Games in Rugby Maryland and Rugby Virginia are on the schedule, finally.

After a couple of weeks of preseason games (Rugby Maryland Comes Back), Maryland's league season begins this Saturday.

North Bay is at West Carroll, while Frederick hosts two games with the Diamondbacks and the Maryland Exiles both in town. The Bethesda Roosters are also in the league but will have a bye this weekend.

A week later all six teams will be in action with West Carroll at Diamondbacks, Roosters at Frederick, and the Exiles at North Bay.

In addition, the four-team Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association league is underway now. This week Mount St. Joseph is due to play Archbishop Spalding, Calvert Hall is set to take on Loyola Blakefield, and on Monday Mount St. Joseph faces Loyola Blakefield. 

Meanwhile, things in Virginia have been up in the air for some time, and we are still seeing questions surrounding the Maryland-Virginia school league, the MAVRC. While Georgetown Prep and Salesianum have played twice, other teams are having more trouble getting on the field. The league has to deal with three different jurisdictions, being Washington DC, and two separate counties in Maryland.

Practices have started but games are at least a week away.

Rugby Virginia saw a preseason game this past weekend with the Richmond Strikers playing the Raleigh Rattlesnakes and winning 57-5. 

It had been 400 days since the Strikers had last played and, said Head Coach Rudy Miller, "it showed in the first 15 minutes. After that we finally found our speed on outside and never looked back. We have become stronger and more experienced over time and have also found something we haven’t had before, and that’s depth."

Wing Julian Thompson scored three tries for the Strikers and flanker Kyle Smith added two. 

The Strikers face the Charlotte Tigers in a non-league game this weekend, while other Virginia teams are playing official preseason friendlies.

Looking forward to great match with a great team in the Charlotte Tigers next weekend in Richmond. Loudoun hosts Fort Hunt, while Vienna visits Great Falls.