Free Jacks repeat as Major League Rugby champions

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New England held off Seattle to add another shield to its collection.

New England Free Jacks

Kyle Baillie takes a line-out for the New England Free Jacks in their MLR final win over Seattle. Davey Wilson

For the second year in a row New England Free Jacks won the last game of the season.

By defeating the Seattle Seawolves 20-11 in Sunday’s Major League Rugby final, the Free Jacks repeated as MLR champions and added another ‘Shield’ to the growing collection.

Led by 2023 MLR Player of the Year Jayson Potroz, New England took an early lead and never looked back.

The match was highlighted by a diving try from New England’s Le Roux Malan, who scored his first of the season on the grandest of stages.

It was another clutch moment for Malan, who last scored a try in the 2023 final (which the Free Jacks won 25-24 over the San Diego Legion).

Seattle eventually responded, with Joe Taufete’e scoring a try to get the Seawolves back into the game.

But thanks to the sack from Potroz, New England was able to extend the lead and eventually shut down any Seattle hopes of a comeback. The Free Jacks’ defense held strong despite the Seawolves’ threats, forcing a series of crucial turnovers.

“The Free Jacks are more than just a rugby team,” said New England’s Jed Melvin, player of the match, after winning the title. “We’re a community. We’re a family. We look up to each other. The brotherhood on this team is incredible, to do it back to back and do this is pretty special.”

With a second straight shield, the Free Jacks join the Seawolves as the only teams to win the MLR title multiple times (Seattle also repeated, having done so in 2018-19).

New England began play as a team in 2020, although the first season was disrupted by the covid-19 pandemic. Under coach Scott Mathie (appointed 2021), the Free Jacks have risen to the league’s elite. After reaching the conference finals in 2022, Mathies’ team has now found a way to go one step further in each of the last two seasons.

Here are the full highlights from another happy day for Free Jacks: