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Matt Giteau's Giltinis the latest team disqualified by the MLR
By Liam Heagney
MLR has been rocked by a second disqualification inside a week, the LA Giltinis joining Austin Gilgronis in getting thrown out of the 2022 competition as it reaches the business end of the season. It was Thursday when MLR tweeted that the Gilgronis has been turfed out ahead of the playoffs and that same fate has now happened to the Giltinis, whose star-studded roster is headed by Matt Giteau.
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An MLR tweet read: “League Update – Due to a violation of league rules, the LA Giltinis have been disqualified from the 2022 Major League Rugby competition.
“The Houston SaberCats will now host the Western Conference final and play the winner of the Western Conference eliminator between the Seattle Seawolves and San Diego Legion at Starfire Stadium.”
The Giltinis, who were crowned first-time champions in the 2021 MLR final last August, were scheduled to host the Western Conference final on June 19 at the Coliseum in LA against the winner of the SaberCats versus Seawolves eliminator in Houston, but the Legion have instead been handed a knockout lifeline with this latest disqualification.
No reason for the sudden expulsion of the Giltinis was provided by the MLR in its social media announcement. It was the same last Thursday when it announced that the Gilgronis had been disqualified, tournament officials not providing an explanation at the time regarding what rules had been violated.
The Houston SaberCats will now host the Western Conference Final and play the winner of the Western Conference Eliminator between the Seattle Seawolves and San Diego Legion at Starfire Stadium.
— Major League Rugby (@usmlr) June 7, 2022
That statement last week read: “Due to a violation of league rules, the Austin Gilgronis have been disqualified from 2022 post-season play. Championship series fixtures will be announced as they are determined.”
The Gilgronis had appeared to have secured a home semi-final the previous weekend after defeating the Legion 44-28, but that win was in vain.
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You don't think an important part of this story was missed in this article? That the same owner oversees both teams is a detail that I'd say is...pretty relevant.
I am so conflicted! Worried for the league, happy for the San Diego Legion, sad for the players who won't be in the playoff, most likely because of something done by the front office. I am going to trust that the league officials have made a very difficult call to disqualify LA and Austin.