Major League Rugby expansion into Hawaii on the cards
While there’s been historical talk of Super Rugby expanding into Hawaii, it seems like Major League Rugby will touch down in the island state first, with a new team potentially set to join the American competition from as early as 2021.
The Colorado Raptors, who have played in all three of MLR’s seasons to date, have pulled out of the competition moving forward, which has opened up a spot for the Kanaloa Hawai’i side to join the competition almost immediately, providing that the island side pass the league’s expansion benchmarks.
While Kanaloa were always going to put a bid in to join America’s premier competition from 2022, the Raptors departure has fast-tracked the process.
“Hawai’i has got huge talent, huge potential,” said team manager Cam Kilgour. “It’s a massive island for growth and has no professional sports team. So we thought, look, let’s try to see if we can connect with other Hawaiians on the island and see if we can move this a lot quicker.”
Kilgour was previously rumoured to be joining the LA Giltinis and has previous experience with the South Canterbury Heartland Championship side in New Zealand as well as the Cook Islands national team.
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Kanaloa have approached former All Blacks assistant coach and Austin Director of Rugby Mick Byrne to take over as head coach of the side while former All Black Tamati Ellison is also set to be involved in the coaching team.
While Honolulu, where the side will be based, is geographically some distance from the other sides in the competition, Kilgour is confident that the new side could manage flight times, costs and timezone issues.
“That was the key issue that we had to overcome; making sure there was no additional cost to any of the other MLR franchises. We’ve had great support from hotels and a local Hawaiian airline. We have said to MLR that we would cover all that.”
The Hawaiian team would join Major League Rugby as one of the western conference teams, pitting them against the likes of San Diego Legion and Seattle Seawolves. If the side join in 2021, one of Texas’ three teams would need to shift into the eastern conference – though that may be a temporary measure before more teams are added in following seasons.
According to Kilgour, Kanaloa will aim to have a roster made up of 25% local players – but that will be a challenge for the new club’s first few seasons. Attracting talent from the likes of New Zealand and Australia may not be such a tough hurdle for the new team, however, with NZ a 9-hour flight away from Hawaii. That could open the door for a number of Kiwis and Pacific Islanders to join the Hawaiian side’s cause.
Comments on RugbyPass
To me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
30 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
2 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
30 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
49 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
30 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to commentsForget Sotutu. One of those whose top level is Super Rugby. Id take a punt on Wallace Sititi Finau ahead of Glass body Blackadder.
30 Go to commentsI’m a pensioner so I've been around a bit. My opinion of SBW is he is an elite athlete and a great New Zealander and roll model. He has been to the top and knows what he's talking about. To all the negative comments regarding SBW the typical New Zealand way, cut that tall poppy down.
17 Go to commentsI'm not listening to a guy moralise over others when this is the guy who walked out mid season on Canterbury RLFC when he had a contract with them, what a hypocrite. Those praising him are a joke.
17 Go to commentsI’d put Finau at 6 instead of Blackadder but that’s the only change I’d make. Can’t wait to see who Razor picks.
30 Go to commentsTamati Williams, Codie Taylor, and Same Cane? Not sure about Hoskins Sotutu at test level. Wasn’t that impressive last season. Need a balance between experience and talent/youth.
30 Go to commentsInteresting insight. Fantastic athlete, and a genuine human being.
17 Go to commentsThey played at night in Suva last weekend and it’s an afternoon game forecast for 19 degrees in Canberra this weekend. Heat change is a non issue.
1 Go to commentsWishing Rosie a speedy recovery
1 Go to commentsObscene that SA haven’t been knocking
1 Go to commentsChances of Blackadder being injured seem too high to give him serious consideration. ABs loosie combination finally looked good with 2 committed to tackling and clearing rucks in the centre and Ardie roaming. Hoskins/Ardie together would force one of them into where they don’t excel and don’t get to use their talent, or require a change in tactics. If we continue to evolve last years systems I would take Papali’i and Finau at 6 and 7 (conceding that Blackadder will be injured) and Ardie at 8.
30 Go to commentsArdie’s preferred position 7? Where do they get these writers from? I've no idea where he's playing in Japan, but the previous two seasons he wore the 7 jersey exactly twice.
17 Go to commentsNot good to hear Ulster described as “financially troubled”. Did not think it was getting to that level. I would hope the Irish system of spreading players of talent away from Leinster would kick in now. Better to have a Leinster fringe player with Ulster or Connacht, then getting only a few games a season in Dublin. 10, for example, would seem to be a case for spreading the talent. I would not be at all adverse to a SA man coming in as head coach/DR. Ludeke is worth trying. Certainly got a long and impressive coaching career at this level…..149 games in SR, then Japan, 30 years experience. And Ulster’s ledger of successful SA coaches and players is on the positive side. Is talk of Ruan Pienaar interested in coming back as a coach…..could be a good combination with Ludeke. And Pienaar and family would have no settling in to do, one would judge. He loved life in Ulster when there, by all reports.
1 Go to commentsSome thoughts to consider here, Sam. Thanks
2 Go to commentsI think he is right, SBW is respected in RSA. The guy who never stood up is a worm. Sseems lots of NZ SBW hate, you do the crime do the time.
17 Go to comments