Chicago City Wire

The Chicago Hounds have announced the fall schedule for their Senior Academy team, which will be led by Head Coach Matt Wagner. The team is set to play a series of four games, including a match against another Major League Rugby academy team.

The season will begin on Saturday, November 16th, with a game against the Midwest Thunderbirds. The Thunderbirds are known as a senior club elite-level program focused on developing emerging talent in the Midwest region. This match will take place at 1 PM central time at the Lions for Hope Sports Complex, which will serve as the home ground for the Senior Academy this fall.

Following their opening game, the Academy will head to Canada to face off against the Rugby Ontario Academy. This match is scheduled for noon at Guelph University.

After taking a one-week break, the Academy will travel to Reading, Pennsylvania, where they will compete against the New England Free Jacks’ Academy on Sunday, December 8th. This game is set to start at 9:30 CT and will be held at Penn State’s Berks Campus alongside National Collegiate Rugby’s semi-finals.

The final match of their 2024 season will be played on December 15th against the Ohio Aviators. Like their opening game, this concluding match will also be held at the Lions for Hope Complex; however, the kick-off time has not yet been announced.

This marks the second competitive season for the Senior Academy squad. During their inaugural campaign last year, known as "mini Dawgs," they achieved victories over academy teams from Houston Sabercats and Toronto Arrows but faced a close defeat against San Diego Legion's academy team.