Major League Rugby

[Mellsblue]

I was listening to the Rugby Wrap Up podcast on my jog this afternoon and, in between puking in my mouth and inwardly bemoaning my Flatman-esque love of red meat and red wine, Kennedy made said revelation.

Other points of note were the dislike of Austin’s (foreign) recruitment policy, that Boston look strong for next year, Atlanta are going to build with young local players, Washington DC have gone very quiet, and the only thing stopping San Francisco entering a franchise is an inability to find a suitable stadium. He also hinted that expansion is at an end as they are in danger of diluting player quality.

Agreed that expansion should come to a halt (with the possible exception of any Canadian franchises, as they're a different player base). With the possible exceptions of North California and the Mid-West, there's no real pockets of unmined rugby talent that aren't covered by MLR sides (and the best from those areas will move if they're serious about rugby as a career). It's good that there's interest from new franchises wanting in, but better to pause now and let the player base grow, rather than go too fast, too early, and end up with a crappy product that collapses back in on itself in a few years.

Besides, if they pause expansion for a couple of seasons and there's a few franchises banging on the door to get in, then they can up the buy-in to the league and make a quick buck when they do expand.

Pause to expansion, says NY. Two more teams for 2021, says Houston!

Puja

In Kennedy’s defence, I may have been dry-wretching when he said expansion would be paused post 2021.

[Puja]

Final is on tonight at 9pm English time. Free (legal!) stream available here.

Puja

[Puja]

And of course the legal stream is broken, so here's the illicit one: http://123tvnow.com/watch/cbs/

Puja

[Mellsblue]

Seattle with another last minute score to win it! They’ve got some cojones.

[Puja]

Seattle with another last minute score to win it! They’ve got some cojones.

Did you watch it? Ridiculous game, going from 6-0, to 6-14, to 20-14, 20-19, then 23-19 with a 78th minute 40m drop goal, before the last minute 15m driving maul to win the game. I'd've preferred a San Diego win for the publicity boost of their first major championship in any sport since 1963 (and rewarding the 6k crowd), but it was a hell of a game.

Puja

[Mellsblue]

Seattle with another last minute score to win it! They’ve got some cojones.

Did you watch it? Ridiculous game, going from 6-0, to 6-14, to 20-14, 20-19, then 23-19 with a 78th minute 40m drop goal, before the last minute 15m driving maul to win the game. I'd've preferred a San Diego win for the publicity boost of their first major championship in any sport since 1963 (and rewarding the 6k crowd), but it was a hell of a game.

Puja

Nope. Early night last night. My brother was visiting for the weekend so Friday and Saturday were late nights. Sounds like another cracker of a match. The broadcasters can’t be unhappy with the product given the last few week.

[Puja]

And this one was on CBS proper as well, regular network television. Not a bad advertisement for the league at all.

Puja

[Mellsblue]

There are a few interesting points in here:

https://amp.theguardian.com/sport/2019/ ... ssion=true

[Puja]

I think Austin's got one more season before they'll move them - every club put in money for 3 season's worth of wages at the beginning, so the funding's there, and there's suggestions they'll move to the football stadium at Circuit of the Americas, which is better located, a decent size at 5k and just better laid out than any baseball stadium could be for rugby. If Todd Clever can rebuild bridges with the local clubs, I still think there's a potentially successful franchise to be had there.

Puja

[Puja]

That has been coming for a very long time. They have been incredibly patient - going from one of the fancied teams before season 1 to finishing bottom with one win, and then backing that up with only being second bottom this year because Austin are so crap. Frankly I've been amazed they haven't looked at changes before now.

Puja

By the sounds of it, he was a bit of a local rugby institution and was central to the teams inception. That may have bought him longer than results deserved.

The same's happening in Utah atm - their coach was involved in the university teams, in all the representative teams, and was such a massive part of the amateur rugby scene that everyone's tiptoeing around the subject that his team are massively underperforming, showing the same issues over and over without signs of addressing it and that, maybe, just maybe, he might not have the chops to compete at the professional level.

And now officially gone: https://www.warriorsrugby.com/news/warr ... anization/

Puja

[Mellsblue]

No surprise that the team(s!) of the year are dominated by the playoff teams.

[Mellsblue]

https://www.rugbypass.com/news/foden-st ... ocumentary

[Mellsblue]

https://www.houstonsabercats.com/news/n ... dKwHkOHQf0

He’s well travelled but it doesn’t strike me as a great CV.

[Puja]

https://www.houstonsabercats.com/news/n ... dKwHkOHQf0

He’s well travelled but it doesn’t strike me as a great CV.

I have no idea why they didn't stick with Emerick after the incredible end they made to last season under him. The only thing I can think of is that maybe he doesn't want a head coach role and prefers to stay an assistant.

Puja

[Puja]

I'd just like to interrupt this offseason to note that Austin have now rebranded to become the Austin Herd. Strangely, it appears vaguely popular with Texans, although I am baffled by the concept of naming a sports team after a grass-eating farm animal of no great intelligence, pace, or elan, known mostly for being slaughtered for food.

Possibly fitting for this Austin team though - certainly more than any suggestion that they were Elite.

Puja

[Mellsblue]

Big news coming out of RUNY. Team Manager Simon Gillespie has won a Gallagher Premiership Scholarship and Ben Foden will star on X Factor:Celebrity.

[Mellsblue]

All of RUNY’s regular season fixtures bar the opener are listed as being held at MCU Park. So much for taking them on tour before the permanent home is ready in 2021.

[Puja]

All of RUNY’s regular season fixtures bar the opener are listed as being held at MCU Park. So much for taking them on tour before the permanent home is ready in 2021.

I think that's a much better plan - they need to build a support, not wander around begging for the curious to see them one week and forget them the next. MCU Park may be rubbish, but at least it is a home.

In other news around the league, Utah have has a share bought out by the same people who own San Diego (which is apparently fine in Yank sports) and coincidentally have decided to hire a head coach who isn't a Mormon. That head coach is Chris Latham, most recently Samoa's assistant for the RWC.

Puja

[Puja]

Glendale finally succumb to the inevitable and rebrand to Colorado Raptors. About goddamned time in my opinion - I get that the city of Glendale had invested in the team and stadium and wanted their name emblazoned on the shirts, but any Yank hearing about a team in Glendale assumes they're Arizona first, then might guess at California, before giving up and saying they didn't know there were any other Glendales. Hell, I'll bet half of Denver is unaware that there's a Glendale on the outskirts of their city.

https://coloradoraptors.com/news/the-gl ... o-raptors/

Puja

[Mellsblue]

RUNY are one more player closer to changing their name to New York Irish.
https://www.rugbyunitedny.com/news/cormacdaly/

[Mellsblue]

It turns out the reason RUNY don’t have a location for their first home game is that there is a ‘Magic Weekend’ in Vegas, featuring four matches over one weekend.

[Puja]

It turns out the reason RUNY don’t have a location for their first home game is that there is a ‘Magic Weekend’ in Vegas, featuring four matches over one weekend.

Sorry, had posted about that elsewhere and forgot I hadn't put it here. New York are actually losing two games to Vegas - one for this Magic Weekend style thing and another in the first few weeks which is New England vs New York! I think it's a massive mistake myself - why be a curiosity for a week elsewhere rather than build your brand and support at home? Especially when you're wasting the first NE vs NY game halfway across the country.

If MLR is going to nick ideas from other countries, I would far prefer they did a Sarries/Quins style Big Game in a larger stadium in their town. Get Utah into Rio Tinto or Glendale Colorado into the DSG Park, chuck free tickets and get schools in and try to get 15-20k in with the hope that some of them follow you home to your next game.

Puja

[Puja]

Pretty much the perfect stadium for RUNY is being built in Queens in 2021: https://www.espn.com/soccer/united-socc ... -franchise

James Kennedy needs to be ringing them pronto and offering RUNY as a partner. This is a once in a decade opportunity to get a pitch in a new rugby-suitable stadium in New York proper and they need shooting if they can't get involved in it.

Puja

[Mellsblue]

Glendale finally succumb to the inevitable and rebrand to Colorado Raptors. About goddamned time in my opinion - I get that the city of Glendale had invested in the team and stadium and wanted their name emblazoned on the shirts, but any Yank hearing about a team in Glendale assumes they're Arizona first, then might guess at California, before giving up and saying they didn't know there were any other Glendales. Hell, I'll bet half of Denver is unaware that there's a Glendale on the outskirts of their city.

https://coloradoraptors.com/news/the-gl ... o-raptors/

Puja

And celebrate by signing Rene Ranger.

[Puja]

Glendale finally succumb to the inevitable and rebrand to Colorado Raptors. About goddamned time in my opinion - I get that the city of Glendale had invested in the team and stadium and wanted their name emblazoned on the shirts, but any Yank hearing about a team in Glendale assumes they're Arizona first, then might guess at California, before giving up and saying they didn't know there were any other Glendales. Hell, I'll bet half of Denver is unaware that there's a Glendale on the outskirts of their city.

https://coloradoraptors.com/news/the-gl ... o-raptors/

Puja

And celebrate by signing Rene Ranger.

Good signing if they can keep him fit.

The whole league been bringing in a lot of talent over the offseason. Utah have signed Samoa s/h Polativau and Fiji hooker Vugakoto. Should be a stronger league overall next year, even with the addition of three new teams.

Puja