Front Row - 2025 Position Previews

By Alistair Kirsch-Poole
Feb 6, 2025 - 5:00pm

Early in the offseason, OGDC head coach Simon Cross made it clear that he wanted to focus on continuity for his second season at the helm. After a first season that saw large swaths of the starting lineup replaced, his emphasis was on bringing back last year's key pieces and sprinkling in a few new top-end signings. The front row was supposed to be pretty much the pinnacle of that stability, with every player who played last year returning.

Instead, it's been decimated in the last month or two, with multiple key players leaving. Tyler Rowland, after two years with the team, has decided to retire from professional rugby, while Steven Longwell has returned to the UK on a temporary contract for Coventry. Together, the two of them played over 70% of the tighthead prop minutes last season, with Longwell playing 40% of the minutes despite only joining the team halfway through the season. The loosehead side faired a little better, but still saw a major contributor in Quentin Newcomer leave the team due to work obligations. He accounted for about a quarter of the loosehead minutes played.

Where does this leave Old Glory? To be frank, in a bit of a mess in the short term. Simon Cross has mentioned that he is looking to bring in more props, as the five currently on the roster are barely enough for a matchday roster, much less a full season of rugby.

For this guide, I've divided the players are divided into four categories:

• Starters - proven top-level talent who will be expected to be in rotation of players starting most matches
• Challengers - players who have some experience, but will have take a step forward to break into the starting rotation
• Projects - players who are inexperienced at a professional level and whose playing time this season could be limited
• Cover - other players who can play the position if needed

Loosehead Prop

The loosehead position is anchored by the ever-reliable Jack Iscaro. The DMV local has risen to be the locked-in starter at loosehead for both Old Glory and the USA Eagles, and there's no reason to expect that to change. He'll be joined on the loosehead side this season by Cali Martinez, who has recently become Canada's first choice at loosehead. While Martinez has historically played primarily at tighthead for OGDC, the coaching staff have confirmed that he will be primarily be considered a loosehead going forward, matching his position in the international scene.

The only challenger to those two will be Joe Wrafter, a US-qualified English prop who came over last season but was hampered by a toe injury. On paper, he should be a very strong challenger as an experienced prop who earned accolades in the English Championship. Still, with the strength of the other two players he'll have to live up to that hype if he wants to be a regular in the lineup.

At least, that's what I would say if there wasn't such devastation in the props right now. As we'll cover below, Martinez is likely to cover the other side of the scrum until more props are signed, leaving Wrafter as the go-to option on the bench to start the season.

Sam Davies is capable of covering the loosehead position, although given the current imbalance it's highly unlikely we'll see him pulled from the tighthead side of the scrum. More likely, in the event of injuries, we'll see Facundo Gattas brought over from hooker. He began his career as a loosehead prop and should be able to hold up there well enough if needed.

Tighthead Prop

It goes without saying that the table above is concerningly empty. 23-year-old New Zealander Sam Davies is the only one listed here are a starter, and that's primarily down to the total lack of competition for the spot. In a proper roster, he would be in the challenger section - his experience thus far consists of spot minutes in the NPC and a single season at Rugby New York, where he started just twice. He could easily prove to be a competent starter, but it's hard to guarantee that on his resume alone.

The only other tighthead on the roster is Isikelli Kava, a football convert who has yet to make his professional debut. Originally slated as a back rower, his transition to prop is not complete and he shouldn't be expected to contribute significantly to the team this season.

It will fall to Cali Martinez to cover the deficit tighthead. He is proven at the position at an MLR level, having primarily played there for Old Glory since he was drafted in 2022. Whether he starts or Davies does when the season starts is anybody's guess, but both will be in the lineup until more props are signed by the team.

Hooker

With not a single player in or out, the hooker position looks to be the exact same this year as last year. Young Argentine Martin Vaca came out of the gates hot last year, making him the expected starter going into 2025. The other primary starting option is likely to be the steady veteran Uruguayan Facundo Gattas. The two of them split the starting spot pretty much down the middle last season, although Vaca will likely see more time this season if he can remain healthy.

However, it's unlikely that we will see both Vaca and Gattas in the lineup together, unless Gattas is called upon to play prop. KoiKoi Nelligan has proven himself good enough to be worthy of a spot on the bench, and selecting him allows for one of the limited foreign slots to be used for higher impact elsewhere on the roster. His challenge, though, will be to push past his current role and usurp the incumbent starters.

Tristan Cole is the definition of a project player, having joined OGDC last season on a training contract. The 22-year-old is the youngest player on the roster, even counting the drafted players. He has played extensively for Young Glory, but has yet to make his debut for the senior squad and is unlikely to factor significantly into this season.

There are no players elsewhere on the roster who are expected to cover the hooker position, but that should be fine given that there are four dedicated hookers on the roster.