Season: MLR 2025

The 8th season of Major League Rugby, held from15th February to 28th June, 2025

Robbie Abel

Australian coach Robbie Abel coached in MLR between 2021-2026. He has been with the Utah Warriors organisation for his entire MLR career.

The older brother of Chicago Hounds forward Charlie Abel, Robbie was an accomplished hooker in his playing career. He represented the Brumbies, Melbourne Rebels, and Waratahs in Super Rugby, as well as Northland and Auckland in New Zealand’s NPC, and Perth Spirit and the Canberra Vikings in Australia’s NRC in a playing career that spanned 2013-2021. Abel has also represented the Māori All Blacks a handful of times during their 2018 tour of the USA and South America.

In 2021, Abel joined the Utah Warriors coaching staff as Forwards Coach under Head Coach Shawn Pittman, a role that he occupied from 2021-2022 before becoming Utah Warriors Assistant Coach under Greg Cooper in 2022. Abel served as Assistant Coach from 2022 until Greg Cooper stepped away from the Warriors following a successful 2025 campaign, and on July 1st, 2025, the Utah Warriors named Robbie Abel as Head Coach for the 2026 campaign.

 

2025 Championship Final: New England Free Jacks v Houston SaberCats

The Eastern Conference Champs take on the Western Conference Champs as the New England Free Jacks face the Houston SaberCats at Centreville Bank Stadium in Rhode Island for the 2025 Championship!

Although officially a neutral venue, Centreville Bank Stadium in Pawtucket, Rhode Island will definitely feel like a home crowd for the Free Jacks, who are looking for their 3rd straight Shield to cement their legacy as a Dynasty. The Houston SaberCats are looking to ruin the party in their First MLR Championship Final appearance after dominating the Utah Warriors at Zion’s Bank Stadium. Maybe they thrive in adversity? These teams have never met in the postseason, but have met 4 times in the past. The New England Free Jacks are undefeated against the Houston SaberCats.

Both teams went with unchanged matchday 23s to their respective Conference Finals in front of a very Free Jacks friendly crowd of just over 5,700 in Rhode Island. There was a nervy start from both sides, with the early game defined by handling errors. New England opened the scoring early through the boot of Dan Hollinshead, before AJ Alatimu struck back almost immediately. A few minutes later with the score now at 3-3, Brock Webster showed his Sevens skills with a scything run followed by a spectacular offload to Paula Balekana for an easy finish, the first try of the 2025 Championship game and the 14th try of the season for Balekana. Hollinshead added the conversion and another penalty just before the first hydration break, and the Free Jacks seemed in complete control, leading Houston 13-3. Whatever was in the SaberCats’ water bottled clearly woke them up as straight after the hydration break, Max Schumacher finished a try in the corner to bring Houston back into the game. Alatimu nailed the conversion to bring the Western Conference Champs within 3. The teams settled into the game following that schumacher score, but Alatimu had a chance to even the score through his boot, but missed. He would redeem himself before halftime however, as a high ball was mishandled and the Free Jacks reclaimed posession before a kick through saw Brock Webster fly through and caught a sluggish Alatimu out, diving on the ball in the try zone. Somehow, Alatimu managed to keep Webster from grounding it and it was deemed held up following a TMO review, and Houston were lucky to escape to the sheds down 13-10.

The Free Jacks kept the pressure up coming out of the break, and Sam Caird eventually broke through the Houston defence from close range after a heap of phases. Hollinshead slotted the conversion to give the Free Jacks a 20-10 lead and Houston had plenty of work to do. The ‘Cats got back to work and started piling the pressure on New England. Eventually, Drake Davis coming off of his wing barged through a would-be tackler to score right by the posts, giving Alatimu an easy conversion and the Free Jacks lead was cut to 3pts once again. Another Hollinshead penalty took the lead back out to 6pts not long after, but in the 61st minute, Piers van Dadelszen was given a yellow card for a cynical play on his own line. Somehow, the Free Jacks defence held firm and the SaberCats were unable to shift the scoreboard, as time began to work against the Western Conference Champions. Things were made worse when Paula Balekana finished in the corner for his 2nd of the game and record-equalling 15th try of the 2025 season, but Hollinshead missed the conversion taking the score to 28-17 with 10 minutes to play. The pressure was clearly starting to get to the ‘Cats, who struggled to put anything together in the final 10. Handling errors and loose passes kept them in their own half, although a 2nd Max Schumacher score eventually came with two minutes to go. Alatimu rushed the conversion and Houston still needed a converted try to win. The ‘Cats reclaimed possession and began to march down the field, helped by a penalty, but only made it to half-way before the Free Jacks turned the ball over, and Harrison Boyle kicked it to touch to seal a 28-22 victory!

The New England Free Jacks complete the Threepeat, and are the 2025 Major League Rugby Champions!
Brock Webster is deservingly awarded Man of the Match for a brilliant game

v

2025 Western Conference Final: Utah Warriors v Houston SaberCats

The Utah Warriors host the Houston SaberCats in a clash of two of Major League Rugby’s founding teams in the 2025 Western Conference Final!

The #1 team in the west during the regular season, the Utah Warriors survived a spirited comeback by the Seattle Seawolves to take a 23-21 victory in their Western Conference Semifinal, securing their first ever postseason victory. The Houston SaberCats, who finished 2nd in the west in the regular season, eventually recorded their first ever playoff victory as well . Emerging as 27-21 victors over a tough Rugby FC LA side after their game was delayed by a day due to inclement weather. That was the 4th playoff game in team history, and finally they manage a win, in front of a home crowd, too.

This is the first time these sides have met in the postseason. They have met 14 times in the past, with the SaberCats holding an 8-6 lead in the head-to-head series. The most recent meeting was a comfortable 40-19 victory for Houston back in Round 14. That was at SaberCats Stadium however. The Houston SaberCats have had the Utah Warrior’s number all season and unfortunately for the hosts, that stayed the case in this game. Almost straight away, the SaberCats were on the front foot. They opened the scoring after only 3 minutes through Andre Warner and the Warriors didn’t seem to have any response. Things got worse as Warriors Fullback Jordan Trainor was helped from the pitch 16 minutes in, but Utah veteran Lance Williams crossed for the Warriors’ first points of the afternoon. Joel Hodgson’s missed conversion meant that the SaberCats still led 5-7, and at this point there was some controversy. Utah looked sure to score another try through Joe Mano, but he was taken out by Houston winger Drake Davis about 5m out. On the replay, it looked like Davis had absolutely no intent to wrap, was upright, and made contact with Mano’s head, which would have been a clear red. However, TMO Derek Summers quickly ruled it a fair tackle, to the surprise of the commentary team and many watching. Following this and with 10 minutes to go until the break, Houston exploded. A score from AJ Alatimu extended their lead to 9, before Tautalatasi Tasi intercepted a Utah ball to go the length and stretch the lead to 16 with a half-time score of 5-21 to the visitors. Was that ‘non-call’ the defining moment of the match?

The 2nd half started similar to how the first ended. AJ Alatimu tried extending the lead with a penalty, but was unsuccessful. The Utah Warriors looked to be finding their rhythm in attack, but out of nowhere Drake Davis (who arguably should not have been on the field) read an interception well and ran the length for the SaberCats’ 2nd interception try of the afternoon. This visibly shattered the Warriors’ confidence, and nothing was going right for them. 10 minutes after Davis’ interception, the Houston forwards got to work and Seth Smith crossed from close range to give  Houston an almost insurmountable 5-33 lead with 15 minutes to play. The Warriors, to their credit, didn’t give up. In the 75th minute, Warrior #1 Paul Lasike smashed through a handful of Houston defenders for his first MLR try since 2023 in his final game of professional rugby, much to the delight of the home crowd. On the final play of the game, the SaberCats’ Marno Redelinghuys received a yellow card and Tu Vugakoto was able to cross for Utah’s 3rd of the game, but it was too little too late. The final score of 19-33 to Houston somewhat flatters a Utah side that were comprehensively beaten.

The Houston SaberCats claim their first ever Western Conference Title, and will face the New England Free Jacks for the 2025 MLR Shield next weekend in Rhode Island!

v

2025 Eastern Conference Final: New England Free Jacks v Chicago Hounds

In a repeat of the 2024 Conference Final, the Chicago Hounds travel to Fort Quincy to face the New England Free Jacks in the 2025 Eastern Conference Final!

Both sides made it through the Conference Semifinals relatively comfortably. The Free Jacks dominated the Miami Sharks, scoring 4 tries to Miami’s 1 to secure a 32-10 victory. The Chicago Hounds had a slightly tougher time against Old Glory DC. They trailed 10-16 at the half before keeping the Flags scoreless in the 2nd for a 27-16 victory in front of a home crowd. Now in the Eastern Conference Final, it’s the top seed against the 2nd seed! The last time these two sides met in the post season, the Free Jacks scraped a 23-17 victory en route to their 2nd of back-to-back Shields in 2024. Including that match, these sides have met 6 times with New England holding a 4-2 lead in that series. They split the regular season series 1-1 but the Free Jacks took the most recent meeting with a 27-17 win back in Round 13.

The Chicago Hounds were definitely up for this game, and struck first through a Tim Seiwl score after 11 minutes. just a few minutes after this, Bryce Campbell intercepted Free Jacks ball and looked guaranteed to extend the Hounds lead if not for a sensational try-saving tackle from Paula Balekana. The Hounds did extend their lead to 0-10, but that missed score would come back to haunt Chicago. There were no scores between the 20 minute mark and half-time, The Free Jacks stayed afloat despite the Chicago Hounds dominating. The 2nd half looked to be more of the same, as Noah Brown finished another Chicago score in the 43rd minute to extend the lead to 0-17 after the conversion.

Around 10 minutes later, still down 17, the Free Jacks offence started to show signs of life. Jed Melvin trundled over to open the scoring for the hosts. Within 5 minutes, the Free Jacks had completely flipped the momentum and pulled the score back to 14-17 thanks to a try from Cam Nordli-Kelemeti. The Chicago Hounds were still holding on however, and stretched their lead to 14-20 a few minutes later through a penalty from Chris Hilsenbeck, who then missed another penalty 3 minutes later that would have made it a 2-score game with 15 to play. After 12 minutes of intense defence from the Hounds, the Free Jacks were able to break through as Kyle Ciquera barged under the posts for an automatic 7pts to give New England their first lead of the game with roughly 90 seconds to play. The Hounds kicked-off quickly, and managed to earn a penalty in kickable range for HIlsenbeck with the clock in the red. With the Eastern Conference on the line, Hilsenbeck lined up the kick…and unbelievably, the in-stadium feed cut out for the most important 10 seconds in the 2025 Eastern Conference, on MLR’s national broadcast. The Commentary team were left as clueless as the audience.

A few panicked minutes later, Ben Holden relayed the news that HIlsenbeck’s kick had rang off the left upright, and was unsuccessful. The New England Free Jacks claimed their 3rd Eastern Conference title in a row with a narrow 21-20 victory in which they led for all of 90 seconds. They book their spot to fight for the Threepeat in Rhode Island next weekend! For the Hounds, it’s the same story as 2024, but on the back of a far stronger season. They look to the off-season and building for 2026.

v

2025 Western Conference SF2: Houston SaberCats v Rugby FC LA

The Houston SaberCats host their Western rivals Rugby FC LA at SaberCats Stadium in the 2nd of two Western Conference Semifinals!

With a bonus point win in their final game of the regular season, the Houston SaberCats leapfrog RFCLA to secure home advantage in the postseason with a 10-6 record and 54pts. This is Houston’s 3rd playoff appearance in a row, and they will hope it’s third time lucky as they still hunt for their first playoff victory. Their opponents are the 3rd seeded Rugby FC LA, making their playoff debut after a franchise best 8-7-1 record and 51pts, pushing the SaberCats all the way to the final game of the regular season. They will hope to play spoiler.

These teams have met 4 times in the past but never in the postseason. The Houston SaberCats hold a 3-1 series lead, but LA took the most recent meeting between these sides, with a 22-24 victory…at SaberCats Stadium. The teams arrived ready for battle on June 15th, 2025, but the weather had other plans. After kick off was pushed back from 8pm ET to 9, then to 10pm with no sign of the torrential downpour coming to a stop, MLR declared that the match would be postponed, to be played on June 16th, 2025 with a 7pm ET kick-off. The game finally got underway at 7:30pm on June 16th after another weather delay, and resulted in a muddy affair.

The early game was dominated by the home side, with an AJ Alatimu crossfield kick to Rufus McLean opening the scoring after 10 minutes. Houston would double-up through Pita Anae-Ah Sue roughly 10 minutes later at the back of a fearsome SaberCats rolling maul to give them a 12-0 lead at the first half water break. In the second 20, Rugby FC LA began to grow into the game. Tim Anstee scored the first playoff try in RFCLA team history after 24 minutes and, despite some ferocious defending from the SaberCats, a bit of Reece MacDonald magic from a crossfield kick of their own drew LA level on the stroke of halftime. Leali’ifano converted to give the visitors a slender 12-14 lead at the break.

Unfortunately for MacDonald, his 2nd half would start very differently from how the first half ended. He bobbled the ball in the tricky conditions and MLR Draftee Max Schumacher jumped on it, showing great rugby IQ to give Houston back the lead in the 43rd minute. Anae-Ah Sue and the Houston pack would strike from another rolling maul just 5 minutes later to extend that lead to 10pts as the SaberCats lineout continued to click while LA’s really struggled. Both teams then settled into a back and forth in the midfield for the next 15 minutes before Alatimu slotted a penalty to take the score to 27-14. The last 10 minutes was all-out attack from RFCLA, and extraordinary defence from Houston. The game was camped in the SaberCats 22 for the majority of the final 10 minutes after Michael Scott was shown a yellow card but between handling errors and lineout issues, Houston just about kept LA out. Marno Redelinghuys was shown another yellow in the 76th minute in a case of mistaken identity (the card should have gone to Louritz van der Schyff), reducing Houston to 13 men for the final 4/5 minutes, and that gave LA the opportunity they needed to blast through. Ben Houston the scorer to bring LA within 6, but it was too little too late.

A final score of 27-21 to the SaberCats gives Houston their first ever playoff victory, and they will face the Utah Warriors in the Western Conference Final. An excellent season for Rugby FC LA falls short, but they have shown the league that they are not to be messed with. They head to the offseason, and begin planning for 2026.

v

2025 Eastern Conference SF2 – New England Free Jacks v Miami Sharks

The #1 seeded New England Free Jacks host the #4 seeded Miami Sharks in the Eastern Conference Semifinal at Veteran’s Memorial Stadium in Quincy, MA!

The back-to-back defending Champion Free Jacks qualified as the 1st seed in the East for the 4th straight season, and face the Miami Sharks who are making their postseason debut in 2025. The Free Jacks qualified with an 11-5 record compared to the Sharks’ 8-8, but these teams split the regular season series with 1 win a piece and the Sharks have already defeated New England twice in their short history, although not in Quincy.

These teams have met 4 times in the past, and have split the series with 2 wins a piece with the home team always winning. The Sharks took a 30-19 victory in the most recent meeting in Round 14.

v

2025 Western Conference SF1: Utah Warriors v Seattle Seawolves

The Utah Warriors host the first of two Western Conference Semifinals as the 4th seeded Seattle Seawolves come to town!

The top team in the regular season, the Warriors finished with an 11-5 record and 58pts to take the 1st seed in the West. They snap the longest active playoff drought in MLR and are in the post-season for the first time since 2021, hosting for the first time ever. They will be looking for their first playoff victory on their 3rd attempt. The Seattle Seawolves squeaked into their sixth MLR Postseason as the 4th seed with a bonus point win in their last game of the season, beating their rivals the San Diego Legion but a single point. With 6 playoff appearances and 4 finals under hteir belt, the Seattle Seawolves are not to be underestimated, even as the 4th seed.

These teams have met 14 times across the years, but never in the postseason. The Seattle Seawolves hold a 9-4 series lead with 1 tie, and took the most recent meeting by a score of 24-28 back in Round 13.

v

2025 – Eastern Conference SF1: Chicago Hounds v Old Glory DC

The 2nd placed Chicago Hounds host 3rd seeded Old Glory DC at SeatGeek Stadium in the first of two Eastern Conference Semifinals!

The Chicago Hounds finished 3pts behind the Free Jacks in 1st place with a matching 11-5 record, the best in franchise history. They qualify for the postseason for the 2nd year in a row after advancing to the Conference Final last season, when they were defeated by the New England Free Jacks. The Hounds face the 3rd seed Old Glory DC, who were also eliminated by the Free Jacks last season. They qualify for the playoffs for the 3rd consecutive season with a 8-8 record, 8pts back of the Hounds.

These teams have met 4 times in the past, with the Flags holding a 2-1 lead with 1 draw. They have never met in the postseason. The most recent meeting between these sides went to the Hounds with a 30-26 home victory back in Round 5.

v

2025 – RD 17: Seattle Seawolves v Miami Sharks

The final match of the 2025 MLR Regular Season is the Fish Bowl! The Seattle Seawolves host the Miami Sharks to conclude both teams’ regular seasons at Starfire Stadium. The Seattle Seawolves are battling tooth and nail with the San Diego Legion over the final playoff spot in the Western Conference, and a bonus point win in this game would be enough to clinch it. They are coming off a defeat to New England where they managed to pick up two bonus points despite their 3-game win streak coming to an end. The Miami Sharks are flying high after clinching their first ever playoff spot with a road victory over the San Diego Legion, actually doing the Seawolves a favour.

These teams have only met once before, with the Seattle Seawolves taking a 29-18 victory back in 2024. This game gave the Sharks an opportunity to rest some of their heavy hitters, and they fielded a very rotated roster which worked in the Seattle Seawolves favour. The hosts struck early through Malembe Mpofu and held the lead almost the entire game. The Sharks kept it close for the majority of the match, although Seattle had the remarkable ability of scoring against the run of play which they did multiple times. The scoreline got away from teh Sharks towards the end, with Miami unable to add any points in the final half hour of play. Both teams will now look ahead to the postseason, as the Seattle Seawolves squeak in at the expense of the San Diego Legion, and will face the Utah Warriors at Zion’s Bank. The Miami Sharks will play their first ever playoff game against the New England Free Jacks in Quincy.

v

2025 – RD 17: Houston SaberCats v Anthem RC

Following a Wednesday night clash with Chicago during the week, the SaberCats travel back to Houston to host Anthem RC at SaberCats Stadium to conclude their 2025 Regular Season, on a tight turnaround of only 4 days. The SaberCats were already destined to play Ruygby FC LA in the conference semifinals next week, but a win here would give them home advantage and snap a 2-game skid to give them some confidence heading into the postseason. Anthem RC are looking to avoid their 2nd consecutive 0-16 season, and have already been long eliminated from playoff contention. These teams have met twice in the past, with the SaberCats taking both previous meetings.

This game proved to be a slog in the Houston humidity. A superb Drake Davis solo effort gave the SaberCats the lead, and AJ Alatimu’s conversion were the only scores in the first half, with Houston leading 7-0 at home. The 2nd half opened up a little more, with Anthem RC pulling level before Houston hit back almost immediately. This happened twice before Houston finally took the lead and kept it, securing the try bonus point and a 26-14 victory to secure home advantage for the playoffs. Anthem RC head to the off season with another 0-16 season and just 5 pts (fewer than last year).

v