Toronto Arrows could not maintain lead in loss against NOLA Gold

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Toronto Arrows vs NOLA Gold as the Toronto Arrows could not maintain lead

The Toronto Arrows could not maintain their lead and lost at the hands of the NOLA Gold. The Arrows, unlike most other games they played this year, started the game strong and looked like the better team. However, they did not take advantage of their opportunities, as they only led by three in the first half. It was too little, too late, as the Arrows did try to mount a comeback that fell just short.

Toronto Arrows could not maintain lead and closed out season with a home loss

Toronto Arrows made too many turnovers

Truth be told, the Arrows made too many turnovers. This really went to bite them in the second half.

  • The Toronto Arrows stole the ball twice from NOLA Gold but kept giving the ball back to them late in the Arrows’ half. As a result, Morley Wheeler scored a try for New Orleans in the second half.
  • Arrows committed a knock-on in the 53-minute, four minutes later Tom Florence scored his second try for New Orleans.

In addition, Shane O’Leary turned over the ball in a dangerous area of the field and all Kenneth Jinkins had to do was touch the ball in the Arrows try zone to put the game out of reach. He was not able to do that, which played a role in the Arrows scoring a try and hence the bonus point a few minutes afterwards.

Toronto Arrows did not take advantage of their scoring opportunities

There were a lot of times in the game, especially in the first half, where the Arrows could have scored. Toronto was by far the better team in the first half but was only up by three points, which was a problem in the second half.

  • The Toronto Arrows thought they scored in the 11-minute but were called off because of a turnover as James O’Neill dropped the ball.
  • Mitch Richardson and O’Leary dropped the ball in the latter stages of the first half.

It is disappointing, but this is one of the things the Arrows have had trouble with this season. Even with the number of scoring chances, Toronto has a hard time getting past the try line. This is something Toronto will need to work on as the 2024 MLR season starts early next year.

The NOLA Gold was more clinical with their offence

The NOLA Gold deserved credit for the win. Despite being heavily outplayed in the first half, they still found a way to score a try in the first half thanks to Cam Dolan’s fantastic pass to Tom Florence for the try. After that, the momentum was on NOLA Gold’s side.

  • The first try in the second half scored by Harley Wheeler happened because of a fantastic passing passage play. Sebastiano Villani started off the play, with Jordan Trainor receiving the ball before passing it to Wheeler for the try. It was probably the best try New Orleans scored.
  • Also, the ability to get past the Arrows’ defence was another big reason for New Orleans’ success, as Florence got past Toronto’s defence and Alex Loputi overpowered the Arrows’ defenders to score.

Credit should be given to New Orleans, they had to travel to Toronto after a long trip from Arlington, Texas. They were able to get wins in both of those games. However, it is also unfortunate as it was too little, too late, as the Gold, like the Arrows, also did not make the 2024 MLR Playoffs.

Game Summary

The Arrows should be given credit for starting the game well. Canadian, Mitch Richardson, was probably the Arrows best player. He had one try and could have had another. Toronto also looked motivated to start the game and wanted to end the season strong. Unfortunately, they were not able to do that.

For both these teams, they will look to the future now, as the MLR Draft is coming up in August. The Arrows unfortunately finished with the worst record in the league, but that also means they will get a high draft pick in August.

Future State of the Toronto Arrows

Toronto Arrows at York Lions Stadium

The Arrows are likely not going anywhere. There was still a sizeable crowd at York Lions Stadium, despite the bad season Toronto had this year. Last Word on Rugby had the chance to catch up with Rahul Srinivasan, the Chief Commercial Officer of the Arrows. This is what he said about the facility at York Lions Stadium:

“Yeah, York, and our partners at the university have always been supportive. It’s a great venue for us in terms of the size and quality of the pitch that we have. It’s located just steps from the TTC station. So, I think it served us a really, really good home for the arrows. And I think will continue to really support the arrows and continue to grow in the city of Toronto.”

What is really important is that this is the first time the Arrows played two straight years at home. They played at home in 2019, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic, did not start playing at home until 2022. It will take some time still for the Arrows to find a foothold in this market. So far, even though the Arrows did not have the best of seasons, there does seem to be a loyal crowd ready to support the Arrows team and organization.

Toronto Arrows Jersey Partner with TIRF Rugby

This is also what he said about what he has learned now after working with TIRF Rugby for a large part of the year this year:

“TIRF will always be very important to the Toronto Arrows mission. Being such an active organization in Toronto, and most importantly, bringing new people or new participants into the sport of rugby will always be important. So having an organization that is local, that is focused on removing barriers to the sport, specifically, increasing the number of people playing rugby in the city is always going to be important to us. So, we will always look to work together and find ways to support each other.”

Note the part where he said that it is “removing barriers to the sport.” This might mean that they have a long-term vision for where they want the Arrows and TIRF Rugby partnership to go in terms of developing players. That is being seen with the Arrows Academy as they have been playing competitive games against other teams in Canada.

What will 2024 look like for the Toronto Arrows?

That is a question that nobody knows. Will there be some competition in MLR with the potential Vancouver team? While it is a big if with the potential Vancouver MLR team coming to fruition, it may not happen until after 2024, but it is still something to consider. There is also the potential return of the Toronto Wolfpack or some might say, Toronto Wolfpack 2.0, but it is important to note that the team will likely be very different from the original Wolfpack that played in the English rugby league system.

What is also known is that the Arrows may have to make some big changes this off-season. Even when considering the COVID-19 year in 2021, this was the Arrows’ worst year on the field as they did not win a game at home this year. Yes, injuries played a big part in the Arrows losing, but maybe getting somebody that can help Arrows score tries consistently could be the first thing to look at.

MLR Playoffs Are Starting Soon

Toronto and New Orleans may not be in the playoffs picture, but there are teams that did make the MLR playoffs.

The Seattle Seawolves will host the Houston SaberCats on June 24 in the Western Conference eliminator, while the New York Ironworkers will play at home against the Old Glory DC in the Eastern Conference eliminator. Both games are at 6:00 p.m. ET. Both games will be shown on FS2

The winners of the Western Conference eliminator will play on the road against the San Diego Legion on July 2 at 6:30 p.m. ET. This is while the winner of the Eastern Conference eliminator will also play on the road against the New England Free Jacks on July 1 at 5:30 p.m. ET. Both of these games will be Conference Final games. These games will be shown on FS1. The winner of both Conference Final games will play on July 8 at a neutral venue at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview, Illinois. It is also home to MLR’s Chicago Hounds. That game will happen at 3:00 p.m. ET and will be shown live on FOX.

 

Photo Credit: Barry McCluskey of the Toronto Arrows on June 17, 2023.

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