Major League Rugby: Five things we learnt including Demi Lovato’s favourite team as Matt Giteau’s charges clinch Cup

Joe Harvey
mlr: Demi Lovato and the San Diego Legion players.

Check out our round up of the weekend's action in the MLR. (Images: Art Smith/IG and Griff Lacey)

Following an entertaining weekend of the 2024 Major League Rugby season, here are five things we learnt from week 13 from the action on and off the pitch.

The Miami Sharks have provided another twist to the Eastern Conference saga, while a megastar has been pictured in a team’s jersey.

Miami victory throws Eastern Conference into disarray

An 80th minute Tomas Casares try handed the Miami Sharks a dramatic 15-13 win over reigning champions, the New England Free Jacks.

Scored beneath the posts for an automatic seven points, the Florida club’s win means that the MLR Eastern Conference is very much up for grabs.

New England top the division by a solitary point, while the NOLA Gold’s fourth win in a row means that they trail the Free Jacks, while Chicago are third.

Miami are now also in contention for the play-offs, with Jose Pellicena’s team only four points behind Old Glory DC and a valuable post-season position.

There are likely to be plenty more twists in the tale of this chase, in many ways it is the race to be watching and one thing that you could bet on is that when it finished, there will be a surprise.

Seawolves break losing streak

Following back-to-back defeats, Allen Clarke’s Seattle Seawolves got back to winning ways on Friday night against Old Glory DC.

Picking up a narrow 26-24 win, Seattle have consolidated second place in the Western Conference and are three points behind the Houston SaberCats. It is a victory that came on a key week for Seattle.

At the end of last week, the team confirmed that several key players would miss the rest of the season with injury.

This includes club captain Riekert Hattingh, vice-captain Charles Elton and senior players Mason Pederson, Peter Malcolm and Kara Pryor.

Despite not having those senior faces among the matchday 23 from here onwards, grinding out a win in this sort of fashion can provide confidence for the two-time champions.

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Demi Lovato throws support behind Chicago

Perhaps one of the more surprising things to happen in MLR this week was popstar Demi Lovato posing in a Chicago Hounds jersey.

Posted on the Instagram of restaurateur, and Hounds part-owner, Art Smith, the American chef thanked his friend for representing the club.

Smith’s investment in the Hounds was unveiled in February, when the 64-year-old’s food project, Sporty Bird, also partnered with the team.

This has not been Chicago’s only brush with the headlines in recent weeks, the club having made waves across the rugby world by converting their sin bin into a literal doghouse.

Just imagine if Louis Rees-Zammit makes friends with Taylor Swift…

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Legion emphatically respond to poor start in whopping win

To lift the Cali Cup on Sunday afternoon, the San Diego Legion scored 20 unanswered second-half points to beat RFC Los Angeles 27-19.

Olympic gold medallist Semi Kunatani scored two first-half tries for LA, but the expansion franchise were not capable of pressing home their dominance.

In short, Matt Giteau and his Legion teammates were nothing short of ruthless in their pursuit of a victory that took Danny Lee’s team back up to third in the Western Conference.

Danny Christensen helped provide the try of the afternoon, the ex-Utah Warriors and Dallas Jackals half-back at his hot-stepping best to help former Northampton Saints scrum-half Connor Tupai over the whitewash.

City kits start to be unveiled for 2024

Every year, MLR teams will put out a limited range of specialty jerseys, which are later sold at auction.

The shirts recognise the rich history of a team’s city or region and often yield stunning results.

For example, Utah have looked to the state’s red rocks, the shirt a deep rust colour, with rock formations wrapped across them.

New England have opted for a dark blue flannel design, while Anthem RC have finishing line flags in recognition of Charlotte Motor Speedway and the Miami Sharks have a palm tree design that you could imagine being present in GTA VI.

READ MORE: Loose Pass: Leinster and Jacques Nienaber make ‘childish mockery’ of World Rugby laws

Features Matt Giteau