Canadian-eligible players in Major League Rugby 2021

There will be a record number of Canadian-eligible players in Major League Rugby this season. Nearly 60 names could make an appearance between now and July, with half situated with teams south of the border. The other half are signed by Canada’s only team, the Toronto Arrows.

Below we take a team-by-team look at who showed up during the opening weekend, and who will be making their first appearances in MLR over the coming weeks.

 

EAST CONFERENCE

 

All but one member of the Arrows tight five are Canadian. Two went to the World Cup – hooker Andrew Quattrin and prop Cole Keith. The latter was selected as a tighthead for Canada but has now switched to loosehead to accommodate the arrival of Argentine tighthead Gastón Cortes.

Jack McRogers has moved up to second choice at hooker for now with Steven Ng seemingly unlikely to play this season due to injury. Pat Lynott is a loosehead specialist while international Rob Brouwer opted out of the trip south but remains available should the Arrows return home at any point.

The tighthead side is more heavily populated. Behind Cortes is national u20 graduate Tyler Rowland, who has slimmed down significantly this season, followed by a pair of Pacific Pride signings – Marc-Antoine Ouellet, who could also be an emergency lock, and Chris Atkinson, who is training across the front row.

New signing Adrian Wadden partnered Paul Ciulini at lock on the weekend. The pair also played alongside each other with the u20 program. Ciulini has since won 8 test caps. Mike Sheppard and Kolby Francis can both play in the back row as well, in fact Francis prefers the No8 spot. Sheppard was at the World Cup in 2019.

Co-captain Lucas Rumball and Marcello Wainwright are joined by Mason Flesch on the flank this season. Peter Milazzo opted out for medical reasons. Siaki Vikilani is most effective as a ball carrying eightman but has also played on the side of the scrum. Flesch and Vikilani played for the Pride in 2020.

All four scrumhalves on the roster are Canadian-eligible. Andrew Ferguson and Jamie Mackenzie return for a third season though Mackenzie has not made the trip south. Newcomers Jason Higgins and Ross Braude qualify via parents. Riley DiNardo and Dylan Young remain available but are focusing on completing their education.

Will Kelly has one Canada cap to his name and the 23-year-old is aiming to add many more. At the moment he is second choice at flyhalf behind New Zealander Tayler Adams. Versatile veteran Shawn Windsor is also on the roster but hasn’t played since the 2019 campaign.

It’s all Canadian options in the midfield. Giuseppe du Toit and new co-captain Ben LeSage are most often seen at No12 and No13 respectively, with Spencer Jones and Mitch Richardson able to play either spots. Jones is nearing a return from injury after a year on the sidelines. Canada u18 center or wing Kobe Faust impressed the coaches enough in a preseason trial to get a spot on the trip south.

South Americans dominate the outside backs but Patrick Parfrey is still with the team. He has been focused on fullback lately but also has test caps at flyhalf and inside center. Johnny Sheridan played a couple games on the wing last season and is currently on standby in Toronto.

 

Rugby United New York have their first Canadian this season and he’s a good one. Highly-rated u20 select Quinn Ngawati signed on when the Toronto Wolfpack folded. He is ideally a center but started on the wing this past weekend.

 

Heading to Boston-way we find Josh Larsen, who will captain the New England Free Jacks for a second straight season. The big lock was busy practicing his diplomacy skills on the weekend as his team were hit by two yellow cards and one red.

 

A third Canuck has joined center pair Ciaran Hearn and Doug Fraser in DC. World Cup loose forward Luke Campbell has signed on with Old Glory. Usually a No8 for Canada, he’ll primarily be used as blindside flank cover for Kiwi import Callum Gibbins.

 

Matt Heaton is again captaining Rugby ATL from his No7 position. Technically he is co-captain with Ryan Nell, but the South African center has yet to return from a knee injury. Second row Conor Keys is currently on the disabled list after suffering a leg injury in the same match as Coleman. Speedy winger Gio Douyon was in the Pathway 404 development group in the fall but has since joined up with the Hartford Harpooners, a prospective MLR feeder program.

 

It’s worth noting that four of the six East Conference sides are captained by Canadians. Kyle Baillie leads NOLA for a second year. The PEI native is mostly playing lock these days. He took over the leadership role from Eric Howard, who remains first choice hooker for the Gold.

 

WEST CONFERENCE

 

Once the preferred destination for Canadian internationals south of the border, the Seattle Seawolves have now lost that distinction to the SaberCats. Appearing at Starfire Stadium this season are props Djustice Sears-Duru and Jake Ilnicki, openside flanker Nakai Penny, and inside center George Barton. Selected in the Collegiate Draft was versatile back Nick Taylor, who is Houston-born but raised in Calgary. He remains eligible for both Canada and the USA.

 

The expansion LA Giltinis feature now-former Canadian international DTH van der Merwe on their left wing. He got off to a flying start with two tries in his first MLR outing. Second-stringers eligible for Canada include hooker Lindsey Stevens and lock or blindside flanker Corey Thomas.

 

There are two young Canadian prospects in San Diego this season. Josh Thiel returns and started at flyhalf for the Legion against New York on the weekend though he is more often seen in the midfield. A new arrival from UBC is loose forward Michael Smith who projects as an openside flanker in MLR.

 

The Utah Warriors just a few days ago confirmed the signing of Canada u20 lock Hank Stevenson, who had originally been picked up by the now-withdrawn Dallas Jackals. Already in Salt Lake City was another age grade international in scrumhalf Fraser Hurst. Both are in their first seasons as professionals.

 

Austin started flanker Moe Abdelmonem and winger Cole Davis against Utah in Week 1. Already joined up with the AGs but currently recovering from injury are second row Reegan O’Gorman and winger Jeff Hassler. This is the first season in MLR for Davis and O’Gorman.

 

Finishing up in Houston, the SaberCats have five Canadian-eligible players on their roster this season. All are new to the team. Props Liam Murray and Nik Hildebrand arrive from the Pride along with scrumhalf Crosby Stewart. Flyhalf or fullback Robbie Povey was an off-season signing from Utah, while the team have today confirmed once-capped lock or loose forward Lucas Albornoz. He returns from a stint in New Zealand that included appearances in the Mitre 10 Cup with Northland.