The 2019 Major League Rugby final was the championship match of the 2nd season of Major League Rugby (MLR), a rugby union club competition in the United States. It was played on June 16, 2019, at Torero Stadium in San Diego, California, between the San Diego Legion and the Seattle Seawolves.
| Event | 2019 Major League Rugby season | ||||||
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| Date | June 16, 2019 | ||||||
| Venue | Torero Stadium, San Diego, California | ||||||
| Man of the Match | JP Smith | ||||||
| Referee | Scott Green (United States) | ||||||
| Attendance | 6,000 | ||||||
San Diego and Seattle finished first and second in the regular season, respectively, and advanced to the final after defeating New York and Toronto in the semifinals. The Seattle team was the defending champion, having won the 2018 final. Seattle defeated San Diego 26–23 in the 2019 final to take their second championship title.
Background
editThe 2019 Major League Rugby season began in January 2019 with nine teams all playing each other home and away. The Seattle Seawolves won the previous season's championship, defeating the Glendale Raptors at Torero Stadium in San Diego.[1]
Seattle and San Diego played each other twice during the regular season, ending in 17–13 and 28–22 victories for the Legion.[2]
Venue
editTorero Stadium, home field of Major League Rugby team San Diego Legion, was selected as the venue for the final after the team finished as the top seed in the regular season.[3] 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.[4]
Broadcasting
editThe match was broadcast nationally on CBS.[5] It received a rating of 0.34 (510,000).[6]
Match
editDetails
edit| June 16 | San Diego Legion | 23–26 | Seattle Seawolves | Torero Stadium, San Diego, California | ||
| 1:00 pm EDT (UTC−04) | Try: Boyer 52’ c Manihera 65’ c Con: Pietersen 2/2 (53’, 66’) Pen: Pietersen 2/2 (6’, 21’) Drop: Pietersen 1/2 (78’) |
ARN Report | Try: Coetzee 22’ c Smith 32‘ c Hattingh 71’ m Tucker 80’ c Con: Staller 3/4 (23’, 33’, 82’) |
Attendance: 6,000 Referee: Scott Green (United States) Man of the Match: JP Smith |
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Post-match
editThe defending champion Seattle Seawolves was once again awarded the "America's Championship Shield", which was changed to a 20-pound (9.1 kg) metal shield in the shape of the MLR logo. Seawolves scrum-half JP Smith was named the MLR Championship Series "man of the match".[citation needed]
References
edit- ^ Monahan, Terry (July 7, 2018). "Seawolves win inaugural Major League Rugby championship". The Seattle Times. Retrieved June 16, 2019.
- ^ Saul, John (June 15, 2019). "Seawolves hoping third time's a charm vs. San Diego in quest for repeat Major League Rugby title". The Seattle Times. Retrieved June 16, 2019.
- ^ Strickler, Colton (June 7, 2019). "Legion Host RUNY to Kick Off MLR Championship Series". San Diego Legion. Retrieved June 16, 2019.
- ^ 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.
- ^ Benjamin, Cody (June 11, 2019). "Major League Rugby championship: How to watch Seattle vs. San Diego on CBS". CBS Sports. Retrieved June 16, 2019.
- ^ "SKEDBALL: Weekly Sports TV Ratings 6.10-6.16.2019 | Showbuzz Daily". www.showbuzzdaily.com. Archived from the original on 18 June 2019. Retrieved 17 January 2022.