolves found themselves three short runs from the SaberCats’ try zone. Boyer sent the ball out to fly-half Rodney Iona, who passed back to tighthead prop Juan Pablo Zeiss, who offloaded to loosehead prop Cameron Orr. Crowded by three Houston defenders, Orr dumped the ball back into Boyer’s hands.
Nick Boyer’s try in the 35th minute got the Seattle Seawolves on the scoreboard in their eventual 14-9 victory over the Houston SaberCats on Friday, May 23rd, 2025 at Starfire Stadium. (Photo by KBRPhotog provided by the Seattle Seawolves)
Seattle led 7-6 at halftime. The Seawall remained a reckoning powerhouse, fending off pressure from the SaberCats’ offense, despite repeatedly falling onto and behind its 22.
Opening the second half, Houston continued its attempts to penetrate the Seawall; however, the Seawolves left little to no room to work with. Houston had a major opportunity in the 50th minute, when inside center Sam Hill offloaded to outside center Tautalatasi Tasi. Tasi made his way downfield from the ten-meter line, breaking clear from inside center Dan Kriel, Kruse, and Herbst. Boyer and Matthews brought him down just shy of the try line. The play would have continued and delivered Houston’s first try of the match if Tasi had not knocked the ball on as he fell.
Seattle lost its lead in the 62nd. Houston gained another penalty kick for Seattle flanker Devin Short, subbed in for Hattingh, not rolling out of the ruck. Alatimu made the kick and retook the lead for Houston, 9-7.
The Seawolves’ attack became more aggressive, firing into the SaberCats’ defense in waves. In response, Tasi leaped forward to intercept the ball between Iona and Matthews and break Seattle’s passing line. After a TMO review in the 70th minute, Tasi was yellow-carded for an intentional knock-on. Seattle gained a penalty kick. Iona lined up the ball just behind the halfway line, but he missed the goal post to the left.
Jesse Mackail’s try in the 74th minute gave the Seattle Seawolves a late lead in their eventual 14-9 victory over the Houston SaberCats on Friday, May 23rd, 2025 at Starfire Stadium. (Photo by KBRPhotog provided by the Seattle Seawolves)
With a one-man advantage, Seattle found a lineout within ten meters of Houston's try line in the 75th. Hooker Jesse Mackail — subbed in for Kerron van Vuuren — peeled from the maul to retake the lead for Seattle. Iona cleared the conversion kick to secure Seattle’s win.
The Seawall’s performance against the SaberCats was a true testament to its grit. Houston managed to invade Seattle territory time after time, yet not a single try was scored by the visiting team, and the SaberCats were pushed back into their territory on every play.
What’s next?
With two games remaining, crunch time continues for the Seawolves on their hunt for the postseason. Seattle’s next match is against the New England Free Jacks at Veterans Memorial Stadium on Sunday, June 1st, at 11AM PDT.
New England is 9-0-4 with 45 table points. New England challenges the Seawolves after a match against Old Glory DC on May 24th.
Following this victory in a Friday night, Western conference fight, our Seattle Seawolves are 7-1-6 with 42 points. Seattle's previous match against New England was a 27-24 victory on March 8th, the teams’ annual Coffee Cup match. The Seawolves conceded an early lead to the Free Jacks, unable to make full use of their opportunities in the first half. Seattle dominated the second half, its Seawall keeping New England from crossing the 22-meter line the rest of the match. For a season sweep, the Seawolves’ Seawall will need a repeat of tonight’s game, preventing New England from gaining any ground at the try zone and allowing enough room for its offense to build try on top of try.
Instagram: @CirclingSeattleSports Twitter: @CirclingSports Threads: @CirclingSeattleSports Tiktok: @CirclingSeattleSports Facebook: Circling Seattle Sports BlueSky: @circlingseasports.bsky.social
〰️
Instagram: @CirclingSeattleSports Twitter: @CirclingSports Threads: @CirclingSeattleSports Tiktok: @CirclingSeattleSports Facebook: Circling Seattle Sports BlueSky: @circlingseasports.bsky.social 〰️
Check out our previous Seattle Seawolves articles here.
Check out our previous articles written by Uriah Aguon here, and his SPU work here.
Cover photo and photos in this article by KBRPhotog provided by the Seattle Seawolves.
Support the work of Circling Seattle Sports by checking out our merchandise!