Utah overcomes Anthem Rugby Carolina at home

HERRIMAN — After incurring a rough first 40 minutes of Friday’s match versus visiting Anthem RC, the Utah Warriors finished things up in prime form, taking a resounding 44-19 win under chilly conditions at Zions Bank Stadium.

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The Warriors outscored Anthem 29-0 in the second half, although the lopsided score may not attest to just how dominant they proved throughout those final 40 minutes.

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“That second half we just took the reins off and played some rugby,” said Warriors wing Michael Manson. “We really came and played today, and got the monkey off our back, and had a little fun.”

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Manson was at the center of a lot of the fun, scoring two tries while having two others taken away due to penalties. The native New Zealander showcased his superior speed and rugby savvy throughout the match, punishing defenders on the edge time and again throughout the second half, along with good portions of the first.

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“He’s got some wheels, that fellow,” said Warriors coach Robbie Abel. “It was great for us to give him some space on the edge and we’re going to continue to do that. It was a good thing for us to see.”

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Manson’s two tries were matched by both Frank Lochore and Nic Souchon while all players with Lochore topping off the furious second half scoring, touching the ball down in the try zone as time expired.

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While just about everything went right for the Warriors during the second half, the effort worked in stark contrast to what was put forth in the first, with Anthem taking an unexpected 19-15 lead at the break.

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“It was pretty clear that they wanted it more than us in that first half,” Abel said. “So it’s a good thing we have mirrors in the (locker room), so we could take a good hard look at ourselves and come out and turn it around.”

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Utah started off the scoring in the fourth minute by virtue of Souchon’s first try of the evening to take a 5-0 lead after a missed conversion kick. Anthem took the lead eight minutes later with a try and successful conversion kick before Manson showed off his speed just a minute later to retake the lead for the Warriors at 10-7.

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Mika Kruse accounted for the final Warriors score of the first half, hustling to recover a mishandled off-load in the try zone in the 26th minute, giving Utah a 15-12 lead after another missed conversion kick. Anthem took the lead back at 19-15 in the 38th minute showing an effort and level of play that belies its 0-5 start to the season.

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“We take nothing away from Anthem. Anthem is a (very) good team,” Abel said. “They’re going to be a tough team to beat every week, and they’re going to get some teams.”

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As mentioned, a completely different attitude and effort showed forth on the Warriors end out of the halftime locker room.

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Tries were scored in the 53rd, 57th, 61st, 73rd and 76th minutes, with the aforementioned try scored by Lochore ending the evening with style as time expired.

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Behind all of the furious second half scoring was veteran fly half Joel Hodgson, who came off the bench in the 50th minute to give his team a significant boost in performance.

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“He’s probably the most respected rugby player that I’ve come across,” Manson said. “He walks into a room and gets respect from whoever he’s around. He’s a born leader, a good rugby player, and he knows how to win a game. So it’s (very) handy to have him on our team.”

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Although Hodgson certainly made a difference, Abel was quick to point out the stellar play of Robbie Povey during the first 50 minutes of the match.

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With the win, Utah improves to 2-3 on the season while Anthem drops to 0-6. And although the first five games of the season have dealt the Warriors a good degree of adversity, not to mention the less-than-stellar effort during the first half of Friday’s match, Abel isn’t dwelling on the negatives.

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“I have nothing but excitement for the way we dealt with that adversity,” Abel said. “If you’re going to do anything in rugby, you’ve got to deal with adversity. So it’s all positive for me.”

The Warriors will next travel to take on Dallas a week from Friday.

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