Keni Nasoqeqe

Fijian born lock/back row Keni Nasoqeqe played in Major League Rugby between 2019-2026. He represented the San Diego Legion (2019-2021),the Houston SaberCats (2022-2025), and the California Legion (2026).

Nasoqeqe played with Belmont Shore RFC between 2015-2019, playing both fifteens and sevens. He signed with the San Diego Legion for the 2019 MLR season, earning 13 caps (12 starts) and scoring 2 tries before injury cut his season short. That year, the Legion would advance to the Championship Final, falling to the Seattle Seawolves 23-26 on the final play of the game. Nasoqeqe would earn 28 caps for the Legion in total across 3 seasons between 2019-2021, starting 22 times and scoring 5 tries. Nasoqeqe signed with the Houston SaberCats for the 2022 season, earning a career high in appearances (17) and starts (14) in his debut season with the ‘Cats, as they earned their first playoff berth in club history. Nasoqeqe earned 29 caps for the SaberCats over his 2 seasons there through 2023. Following the 2023 season, Nasoqeqe represented the USA Eagles in a non-capped game against Stade Toulousain in September.

Keni Nasoqeqe earned his 50th MLR cap on 30th April, 2023, becoming the 48th player in league history to reach the milestone. On 29th December 2023, the Houston SaberCats announced the return of Keni Nasoqeqe for the 2024 MLR season. Nasoqeqe appeared in all 17 games for the SaberCats in their 2024 season as they recorded a MLR-best 14-2 record in the regular season before being stunned by Texas rivals the Dallas Jackals in the Western Conference Semifinals. Nasoqeqe started 13 times and scored a career high 4 tries in 2024, also setting another career high of 407m gained in possession, and passing 500 career tackles completed. On November 26th, 2024, the Houston SaberCats announced the return of Keni Nasoqeqe for his 7th MLR season in 2025, and his 4th with Houston. That season, he earned another 17 appearances for the SaberCats as they advanced to the 2025 Championship Game, with Nasoqeqe coming off the bench for the ‘Cats in all 3 playoff games including the final. He added another 89 tackles completed to take his career total to 630 in 91 MLR appearances through 2025, with just shy of 1,800m gained in possession.

Following the surprise withdrawal of the Houston SaberCats from Major League Rugby following the 2025 season, Keni Nasoqeqe headed back to the west coast, and was announced by the California Legion on 26th February, 2026.

achievements

  • 2025 MLR Runner-Up: Houston SaberCats
  • 48th Player in MLR History to Reach 50 Caps (30th April, 2023)
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2022 – Round 2
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2020 – Round 4
  • 2019 MLR Runner-Up: San Diego Legion
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2019 – Round 16
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2019 – Round 14
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2019 – Round 2

Matai Leuta

California native Matai Leuta played in Major League Rugby between 2022-2024. He has represented the Houston SaberCats (2022), the Chicago Hounds (2023), and the San Diego Legion (2024).

Raised in Fiji until the age of 6, and both a gridiron football & rugby player through high school, Leuta has had an illustrious Sevens career alongside an impressive XVs career. In 2015 he earned his USA Eagles Sevens debut at the Hong Kong Sevens and he would likely have been a member of the 2016 USA Olympic team if not for injury. Following his recovery, Leuta earned his USA Eagles debut against Romania at Bucharest on Nov 12, 2016. Eagle #501 also played against Georgia on June 17, 2017, and against Canada on June 24. His primary focus was Sevens however, and Leuta played with the USA Sevens team between 2015-2021, playing in 215 HSBC World Sevens Series matches over 44 tournaments, scoring 31 tries. He also represented the USA in the 2020 Olympics (played in 2021).

Leuta’s initial move to MLR was announced by the Houston SaberCats in December of 2021, ahead of the 2022 season. He was one of only 3 SaberCats to appear in all 17 games for the club in the 2022 season, starting 16 of them (a team high) including the first Championship Series game in club history, a 27-46 loss to the Seattle Seawolves in the Western Conference Final. The following season, the Chicago Hounds announced the signing of Leuta in mid-April, and he earned an additional 7 MLR caps (6 starts) for the Hounds in their inaugural season, adding 2 tries to take his total to 4 through his first 2 seasons in MLR.

On 29th October 2023, the San Diego Legion announced the signing of Matai Leuta for the 2024 MLR season.

Jake Hidalgo

Indiana native Jake ‘Jax’ Hidalgo played in Major League Rugby between 2021-2024. He represented the Houston SaberCats for his entire MLR career.

Hidalgo played football and ran track as a sprinter during high school, before attending Indiana University – Bloomington between 2012-2017 and picking up rugby in the fall of 2013, earning a Collegiate All-American Honorable Mention during the 2016/17 season. While at IU he also played with the Chicago Lions Sevens side, and moved to the 15s after his graduation, playing against his future team, the Houston SaberCats, in 2018.

Hidalgo moved to Texas in 2020 and began playing with Rugby HTX (now SaberCats 2), the Houston SaberCats academy team. His performance earned him a spot on the SaberCats’ MLR roster for their 2021 campaign, where he earned 9 appearances (5 starts) in his debut season. He remained with the SaberCats for the 2022 season, when he earned 5 further caps (3 starts), scoring 3 tries and earning 2 MLR Team of the Week selections in back to back weeks. In total, Hidalgo earned 14 MLR caps for the SaberCats (8 starts) between 2021-2023, scoring 3 tries.

On 11th January 2024, Hidalgo was included on the American Raptors roster for their 2024 Super Rugby Americas campaign.

achievements:

  • MLR Team of the Week: 2022 – Round 4
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2022 – Round 3