American Hooker Connor Robinson Signs With Old Glory

By Alistair Kirsch-Poole
Jan 29, 2026 - 3:30pm

Old Glory DC has signed Connor Robinson, a young American hooker who had worked is way up to starting for Anthem. The 26-year-old from Massachusetts began playing in high school as a number 8, but switched to hooker while playing for Boston College. After leaving college, he trained with the Independents, the New England Free Jacks' academy side, before signing a full contract with the Dallas Jackals for their inaugural season in 2022.

His path through MLR is one of improvement and increasing responsibility. His rookie season, he played in just a single match for a total of 17 minutes on the pitch, but he increased that to 9 matches and 157 minutes played in 2023. For the 2024 season he left Dallas to join Anthem Rugby Carolinas for their inaugural season. He increased his role again, playing in 13 matches, 9 of them starts, for 629 minutes of game time. Last season, he took clear control of the starting hooker position at Anthem, starting in 11 of his 12 matches for 741 minutes played. In total, he's accumulated a respectable 39 MLR caps in his four seasons, with seven tries on the scoresheets to boot.

He brings serious competition to the hooker position at Old Glory. While Welsh veteran Kirby Myhill is likely to be the preferred option at hooker, it's not clear who between Robinson and KoiKoi Nelligan will be the second choice in the role. In many ways both have had similar trajectories: both are 26 years old Americans who started in the back row but moved to hooker and have increasingly made their presence felt on the pitch as they've aged into their roles. Robinson has the edge in experience, with 39 caps in 4 seasons to Nelligan's 29 caps in 3 seasons, but Nelligan has played on much better teams. Robinson's teams in the seasons he was with went a dismal 2-62, and he himself has only experienced a single win as an MLR player.

Regardless, it seems likely that Nelligan and Robinson will drive each other to greater heights, making him a great addition to this season's roster.