NEWS

ETHAN GRAYSON – AIMING FOR THE SHIELD IN FINAL SEASON WITH SAN DIEGO

Written by Joe Harvey | Photo by John Mathew Harrison

Ethan Grayson and the San Diego Legion are not panicking after losing their last three games.

In their opening five games of the 2025 Major League Rugby season, Legion was untouchable as they cruised to a quintet of early wins under new head coach John Manenti.

But after that ferocious start, the team has come unstuck, losing to the Houston SaberCats, Chicago Hounds, and New England Free Jacks.

Now third in the Western Conference behind the Houston SaberCats and this weekend’s opponents, the Utah Warriors, 

“I’d say it is, more than anything else, not quite being up to standard,” Grayson told MLR.

“If you look at our first five games, we were clear, executed our game plan, maybe got slightly away from our basics and what made us so good in that first block.

Five and OH and making history: @SDLegion ties MLR record of 5 undefeated matches from season start set by @HOUSaberCats in 2024

Can they break it in Week 7? 👀#MLR2025 pic.twitter.com/kDbFdqudAn

— Major League Rugby (@usmlr) March 25, 2025

“It has been a real emphasis this week to get back to what we do best – which is high ball, play at a good tempo, and a good brand of rugby. Hopefully, we can bring that this weekend.

“The main thing is not panicking. We’re not a bad team overnight. We’ve won five on the bounce, and then we’ve probably had the toughest games you can have in this league.”

FINDING HIS FEET

When Grayson arrived in San Diego, he was on the hunt for a new start.

After coming through the academy of Northampton Saints—which his father, Paul, and older brother, James, also represented—he was not getting first-team opportunities to continue his development.

Throughout his youth, Grayson was touted as a potential star of the future.

Part of the England U20 setup, the 23-year-old also made just short of 50 appearances for Championship club Bedford Blues, while dual-registered.

With a string of senior players ahead of him, the versatile back had decided to move on from the Gallagher Premiership Rugby club and signed terms with London Irish to join them for the 2023/24 season.

But when Irish went into administration, he was looking for a new home again.

“It was massive,” Grayson said when asked about his decision to leave Northampton. “That’s the team that, to this day, I support. That’s my team. I had done a decent stint and was ready for a new challenge.

“What made it even tougher was that I’d plucked up the courage to go out and spread my wings, and it pulled from underneath me two weeks before preseason.

“I was unemployed and picking up bricks for a few weeks.”

Eventually, the opportunity for that fresh start came in the form of San Diego.

It was a move that saw Grayson thrown into a new environment and finally given the new lease of life he had been hoping for.

Getting the opportunity to play alongside rugby legends Matt Giteau and Ma’a Nonu – who had played against his Rugby World Cup-winning father – was another education in these early days of Grayson’s young career.

“America came at the best possible time,” Grayson said. “To get out of Northampton, to find my own way, what I’m about as a person, move out of home and leave the country.

“From a personal point of view, it was awesome. From a rugby point of view, it is the first time being in an environment where I’m not holding a tackle back on a Tuesday or Thursday night in Bedford or at Northampton getting flogged as a young fella.

“It was the first time I was given a go and seen as a senior player. Which I have enjoyed this year. It gives you that confidence because you’re deemed a viable option to play some good minutes and improve the team.” 

A LONG GOODBYE

Minutes on the field have been invaluable for Grayson. 

In his first season in MLR, the 23-year-old made 10 appearances and scored 12 points, but Legion was knocked out of the Conference Semi-Finals.

Upon returning to England for the offseason, he was content with spending several months working for his friend’s carpentry company, getting involved as an assistant coach at Moulton College, and playing local club rugby to maintain match fitness with Old Northamptonians with his twin brother, Joel.

That work with Moulton College ultimately provided the foundations for my first opportunity to play top-flight rugby in England.

“In my first week there (with Moulton College), the first game was away,” Grayson laughed. “I had only been there three days, and I’d have to be driving for seven hours. So, I was close to pulling a sickie. 

“But I had only just got the job, so through gritted teeth, I made my way up north. I bumped into Alan Dickens (ex-England U20 coach), and he looked at me as if he’d seen a ghost.

“He thought I was still in America and asked if I could play. I could play. He paused for a minute and said, ‘Right, leave it with me’. I didn’t know what was going on.

“Then, as I’m somewhere between a handling drill and a tackle drill, I had this big northern voice call me in. It was Steve Diamond (Newcastle Falcons’ Director of Rugby) and asked if I wanted to come and play for them.”

Agreeing to a five-month contract, Grayson got to put everything he had learned at San Diego into action. And he excelled.

Filling in as the club endured a fly-half crisis, Grayson was a titular figure as Newcastle ended a 581-day wait for a victory and scored the club’s first drop goal in over a decade in the 24-18 win over Exeter Chiefs.

“Had I been given that opportunity 12 months prior (before playing for San Diego), I don’t know if I would have felt confident in myself and may have felt a bit of imposter syndrome,” Grayson said.

“But having played top-flight rugby for five months, you know you can do it because I have done it in a different competition. You believe in yourself a little bit more.”

Such was the success of Grayson’s time with Newcastle, and he will return to Kingston Park full-time this summer.

Knowing that 2025 could be the last time he represents Legion, Grayson now has even more reasons to return to winning ways in Week 10.

While Utah will be a significant challenge, the notion of being the first San Diego team to bring the Shield to Torero Stadium.

“It gives me added motivation,” Grayson said. “I might not get this opportunity, but who knows what will happen in the future? So, if this is the last crack, let’s make it a good one.

“Especially for the lads like Nate Sylvia who have been here for the start. If this is going to be the year, why can’t this be the year?

“To be part of that would be very special. It’s a special club and one I will hold very dearly forever.”

Tied in points. Locked in a Western standoff 👀@SDLegion vs. @utwarriorsrugby

Live on ESPN+ Saturday 10:00PM ET
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Everywhere else: @therugbynetwork @ESPNPlus | #SDvUTAH | #MLR2025 pic.twitter.com/6XoNqdZghc

— Major League Rugby (@usmlr) April 17, 2025