Well, we are officially halfway done with the season now! It has certainly been a time and a half. While certainly there has been one dominant team at the top, it does appear we now have four tiers of classification. Chicago is ahead of the curve followed by a dangerous Legion side in their own space. Third tier is the battle for the last two playoffs spots which includes Anthem, DC and Seattle. Unfortunately for the Free Jacks they can’t even enjoy the fruits of their horrible season as their tampering charge has lost them their first overall selection.

For this week I wanted to focus once again on Free Agency of Christmas past. With the amount of turnover within the league there have been many successful signings by all the members of the MLR. However, there have certainly been some duds or just players who I was expecting more from. Note, this will not include injured players as while it is disappointing, I want to focus on the on the field product (if possible) or guys who I expected to make the team but are not getting in.

#1 Chicago Hounds – Jake Turnbull

I want to preface this was really difficult to select a player from the Hounds, but the fact of the matter is I was expecting to see more of Jake Turnbull. The capped Eagle has been a mainstay in the league, accounting for multiple 10+ appearance seasons for a variety of teams. An experienced prop who was co-captain of Anthem the past two seasons has only participated in one game this entire season so far. After starting against his former club Anthem in Week #2, Turnbull can seem to buy a game in the front row. Luke White has been a mainstay on the bench and Pifeleti has claimed the number one jersey for his own. It would not shock me if this were another one and done season for Jake Turnbull if he wishes to get more game time elsewhere

 Chicago once again handled their business in a formidable showing at home against DC. While Old Glory gave them a run for their money in the first half, the Hounds pulled away winning in a comfortable 49-31 game. Now the Hounds get another shot at Anthem this time at home. It would be quite funny if Jake Turnbell were to make a return appearance against his former side once again.

#2 California Legion – Ronan Murphy

So far Ronan Murphy’s season has been defined by a singular moment, a red card against Chicago a couple of weeks ago.  The former Gilgroni, Raptor and SaberCat had a prime opportunity to make a case for himself to be in the starting lineup after Christian Poidevin’s collar bone injury. Instead, Murphy missed a good chunk of the MLR season on suspension while guys like Ed Timpson, Ben Houston and Lance Williams have cemented themselves as the back row trio for Legion. I believe his suspension is now up which will be a welcome sight for the team from California. Perhaps he can redeem what’s been a disappointing season.

The Legion is travelling to Fort Quincy this week to face the Free Jacks. While certainly the 3-time champions have improved from their embarrassing showing in San Diego, if Legion does not walk away with five points it will be a failure by Coach Hoiles and crew. They have the cushion to keep their home playoff spot (wherever that will be), but why chance it?

#3 Old Glory DC – Max Schumacher

Oof, I know, I know I am gutted to say this. I had such high hopes for Schumacher, and I believe he can turn it around, but I cannot lie and say I am not at least a little disappointed. He did have that great game against Anthem where I thought finally the DC offense clicked. But, after watching the Chicago game and seeing particularly the first half offense, it did look better overall with Hoyland at #15. Now to be fair, Hoyland is definitely a better player than Schumacher at the moment, but as proven in the games past the Scot does just as well on the wing. Again, I do not think Max Schumacher has been bad at all, I was just expecting a bit more from him given the guys he has around him. I have not seen the Schumacher from the tail end of the season with Houston last year.

DC returns home and faces a once again battered Seattle Seawolves side which they’ll be hoping to avenge their Week #2 defeat to. Hopefully those who were absent from the Chicago trip are rested and healthy to return. Also get well soon Tevita Neqali.

# 4 Anthem Rugby Carolina – Seth Smith

I am starting to notice a trend here with former Sabercats…ah probably won’t come up again for the next team… Like his former teammate Schumacher, the youngster hooker had a lot of hype coming into the season. However, Seth Smith’s predicament is more akin to Jake Turnbull’s in that he cannot seem to get into the team. Campbell Robb has done an excellent job overall coming out of the draft and Gurovich coming off the bench has arguably been better. Besides one solitary start against Chicago, Smith also cannot seem to buy a game. I have heard he has started college, so perhaps commitments are split as he gets settled there, but from going to an MLR final to a benchwarmer in one season cannot be fun.

Anthem has the chance to avenge their home defeat to the Hounds, as they travel to Chicago. Cuca hopefully has allowed his team to fix some issues and reorient towards their early season form.

#5 Seattle Seawolves – Ezekiel Lindenmuth

You all should have seen this one coming a mile away if you have been keeping up with my Rankings. Funny how when the guy who is notoriously been giving up penalties at the worst possible time is not playing, the team wins. I have seen enough play LaRome White the rest of the season. All kidding aside, I am hard on Lindenmuth because he is extremely talented. While two tries are nothing to scoff at, the penalties given up have been detrimental.  Two cards and some poor tackling attempts have soured this signing. Hopefully this allows him to reset and come back with a less reckless approach.

Seattle’s win over the Free Jacks 27-11 highlights the fact that there is talent within this Seawolves squad and on their day, they can beat anyone. They are going to play ugly doing it, but they can. While they are now 3rd in the ladder, it doesn't feel like they are. A win against DC would certainly cement Coach Clarke’s side as a playoff spoiler.

#6 New England Free Jacks – Max Lehmann

Maybe this is just me and no one else had expectations for Max here, but I certainly did. The U.S eligible winger had some unique qualities coming over from Australia that perked my interest. A rugby league converts to union sounded like a fun experience to witness. Well, he started against Legion and we have not seen him since. I also do not expect to now as in addition to the return of the fan favorite Paula Balekana, Coach Martin has played a center in what would’ve been his spot. I know that the loss against Legion was bad, but Salmon made just as many mistakes, and he is still in the lineup, so what gives? Maybe I was being unrealistic on what it takes to change disciplines, but I figured he’d at least be a fun fast winger that made some occasional line breaks for the highlight reels.

If last week was not do or die for New England, this next week is. The California Legion are coming to Fort Quincy, and I am sure the defeat of Week #2 lingers on. Since it does not matter if the Free Jacks “tank” or not, they might as well enjoy playing annoying spoiler for the rest of the league.

Concluding Thoughts

Apologies for the shorter post this week. With the bye’s and it being dead week for me, my free time is limited, and I already spent way too much time watching rugby. However, Power Rankings will be back in full force next week!