2018 Major League Rugby final

The 2018 Major League Rugby final was the championship match of the inaugural season of Major League Rugby (MLR), a rugby union club competition in the United States. It was played on July 7, 2018, at Torero Stadium in San Diego, California, between the Glendale Raptors and the Seattle Seawolves. Seattle won the match 23–19 to take their first title.

2018 Major League Rugby final
Event2018 Major League Rugby season
DateJuly 7, 2018
VenueTorero Stadium, San Diego, California
Man of the MatchVili Tolutaʻu
RefereeScott Green (United States)
Attendance2,901
2019

The Glendale and Seattle teams finished first and second in the regular season, respectively, and advanced to the MLR Championship Series, contesting the semifinals against San Diego and Utah.

Background

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Major League Rugby was established in 2017 and began play in April 2018.

Seattle and Glendale played each other twice during the regular season, with Glendale winning both matches.[1]

Venue

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Torero Stadium, home field of Major League Rugby team San Diego Legion, was selected as the venue for the final before the beginning of the Championship Series playoffs.[2] The stadium with a seating capacity of 6,000 on the campus of the University of San Diego is also home to the various athletics teams of the university.[2]

Broadcasting

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The match was broadcast on CBS Sports Network.[3] Dan Power served as the play by play commentator for CBS and was joined by color analysts Brian Hightower and Peter Steinberg.[3]

Match

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Details

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July 7 Glendale Raptors 19–23 Seattle Seawolves Torero Stadium, San Diego, California  
9:00 pm EDT (UTC−04) Try: Fenoglio (2) 13' c, 50' m
Campbell 56' c
Con: Magie (2/3) 13', 57'
Report Try: Barkwill 23' m
Rasileka 58' m, Hattingh 61' c
Con: Smith (1/3) 62'
Pen: Smith (2/3) 9', 67'
Attendance: 2,901
Referee: Scott Green [4] (United States)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Team details
FB 15   Maximo de Achaval
RW 14   Harley Davidson
OC 13   Chad London   46'
IC 12   Bryce Campbell
LW 11   Mika Kruse
FH 10   Will Magie
SH 9   Shaun Davies (c)
N8 8   Sam Figg
OF 7   John Quill
BF 6   Peter Dahl   57'
RL 5   Ben Landry   57'
LL 4   Kody O'Neil   62'
TP 3   Kelepi Fifita
HK 2   Zach Fenoglio
LP 1   Blake Rogers   68'
Replacements:
PR 16   Luke White   68'
PR 17   Nick Kwasniewski
HK 18   Dylan Fawsitt   57'
LK 19   Connor Cook   62'
FL 20   Grigor Kerdikoshvili   57'
SH 21   Mickey Bateman
CE 22   Ata Malifa   46'
OB 23   Nick Johnson
Coach:
  David Williams
FB 15   Mathew Turner
RW 14   Sequoyah Burke-Combs
OC 13   William Rasileka
IC 12   Shalom Suniula (c)
LW 11   Peter Tiberio
FH 10   Peter Smith
SH 9   Phil Mack
N8 8   Riekert Hattingh
OF 7   Vili Tolutaʻu   76'
BF 6   Eric Duechle
RL 5   Cam Polson
LL 4   Taylor Krumrei   57'
TP 3   Tim Metcher   59'
HK 2   Ray Barkwill   62'
LP 1   Olive Kilifi   57'
Replacements:
HK 16   Mike Shepherd   62'
PR 17   John Hayden   59'
PR 18   Kellen Gordon   57'
LK 19   Cole van Harn   76'
LF 20   Aladdin Schirmer   57'
FL 21   Andre Coquillard
OB 22   Jeremy Misailegalu
OB 23   Mozac Samson
Coach:
  Phil Mack

Most Valuable Player:
Vili Tolutaʻu (Seattle)

Assistant Referees:
Adam Leal (England)
Derek Summers (United States)
Television Match Official:
Marc Nelson (United States)

Highlights

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The champion Seattle Seawolves was awarded the "America's Championship Shield", an oversized 80-pound (36 kg) metal shield of the MLR logo, which they hoisted. Seawolves flanker Vili Tolutaʻu was named the MLR Championship Series "MVP", equivalent to man of the match.[5] For his efforts, he received a Shinola Detroit American Made watch.

References

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  1. ^ "Seattle Seawolves use big second half to beat San Diego 38-24 for shot at Major League Rugby title". The Seattle Times. June 30, 2018. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
  2. ^ a b Leonard, Tod (July 6, 2018). "In San Diego for title match, Major League Rugby reflects on inaugural season, future". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
  3. ^ a b Benjamin, Cody (July 6, 2018). "Major League Rugby Championship: How to watch Seattle Seawolves vs. Glendale Raptors". CBS Sports. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
  4. ^ "Seawolves stun Raptors to win inaugural MLR title". Americas Rugby News. 2018-07-08. Archived from the original on 2018-07-10. Retrieved 2018-07-10.
  5. ^ Strickler, Colton (July 8, 2018). "Big Second Half Propels Seawolves Over Raptors in Inaugural MLR Championship". Major League Rugby. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
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