Rugby PickEm

The MLR Final has arrived featuring the L.A. Giltinis hosting Rugby ATL at the Coliseum Sunday night on CBS (or "big" CBS, as the commissioner likes to refer to it as. When he's not chatting it up at the Hooch, he's volunteering in his community and spreading the game of rugby in Atlanta. We caught up with Rugby PickEm favorite Jeremy "Missile"🚀 Misailegalu who has held down the #14 jersey all se...

If you blink, the MLR season will pass you by. That's what the past month has felt like. Due to the pandemic, the league kicked off a bit later than usual this year, and the season has swelled well into the summer. With the final set for Sunday August 1st on big CBS, the teams will battle the heat in the final weeks of what has been a fantastic season. Some viral moments that happened since we las...

Apparently in the podcasting world, it is a requirement to celebrate oneself for reaching 100 episodes. Well here's a nice digital pat on the back to the Rugby PickEm crew for creating the content that the rugby world wanted (but certainly didn't need) since 2018. We have a special recording for Rugby PickEm's century mark as we go back in time 3 years to spring of 2018 when RP started. Devin Mart...

Tommy No Piks, Colton Strickler & Bt sit down and talk about the state of college rugby. ENJOY!

Have you ever waited for something for FOUR whole years, just to have it pushed back a FIFTH additional year? The average person has trouble keeping their focus for a week or a month ... but the core 7's squad that have been living and training in Chula Vista are locked in and ready for a Global stage. For the Olympic athletes who have waited this long to represent their countries, I applaud your...

The word "Bayou" derives its origins from Choctaw (bayuk) and Louisiana French. If there's one travel date that is set in stone each year for Rugby PickEm, it's our trip to the Bayou to complete the pilgrimage to one of the great US-based rugby-specific stadiums. This year had to be the Texas Cup. As the RP "Boots on the Ground" 2021 Tour continued in the nation's 4th largest city (population), Sa...

It's put up or shut up time as the MLR season quickly approaches the playoffs. The Giltinis lose for the 2nd time on the East coast, but don't worry ... the lads are enjoying a quick trip to Cabo for some R&R on the bye week. Rugby PickEm favorite Billy Meakes did the ol' backwards lunge and should be coming back from the trip firing on all cylinders. Big congrats ... this guy broke his orbital 6...

LA Loyals Elite defeated the Colorado XO's 33-31 last Saturday. Got to the game at halftime, but was still able to absorb an electrifying half of the Loyals Elite (hand picked by Gilly himself) vs. the Colorado XO's. LA jumped out to a decent sized lead in the first half, but it was the spiciest scrummy of the week, Carmine Hernandez who helped lead the XO's back into contention in an electrifying...

If there's any city in the world to spend just 12 hours in, Los Angeles is right up there. The urban sprawl can be intimidating, but with limited time we went straight to the beach ... Venice Beach to be precise. It was going to be a Gilly type of weekend, so naturally we had to find ourselves a pub or two that served this Legendary Lager. Our server Slater at the Whaler was kind enough to give us...

Tyler Grant was born and raised in Arkansas. He has never been to Los Angeles, yet tomorrow night's red eye trip to LA to watch the top of the table Giltinis host the Warriors as they christen SoFi stadium's first live sporting event with fans seemed like a good idea to him when offered the chance. When the big announcement came that the Giltinis would be playing in Stan Kroenke's new mexa-pleg, I...

Colton Strickler joins the show to discuss everything Colorado XO's. They will be hosting the Hartford Harpooners on Saturday, May 8th in what could be argued as the most hyped (non-MLR) game of the 2021 spring season. A little background on Colton. He was the first (ever) writer for the MLR in its inaugural 2018 season (and 2019 too). Colton shaped the MLR as we know it today (online ..., via mat...

There's no shortage of Major League Rugby content these days. Not just on The Rugby Network (which we have sincerely and thoroughly enjoyed each week since the season started), but all over the Rugby Media Industrial Complex (RMIC). This week's media review has to be ... The Rugby Clubhouse. The rugby world could not have been blessed with better complimenting accents for this show set in a rugby...

Heading into week 6 and the season is steaming ... as a meaningless way too early prediction foretold, the current table in the West features a Gilbowl Western final. In the East, RUNY sits in the drivers seat, as NOLA looks to hold off the other 4 eastern teams (all still at play). Toronto may get some home games on the backend, but it's wishful thinking to bank on that. They need to win a massiv...

Paddy parked in the back lot (right by The Hangout which is an old airplane hangar). The whole athletic complex is just north of Historical Naval Air Station South Field which was originally established in WW2 as a Navy blimp base. It was operational from 1942 to 1997 and has housed and serviced planes such as P-3 Orions and C-130 Hercules. But the history on this day was made between the lines .....

"Hey Rugby PickEm fellas. This is Casey Rock long time listener first-time caller one-time guest very interested to hear the next next podcast after week one is now in the books. I know that I spent my day feverishly switching between games on a phone when I'm watching at my in-laws seeing Snippets of all the games watching. None of them very closely, lesson learned. I will pace myself better this...

After a full year away, MLR is finally back. In preparation for Saturday's games, we busted out the TV screens, bought ingredients for (something resembling) chili in the crock pot, and invited the lads over as we dialed up "The Rugby Network" for what seemed a lot like an NFL Redzone Sunday, but better. Love how the MLR had multiple games running at a time. The staggered kick off times allowed fo...

Best Finish: 2019 Semi-final loss to Seattle (11-5 regular season). Ended the regular season on a 7-0 run. 2021 Home Stadium: Lupo Family Field ... (for now) capacity 5,000 Best Name: Mike "Dusty" Sheppard Who Excites Rugby PickEm: Large concentration of Canadian talent, mixed with South American flair ... what's not to like? Socials: #ArrowsUp Instagram: Blue Check Verified PICKEM!

Rugby ATL Best Finish: N/A (cancelled inaugural season 2020) 2021 Home Stadium: Lupo Family Field (capacity 5,000) Best Name: Duncan van Schalkwyk Who Excites Rugby PickEm: This team has weapons, and they play fast paced rugby led by Scott Lawrence. Also, the Missile is unit. Socials: #PushThePace Instagram: No Blue Check

Old Glory DC Best Finish: 2020 (4-1 start) First in the east before cancelled season 2021 Home Stadium: Segra Field (capacity 5,000) Best Name: Mo Katz Who Excites Rugby PickEm: Keeping the "Spine" of their team. Except the halfbacks to gel right out of the gate. Coach Andrew Douglas will look to continue their winning ways. Socials: #OGDC Instagram: Blue Check Verified

NOLA Goes ALL-IN on their gameday experience Best Finish: 2019 (9-7 regular season) Just missed the playoffs 2021 Home Stadium: The Gold Mine (capacity 5,000) Best Name: Ross Depperschmidt Who Excites Rugby PickEm: Multi-year contracts leads to stable growth. Expect NOLA's core group to gel early. They'll be playing for their rowdy crowd. Socials: #StayGold Instagram: Blue Check Verified

New England Free Jacks Best Finish: 2020 (1-4) Beat RUNY in first ever match 2021 Home Stadium: Union Point Sports Complex (capacity 2,000) Best Name: Jack Ram Who Excites Rugby PickEm: Mags is a sparkplug. There are few front office personalities that shine as bright as Alex Magleby. He's built up the hype in New England for a successful professional rugby team. Socials: #TogetherWeRide #LightThe...

Rugby United New York The team is now operating under new ownership (Bolton Equities). Best Finish: 2019, Semi-Final Loss to SD Legion (11-5 regular season) 2021 Home Stadium: MCU Park (capacity 7,500) Best Name: Hanco Germishuys Who Excites Rugby PickEm: Core group of players (Foden, Wallace-Sims, Fawsitt, Bennett) returning. If you can overcome NYC's challenges, you've got grit. If you're gritty...

Houston Sabercats Best Finish: 2019, 6-10 2021 Home Stadium: Aveva Stadium (capacity 4,000) Best Name: Nika Khatiashvili Who Excites Rugby PickEm: Returning their core (Windsor, Pangelinan, Esdale, Howden), and can do some damage in the West if they pick up early W's. Socials: #GoCatsGo Instagram: Blue-Check Verified (Tommy NoPiks incorrectly reported on the podcast ... tsk tsk Tommy) PICKEM!

Austin Gilgronis (photo cred: @normasali12) Best Finish: 2020, 1-1-3 record (ended on a high note, winning the Texas Cup) 2021 Home Stadium: Bold Stadium (capacity 5,000) Best Name: Zinzan Elan-Puttick Who Excites Rugby PickEm: Strong, experienced coaching staff. Depth and competition at each position (fielded multiple sides during pre-season scrimmages) should allow them the ability to win games...

Utah Warriors Best Finish: 2018, Semi-Final loss to Glendale (3-5 regular season record) 2021 Home Stadium: Zions Bank Stadium (capacity 5,000) Best Name: Jurie van Vuuren Who Excites Rugby PickEm: Utah's feeder teams have gotten games under their belt in 2020. Strong core group returning including Gus McClellan, Matt Jensen, Alex Tucci (famous Twitch streamer), Lance Williams, and also adding pot...