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Despite being two of the powerhouse clubs on the American rugby scene, meetings between the Seattle Saracens and Glendale Raptors are few and far between. That cycle will be broken this coming weekend as Seattle plays host to the Raptors at Magnuson Park for the three-match Legends Cup in honor of Dick Smith, a long time contributor to rugby in the USA. Smith, who resides in Seattle, helped found the Chicago Lions as well as the United State Rugby Football Union and currently serves as a Director for the US Rugby Football Foundation.
After the disbandment of the Rugby Super League, Seattle moved on to competing in Canada and have since moved their way up the British Columbia ranks and now playing the CDI Premier League after winning promotion last season. When rumors of the Pacific Rugby Premiership began, it was expected that Seattle would be involved, but they opted to remain in British Columbia, which is considered the best club competition in North America. Glendale’s men are the reigning champion of the Pacific Rugby Premiership and have been to the title match in the first two seasons of the PRP. The Raptors’ women’s side are the current Women’s Premier League champs.
The two clubs, considered to be as close to professional as any club in the USA, are littered with capped Eagles, Eagle pool players, and prospects on both their men and women’s teams.
The Legends Cup kicks off on Saturday January 23rd at 11am PST with the Women’s match that marks the first time in club history that the Raptors will face off against Seattle. That match is followed by the Men’s B-Side, also a first between the clubs. The main event kicks off at 2:45pm when the Saracens and Raptors A-sides kick off. The meeting is only the third time in history that the teams have met. The squads have split their two previous meetings with the home team winning each test.
While the match is being considered a pre-season warm up, there is every indication that this could be one of the top club matches of 2016.
