Seattle Seawolves
The Seattle Seawolves are an American professional rugby union team based in Seattle, Washington. The team was founded in 2017 and competes in Major League Rugby,[2] the top-level rugby competition in the United States that played its first season in 2018.
Founded | 2017 | ||
---|---|---|---|
Location | Seattle, Washington | ||
Ground(s) | Starfire Stadium (Capacity: 3,800) | ||
Coach(es) | Kees Lensing Phil Mack[1] (Assistant) | ||
Captain(s) | Riekert Hattingh | ||
Top scorer | Brock Staller (277) | ||
Most tries | Mathew Turner (12) | ||
League(s) | Major League Rugby | ||
2019 | Champions 2nd place (regular season) | ||
| |||
Official website | |||
seattleseawolves |
History
The team was founded in 2017 by an investor group headed by Adrian Balfour and Shane Skinner.[2] The Seawolves won the inaugural MLR Grand Final in 2018,[3] and defended the title in the 2019 Major League Rugby Championship. In the final on June 16, 2019, the Seattle Seawolves defeated San Diego Legion 26–23 at Torero Stadium on the campus of the University of San Diego.[4]
Home field
The Seattle Seawolves play at Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila.[5] The team offered 1,800 season tickets for their inaugural season, which sold out prior to the first match.[6]
Broadcasts
Home games for 2019 were shown on Root Sports Northwest, an AT&T SportsNet affiliate.[7] Dan Power and Kevin Swiryn were the on-air talent.[8]
Sponsorship
Season | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
---|---|---|
2018–2019 | XBlades | |
2020–present | Paladin Sports | Krusteaz |
Players and personnel
Current squad
The following players have been reported for the 2020 season:[9][10]
Note: Flags indicate national union as has been defined under WR eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-WR nationality.
- Internationally capped players in bold
- MLR teams are allowed to field up to ten overseas players per match
Head coaches
- Tony Healy (2018) did not take up post due to visa difficulties
- Phil Mack (2018) [11]
- Anton Moolman (2019) did not take up post due to visa difficulties [12]
- Richie Walker (2019)
- Kees Lensing (2020–)
Captains
- Riekert Hattingh (2018–present)
Records
Season standings
Year | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | +/− | BP | Pts | Playoffs |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2018 | 2nd | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 232 | 188 | +44 | 5 | 29 | Won championship final |
2019 | 2nd | 16 | 11 | 1 | 4 | 498 | 407 | +91 | 12 | 58 | Won championship final |
Honors
2018 season
Regular Season
Date | Opponent | Home/Away | Result |
---|---|---|---|
April 22 | San Diego Legion | Home | Won, 39–23 |
April 28 | Glendale Raptors | Home | Lost, 15–19 |
May 12 | New Orleans Gold | Away | Won, 31–29 |
May 20 | Utah Warriors | Home | Won, 41–32 |
May 27 | New Orleans Gold | Home | Won, 55–26 |
June 2 | Houston SaberCats | Away | Won, 20–7 |
June 8 | Austin Elite | Away | Won, 20–19 |
June 16 | Glendale Raptors | Away | Lost, 11–33 |
Postseason
Date | Opponent | Home/Away | Result |
---|---|---|---|
June 30 | San Diego Legion | Home | Won, 38-24 |
June 16 | Glendale Raptors | Neutral | Won, 23–19 |
2019 season
Exhibition
Date | Opponent | Home/Away | Result |
---|---|---|---|
December 22 (2018) | Crimson Tide | Away | Won, 48–7 |
January 5 | SFGG | Away | Won, 45–0 |
January 17 | Seattle Saracens | Home | Won, 74–3 |
Regular season
Date | Opponent | Home/Away | Result |
---|---|---|---|
January 27 | Glendale Raptors | Home | Won, 20-18 |
February 2 | San Diego Legion | Away | Lost, 13-17 |
February 10 | New Orleans Gold | Away | Lost, 31-41 |
February 17 | Toronto Arrows | Home | Won, 35–30 |
February 24 | Rugby United New York | Home | Won, 33-21 |
March 10 | Houston SaberCats | Home | Won, 27-14 |
March 16 | Austin Elite | Away | Won, 29-17 |
March 31 | San Diego Legion | Home | Lost, 22-28 |
April 5 | Utah Warriors | Away | Won, 48-36 |
April 13 | Houston SaberCats | Away | Won, 52–10 |
April 21 | New Orleans Gold | Home | Won, 25–24 |
April 28 | Toronto Arrows | Away | Lost, 7-29 |
May 11 | Rugby United New York | Away | Won, 38-31 |
May 18 | Glendale Raptors | Away | Won, 53-36 |
May 26 | Utah Warriors | Home | Draw, 27-27 |
June 2 | Austin Elite | Home | Won, 38–26 |
Postseason
Date | Opponent | Home/Away | Result |
---|---|---|---|
June 9 | Toronto Arrows | Home | Won, 30-17 |
June 16 | San Diego Legion | Away | Won, 26–23 |
2020 season
On March 12, 2020, MLR announced the season would go on hiatus immediately for 30 days due to fears surrounding the 2019–2020 coronavirus pandemic.[13] It was cancelled the following week[14]
Regular season
Date | Opponent | Home/Away | Result |
---|---|---|---|
February 9 | San Diego Legion | Away | Lost, 24–33 |
February 16 | Old Glory DC | Away | Lost, 22–28 |
February 22 | Toronto Arrows | Home | Lost, 17–39 |
February 29 | New England Free Jacks | Home | Won, 44–29 |
March 7 | Utah Warriors | Home | Lost, 31–33 |
March 15 | Rugby United New York | Away | Cancelled |
March 21 | Houston SaberCats | Home | Cancelled |
March 29 | Colorado Raptors | Home | Cancelled |
April 4 | Austin Gilgronis | Away | Cancelled |
April 12 | San Diego Legion | Home | Cancelled |
April 25 | Utah Warriors | Away | Cancelled |
May 2 | Houston SabreCats | Away | Cancelled |
May 10 | Rugby ATL | Away | Cancelled |
May 17 | New Orleans Gold | Home | Cancelled |
May 24 | Colorado Raptors | Away | Cancelled |
May 31 | Austiin Gilgronis | Home | Cancelled |
References
- http://www.seattleseawolves.com/players/phil-mack
- "Seattle has a brand new sports team". KIRO 7 News. September 21, 2017. Retrieved September 21, 2017.
- Arthur, Ben (May 16, 2019). "The driving force of the Seattle Seawolves". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved May 17, 2019.
- "'I can't explain this feeling': Seawolves repeat as Major League Rugby champions with try as time expires". The Seattle Times. 2019-06-16. Retrieved 2019-06-17.
- "About the Seattle Seawolves". Seattle Seawolves. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
- Saul, John (April 13, 2018). "Seattle's hottest new startup is no tech company: Get to know the Seawolves and professional rugby". The Seattle Times. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
- http://www.seattleseawolves.com/news/major-league-rugby-s-seattle-seawolves-extend-television-partnership-with-root-sports
- https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10510446
- "2018 Major League Rugby – Seattle Seawolves". Americas Rugby News. 2018. Retrieved 2018-12-23.
- "MLR Off-Season Update – December 13, 2018". Americas Rugby News. 2018. Retrieved 2018-12-23.
- "Seawolves win first game as pro rugby makes Seattle debut". The Seattle Times. April 22, 2018. Archived from the original on May 2, 2018.
- "Anton Moolman new Head Coach of Seattle Seawolves". Americas Rugby News. September 9, 2018. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018.
- Anonymous, "MAJOR LEAGUE RUGBY SUSPENDS 2020 SEASON FOR 30 DAYS," www.majorleague.rugby, March 12, 2020 Retrieved March 14, 2020
- "Major League Rugby cancels remainder of 2020 campaign". Yahoo! Sports. AFP. March 19, 2020. Retrieved March 19, 2020.