League: Major League Rugby

Founded in 2017 with it’s inaugural season played in 2018, Major League Rugby (MLR) is the highest level of professional rugby in North America.

2024 – RD 9: Utah Warriors v Old Glory DC

The Utah Warriors host Old Glory DC at Zion’s Bank Stadium in a cross conference clash, with the Warriors looking to get their season back on track after a sluggish start, and the Flags looking to right the ship after a few poor weeks.

Maybe the altitude affected the guests, but the Warriors came out flying, with a Frank Lochore try opening the scoring, followed by a Dylan Nel score 6 minutes later and a Mike Kruse score just after the 1st half hydration break to give the hosts a 21-0 lead early. The Flags had shown little pushback during this period and were unable to find extended periods of possession until the half hour mark, when a number of advantages eventually led to Jack Iscaro rumbling over to get the guests on the board.

The second half started as a much more even affair, with the score at 21-5. There was no scoring in the first 10 minutes, but Kieran McClea got on the end of a Nic Souchon offload to secure the try BP for Utah. McClea’s try was the only score until after the hydration break, when the Warriors seemed to either take their foot off, or begin to tire. Jason Robertson converted his own try in the 62nd minute, before DC were awarded a penalty try 8 minutes later to bring the score to 28-19. Joel Hodgson slotted the first penalty kick for points of the game for Utah in the 78th minute, to just keep their lead insurmountable.

The Warriors made a crucial mistake in the final minute, kicking the ball off thinking the game was over, before referee Federico Anselmi declared that there were 30 seconds left, and awarded the lineout to DC right on the Utah line. The DC forwards got to work, and Martin Vaca trundled over on the back of a rolling maul to secure both a try BP and losing BP for the Flags, who will be happy to salvage something from this game given the poor first half.

The Warriors record back-to-back victories at home, and take this one 31-24.

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Lole Veimau

Californian hooker Lolenisi Veimau played in Major League Rugby between 2024-2025. He represented the San Diego Legion for his entire MLR career.

Veimau is a San Diego native. He has played rugby from a young age, representing the San Diego Aztecs Youth Rugby Club. He played club rugby with Old Mission Beach Athletic Club and attended Point Loma Nazarene University. He was signed by the Legion on a homegrown player contract in 2024, where he earned his MLR debut off the bench. When MLR announced the full 2025 roster for the San Diego Legion, Veimau was included, returning for his 2nd season with the Legion.

2024 – RD 8: San Diego Legion v Utah Warriors

The Utah Warriors travel to Snapdragon Stadium to face the San Diego Legion in a Western Conference Clash during Round 8 of the 2024 MLR season!

The home side got on the board early through the boot of Lincoln McClutchie, before Utah’s Saia Uhila was given a yellow card in the 16th minute. With a man advantage, Legion scrumhalf Connor Tupai found a gap in the Warriors’ line and darted through for a 7-pointer to give the hosts a 10-0 lead at the first water break. The Warriors would fight back with a try from the talismanic Caleb Makene just before the half hour mark and a Joel Hodgson penalty before HT evened things up at 10-10 before Michael Manson scored a textbook Manson try to give the Warriors a 10-17 lead at the break.

The Legion came out flying in the 2nd half, evening the score at 17-17 through a Tevita Tameilau try before the Warriors repeated their success from late in the first half, with a penalty kick from Joel Hodgson then a Michael Manson try, his 2nd of the game. Another Hodgson pen took the score to 17-30 to the Warriors, before the Legion could find their footing and hit back. 56 minutes in, Mikey Te’o jumped on a loose ball in the Warriors try zone for a (somewhat fortuitous) try, before Cyrille Cama burst through the Utah line a few minutes later. A successful conversion took the score to 29-30, before a 65th minute pen from McClutchie gave the Legion the lead. The Warriors wouldn’t stay quiet however, and another Hodgson penalty restored Utah’s 1pt lead with minutes to play, and the Legion just could not find a way through. The Utah Warriors take a surprise 32-33 victory to get their season back on track and really shake things up in the Western Conference!

The San Diego Legion salvage 2pts but suffer their first defeat at Snapdragon Stadium, and their first defeat at home since 2022.

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2024 – RD 8: Chicago Hounds v Rugby FC LA

Rugby FC LA travel to Illinois to face the Chicago Hounds at Seatgeek Stadium in a cross-conference clash during Round 8 of the 2024 MLR season.

The Hounds started quick as they have done many times this season, scoring through Nate Augspurger just 2 minutes in, before Ben Lendry rumbled over for a 7-pointer in the 11th minute, and Dylan Fawsitt picked up his 6th try in his last 3 games in the 16th minute before RFCLA had even woken up. Once they found their footing, LA hit back with two tries of their own through Rory van Vugt & Dan Hollinshead, but Ben Landry secured his 2nd of the game a few minutes before HT to give the Hounds a 26-12 lead at the break.

The 2nd half started pretty calm, with both sides evaluating their opponents defence and launching some probing attacks, before Niall Saunders darted through a gap at the breakdown for another 7-pointer for LA to reduce their deficit to 7pts. A few minutes later, Chicago hit back with a 1-2 punch from wingers Nate Augspurger and Noah Brown within a minute of each other, and a hard hitting try from Mason Flesch 10 minutes later put the game beyond reach for LA, now trailing 47-19. While the game may have been over, LA did not admit defeat. A Semi Kunatani run found paydirt for another 7-pointer, and Jack Shaw dotted down late to make the score a more respectable 47-31, before Nate Augspurger found his hattrick try at the death to take the Hounds over 50pts for the 2nd week in a row.

The Hounds take this one 54-31, recording back-to-back home victories and 3 wins in a row. They now sit at 4 wins on the season, setting a club record and passing the 3 wins they achieved in the whole of the 2023 season.

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2024 – RD 8: NOLA Gold v Miami Sharks

The NOLA Gold host the Miami Sharks at the Gold Mine for a Southern Showdown in the Eastern Conference during Round 8 of the 2024 MLR season!

The Gold come into this game on the back of 3 games with 0 table points, and desperate for a win to halt their skid. The 1-5 Sharks, despite being an expansion side, have had some close games go against them and will be looking for a big win on the road. The game went back and forth for much of the first half, with the lead changing hands a number of times before a Reinaldo Piussi try gave Miami the lead, and a Videla penalty extended that lead to 15-22 at the half.

The 2nd half started badly for the hosts, with OJ Noa sent to the bin early, before Miami’s Nick Grigg dotted down for his 2nd, and Marcos Young scored a 7pointer just two minutes later to take the Sharks to a 15-36 lead. The Gold would hit back through a Jonah Mau’u try in the 56 minute, before the Sharks went a man down as Alec McDonnell was sent to the bin. Taniela Filimone grabbed another try for NOLA to secure the try BP, before things descended into chaos. Nick Grigg was given a yellow to take the Sharks down to 13 men, before Jarred Adams was awarded a yellow to hamstring the Gold, and Nick Feakes was given a straight red in his NOLA Gold return for an off the ball incident. The Sharks emerged from the chaos as 27-42 victors, their first road victory in MLR.

The Gold continue to skid and may face further suspensions following Feakes’ incident. With a BP victory for the Sharks, this game definitely shook up the Eastern Conference!

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2024 – RD 8: New England Free Jacks v Seattle Seawolves

The MLR-leading Seattle Seawolves travel across the country to face the Eastern Conference-leading New England Free Jacks in the clash of the Conference Leaders!

The Seawolves took the first points of the game early through the boot of Mack Mason, before Wayne van der Bank struck back with the first try of the afternoon to give the Free Jacks the lead. Both sides struggled to find consistent possession through the first half, but the Seawolves kept the scoreboard rolling with 3 penalty kicks, followed by a Dan Kriel try on the stroke of half time to give the visitors a 7-14 lead at the break.

The second half was a different story. Although it took 13 minutes, the Seawolves scored twice in quick succession through Kara Pryor on his Season and Seawolf debut, and Captain Riekert Hattingh tearing down the wing, to rattle the hosts and take a 7-26 lead. The Free Jacks wouldn’t roll over however, and began to find their feet as the game entered the final quarter. The hosts were awarded a penalty try with 12 minutes to go, and Joe Taufete’e was given a yellow card to boot. Kaleb Geiger found a gap in the line and the former NY prop showed surprising speed 4 minutes later, which Jayson Potroz converted to bring the Free Jacks within 8. In possession and attacking once more with the clock in the red, the hosts attempted to score 1 more try to secure both bonus points, but it wasn’t to be as the ball was intercepted and the game ended.

The Seattle Seawolves stay atop of MLR, and win the 2024 iteration of the ‘Coffee Cup’, a trophy contested annually between the Seattle Seawolves (Starbucks) and the New England Free Jacks (Dunkin’ Donuts).

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Tomalati Ma’afu

Tongan back row Tomalati ‘Michael’ Ma’afu played in Major League Rugby between 2024-2025. He represented Anthem RC for his entire MLR career.

Born in Tonga and raised in Arizona, Ma’afu attended Saguaro High School where he was a First-Team All-Conference and All-Region defensive lineman as a senior, helping Saguaro to a 5th consecutive AIA 4A state title in 2017. Saguaro did not have a rugby program so Ma’afu played with Arcadia High School as a junior, competing on state, regional, and national level teams, having picked up rugby while young in Tonga.

Ma’afu continued his football journey into university at the University of Idaho as a defensive tackle in 2018, before transferring to Carroll College in Montana, where he continued to play football. Ma’afu is no stranger to rugby, having played with Tempe Rugby Club as well as the San Diego Legion Academy, and signed with Anthem RC just before their inaugural season in 2024. He started 5 of his 6 games for Anthem in 2024, completing 55 tackles and running for just shy of 300m gained in possession. On January 21st, 2025, Anthem RC announced their complete 2025 roster which included Tomalati Ma’afu, who returns for a second season in MLR.