2018 Major League Rugby Final

2018 Major League Rugby Final
Event 2018 Major League Rugby season
Date July 7, 2018
Venue Torero Stadium, San Diego, California
Man of the Match Vili Tolutaʻu
Referee Scott Green (United States)
Attendance 2,901

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.

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

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

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

The match was broadcast on CBS Sports Network.[3]

Match

Details

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
FB15Maximo De Achaval
RW14Harley Davidson
OC13Chad London 46'
IC12Bryce Campbell
LW11Mikaele Kruse
FH10Will Magie
SH9Shaun Davies (c)
N88Sam Figg
OF7John Quill
BF6Peter Dahl 57'
RL5Ben Landry 57'
LL4Kody O’Neil 62'
TP3Kelepi Fifita
HK2Zach Fenoglio
LP1Blake Rogers 68'
Replacements:
HK16Luke White 68'
PR17Nick Kwasniewski
PR18Dylan Fawsitt 57'
LK19Connor Cook 62'
FL20Grigor Kerdikoshvili 57'
SH21Mickey Bateman
CE22Ata Malifa 46'
OB23Nick Johnson
Coach:
David Williams
FB15Mathew Turner
RW14Sequoyah Burke-Combs
OC13William Rasileka
IC12Shalom Suniula (c)
LW11Peter Tiberio
FH10Peter Smith
SH9Phil Mack
N88Riekert Hattingh
OF7Vili Tolutaʻu 76'
BF6Eric Duechle
RL5Cam Polson
LL4Taylor Krumrei 57'
TP3Tim Metcher 59'
HK2Ray Barkwill 62'
LP1Olive Kilifi 57'
Replacements:
HK16Mike Shepherd 62'
PR17John Hayden 59'
PR18Kellen Gordon 57'
LK19Cole van Harn 76'
LF20Aladdin Schirmer 57'
SH21Andre Coquillard
OB22Jeremy Misailegalu
OB23Mozac 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

The champion Seattle Seawolves was awarded the "America's Championship Shield", an oversized 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

  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. 1 2 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. 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.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.