Round 9 of Major League Rugby brought decisive results and statement wins across both conferences.
New England extended their streak, Miami stunned Houston, and NOLA piled on the points at home. Meanwhile, Utah powered through RFCLA in Los Angeles, Chicago stayed hot with a seventh win, and Anthem showed late grit in a tight finish.
- New England Free Jacks 39 – 12 San Diego Legion
- NOLA Gold 51 – 29 Old Glory DC
- Miami Sharks 31 – 22 Houston SaberCats
- RFC Los Angeles 28 – 45 Utah Warriors
- Chicago Hounds 28 – 20 Anthem RC
Here are all the recaps and highlights from MLR Round 9:
FREE JACKS CRUISE TO THIRD STRAIGHT WIN WITH DOMINANT DISPLAY OVER LEGION
New England Free Jacks 39 – 12 San Diego Legion (HT: 22-7)
The New England Free Jacks extended their winning streak to three matches with a commanding 39-12 win over the San Diego Legion at Veterans Memorial Stadium. The defending champions produced a well-rounded performance on both sides of the ball, capitalizing on momentum shifts and executing clinical finishes to secure a bonus-point victory. San Diego opened the scoring through hooker Hugh Roach, but the Free Jacks quickly took control of the match. Harrison Boyle crossed twice in quick succession, including a beautiful support line on a linebreak, to swing momentum toward the hosts. Andrew Quattrin powered over for the third Free Jacks try, before a yellow card to Vili Helu compounded the visitors’ woes just before halftime. Faletoi Peni added a penalty goal before being forced off with injury, and New England entered the break with a commanding 22-7 lead. The second half brought more of the same as Quattrin completed his brace from a driving maul, and Jack Reeves dotted down soon after to extend the lead to 34-7. Richard Judd scored a consolation try for the Legion with 20 minutes remaining, but Reeves answered again with his second of the evening in the 77th minute to cap off a dominant outing for New England.
NEW ENGLAND FREE JACKS
- Tries: Boyle (9’, 19’), Quattrin (23’, 43’), Reeves (49’, 77’)
- Conversions: Peni (10’, 24’), Lennon (78’)
- Penalties: Peni (34’)
SAN DIEGO LEGION
- Tries: Roach (5’), Judd (60’)
- Conversions: Grayson (6’)
NOLA GOLD BLITZES OLD GLORY DC IN BONUS-POINT HOME VICTORY
NOLA Gold 51 – 29 Old Glory DC (HT: 24-12)
NOLA Gold delivered an electric attacking display on home soil Saturday night, overpowering Old Glory DC 51-29 at The Shrine to stay firmly in the Eastern Conference playoff hunt. The hosts raced to a 14-0 lead inside ten minutes, with Jonah Mau’u and Julian Roberts both crossing the line and Dorian Jones converting each. OGDC responded through Collin Grosse and Facundo Gattas to narrow the gap to 14-12, but Jones settled nerves with a penalty before Roberts added his second try to close out the half with NOLA ahead 24-12. The second half opened with a bang as Xavier Mignot stormed over for the first of his three tries. OGDC kept themselves in the contest through tries from Grosse, Gattas, and John Rizzo, trimming the score to 31-24 at one point. But NOLA pulled away late, with further tries from Mignot, Isaac Te Tamaki, and finally Mignot’s hat trick effort in the closing minutes. Luke Carty and Dorian Jones combined well off the tee, while the Gold’s forward pack dominated collisions. Despite the defeat, Old Glory left New Orleans with a valuable bonus point after scoring five tries. NOLA, meanwhile, earned all five available points and sent a clear message to the rest of the league with a complete performance.
NOLA GOLD
- Tries: Mau’u (2’), Roberts (7’, 40’), Mignot (44’, 66’, 78’), Te Tamaki (69’)
- Conversions: Jones (3’, 8’, 40’, 45’), Carty (79’)
- Penalties: Jones (38’), Carty (57’)
OLD GLORY DC
- Tries: Grosse (14’, 74’), Gattas (20’, 50’), Rizzo (54’)
- Conversions: Emery (15’, 51’)
SHARKS STUN SABERCATS WITH DOMINANT HOME WIN IN MIAMI
Miami Sharks 31 – 22 Houston SaberCats (HT: 24-5)
The Miami Sharks delivered one of their biggest performances of the season, powering past the Western Conference-leading Houston SaberCats with a 31-22 win at The Tank. In front of a raucous home crowd, Miami set the tone early with back-to-back tries from Giuseppe du Toit and Marcos Young inside the opening 20 minutes. Shane O’Leary added a penalty to stretch the lead to 17-5 before debutant Josiah Morra bulldozed over just before halftime, giving the Sharks a commanding 24-5 advantage at the break. Tomás Inciarte extended the lead with a dazzling solo try early in the second half, making it 31-5 and sending the home fans into celebration. But the SaberCats weren’t done. Tries from Drew Wild and Rufus McLean brought Houston back into striking distance at 31-15. A yellow card to Tomás Bekerman left Miami down a man, and Houston capitalized with a final-minute score from captain Nathan Den Hoedt to narrow the gap to nine. Despite the late push, the Sharks’ defensive grit held firm. With standout performances from the backs and key leadership across the park, Miami sealed a crucial win, while Houston was left to reflect on a second straight disappointing outing.
MIAMI SHARKS
- Tries: Du Toit (14’), Young (26’), Morra (40’), Inciarte (52’)
- Conversions: O’Leary (15’, 28’, 40’, 54’)
- Penalties: O’Leary (32’)
HOUSTON SABERCATS
- Tries: Wild (29’), Rebolo (55’), McLean (66’), Den Hoedt (79’)
- Conversions: Auto-Conversion (79’)
UTAH MAULS THROUGH RFCLA IN DOMINANT SECOND HALF TO SNAG BONUS-POINT WIN IN LOS ANGELES
RFC Los Angeles 28 – 45 Utah Warriors (HT: 21-21)
The Utah Warriors claimed a commanding 45-28 road win over RFC Los Angeles on Saturday night, riding a dominant forward pack and clinical maul execution to pull away in the second half after a thrilling first 40 minutes at Wallis Annenberg Stadium. Utah came out blazing, racing to a 21-0 lead in just 20 minutes behind a pair of tries from Joe Mano and a penalty try off a collapsed maul. But RFCLA answered back with fire. Three unanswered tries—including a long-range sprint from debutant Reece McDonald—brought the match level at 21 apiece heading into halftime. A lengthy delay due to an on-field injury and ambulance hold may have cooled RFCLA’s momentum. After the break, Utah seized back control with a penalty from D’Angelo Leuila followed by a string of dominant maul tries from Liam Coltman, Dylan Nel, and Frank Lochore to make it 45-21. LA mounted one final attack and broke through in the 61st minute with a brilliant coast-to-coast team try finished by Ed Timpson. Christian Leali’ifano’s conversion secured a bonus point for the home side, but Utah’s defense held firm to close out the match. The loss ends RFCLA’s winning streak, but they earn a valuable bonus point before traveling to New England next week. Utah continues its road success, moving to 5-2 with an upcoming clash against San Diego.
RFC LOS ANGELES
- Tries: Coe (26’), Meakes (35’), McDonald (37’), Timpson (61’)
- Conversions: Leali’ifano (27’, 36’, 38’, 62’)
UTAH WARRIORS
- Tries: Mano (6’, 14’), Penalty Try (21’), Coltman (49’), Nel (53’), Bradford (65’)
- Conversions: Leuila (7’, 15’, 49’, 54’, 66’)
- Penalties: Leuila (41’)
CHICAGO HOUNDS HOLD OFF LATE SURGE FROM ANTHEM RC TO CLINCH BONUS-POINT WIN
Chicago Hounds 28 – 20 Anthem RC (HT: 21-8)
The Chicago Hounds continued their strong MLR campaign with a hard-fought 28-20 win over Anthem RC on Sunday at SeatGeek Stadium, improving to 7-1 on the season. Mason Flesch and Dylan Fawsitt each bagged a brace, with the Hounds securing the bonus point before halftime in front of an energized home crowd. Flesch opened the scoring early, diving over from close range in the 3rd minute. After a penalty goal from Anthem’s Cam Gerlach made it 7-3, the Hounds responded with a rolling maul try by Fawsitt to extend the lead. Anthem hit back through Ishma-eel Safodien after a blocked kick, but Chicago finished the half in style. Fakaosifolau Pifeleti’s offload launched a sweeping multi-phase move capped by Fawsitt’s second, putting the Hounds up 21-8 at the break. Flesch struck again just minutes into the second half with a bursting run off a pop pass from Mitch Short, collecting a seven-point try under the posts to make it 28-8. Anthem refused to roll over, scoring twice through Jason Tidwell and Ethan Howard to claw back to 28-20 with 15 minutes to go. But Mitch Wilson’s missed conversion kept it a two-score game, and Chicago’s defense held firm in the closing stages to seal the win. The Hounds now shift focus to a short turnaround against the Seattle Seawolves on Friday night.
CHICAGO HOUNDS
- Tries: Flesch (2’, 42’), Fawsitt (11’, 39’)
- Conversions: Swiel (3’, 12’, 40’), Auto-Conversion (42’)
ANTHEM RC
- Tries: Safodien (22’), Tidwell (61’), Howard (66’)
- Conversions: Wilson (62’)
- Penalties: Gerlach (8’)
STANDINGS AFTER ROUND 9
With just over a third of the season complete, the playoff picture is starting to take shape—but margins remain tight across both tables.
From clinical team performances to late-game swings, Round 9 delivered more clarity—and more questions. Stay tuned as the race to the postseason intensifies.
Who impressed you most in Round 9? Drop your thoughts in the comments and let’s talk rugby.
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