Anthem RC vs. California Legion — Week 10 Preview

FINAL HOME MATCH IS A MUST-WIN TO KEEP POSTSEASON DREAMS ALIVE.

Written by Dan Brooks

Must-Win Mentality

There is no dressing it up. Anthem Rugby Carolina’s season comes down to the final two weeks, and it starts right here, Sunday afternoon at American Legion Memorial Stadium, with California Legion the visitors. Win, and Anthem keep their slim playoff hopes alive heading into the last round. Lose, and the curtain falls on a first season that, for all its growing pains, has given Charlotte plenty to be proud of. “This is a win or go home game,” general manager Mark Carney said this week. “We have to get at minimum, a win, and we’re certainly looking for the bonus point to put pressure on New England and DC.”

The arithmetic is simple enough. Anthem sit sixth in the table on 12 points, with New England (16) and Old Glory DC (15) occupying the third and fourth playoff spots above them. A bonus point victory on Sunday would close the gap and leave everything to play for in Week 11. Anything less, and the margins become almost impossible. 

There is, of course, a nice symmetry to this fixture. It was California Legion, back in Week 1 in Los Angeles, who provided the opposition for Anthem’s first ever franchise victory, a 39-26 win that announced this expansion team’s arrival in Major League Rugby. The players have not forgotten that day. “Having turned them over already once this season and getting that first win, that has left an imprint on the guys,” Carney said. “They’re feeding off their memory of that feeling against California.” That emotional fuel matters. Anthem have been at their best this season when the occasion has matched the intensity, the Week 3 home win over Seattle being the other standout example, and it is hard to imagine a bigger occasion than this.

Know The Opponent

California, though, are a different proposition now than the side Anthem faced in March. Coached by Stephen Hoiles and captained by the experienced Jason Damm, the Legion have settled into a pattern this season: dominant at home, dangerous on the road, and capable of scoring from anywhere on the field. Their record reads four wins and four losses, good enough for second place on 24 points, but the wins tell a story of attacking firepower. They put 43 on New England in Week 2, beat Seattle 38-31 in a thriller, dispatched Old Glory twice, and hammered DC 42-10 last weekend in a performance that suggested California are peaking at the right time. The losses, meanwhile, have come against the league’s best: Chicago twice, and a narrow 21-26 defeat at New England in Week 7 that could easily have gone the other way.

Carney has clearly spent the week studying film and knows what is coming. “Their game has evolved,” he said. “They’ve got more of a tactical kicking game now. They look to exploit space and put us on the back foot. They like to quick tap and take advantage of space and they’ll play from anywhere on the field. That is California’s MO. That’s how they like to play.” The message to the Anthem players is clear: discipline and structure will be everything. California thrive on broken play and transition, and if Anthem hand them easy entries into the 22 through lazy penalties, they will be punished.

It is a lesson that was reinforced painfully last Saturday night against New England. Anthem dominated territory and possession for the first 30 minutes, won every scrum, pinned the Free Jacks deep with Karl Keane’s box kicking, and came away with zero points to show for it. The coaching staff opted to chase tries from scrum penalties rather than take the posts, and while the logic was sound given the pressure the pack was generating, the scoreboard told its own story. Carney was candid about the takeaway: “We didn’t capitalize on our opportunities. Some decisions we made to try and continue to put them under pressure instead of taking points and building scoreboard pressure, that probably hurt us in the end. Depending on how that first quarter goes, we may look to the posts this week.” It is a subtle but important shift in approach, and it could make all the difference.

The Storylines

Coach Cuca has named a largely unchanged starting fifteen from last week’s defeat to New England. As expected, Baden Godfrey gets the nod at number eight after his impact off the bench, with Makeen Alikhan shifting to seven and Tesimoni Tonga’uiha at blindside flanker. Co-captains Johan Momsen and Sam Golla anchor the second row, with Alex Maughan taking the vice-captaincy at tighthead prop alongside Alessandro Heaney and Campbell Robb in the front row. Behind the scrum, Karl Keane continues at nine after an excellent first start last weekend, Luke Carty directs at ten, and the midfield pairing of Tom Pittman and Julian Roberts is retained. Conner Mooneyham returns to the right wing, with Erich Storti on the left, and Jordan Trainor at fullback. The bench offers plenty of punch: Oliver Kane, Will Sherman, and Marques Fuala’au all made telling contributions when they came on against the Free Jacks, and Zion Going, Dominic Akina and Malacchi Esdale provide backline cover and pace for the final quarter.

The one vulnerability Carney identified is the kind of big play defending that has cost Anthem at key moments this season. “We have leaked too many points from big plays this season,” he admitted. “They will get a line break, go 80 meters, score and undo all the good we did for the previous 10 phases.” Against a California side that lives for exactly those moments, the margin for error is razor thin. Every player needs to be connected, every defensive line needs to hold its width, and every kick chase needs to be relentless.

But for all the tactical detail, this game will ultimately come down to something more basic: how badly Anthem want it. The squad is fired up. The frustration of the New England defeat has not broken their spirit, it has sharpened it. Johan Momsen’s words after last week ring true: “We’re not out of it yet. All we can do is win the next two games and see what happens.” This is the first of those two games, and it is the last time Anthem will run out at American Legion Memorial Stadium this season. The fans have been outstanding all year, and the players know what that support means. Bring the noise. This one matters.

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