WER 2026 Legacy Cup:

The 2026 Women’s Elite Rugby competition culminates in the Legacy Cup match on 8th August at Infinity Park in Glendale, Colorado, the home of the Defending Champions, the Denver Onyx.

The venue and time for the 2026 Legacy Cup was announced in mid-July, and drew some criticism from fans for being scheduled on the same day as 7s Nationals, unnecessarily splitting the already limited viewership of Women’s Rugby in the US. There was also additional criticism that this wasn’t a neutral venue, with the Denver Onyx sat atop the WER standings and looking likely to qualify, giving them home advantage.

Although they had a shaky start to the season with a Round 1 loss to the Bay Breakers on the road, the Denver Onyx rallied well and won all of their remaining 9 games in dominant fashion to lock up a spot in the Legacy Cup after a big Round 9 victory over the competitive TC Gemini.

WER 2026 – RD 8: Denver Onyx v Bay Breakers

The Denver Onyx host their nearest geographical rivals the Bay Breakers at Infinity Park during Round 8 of the 2026 WER season!

This is the second meeting of the season between these two teams after meeting at Heart Health Park in California during the opening Round of the season, where the Breakers handed the Onyx just their second ever defeat in WER, but Denver still hold a 2-1 lead in this match up all-time after sweeping the 2025 series. The Breakers and Onyx enter this game in 1st & 2nd place in the standings respectively, both on a 6-1 record and separated by a single point. Whoever emerges victorious in this game will be leading the league.

The visiting Bay Breakers came out of the gates quickest. They opened the scoring early through Roxelle Thomas in the 3rd minute and although the Onyx would hit back 6 minutes later and took a narrow 7-5 lead after the conversion, these 7pts would be all the Onyx managed in the first half. The Breakers however, would add another 3 tries between the 16th and 24th minutes to take a commanding 26-7 lead into the half-time break.

Whatever Onyx head coach Sarah Chobot said to her team during the break definitely worked though. After roughly 15 minutes of stalemate to start the second half, Sheila Decker pulled one back for the hosts and another 10 minutes later KB Slaughter bagged another score. The Onyx were slowly chipping away at the Breakers’ lead, now trailing 19-26. The Breakers would push the gap back to 14pts with a 67th minute score from Laura Thacker however but the Onyx didn’t let that get to them. With under 10 minutes left to play, Denver stepped up. Tahlia Brody scored in the 73rd minute, making it a 1 score game after Makayla Wilkins added the extras, before Wilkins herself scored just 3 minutes later and nailed the conversion to tie the game at 33-33 after the 80. Having never seen a game go to WER’s Golden Point prior to this weekend, this match was the second in Round 8, and thanks to Makayla Wilkins, this one didn’t last long. The fullback received a pass from Carson Hann and ran in an easy score in the 83rd minute to seal the win, 38-33.

With their 7th win of the season, the Onyx now take the lead at the top of the WER standings from the Bay Breakers, who fall to 3rd despite salvaging a pair of bonus points due to the TC Gemini’s victory yesterday.

WER 2026 – RD 7: Denver Onyx v New York Exiles

The Denver Onyx host the New York Exiles at Infinity Park, an exact repeat of the 2025 Legacy Cup match!

This is the 2nd meeting of the 2026 season between the Onyx and the Exiles after a Round 4 clash at Mount Vernon Memorial Stadium. This is the 5th meeting all-time between these teams, including the inaugural Legacy Cup match. The Denver Onyx hold a 3-1 lead all-time in this match up, and come into this game with a 5-1 record, just 1pt behind the Bay Breakers in 1st place. The New York Exiles have struggled in the first half of their season, but picked up a huge victory over the then-1st placed TC Gemini to jump to 4th, entering this game with a 2-4 record and looking to build on their momentum.

The hosting Denver Onyx had other plans, however. They exploded out of the gate, opening the scoring through Mikaela Hall after only 2 minutes, followed by 3 tries in a row in a 9 minute span from winger Soraia Parr, who records her second hat trick in as many weeks to give the Onyx a commanding lead. They would add a 5th try before half-time from Canadian Karenna Ottywill, and shut out the Exiles for a 35-0 lead at the break. The 2nd half was a different story from the first. The Exiles finally got on the board in the 57th minute with a score from Nic Carroll, but they never really looked like overturning the massive first half deficit. They added a 2nd score with under 7 minutes to place from Eve Mango, but the Onyx would finish the scoring with a 78th minute try to secure a 42-14 victory and stay in the hunt for first.

Although it means nothing in the standings, the Exiles did ‘win’ the second half 7-14 against the defending champions, and should take some confidence from that as they head to the international break.

WER 2026 – RD 6: Denver Onyx v Boston Banshees

The defending champion Denver Onyx host the Boston Banshees at Infinity Park during Round 6 of the 2026 WER season!

This is the second meeting of the season between these two teams, after facing each other in Round 3 in Quincy, Massachusetts. The Denver Onyx hold a 3-0 series lead over the Banshees, and took the first meeting of the 2026 season 19-52 on the road. Unfortunately for the Banshees, the scoreline wasn’t much different in this one.

The Onyx opened the scoring after only 3 minutes through KB Slaughter, and never looked back. They had scored 3 tries by the 10 minute mark and led 17-0 before the Boston Banshees got on the board through Canadian Natalie Armatage, But a second try from KB Slaughter cancelled this out roughly 6 minutes later and the Onyx added another 3 tries to cap off a 7-try first half which included a hat trick from Soraia Parr, the defending champions leading 41-7 at the break.  The second half would only be more of the same. Joanne Kitlinski scored her second of the game just 3 minutes into the second frame and although a PK Vincze score from Boston cancelled this out a few minutes later and led to a period of roughly 12 minutes with no score, the Onyx would step on the gas as the game entered it’s final quarter. They added another 3 tries including a 3rd of the game for KB Slaughter to secure her hat trick in a huge, 63-14 victory in front of a home crowd.

This victory, paired with the TC Gemini’s narrow loss in New York, moved the Denver Onyx into 1st place in the WER standings with the Bay Breakers still to play tomorrow. They improve to 5-1, mirroring the Boston Banshees who fall to 1-5 but they stay in 4th place for the time being.

WER 2026 – RD 5: Denver Onyx v Chicago Tempest

The Denver Onyx host the Chicago Tempest at Infinity Park in Colorado during Round 5 of the 2026 WER Season!

The Tempest were thoroughly beaten by the Onyx on both occasions during the 2025 season with a combined score of 117-7 in favour of the defending champions. The most recent meeting in Round 6 of the 2025 season saw the Onyx record a 0-41 victory on the road, so the Chicago Tempest will be looking to improve upon that in this game.

The Tempest did record a better result than in their last meeting with the Onyx, but it wasn’t enough. The Onyx raced out to a 21-0 lead before Chicago got on the board through Katie Lohaus and added a 4th just before the half hour mark. The visiting Tempest held the line from here until half time, but still trailed 26-7 at the break. Denver began the second half much like the first, adding a pair of tries before the Tempest hit back with a penalty try of their own, and in the 62nd minute both teams managed to record a score each in quick succession, with Gracie Andersen scoring for Chicago which was immediately snuffed out by Sydney Davis, taking the score to 45-21 in Denver’s favour with just under 20 to play, and this is how the game would end.

Although they started the 2026 campaign strong, the Tempest fall to 1-4 at the bottom of the standings, while the Denver Onyx improve to 4-1 and continue to chase the top of the table, currently sat in 3rd.

WER 2026 – RD 2: Denver Onyx v TC Gemini

The Denver Onyx host the TC Gemini in their 2026 home opener at Infinity Park during Round 2 of the WER season!

The reigning champion Denver Onyx swept the TC Gemini during the 2025 season, with the most recent result, a 75-14 rout during Round 12 of the 2025 season. Can the TC Gemini improve this time around?

Coming off of an enormous 22-78 road victory over the Chicago Tempest, the TC Gemini did indeed improve against the defending champions, but it wasn’t enough. They reduced the deficit from 61pts in their last meeting of 2025 and actually led 24-21 at half time, but they were blown away by the Onyx in the second half, who raced to a 25pt loss, rallying from their opening round defeat to the Bay Breakers with an 8-try, 54-29 victory for their first win of the 2026 WER season.

WER 2025 – RD 12: Denver Onyx v Twin Cities Gemini

The Twin Cities Gemini travel to Colorado to face the Denver Onyx at Infinity Park during Round 12 of the Inaugural Women’s Elite Rugby season!

The travelling TC Gemini come into this game sitting 5th in the standings with a 3-5 record. They are coming off a fiercely contested 12-10 victory over the Chicago tempest, and will be desperate to close the gap to the 3rd placed Boston Banshees with only a few weeks left in the competition. The Denver Onyx lead the league with a 7-1 record entering this game, but fluffed their lines and were handed their first defeat of the season by the New York Exiles in their previous game. They will be looking to bounce back and continue to assert their dominance over the rest of WER. These teams have met once previously, when the Onyx took a 19-38 victory on the road back in Round 8.

It was clear that, having suffered their first loss of the season last week, the Onyx were out for blood and unfortunately for the TC Gemini, they were in the way. An enormous, 11-try, 75-14 victory helped the Onyx to blow off some steam. Denver’s total of 75pts scored is a new WER record, as did the winning margin of 61pts and the try total of 11. The Onyx prove that last week was just a blip, and they shouldn’t be messed with.

WER 2025 – Round 10: Denver Onyx v Boston Banshees

The Boston Banshees travel to Colorado to face the undefeated Denver Onyx at Infinity Park during Round 10 of WER’s inaugural season!

The Onyx sit 1st in the league heading into Round 10 with an incredible +258 points differential. They are coming off a 19-38 road victory over the TC Gemini and are looking to push their win streak to 7 games. The Banshees sit 2nd in the league with +117 points differential in 1 more game than Denver, and would love to leapfrog them into first. They are coming off of a big 49-12 home victory over the Chicago Tempest.

These teams have met once in the past when the Onyx secured a 7-25 victory in Boston. This is the lowest points total by the Onyx all year, however they had no such issues in this one. The Onyx racked up a 53-21 victory that included 4 tries from Erica Coulibaly to continue their 2025 dominance.

WER 2025 – Rd 4: Denver Onyx v Chicago Tempest

The Denver Onyx host the Chicago Tempest at Infinity Park in Colorado to kick off Round 4 of WER’s inaugural season! The Onyx come into this match unbeaten and averaging 62.5pts scored per game, with a 125-14 points differential after only 2 games. The Tempest are still looking for their elusive first WER victory, sitting at the bottom of the standings with a 0-3 record.

Unfortunately, the Tempest will have to keep waiting for that first victory as the Onyx ran riot in front of a home crowd. a final score of 76-7 sets new records for the most points by a side (76), most tries by a side (12), and largest winning margin (69pts) in WER history. Denver’s unbeated run continues, with an incredible points difference of +180 (201-21).

Denver Onyx flanker Tahlia Brody recorded her first career WER hat trick in this game, scoring 3 of Denver’s 12 tries.

WER 2025 – RD 3: Denver Onyx v New York Exiles

The inaugural Women’s Elite Rugby season continues, with the Denver Onyx hosting the New York Exiles at Infinity Park in Colorado. This is the first ever meeting between these sides.

With a dominant 62-7 victory, the Onyx pass 100pts scored on the season in only 2 games played, scoring over 60pts for the 2nd game in a row. The average scoreline for a Denver Onyx game is 62.5-7 after this match.