The California Legion travel to Charlotte to face Anthem RC at the American Legion Memorial Stadium during Round 10 of the 2026 MLR season.

The Legion are sat relatively comfortably in 2nd place with an even 4-4 record, with a bonus point win able to clinch home field advantage for the 2026 Semifinals. At the other end of the table, Anthem RC enter this game sat last in the standings on a 5 game skid, and are desperate for a win after a disappointing defeat at home to New England last week.

The last time these two teams met was the 2026 Season Opener in which Anthem RC claimed their first ever victory in their 33rd game. The Legion seemed aware of the opportunity in front of them, both to lock up 2nd and a home semifinal, and for revenge. They came out firing and opened the scoring after just two minutes through Nick Chan. Anthem would raly and apply heavy pressure with the majority of both the territory and possession in the first quarter. Despite all that pressure however, a Lance Williams try just before the hydration break put them down 0-14. The Rising Stars would cancel this try out shortly afterwards with a great bruising run from Baden Godfrey to lumber over, but the Legion would bag another two scores within 5 minutes of Godfrey’s try to lock up the try BP, and would add a 5th first half try from Gonzalo Bertranou 10 minutes later. The visitors led 7-33 at half time with Anthem showing few signs that they were capable of coming back from this heavy deficit.

To Anthem’s credit, they opened the second half scoring through Campbell Robb to cut the Legion’s lead to 19pts, but weren’t able to pull any closer before California’s Coby Miln slotted a penalty in the 51st minute, and Steff Crimp scored twice in 6 minutes either side of the second hydration break, adding this brace to his first half score to claim the second hat trick of the 2026 MLR season and the first in California Legion history! Despite there being just under 20 minutes to go, the Legion seemed to think the job was done with the score at 14-50, and allowed Anthem back into the game. Zion Going, who injected some pace and intent into the Anthem attack, also scored a brace withing 6 minutes of each other about 7 minutes after Crimp completed his hat trick, securing a Try BP for Anthem and taking them up to 26pts and put California’s Gonzalo Bertranou in the bin. The Rising Stars’ comeback attempt was stunted soon after however, with a scrap resulting in a second yellow for Makeen Alikhan, resulting in a red, and a yellow for the Legion’s Keni Nasoqeqe on his 100th MLR appearance. The game would end with 13v14 but the visitors didn’t show any mercy, capping off a dominant performance with an 82nd minute try from Ben Houston to make the final score 26-55.

This locks up a playoff spot for the Legion with a 5-4 record heading into the final week of the regular season, and will secure home field advantage should the Seattle Seawolves fall to the New England Free Jacks later today. If the Seawolves win, then it will be a fight for a home Semifinal as they face the Legion next week. Anthem RC will be hoping that Seattle can overcome the defending champs to keep their slim playoff chances alive. The rising stars must defeat Old Glory DC (who are also fighting for a playoff spot) next week, and win by a lot if they want any chance.

Anthem RC host the defending champion New England Free Jacks at American Legion Memorial Stadium during Round 9 of the 2026 MLR season.

With 3 weeks remaining of the regular season, the New England Free Jacks currently in 5th only separated from 6th placed Anthem by points difference. The term ‘must-win’ may have been overused a bit during the shortened 2026 MLR campaign, but it cannot be overstated how badly both of these sides need a victory to keep their playoff chances alive. Both on a 2-5 record, the New England Free Jacks have struggled to maintain any sort of momentum so far this season, and despite bringing in significant reinforcements at the signing deadline including club legends Paula Balekana and Andrew Quattrin, few of these reinforcements have seen action yet this season. Anthem RC are reeling after two heavy defeats to Chicago then Seattle, and are on a 4-game losing streak. Now back at home, can the Rising Stars turn things around?

This game proved a messy, raining, low scoring affair. Anthem RC had the momentum through the first 20 minutes, camped in the Free Jacks half for the vast majority of the time. Repeat offences put the visitors down to 14 men, but despite all the territory and the lion’s share of possession, the Rising Stars were unable to open the scoring. This trend continued until just after the 30 minute mark. Anthem half-broke the Free Jacks line, but a pass that should’ve meant an easy score didn’t go to hand, and New England’s Joel Hodgson scooped it up and raced the other way. Oscar Lennon ran a good support line to finish the score and put the first points on the board before Hodgson added the extras. Completely against the run of play, the Free Jacks piggybacked off this score to shift the momentum, and had a second and third score called back after reviews. Oscar Lennon’s score would be the only points of the first half.

The second half started with both sides feeling each other out and both making mistakes. It would be the 48th minute before Anthem got on the board through a close range effort from Makeen Alikhan that was unsuccessfully challenged by New England. Luke Carty added the extras to even things up at 7, but the Free Jacks would hit back shortly afterwards, also from short range as Maliu Niuafe crossed to restore the visitors lead. The 7-12 scoreline would remain until around the 70 minute mark, with both sides trying to break the stalemate but Anthem making errors at crucial times stifled them, especially at the lineout. The boot of Joel Hodgson would extend the Free Jacks lead to 7-15 from a penalty, before Cam Gerlach scored off a fortunate bounce (unsuccessfully challenged by Anthem) in the final minute to take the final score up to 7-20 to the Free Jacks.

A must-win game for both sides, the Free Jacks keep their playoff hopes alive but fail to secure the try bonus point, so move to 1pt ahead of Old Glory DC with the Flags still to play. Although the scoreline doesn’t really reflect how close this game was in actuality, this could be the season for Anthem RC, who fall to 2-6 and a five-game losing streak. They now sit stone dead last in the standings.

 

Anthem RC host Old Glory DC at American Legion Memorial Stadium during Round 4 of the 2026 Major League Rugby season.

The Rising Stars enter this game on the back of their first ever home victory last week, a 34-25 win over the Seattle Seawolves, and currently sit 2nd in MLR with a 2-1 record. The Flags meanwhile, picked up their first win of the season on the road against their rivals in New England, and now sit with an even 1-1 record.

Keeping up the momentum from their victory over the defending champs last week, Old Glory DC definitely enjoyed the better start. Max Schumacher opened the scoring after only 8 minutes before Anthem got the wake up call. despite the lion’s share of possession, the Rising Stars were unable to get on the scoreboard through the first quarter, but DC weren’t able to extend their 0-7 lead either. That changed after the water break, as Perry Humphreys bagged his first of the season after assisting Schumacher’s early score to double the guests lead, before Kirby Myhill went over about 5 miuntes later, then John Rizzo added a 4th almost straight off the restart from Myhill’s score. This ballooned the score to 0-26 to Old Glory by the half-time break, and both players and fans of Anthem RC must’ve been having flashbacks to their previous two seasons as tehy headed into the sheds.

Although Anthem weren’t able to find that final move to get onto the scoreboard in the first half, that changed early in the second as Will Leonard was able to break the goose egg and get the hosts on the board. After this score, the teams settled into the second half and like in the first, it would be some time before another score which, unfortunately for Anthem, came from the guests. Former NOLA Gold veteran Ross Depperschmidt crossed for his first in a DC jersey in the 62nd minute before Conner Mooneyham bagged his 3rd of the year out wide in the 69th minute. Mooneyham’s score was just a consolation try however, and marked the final score of the game as the DC defence held firm to secure a 14-31 victory to end their 3-game road trip.

The Flags improve to 2-1 on their road trip and finally get to enjoy their home opener at George Mason University next week when they will host the California Legion. Anthem RC meanwhile, fall to an even 2-2 record and will travel up to the formidable Fort Quincy to face the defending champion New England Free Jacks next week.

Anthem RC host the Seattle Seawolves at American Legion Memorial Stadium during Round 3 of the 2026 Major League Rugby season.

The euphoria of Anthem’s first every victory in Round 1 was quickly erased by a 33-19 home defeat at the hands of the Chicago Hounds last week, and the Rising Stars now sit 2nd in the league with a 1-1 record. They host the Seattle Seawolves in their 3rd game of the season, who are coming off a strong 33-16 victory in their home opener over Old Glory DC.

The hosts opened the scoring within the first 10 minutes through Campbell Robb with his 2nd try of the season for the Rising Stars to open the scoring in front of a home crowd. The visitors would chip away at this lead with a pair of penalties, before the flood gates opened just after the first hydration break. Seattle scored their first try through a lovely lineout move putting prop Ezekiel Lindenmuth clean through, before Julian Roberts hit back for Anthem a few minutes later. Just 2 minutes after Roberts’ score however, Paddy Ryan crossed at the other end for the Seawolves, which was quickly cancelled out by an Anthem score out wide from former Seawolf Malacchi Esdale. during this flurry of scoring, Seattle tried to challenge for an obvious Anthem knock-on that was missed, but referee Mike Lawrenson deemed that the incident was outside of the scope of the RRS, and Seattle could not challenge this. Despite being unable to challenge this, Lawrenson penalised the Seawolves by taking away their final challenge. Some clarity on this may bee needed from MLR, as fans were left confused as to why the challenge was deemed unsuccessful if they were unable to challenge in the first place. Whats more, the incident was an obvious knock-on that went uncalled. Following this period of back and forth scoring, Anthem RC went into the sheds with a narrow 21-18 lead.

The second half saw significantly less scoring to start, but no less back and forth play, as one line break was met with another, and scramble defence proved solid from both sides. Around the 60 minute mark however, the Seattle Seawolves would feel even more hard done by thanks to a truly baffling decision from the referee team. Anthem RC’s Will Sherman crossed the try line for his 2nd score of the season, and Lawrenson chose to review it to make sure of the grounding. As clear as day, the replay showed that Sherman spilled the ball forward in the try zone, and that there was no grounding (something Seattle did 2 or 3 times during this game too). It was so obvious that none of the Anthem players including Sherman himself, bothered celebrating at all. Despite this, and following the referee intiated review the try was awarded to the consternation of fans. Thankfully this try didn’t decide the game, but it did secure a try BP for Anthem and without it, Seattle would have picked up a losing BP, so it may still play a part in the season. Luke Carty would kick both the conversion, and a few minutes later a penalty to extend Anthem’s lead to 31-18, before Divan Rossouw scored an almost consolation try for Seattle, converted by Mark Bennett. Luke Carty would bank another 3pts in the final minute to deny Seattle a losing BP, and Anthem would record their first home victory in franchise history, a 34-25 win over the Seattle Seawolves.

Anthem will now try to keep that momentum going into next week, and will be staying at home to face Old Glory DC in Round 4 who are coming off of a great road win against the Free Jacks. The injury-stricken Seattle Seawolves on the other hand, will hope they get some guys back in time for next week’s clash with the California Legion in LA.

Following their season opener against the California Legion last week, Anthem RC return to Charlotte for their home opener against the Chicago Hounds. This game marks the first of the season for the Hounds, who had a bye in Round 1.

Anthem RC return to Charlotte to a hero’s welcome after claiming their first victory in franchise history last week against the California Legion, snapping a MLR record 32-game winless streak dating back to the start of the 2024 season. They face a Chicago Hounds team that many have labelled as a favourite for the Shield this year. The Hounds team for this game included 7 players in the starting XV who were earning their Hounds debut, including hooker Theo Fourie who made his MLR debut. In addition, flanker Maclean Jones earned his 50th MLR appearance as a Chicago Hound in this game, becoming the first player to reach a half-century of games for the team.

The Chicago Hounds showed no signs of rust in their first showing of a new campaign, and never trailed in this game scoring 5 tries to Anthem’s 3 to lock up the full 5pts and get their campaign off to a perfect start, taking this one 19-33 on the road. Anthem, perhaps overconfident after their first ever victory last week, return to the drawing board to prep for the Seattle Seawolves next week.

Anthem RC host the Chicago Hounds in an Eastern Conference clash in Charlotte. The Hounds had a tight turnaround coming into this game, having hosted Rugby FC LA just 5 days ago during the week.

The Hounds look to bounce back after a loss to RFCLA on the final play, and now 3rd in the Eastern Conference, are desperate for poitns to secure home advantage in the playoffs. Anthem RC’s new head coach Agustin Cavalieri has only been in change for a few games and with nothing to lose, will be looking for his side to gel and play more consistently if they want their first ever victory.

These teams have met 3 times in the past with the Chicago Hounds currently undefeated over the winless Anthem side.

Old Glory DC travel to Charlotte to face Anthem RC in an Eastern Conference clash. The flags are on a tight turnaround after hosting the NOLA Gold 5 days ago.

Anthem RC have already been mathematically eliminated from the 2025 playoffs and are still looking for their first ever win as a franchise, with nearly 30 games under their belt. Old Glory DC are looking to keep their playoff hunt alive, and are coming off of a comfortable 27-14 victory over the NOLA Gold and are looking to keep up their momentum.

These teams have met 3 times in the past, with Anthem RC yet to defeat the Flags. It proved another tough outing for the USA’s rising stars. The visitors took the lead within 10 minutes, before Anthem took the lead with a 7pt try from Dylan Fortune. From that point however, it was all DC. The Flags retook the lead a minute later through Damien Hoyland, and had locked up the try BP before half time. Another two tries by Anthem RC were cancelled out by another 3 scores for DC, who locked up a bonus point victory with a final score of 19-41 to give Old Glory’s playoff hunt a big boost.

The Seattle Seawolves travel to the East coast to face Anthem RC in a mid-week, cross-conference clash in Round 11 of the 2025 MLR season.

The Seawolves are coming off a closely fought home victory over the Chicago Hounds, and will be looking for a win here to build some momentum and try to climb the Western Conference. Anthem RC, as always, are desperate for a win after a convincing defeat to the New England Free Jacks.

These teams have met twice in the past, with the Seattle Seawolves holding a 2-0 series lead including their most recent meeting, a 25-17 affair a few weeks ago, in Round 7 of the 2025 season.

The New England Free Jacks travel down to The Queen City to face Anthem RC in an Eastern Conference clash. The Reigning Champs have righted the ship after a shaky start to the season, and now sit on a 3-game win streak and looking to continue to climb the Eastern Conference. Meanwhile, Anthem RC sit rock bottom of the league with a 0-8 record and are still hunting for that elusive first victory as a franchise. These teams have faced each other twice in the past, with the Free Jacks holding a 2-0 lead in the head-to-head series.

Although Anthem kept the Free Jacks close through the first 30 minutes, as the game went on New England began to pull away. A second try from Paula Balekana just before half-time was a dagger for the hosts. They came out fighting again after the break and the Free Jacks had their work cut out for them, but Anthem never really looked like scoring. It took also half an hour for the first score of the second half, with the Free Jacks scoring twice within 4 minutes to lock up the try BP and a convincing 6-26 victory. The reigning champions now sit just 3pts back of the lead in the Eastern Conference, and have won 4 in a row. Anthem RC meanwhile, fall to a 25 game losing streak and despite coming close to that first victory, seem to have been moving further away from that goal in the last few weeks.

 

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 dating back to 2024.. 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.