New Zealand flanker Mitch Jacobson played in Major League Rugby between 2023-2024. He represented the New England Free Jacks for his entire MLR career.

A 26yo Jacobson was announced by the Free Jacks in October 2022 and joined from Waikato in NZ’s NPC competition, where he was Captain. Jacobson has been a standout with Waikato since 2015 and has played over 70 games with them. He also represented the Sunwolves in the shortened 2020 Super Rugby season that proved to be the Japanese outfit’s last.

His experience as Waikato skipper made him a strong choice to take over the armband after New England club captain Josh Larsen suffered a season-ending injury early into the 2023 campaign, and Jacobson steered the Free Jacks to their first ever MLR Shield victory when they defeated the San Diego Legion 24-25 in Chicago, with Jacobson himself scoring the first points of the game. He earned a selection in the 2023 All-MLR 2nd XV for his performance in his debut MLR season, scoring 3 tries (including 1 on the final) in 15 games (13 starts), while gaining over 500m in possession and completing 184 tackles (10th in MLR).

On July 17th, 2023, Jacobson was named as part of Waikato’s squad for their 2023 NPC season. Jacobson returned to MLR to help defend the New England Free Jacks’ title. He earned 7 more appearances (4 starts) in an injury-affected season, but still captained the Free Jacks a number of times as they finished the regular season as the #1 seed in the Eastern Conference. Following the MLR season he once again returned to Waikato’s NPC squad.

Achievements

• 2023 MLR Champion: New England Free Jacks
• 2023 All-MLR 2nd XV Selection
• 10th in MLR Tackling: 2023 (184)