Fairfax, Va. – Old Glory’s home opener brought intensity, momentum swings and no shortage of physicality, but the home side’s comeback effort ultimately fell short in a 36-23 loss to California Legion on Sunday night. Entering the match on a two-game win streak and boasting the top tackle success rate in Major League Rugby, DC once again leaned on its league-leading defense, but penalties and a handful of missed finishing chances proved costly against one of the competition’s top sides.
California opened the match on the front foot, controlling possession through the opening 10 minutes and testing Old Glory’s defensive structure early. DC’s defense stood tall through
several attacking phases, breaking down the Legion’s offense and preventing multiple scoring opportunities before the visitors finally broke through with the opening try. The conversion gave California an early 7-0 lead.
Old Glory responded quickly through the boot of Jason Robertson, whose penalty kick cut the deficit to 7-3. Moments later, the match took a dramatic turn when Legion’s No. 12, Billy
Meakes, was shown a red card in the 17th minute for dangerous head contact, leaving the visitors down a player for the remainder of the contest.
Robertson added another penalty at 23:11 to bring Old Glory within one at 7-6, and the hosts nearly found their first try of the evening on a breakaway sequence midway through the half,
only for California to scramble back and prevent the finish. DC continued to apply pressure late in the first half, having two opportunities, but both were denied just short of grounding
the ball.
Despite Old Glory’s sustained pressure, California capitalized on its chances late in the half. A penalty kick at 32:22 extended the lead to 10-6, before the Legion added a converted try in first-half stoppage time to take a 17-6 advantage into halftime.
The second half opened with more back-and-forth play and physicality at the breakdown, but Old Glory found an early breakthrough. At 45:54, Myhill crossed over for Old Glory’s first
try of the match and Robertson converted to trim the deficit to 17-13, bringing the home crowd back into the contest. The energy at the stadium continued to build as Old Glory pushed forward, but California answered with a converted try to restore a two-score margin at 24-13.
After multiple defensive stands and several disrupted attacking sequences from both sides, Old Glory’s persistence paid off again, when a reviewed try by Robinson was confirmed. Robertson once again converted, cutting the score to 24-16 and giving DC renewed momentum heading into the final 10 minutes.
But California Legion responded with the defining moments of the match.
A breakaway try at 71:51, followed by another late score at 77:40, allowed California to stretch the lead to 36-16, capitalizing on the few clear opportunities they were given.
By: Ellie Wileman