Seattle Seawolves

Last updated

Seattle Seawolves
Seattle Seawolves primary logo.svg
Founded2017;7 years ago (2017)
Location Tukwila, Washington
Ground(s) Starfire Sports (Capacity: 4,500)
Coach(es) Allen Clarke
Captain(s) Riekert Hattingh
Most caps JP Smith (92)
Top scorer AJ Alatimu (321)
Most tries Riekert Hattingh (39)
League(s) Major League Rugby
2023 Conference finalist
2nd (Western Conference)
Kit left arm.svg
Kit body seawolves23h.png
Kit body.svg
Kit right arm.svg
Kit shorts.svg
Kit socks seawolves23h.png
Kit socks long.svg
1st kit
Kit left arm borderonwhite.png
Kit left arm.svg
Kit body shouldersonwhite.png
Kit body.svg
Kit right arm borderonwhite.png
Kit right arm.svg
Kit shorts.svg
Kit socks seawolves23h.png
Kit socks long.svg
2nd kit
Official website
seawolves.rugby

The Seattle Seawolves are an American professional rugby union team based in Tukwila, Washington. The team was founded in 2017 and competes in Major League Rugby (MLR), the top-level rugby union competition in the United States that began play in 2018. The Seawolves won two MLR championships in 2018 and 2019, and lost in the 2022 final. They play at Starfire Sports, a 4,500-seat stadium in Tukwila that primarily serves soccer teams.

Contents

History

The team was founded in 2017 by an investor group headed by Adrian Balfour and Shane Skinner. [1] The Seawolves won the inaugural MLR Grand Final in 2018, [2] 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. [3]

Stadium

A Seawolves game at Starfire Sports in 2022 Seattle Seawolves vs San Diego Legion, 2022 MLR Playoffs at Starfire Sports - 01.jpg
A Seawolves game at Starfire Sports in 2022

The Seattle Seawolves play at Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila. [4] The team offered 1,800 season tickets for their inaugural season, which sold out prior to the first match. [5] In 2024, Seawolves team president Tom Barden stated that the team was "in discussions" to move to the redeveloped Memorial Stadium on the Seattle Center campus. The stadium is planned to be rebuilt with a capacity of 6,500 to 8,000 seats. [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]

Kit history

Kit left arm Seawolvesleft.png
Kit left arm.svg
Kit body Seawolveskit.png
Kit body.svg
Kit right arm Seawolvesright.png
Kit right arm.svg
Kit shorts.svg
Kit socks long.svg
Home 2018–19
Kit left arm navy with color border.png
Kit left arm.svg
Kit body navy chest with color midriff.png
Kit body.svg
Kit right arm navy with color border.png
Kit right arm.svg
Kit shorts.svg
Kit socks 2 stripes green.png
Kit socks long.svg
Away 2018
Kit left arm borderonwhite.png
Kit left arm.svg
Kit body shouldersonwhite.png
Kit body.svg
Kit right arm borderonwhite.png
Kit right arm.svg
Kit shorts.svg
Kit socks seawolves23h.png
Kit socks long.svg
Away 2022–
Kit left arm.svg
Kit body seawolves23h.png
Kit body.svg
Kit right arm.svg
Kit shorts.svg
Kit socks seawolves23h.png
Kit socks long.svg
Home 2023–

Sponsorship

SeasonKit manufacturerShirt sponsorOther Shirt sponsor(s)
2018–2019 XBlades NoneNone
2020 Paladin Sports KrusteazNone
2021–2022 WaFd Bank None
2023 Virginia Mason Franciscan Health
Tukwila
(ExperienceTukwila.com)

Players and personnel

Current squad

The Seattle Seawolves squad for the 2024 Major League Rugby season is: [9]

Note: Flags indicate national union under World Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.

PlayerPositionUnion
Peter Malcolm Hooker Flag of the United States.svg United States
DaQuan Perry Hooker Flag of the United States.svg United States
Joe Taufeteʻe Hooker Flag of the United States.svg United States
Jackson Zabierek Hooker Flag of the United States.svg United States
Koby Baker Prop Flag of the United States.svg United States
Dewald Donald Prop Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa
Kellen Gordon Prop Flag of the United States.svg United States
Olive Kilifi Prop Flag of the United States.svg United States
Sam Matenga Prop Flag of New Zealand.svg New Zealand
Cameron Orr Prop Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia
Mason Pedersen Prop Flag of the United States.svg United States
Chance Wenglewski Prop Flag of the United States.svg United States
Jean Droste Lock Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa
Rhyno Herbst Lock Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa
Taylor Krumrei Lock Flag of the United States.svg United States
Isaia Lotawa Lock Flag of the United States.svg United States
Mahonri Ngakuru Lock Flag of New Zealand.svg New Zealand
Monate Akuei Back row Flag of Kenya.svg Kenya
Reid Davis Back row Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Canada
Charles Elton Back row Flag of New Zealand.svg New Zealand
Pago Haini Back row Flag of the United States.svg United States
Riekert Hattingh (c) Back row Flag of the United States.svg United States
Neal Moylett Back row IRFU flag.svg Ireland
Kara Pryor Back row Flag of New Zealand.svg New Zealand
Huw Taylor Back row Flag of England.svg England
PlayerPositionUnion
Ryan Rees Scrum-half Flag of the United States.svg United States
JP Smith Scrum-half Flag of the United States.svg United States
Rhys Jones Fly-half Flag of the United States.svg United States
Mack Mason Fly-half Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia
Sam Windsor* Fly-half Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia
David Busby Centre IRFU flag.svg Ireland
Dan Kriel Centre Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa
Tevita Kuridrani Centre Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia
Tavite Lopeti Centre Flag of the United States.svg United States
Lauina Futi Wing Flag of the United States.svg United States
Conner Mooneyham Wing Flag of the United States.svg United States
Toni Pulu* Wing Flag of Niue.svg Niue
Jeremiah Sio Wing Flag of the United States.svg United States
Jade Stighling Wing Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa
Duncan Matthews Fullback Flag of South Africa.svg South Africa
Divan Rossouw Fullback Flag of Namibia.svg Namibia

Head coaches

Captains

Records

Season standings

SeasonConferenceRegular seasonPostseason
PosPldWDLFA+/−BPPtsPldWLFA+/−Result
2018 —2nd8602232188+445292206143+18Won Semifinal (San Diego Legion) 38–24
Won Major League Rugby final (Glendale Raptors) 23-19
2019 —2nd161114498407+9112582205640+16Won Semifinal (Toronto Arrows) 30–17
Won Major League Rugby final (San Diego Legion) 26-23
2020 [a] Western4th5104138162-2448------Cancelled
2021 Western5th164012343461-1181026------Did not qualify
2022 Western4th16907435354+7364632110476+28Won West Conference Eliminator (San Diego Legion) 43–19
Won West Conference Final (Houston SaberCats) 46–27
Lost Major League Rugby final (Rugby New York) 15-30
2023 Western2nd161204509348+16111591116936+33Won West Conference Eliminator (Houston SaberCats) 37–26
Lost West Conference Final (San Diego Legion) 32-10
2024 Western2nd161105498373+12513573216973-4Won West Conference Eliminator (San Diego Legion) 30–28
Won West Conference Final (Dallas Jackals) 28-25
Lost Major League Rugby final (New England Free Jacks) 11-20
Totals93541382,6532,106+547612831293359268+915 postseason appearances

Notes

  1. ↑ 2020 regular season shortened and playoffs cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Honors

2018 season

Regular season

DateOpponentHome/AwayResult
April 22 San Diego Legion HomeWon, 39–23
April 28 Glendale Raptors HomeLost, 15–19
May 12 New Orleans Gold AwayWon, 31–29
May 20 Utah Warriors HomeWon, 41–32
May 27New Orleans GoldHomeWon, 55–26
June 2 Houston SaberCats AwayWon, 20–7
June 8 Austin Elite AwayWon, 20–19
June 16Glendale RaptorsAwayLost, 11–33

Postseason

DateOpponentHome/AwayResult
June 30San Diego LegionHomeWon, 38-24
June 16Glendale RaptorsNeutralWon, 23–19

2019 season

Exhibition

DateOpponentHome/AwayResult
December 22 (2018)Crimson TideAwayWon, 48–7
January 5 SFGG AwayWon, 45–0
January 17 Seattle Saracens HomeWon, 74–3

Regular season

DateOpponentHome/AwayResult
January 27 Glendale Raptors HomeWon, 20-18
February 2 San Diego Legion AwayLost, 13-17
February 10 New Orleans Gold AwayLost, 31-41
February 17 Toronto Arrows HomeWon, 35–30
February 24 Rugby United New York HomeWon, 33-21
March 10 Houston SaberCats HomeWon, 27-14
March 16 Austin Elite AwayWon, 29-17
March 31San Diego LegionHomeLost, 22-28
April 5 Utah Warriors AwayWon, 48-36
April 13Houston SaberCatsAwayWon, 52–10
April 21New Orleans GoldHomeWon, 25–24
April 28Toronto ArrowsAwayLost, 7-29
May 11Rugby United New YorkAwayWon, 38-31
May 18Glendale RaptorsAwayWon, 53-36
May 26Utah WarriorsHomeDraw, 27-27
June 2Austin EliteHomeWon, 38–26

Postseason

DateOpponentHome/AwayResult
June 9Toronto ArrowsHomeWon, 30-17
June 16San Diego LegionAwayWon, 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. [12] It was cancelled the following week [13]

Regular season

DateOpponentHome/AwayResult
February 9 San Diego Legion AwayLost, 24–33
February 16 Old Glory DC AwayLost, 22–28
February 22 Toronto Arrows HomeLost, 17–39
February 29 New England Free Jacks HomeWon, 44–29
March 7 Utah Warriors HomeLost, 31–33
March 15 Rugby United New York AwayCancelled
March 21 Houston SaberCats HomeCancelled
March 29 Colorado Raptors HomeCancelled
April 4 Austin Gilgronis AwayCancelled
April 12San Diego LegionHomeCancelled
April 25Utah WarriorsAwayCancelled
May 2Houston SabreCatsAwayCancelled
May 10 Rugby ATL AwayCancelled
May 17 New Orleans Gold HomeCancelled
May 24Colorado RaptorsAwayCancelled
May 31Austin GilgronisHomeCancelled

2021 season

Regular season

DateOpponentHome/AwayResult
March 20 Houston SaberCats AwayLost, 24–30
March 28 LA Giltinis AwayLost, 26–57
April 10 Utah Warriors AwayWon, 20–15
April 17 Toronto Arrows AwayLost, 7-52
April 25 Austin Gilgronis AwayLost, 15-42
May 2 Rugby United New York HomeLost, 23-21
May 9 San Diego Legion HomeWon, 21-15
May 16 Old Glory DC AwayLost, 18-22
May 23 Rugby ATL HomeLost, 6-25
June 6Utah WarriorsHomeLost, 28-29
June 13 New England Free Jacks AwayLost, 21-25
June 20Austin GilgronisHomeLost, 31-36
June 27LA GiltinisHomeLost, 14-29
July 3San Diego LegionAwayLost, 21-34
July 11 New Orleans Gold HomeWon, 30-6
July 15Houston SaberCatsHomeWon, 40-21

2022 season

Exhibition

DateOpponentHome/AwayResult
January 22 Seattle Rugby Club HomeWon, 76-8
January 28 Hartford Harpooners HomeWon, 50-0

Regular season

DateOpponentHome/AwayResult
February 6 Toronto Arrows HomeWon, 21-8
February 10 Utah Warriors HomeWon, 20-17
February 20 San Diego Legion AwayWon, 31-28
February 26 Austin Gilgronis HomeLost, 25-18
March 4 New Orleans Gold HomeLost, 25-24
March 12 Houston SaberCats AwayLost, 21-19
March 19 Dallas Jackals AwayWon, 34-12
March 26 LA Giltinis HomeLost, 12-31
April 9 New England Free Jacks AwayLost, 22-24
April 16San Diego LegionHomeWon, 34-32
April 23Utah WarriorsAwayWon, 20-14
May 1Austin GilgronisAwayLost, 6-17
May 8Dallas JackalsHomeWon, 74-7
May 15 Rugby United NY AwayLost, 22-30
May 27Houston SaberCatsHomeWon, 43-36
June 5LA GiltinisAwayWon, 35-27

Post season

RoundDateOpponentHome/AwayResult
West EliminatorJune 12 San Diego Legion HomeWon, 43–19
West Conference FinalsJune 18 Houston SaberCats AwayWon, 46–27
MLR Championship June 25 Rugby United NY AwayLost, 15–30

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Starfire Sports</span> Stadium and sports facility in Tukwila, Washington, U.S.

Starfire Sports is a multi-purpose stadium and sporting facility in Tukwila, Washington, United States. It is located on the banks of the Green River, just south of Seattle. The stadium is operated by the nonprofit corporation Starfire Sports and is home to several soccer and rugby teams. At the time of its opening, CEO Chris Slatt claimed it was "the largest synthetic-turf soccer complex in the U.S."

The Seattle metropolitan area in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States is home to several professional and amateur sports teams. They include seven teams in major leagues, several in minor leagues, and collegiate programs for two National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I universities and one NCAA Division II university.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Utah Warriors</span> US professional rugby union team from Salt Lake City, Utah

The Utah Warriors are a professional rugby union team that competes in Major League Rugby, the top-level rugby union competition in the United States and Canada that played its first season in 2018. The team is based in Salt Lake City, Utah, and was founded in 2010 as Utah Warriors and re-refounded in 2017 by Rugby Utah Ventures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tacoma Defiance</span> American soccer team based in Tacoma, Washington

Tacoma Defiance, formerly Seattle Sounders FC 2, is an American professional soccer team based in Puget Sound region in Tukwila, Washington, U.S. that competes in the MLS Next Pro, a league in the third tier of the United States soccer league system, as the reserve team of Seattle Sounders FC. Formerly, 20 percent of the club was fan-owned through the non-profit Sounders Community Trust.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Major League Rugby</span> Professional rugby union competition in the United States and Canada

Major League Rugby (MLR) is a professional rugby union competition for clubs in North America. In the 2023 season it was contested by twelve teams: eleven from the United States and one from Canada. While operating outside of the governance and oversight of the national governing body, the league is officially sanctioned by USA Rugby—a member union of Rugby Americas North (RAN)—and is consequently part of World Rugby. The league was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Houston SaberCats</span> Professional rugby union team from Houston, Texas

The Houston SaberCats are an American professional rugby union team based in Houston, Texas. The team was founded in 2017 and competes in Major League Rugby, the top-level rugby union competition in the United States and Canada that played its first season in 2018. The SaberCats organization was born from one of the founding amateur rugby clubs that pooled resources to emerge professionally, and were the first in MLR membership to build a rugby-specific stadium intended for MLR competition.

The 2018 Major League Rugby season was the inaugural season of Major League Rugby, an annual rugby union competition sanctioned by USA Rugby. The seven inaugural teams were based in the United States. The competition began the weekend of April 21–22 with three matches, with New Orleans defeating Houston 35–26 to open the season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American Raptors</span> Former professional rugby union team

The American Raptors are a professional rugby union team based in the municipality of Glendale in Colorado. The team plays in the transcontinental Super Rugby Americas competition. Established as the amateur "Glendale Raptors" in 2006, the team became a professional club upon joining Major League Rugby as a founding member in 2017, but they played there only three years, competing as the "Colorado Raptors" in their final shortened season of 2020 before withdrawing from the league.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Diego Legion</span> Major League Rugby team in San Diego, California

The San Diego Legion are a professional rugby union team based in San Diego, California, that competes in Major League Rugby (MLR). The team plays its home games at Snapdragon Stadium. The Legion began play in the league's inaugural 2018 season.

The 2018 Major League Rugby final was the championship match of the inaugural season of Major League Rugby (MLR), a rugby union club competition in the United States. It was played on July 7, 2018, at Torero Stadium in San Diego, California, between the Glendale Raptors and the Seattle Seawolves. Seattle won the match 23–19 to take their first title.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New England Free Jacks</span> Professional Rugby Union Team from Boston, Massachusetts

The New England Free Jacks are a professional rugby union team in Major League Rugby (MLR) based in the Greater Boston area. They were announced in September 2018 and began to compete professionally in October 2018. They competed in their first season in MLR in the 2020 season. The team has won two MLR shields after defeating the San Diego Legion in 2023 and the Seattle Seawolves in 2024.

Ben Mitchell is an English-born Irish professional rugby union player who is currently a lock. As of 2024, he is with the United States team Rugby Football Club Los Angeles in Major League Rugby (MLR).

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.

The 2020 Major League Rugby season was the third season of Major League Rugby, the professional rugby union competition sanctioned by USA Rugby. The regular season schedule was released on September 23, 2019, and began on February 8, 2020.

Sean McNulty is a professional rugby union player who currently plays as a hooker for the Miami Sharks of Major League Rugby (MLR).

The 2021 Major League Rugby season was the fourth season of Major League Rugby, the professional rugby union competition sanctioned by USA Rugby. The regular season began on March 20, 2021.

The 2022 Major League Rugby season was the fifth season of Major League Rugby, the professional rugby union competition sanctioned by USA Rugby. The regular season began on February 5, 2022.

The 2022 Major League Rugby final was the fourth Major League Rugby (MLR) championship match, held at the conclusion of the 5th season of the rugby union club competition in North America. The match was played on June 25, 2022, at the Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey. It was the first MLR Final to be held in New Jersey as all previous MLR Finals were played in California. Rugby New York emerged victorious over the Seattle Seawolves by a score of 30-15.

The 2023 Major League Rugby season was the sixth season of Major League Rugby, the professional rugby union competition sanctioned by USA Rugby. The regular season began on February 17, 2023.

The 2023 Major League Rugby Championship Final was the fifth Major League Rugby (MLR) championship match, held at the conclusion of the 6th season of the rugby union club competition in North America. The match was played on July 8, 2023, at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview, Illinois. It was the first MLR Final to be held in Illinois, and the first since the 2019 final to be held at a pre-determined venue. The match was won by the New England Free Jacks over the San Diego Legion by a score of 25-24, claiming their first MLR Championship.

References

  1. ↑ "Seattle has a brand new sports team". KIRO 7 News. September 21, 2017. Retrieved September 21, 2017.
  2. ↑ Arthur, Ben (May 16, 2019). "The driving force of the Seattle Seawolves". Seattle Post-Intelligencer . Retrieved May 17, 2019.
  3. ↑ "'I can't explain this feeling': Seawolves repeat as Major League Rugby champions with try as time expires". The Seattle Times. June 16, 2019. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  4. ↑ "About the Seattle Seawolves". Seattle Seawolves. Retrieved November 6, 2017.
  5. ↑ 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.
  6. ↑ Morgan, Rick (November 6, 2024). "New Memorial Stadium draws interest from potential sports tenant" . Puget Sound Business Journal . Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  7. ↑ "MAJOR LEAGUE RUGBY'S SEATTLE SEAWOLVES EXTEND TELEVISION PARTNERSHIP WITH ROOT SPORTS". www.seattleseawolves.com. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  8. ↑ "San Diego Legion at Seattle Seawolves". IMDb . March 31, 2019.
  9. ↑ "Seattle Seawolves". Americas Rugby News. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
  10. ↑ "Seawolves win first game as pro rugby makes Seattle debut". The Seattle Times. April 22, 2018. Archived from the original on May 2, 2018.
  11. ↑ "Anton Moolman new Head Coach of Seattle Seawolves". Americas Rugby News. September 9, 2018. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018.
  12. ↑ Anonymous, "MAJOR LEAGUE RUGBY SUSPENDS 2020 SEASON FOR 30 DAYS," www.majorleague.rugby, March 12, 2020 Retrieved March 14, 2020
  13. ↑ "Major League Rugby cancels remainder of 2020 campaign". Yahoo! Sports. AFP. March 19, 2020. Retrieved March 19, 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.