This page summarises the 2022 Major League Rugby Season, the 5th season in MLR history. It includes regular season standings for both the Eastern and Western Conferences, the Championship Series structure for the season as well as the playoff results, as well as the League-leaders in various categories, the All-MLR Teams, and Individual League Awards.
The 2022 season saw the addition of the Dallas Jackals, after postponing their entry into the league from 2021 due to complications with the COVID-19 pandemic. The Jackals joined the Western Conference and brought the number of teams in MLR to 13, and through the 2024 season this remains the biggest that Major League Rugby has ever been in terms of number of teams. This addition brings the Western Conference to 7 teams, while the East remained at 6.
Dallas‘ entry into the league was turbulent. They announced Australian Michael Hodge as their head coach who had to attempt to coach virtually due to visa delays, and ultimately had to part ways with the team. This meant that GM Elaine Vassie stepped in to take over as Head Coach, the first female Head Coach in MLR history. These issues were compounded when a walking bridge collapsed with many of the Jackals squad on it, resulting in a significant amount of injuries that forced Dallas to bring in fringe players from other teams on an emergency basis just to field a roster.
Another important change for the 2022 season was the addition of Television Match Officials (TMO) to assist with refereeing and borderline calls. Also of note, the Toronto Arrows finally returned home after spending the 2021 season in Atlanta, and would play their first MLR game in Toronto in over 1000 days!
Regular Season
Eastern Conference
| Position | Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | PF | PA | +/- | Try Bonus | Losing Bonus | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | 16 | 13 | 0 | 3 | 454 | 328 | +126 | 8 | 2 | 62 |
| 2 |  | 16 | 11 | 0 | 5 | 468 | 340 | +128 | 11 | 2 | 57 |
| 3 |  | 16 | 11 | 0 | 5 | 433 | 408 | +25 | 10 | 2 | 56 |
| 4 |  | 16 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 414 | 390 | +24 | 7 | 2 | 41 |
| 5 |  | 16 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 358 | 517 | -159 | 6 | 3 | 25 |
| 6 |  | 16 | 3 | 0 | 13 | 423 | 591 | -168 | 8 | 3 | 23 |
Western Conference
| Position | Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | PF | PA | +/- | Try Bonus | Losing Bonus | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | 16 | 12 | 0 | 4 | 475 | 229 | +246 | 9 | 1 | 58 |
| 2 |  | 16 | 11 | 0 | 5 | 443 | 283 | +160 | 9 | 1 | 54 |
| 3 |  | 16 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 408 | 393 | +15 | 8 | 4 | 48 |
| 4 |  | 16 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 435 | 354 | +81 | 6 | 4 | 46 |
| 5 |  | 16 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 475 | 428 | +47 | 8 | 3 | 43 |
| 6 |  | 16 | 5 | 0 | 11 | 424 | 395 | +29 | 6 | 7 | 33 |
| 7 |  | 16 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 198 | 752 | -554 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
PA = Points Against
+/- = Points Difference
Points
4 points for winning a match
2 points for drawing a match
0 points for losing a match
1 losing bonus point for losing by 7 points or fewer
1 try bonus point for scoring 4 tries or more
The Dallas Jackals’ inaugural MLR season was historic, but for all the wrong reasons. It was the second time a team had recorded a 0-16 record (following Austin in 2019), but with a points differential of -554 and only 4 points in the standings, this is widely considered to be the worst season in MLR history, thanks in part to the adversity pointed out in the introduction to this page.
This was not the main talking point of the season, however. On 3rd June 2022, ahead of Round 18 (the final round of regular season play), MLR announced that the Austin Gilgronis, #1 in the Western Conference, were disqualified from the 2022 Championship Series for alleged violation of League Rules believed to be related to breaches of the Salary Cap. Four days later on 10th June 2022, just after the final round of regular season play, MLR announced that Austin‘s sister team the LA Giltinis (#2 in the Western Conference and the reigning champions), were also disqualified from the 2022 Championship Series, again for alleged violation of League Rules believed to be related to breaches of the Salary Cap. Both Austin and LA were owned by Australian Adam Gilchrist, the man behind the F45 Gym chain. Following the 2022 season on 25th October 2022, MLR announced that neither LA or Austin would compete in the 2023 MLR season and although a team did return to LA in 2024, it was a completely separate entity. No team has returned to Austin since.
Championship Series
The 2022 Championship Series introduced a new playoff format to MLR, expanding the Series to 3 rounds and 5 games in total. The top 3 teams from each conference qualified for the post-season, with the #1 seed in each conference earning a bye to the Conference Finals. The #2 and #3 seeds would face each other in the ‘Eliminator’ round, with the winner advancing to face the #1 seed in the Conference Finals. The winners of the Eastern and Western Conference move on to face-off in the Championship Final and a chance to lift the Shield. Please see below a list of all Championship Series games for 2022:
- 2022 – Eastern Eliminator: Rugby ATL v Rugby New York
- 2022 – Western Eliminator: Seattle Seawolves v San Diego Legion
- 2022 – Eastern Conference Final: New England Free Jacks v Rugby New York
- 2022 – Western Conference Final: Houston SaberCats v Seattle Seawolves
- 2022 – Championship Final: Rugby New York v Seattle Seawolves
The New England Free Jacks finished as the #1 seed in the Eastern Conference with a record of 13-3, a League record at the time. The #2 seed Rugby ATL, 2021’s Runners-up, faced #3 seeded Rugby New York in the Eastern Eliminator, falling 19-26 to New York, who then won a shock victory over the Free Jacks to secure their place in the Championship Final. In the West, the surprise disqualification of both Austin and LA catapulted the Houston SaberCats into the #1 spot, giving them a bye to the Conference Finals. The Seattle Seawolves (#2) and San Diego Legion (#3) found themselves in the post-season and battled it out in the Western Eliminator, with the Seawolves emerging victorious. Seattle then dispatched the SaberCats in the Western Conference Final to book their spot in the final with the chance to lift their 3rd Shield.
The 2022 MLR final was played at Red Bull Arena in New Jersey, the 25,000 seater home of Major League Soccer’s New York Red Bulls. The venue for the final was announced very late, perhaps because MLR had thought that New York would not make the final, or because they had anticipated LA or Austin hosting prior to their disqualification. The late announcement meant that under 2,000 people were in attendance for the game, placing it at the lower end of regular season attendances and by far the lowest Championship Final attendance to date. The hosting Rugby New York were the better side on the day and defeated the Seattle Seawolves by a score of 30-15 to lift their first MLR Shield, the first time the Shield was lifted by an Eastern Conference team. Former All-Black Andy Ellis was named man of the match in what would prove to be the final professional game of his career.
All-MLR Teams
| Number | All-MLR First XV | All-MLR Second XV | Honorable Mention XV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chance Wenglewski (RNY) | Cole Keith (TOR) | Jack Iscaro (DC) |
| 2 | Dylan Fawsitt (RNY) | Dean Muir (HOU) | Marko Janse van Rensburg (ATL) |
| 3 | JP Zeiss (HOU) | Kalolo Tuiloma (RNY) | John-Roy Jenkinson (ATL) |
| 4 | Johan Momsen (ATL) | Dave Dennis (LA) | Samu Manoa (SEA) |
| 5 | Ben Mitchell (SDL) | Isaac Ross (AUS) | Tevita Naqali (DC) |
| 6 | Lance Williams (UTAH) | Hanco Germishuys (LA) | Ben Bonasso (RNY) |
| 7 | Brendon O’Connor (RNY) | Slade McDowall (NE) | Cory Daniel (DC) |
| 8 | Locky McCaffrey (AUS) | Riekert Hattingh (SEA) | Wian Conradie (NE) |
| 9 | JP Smith (SEA) | Harrison Goddard (LA) | Ryan Louwrens (AUS) |
| 10 | Beaudein Waaka (NE) | AJ Alatimu (SEA) | Sam Malcolm (TOR) |
| 11 | Ed Fidow (RNY) | Julian Dominguez (AUS) | Martin Iosefo (SEA) |
| 12 | Billy Meakes (LA) | Jason Emery (RNY) | Le Roux Malan (NE) |
| 13 | Mark O’Keeffe (AUS) | Tavite Lopeti (SEA) | Fa’asiu Fuatai (RNY) |
| 14 | Mitch Wilson (NE) | Andrew Coe (RNY) | Harley Wheeler (NOLA) |
| 15 | Duncan Matthews (SEA) | Joe Pietersen (SDL) | Renata Roberts-Te Nana (DC) |
2022 Player Leaderboards & Accolades
Scoring Leaderboards – Top Points Scorers & Try Scorers
| Pos. | Player | Team | Points | Separator | Pos. | Player | Team | Tries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AJ Alatimu | | 166 | 1 | Ed Fidow | | 12 | |
| 2 | Beaudein Waaka | | 151 | 2 | Riekert Hattingh | | 10 | |
| 3 | Joe Pietersen | | 146 | – | Dean Muir | | 10 | |
| 4 | Sam Malcolm | | 100 | 4 | Marko Janse van Rensburg | | 9 | |
| 5 | Mack Mason | | 91 | – | Peni Lasaqa | | 9 | |
| 6 | Kurt Coleman | | 83 | – | Junior Sa’u | | 9 | |
| 7 | Davy Coetzer | | 79 | 7 | Hanco Germishuys | | 8 | |
| – | Rohan Saifoloi | | 79 | – | Slade McDowall | | 8 | |
| 9 | Joaquin de la Vega Mendia | | 68 | – | Mark O’Keeffe | | 8 | |
| 10 | Jack Heighton | | 67 | – | William Talataina | | 8 |
Other Leaderboards – Tackling & Meters Gained
| Pos. | Player | Team | Tackles | Separator | Pos. | Player | Team | Meters Gained |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cory Daniel | | 255 | 1 | Billy Meakes | | 1,553m | |
| 2 | Michael Smith | | 240 | 2 | JP du Plessis | | 1,533m | |
| 3 | Brendon O’Connor | | 238 | 3 | Duncan Matthews | | 1,489m | |
| 4 | Slade McDowall | | 232 | 4 | Ed Fidow | | 1,418m | |
| 5 | Josh Larsen | | 231 | 5 | Le Roux Malan | | 1,383m | |
| 6 | James Malcolm | | 229 | 6 | Renata Roberts-Te Nana | | 1,351m | |
| 7 | Joe Johnston | | 220 | 7 | Fa’asiu Fuatai | | 1,350m | |
| 8 | Riekert Hattingh | | 201 | 8 | Will Leonard | | 1,267m | |
| 9 | Bailey Wilson | | 201 | 9 | Mark O’Keeffe | | 1,215m | |
| 10 | Stan van den Hoven | | 200 | 10 | Te Rangatira Waitokia | | 1,179m |
Christian Poidevin & Stan South also finished with 200 tackles, tying them in 10th with Stan van den Hoven.
End of Season Awards
| Award | Recipient | Team |
|---|---|---|
| MLR Player of the Year | Beaudein Waaka | |
| MLR Forward of the Year | Brendon O’Connor | |
| MLR Back of the Year | Billy Meakes | |
| MLR Rookie of the Year | Tavite Lopeti | |
| MLR Coach of the Year | Scott Mathie | |
| S. Marcus Calloway Award | Andrew Quattrin | |
| Top Points Scorer | AJ Alatimu – 166pts | |
| Top Try Scorer | Ed Fidow – 12 Tries | |
| Top Tackler | Cory Daniel – 255 Tackles | |
| Top Meter Eater | Billy Meakes – 1,553m | |
2022 was the first season in which the S. Marcus Calloway Community Impact Award was awarded.