NEWS

Major League Rugby Week 7 Recap

Written By Joe Harvey

Week 7 of Major League Rugby was intense, and now everyone needs a quick breakdown.

Five enthralling encounters took place from one coast to the other, and five teams came out on top to further their own cause as the Eastern and Western Conferences continue to take shape.

RFCLA, the Chicago Hounds, Houston SaberCats, Seattle Seawolves and New England Free Jacks ended the seventh week of 2025 as winners.

Here is a little reminder of how things went over the weekend…

RFCLA 54-44 OLD GLORY DC

Rugby Football Club Los Angeles won their third game in a row after edging Old Glory DC in a 98-point thriller.

It was an action-packed first half that started with Nick Grigg opening the scoring for DC just two minutes into the game. Ed Timpson and Billy Meakes scored LA tries, and Jason Robertson kicked three Old Glory penalties. 

Even with Maliu Niuafe in the sin bin, Ben Houston dotted down for the home team.

Old Glory were awarded a penalty try ahead of half-time after LA’s Gonzalo Bertranou illegally entered the driving maul and was also shown a yellow card for his troubles. 

LA ended the first half with 13 players after Andrew Coe was also sent to the sin bin.

When the second half resumed, DC made the most of that extra space on the pitch with a superb Jack Iscaro score.

FRONT ROW TRY 🚨

via @usmlr @ESPNPlus @OldGloryDC pic.twitter.com/qjIYKy6ZUz

— The Rugby Network (@therugbynetwork) March 29, 2025

Timpson and Christian Dyer’s tries breathed new life into the host’s challenge, only for a penalty try and a second yellow card for Bertranou for a no-arms tackle to make things interesting again.

Despite being reduced to one player again, LA rallied to score through Mikey Sosene-Feagai, a move that saw DC’s KoiKoi Nelligan go to the sin bin.

Joe Wrafter went to the sin bin three minutes after his introduction to the game for Old Glory and was joined by John Rizzo in the 69th minute for dragging back Coe as the Canadian wing looked certain to score.

To end a highly competitive clash, Martin Vaca scored for DC, and to win the game outright, Tas Smith finished off a Reece MacDonald break.

NOLA GOLD 18-20 CHICAGO HOUNDS

Just two points separated the Chicago Hounds from the NOLA Gold at full-time in Louisiana.

It was a closely contested clash from start to finish, in which the Gold took an early lead with a Dorian Jones penalty and Julian Roberts try, while Chicago’s Nate Augspurger was shown a yellow card.

Chicago ended the first half with 14 players on the field after Lucas Rumball saw yellow and allowed Jones to knock over a second penalty. Dylan Fawsitt crossed the whitewash on the stroke of half-time to get the Hounds into the contest.

To take the lead Chris Hilsenbeck and Maclean Jones both went over the try line while JP du Plessis was in the sin bin.

A Hilsenbeck penalty took the Hounds out of sight, although a late Aidan King try brought the scoreline to two points.

HOUSTON SABERCATS 34-14 SAN DIEGO LEGION

The Houston SaberCats ended San Diego Legion’s unbeaten start to the season with a comprehensive 34-14 victory.

Both teams enjoyed a bright start as the Texas sun set, and Davy Coetzer opened the scoring after Legion’s Brandon Harvey was shown a yellow card for targeting the legs of Ezekiel Lindenmuth.

San Diego did register a try through Shilo Klein before the SaberCats ended the first half strongly with Andre Warner and Coetzer tries.

Shilo Klein gets over the line on the quick-tap to kickoff the scoring! SD lead 7-0

📺 https://t.co/N1YhUY5UJQ#HOUvSD | #MLR2025 pic.twitter.com/CcCicfypD5

— Major League Rugby (@usmlr) March 30, 2025

Houston was awarded a penalty try early in the second half, and Jed Holloway was sent to the sin bin for dragging down a driving maul. Rufus McLean added another try to the hosts’ tally shortly before Holloway returned to the field.

To end the contest, AJ Alatimu kicked a penalty in the final five minutes, and Christian Poidevin scored a consolation try for San Diego after Pita Anae-Ah Sue received a yellow card.

The two teams are now level on points at the top of the Western Conference, with Legion remaining on top thanks to their superior points difference.

Final stats from @HOUSaberCats vs @SDLegion 📊

Final Score: 34-14

Smart Ball data and insights brought to you by @Sportable #HOUvSD | #MLR2025 pic.twitter.com/UE0q0P1gU0

— Major League Rugby (@usmlr) March 30, 2025

SEATTLE SEAWOLVES 25-17 ANTHEM RC

A strong second-half performance took the Seattle Seawolves to a 25-17 win over Anthem RC.

The visitors, who became the first MLR team to take to the field with an all-domestic roster, had the lead at half-time thanks to a Tomalati Ma’afu try. Seattle had a foothold in the clash with a Rod Iona penalty.

After Mitch Wilson extended Anthem’s lead with a penalty, the Seawolves hit back with tries for Toni Pulu and a Divan Rossouw brace.

With Seattle’s Mason Pedersen and Anthem’s Karl Keane in the sin bin, Malacchi Esdale scored his fourth try of the season and took the hosts out of sight.

In the 77th minute, Anthem’s replacement loosehead prop Jake Turnbull rumbled over for the final score of the game.

UTAH WARRIORS 26-33 NEW ENGLAND FREE JACKS

An 80th-minute Andrew Quattrin try handed the New England Free Jacks victory over the Utah Warriors.

A second-half fightback from the back-to-back champions handed Ryan Martin’s team victory over their Western Conference opponents.

It was a result that looked unlikely at half-time, as tries for Liam Coltman, Aki Seiuli, Nic Benn, and Kyle Brown gave the Warriors a 26-5 lead at Zions Bank Stadium.

Jero Gomez Vara’s unconverted score gave New England a lifeline going into the next 40 minutes, which the Free Jacks dominated from start to finish.

It started with a Cam Nordli-Kelemeti effort before Brock Webster and Oscar Lennon’s tries, which were converted by Faletol Peni, to level the scores in the final quarter.

With Utah looking increasingly unlikely to fire the shot that could have secured them five points, New England continued to pile pressure onto the hosts with ferocious defense and calculated attack.

Paul Lasike’s yellow card for a neck roll was the Free Jacks’ green light to win the contest. After turning the ball over, Joe Johnston charged into the Utah half, offloaded the ball to Josiah Morra and then Oscar Lennon to plant New England deep in Warriors’ territory.

Making carry after carry, the Free Jacks got to the try line and when Quattrin got his hands on the ball, drove low toward the whitewash and won the contest.