Chicago Hounds Execute Trade with the San Diego Legion

CHICAGO, I.L.- The Chicago Hounds traded the playing services rights of hooker Hugh Roach to the San Diego Legion. In return, the Hounds received the playing services rights to scrumhalf Jason Higgins.

Higgins made seven appearances for the western-conference champions San Diego Legion in 2023, totalling 365 minutes of action on the year. He completed 232 successful passes at an 89% pass accuracy clip. Defensively, Higgins was credited with 48 tackles on his 61 attempts.

In 2022, his first year with San Diego, the Irish-born scrumhalf earned 13 caps for a total of 732 minutes. Higgins completed 87% of his passes successfully and finished the year with 453 successful passes. He was a spark plug for the Legion on offense. He carried the ball 34 times for 367 meters gained (11 meters-per-carry) and broke the line six times. Additionally, Higgins scored 32 points on six tries, including a seven-pointer. He finished the 2022 season with 48 tackles and one dominant tackle.

Higgins spent his first season in MLR with the Toronto Arrows and played 418 minutes in his 13 appearances. He completed 93% of his passes accurately, totaling 254 on the campaign. He only carried the ball 14 times, but made 99 meters on those carries and scored four tries for 20 points. His career totals include 33 caps, 939 passes at a 90% pass accuracy rate, and 12 tries scored for 64 points.

The scrumhalf hails from Cork, Ireland originally, however he qualifies for domestic status due to Canadian ancestry. He is a consistent fixture in the Canadian national team set up and was most recently named to the team’s roster for their Spain tour later this fall.

Hugh Roach appeared in six contests for the Hounds during the 2023 campaign. The hooker carried the ball 28 times for 139 meters in his 313 minutes of action. He scored three tries and totalled 15 points. Defensively, Roach made 50 tackles on his 60 attempts.

Roster to Date:

To date, the Chicago Hounds have signed the following players for the 2024 Major League Rugby season:

• Nick McCarthy, scrumhalf
• Ben Landry, lock/flanker
• Dave Kearney, wing
• Bryce Campbell, center*
• Zurabi Zhvania, prop
• Billy Meakes, center*
• Julian Dominguez, wing*
• George Merrick, lock
• Tinashe Muchena, back row*
• Adriaan Carelse, fullback
• Mika Felix, prop*
• Jason Higgins, scrumhalf

Star denotes re-signed player.