Season: MLR 2025

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

2025 – RD 9: Chicago Hounds v Anthem RC

The top of the Eastern Conference faces the bottom of the East as the Chicago Hounds host Anthem RC at SeatGeek Stadium during Round 9 of MLR’s 2025 season! The Chicago Hounds are coming off of handing the San Diego Legion their first home loss in close to a year, and look to go top of the league with a win here. Anthem RC meanwhile, are now on MLR’s longest ever losing streak, and seem to have taken a step back in the last few weeks.

These teams have met twice prior to this game. The Chicago Hounds have not lost to Anthem, and won a 29-38 victory on the road in the most recent installment during Round 17 of last season.

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2025 – RD 9: Rugby FC LA v Utah Warriors

The Utah Warriors travel to the west coast to face Rugby FC LA in a Western Conference clash at Wallis Annenberg Stadium! The Utah Warriors are fresh off of a bye week and are looking to maintain their early-season form, while RFCLA have steadied the ship after a 3-game losing streak to start the season, and have since won 4 straight including a 22-24 victory over the Houston SaberCats in Texas!

These teams have met twice in the past, and the Warriors are the only team in MLR that haven’t defeated RFCLA who hold a 2-0 series lead. The most recent meeting between these sides was a 24-31 LA victory in Utah, thanks in part to a brace from hooker Ben Strang, who starts on the bench in this one.

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2025 – RD 9: NOLA Gold v Old Glory DC

The NOLA Gold host Old Glory DC in an Eastern Conference Clash at the Gold Mine. Both teams are coming off of victories, with the Flags handing the Seattle Seawolves a decisive defeat on the road, while the Gold picked up a handy victory over Anthem RC for the 2nd time this season! Both are looking to build on their momentum, especially with a resurgent Free Jacks team in the East.

These teams have met 9 times in the past, with the Gold holding a comfortable 6-1-2 lead in the series which featured a draw. In the most recent meeting between these two sides, the Flags edged out a 27-24 victory at home thanks to a pair of Perry Humphreys tries. Will history repeat itself on the road?

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2025 – RD 9: Miami Sharks v Houston SaberCats

The Miami Sharks return home to Florida to host the Houston SaberCats in a cross conference clash during Round 9 of the 2025 MLR season! The Sharks are reeling after suffering their 4th straight loss at the hands of the Free Jacks up in Quincy, and need to find a way to bounce back. In their way are the Houston SaberCats who top the Western Conference coming into this game despite a nail-biting home defeat to Rugby FC LA.

These teams have only met once in the past, with the SaberCats taking a 30-19 victory at home during the 2024 season.

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2025 – RD 9: New England Free Jacks v San Diego Legion

The New England Free Jacks host the San Diego Legion in a cross-country clash that marks a repeat of the 2023 Championship Game, and the first time in MLR history that the Legion have visited Quincy. Despite starting their 2025 campaign with a 5-game win streak, the San Diego Legion are coming off two losses in a row and have fallen from 1st in the West. They will be looking to steady the ship but are up against a resurgent Free Jacks side on a 2-game win streak, including an impressive 43-6 victory over Miami.

These teams have met 5 teams in the past, and the Free Jacks hold a slender 3-2 series lead thanks to their victory in their 1 playoff matchup in the 2023 final. In the most recent meeting, the Free Jacks scraped a 23-24 victory in California. Can they manage a third 1pt win over the Legion?

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Calvin Ihrig

Chicago born back row Calvin Ihrig played in Major League Rugby during the 2025 season. He represented the Miami Sharks for his entire MLR career.

Born in Chicago to an American mother and German father, Ihrig spent much of his childhood travelling for his father’s work. He lived in Canada, Germany, and Vietnam before spending a decade in Thailand from 2009. He picked up rugby during his Sophomore year at International School Thailand, initially playing Sevens. He moved back to the US for college, attending the rugby powerhouse Lindenwood University in Missouri from 2020, where he played his first 15-a-side games, initially playing on the wing or at fly-half, before finding his groove in the back row. Ihrig played with the Lindenwood Lions from 2020-2024, and declared for the 2024 MLR Collegiate Draft.

Ihrig was selected in the 1st Round, 3rd overall by the Miami Sharks, and signed on with the Florida team for the 2025 MLR season. He earned his MLR debut coming off the bench during the Sharks’ Round 11 victory over Anthem RC. He earned 2 appearances for the Sharks in total during the 2025 season, before the Miami Sharks announced their withdrawal from the league in August 2025. A month later, Calvin Ihrig was included in the Chicago Hounds’ Autumn Performance Squad for their Fall season, while playing club rugby with the Chicago Blaze

achievements
  • 2024 MLR Draftee: 1st Round (3rd Overall) – Miami Sharks

NARDB Player #1,541

2025 – RD 8: New England Free Jacks v Miami Sharks

The New England Free Jacks host the Miami Sharks in an Eastern Conference clash at Veteran’s Memorial Stadium in Quincy, MA! The Free Jacks are coming off of a remarkable comeback victory on the road against the Utah Warriors in which they scored 28 unanswered points in the second half. The Sharks head into this game on a 3-game losing streak, but have had a bye week to rest and refocus. These teams have met twice in the past and split the series 1-1, with the Sharks taking the most recent meeting, a hard fought 15-13 victory in Florida.

With a spectacular comeback victory last week and a dominant victory here, are the reigning champs back? The Free Jacks secure a runaway 43-6 home victory thanks in part to Faletoi Peni’s excellent performance at fly-half, and a hat trick for Paula Balekana. This was Balekana’s first creer MLR hat trick, and the 50th hatty in league history! The Miami Sharks are yet to score a try in Quincy, after 2 games there.

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2025 – RD 8: San Diego Legion v Chicago Hounds

The top of the Western Conference faces the Top of the East as the San Diego Legion host the Chicago Hounds at Torero Stadium! The Legion are coming off their first loss of the season, a comprehensive defeat on the road to the Houston SaberCats, who are now right on their tail in the standings. The Hounds are coming off a gutsy 18-20 road victory over a struggling NOLA Gold side, and will be wanting to cement their place at the top of the East. Both teams have a 5-1 record heading into this game, and have met 3 times in the past. The Legion hold a 2-1 series lead over the Hounds, but fell 22-16 in their last meeting in Round 16 of the 2024 season, when Luke Carty kicked 4 penalties for 12pts to secure the victory for Chicago at Seatgeek Stadium.

The Hounds even the series at 2-2 following an impressive 20-27 road victory to hand the Legion their first home defeat in 361 days! The Legion remain atop of the Western Conference due to Houston also losing, but the Chicago Hounds now boast the best record in the league so far, at 6-1!

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2025 – RD 8: Houston SaberCats v Rugby FC LA

Rugby FC LA travel to Texas to face the Houston SaberCats in a Western Conference Clash during Round 8 of the 2025 Major League Rugby season! Rugby FC LA are coming off of a chaotic 54-44 victory over Old Glory DC to improve to a 3-3 record with 3 wins in a row. The SaberCats are flying high after a convincing 34-14 victory over the league-leading San Diego Legion, and have now won 5 in a row with a 5-1 record. These teams have met 3 times in the past, with the Houston SaberCats currently undefeated in this matchup. They took a 28-45 victory in the last meeting between these teams in Round 2 onf the 2025 season in Los Angeles, scoring 7 tries to RFCLA’s 4.

With both teams on win streaks, it was almost guaranteed that one team’s streak was going to come to an end in this game, but it was tight! RFCLA held a 17-24 lead, until the Houston SaberCats scored with the clock in the red to bring the score to 22-24 with the conversion to come. AJ Alatimu stepped up with the opportunity to end the game in a tie, but his attempt sailed just to the right of the posts, sealing the victory for LA! Houston’s 5-game win streak comes to an end but they pick up both bonus points for their efforts. LA on the other hand, pick up their first ever victory over the Houston SaberCats to improve to a 4-3 record with 4 wins on the trot, and take the full 5 points.

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2025 – RD 8: Anthem RC v NOLA Gold

The NOLA Gold travel to the Queen City to face Anthem RC in an Eastern Conference clash, with both teams desperate for a win! The Gold come into this following a tight 18-20 defeat to the Chicago Hounds in their 100th MLR game, and find themselves with a 1-5 record, while Anthem RC are still after their first franchise win. These teams have met 3 times prior to this game, with the Gold holding a 3-0 series lead. The most recent meeting between Anthem RC and the NOLA Gold was in Round 9 of the 2024 season, when the Gold took a convincing 6 try, 5-40 road victory.

Despite improved performances from Anthem so far this season, as well as the majority of both territory and possession, the NOLA Gold defence stood firm. The Gold made just under 200 tackles to stifle Anthem RC, who fell 19-33. NOLA pick up their 2nd win of the 2025 season, both of which have come against Anthem RC. Speaking of the hosts, they fall to 0-7 in 2025 and set a new record for the longest losing streak in MLR history, now at 23 games.

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