It’s even harder to talk about the team’s successes without bringing up the impact of veteran flyhalf Jason Robertson.
The franchise’s all-time leading scorer is in his fifth season with the team, which finds itself in the midst of a battle to stay above the playoff line. It’s been a roller coaster of a year for The Flags – winners of two of its first three matches before dropping four of its last five – but with two matches remaining, Old Glory DC sits a single table point outside of the No. 4 seed.
The opportunity to finish strong and earn a first MLR Shield has Robertson and those in red, white, and blue more motivated than ever to win these final two matches.
“We've had a few good weeks and a few not-so-good weeks, but we’ve still got two weeks to finish the season,” Robertson said. “If you finish strong, two wins could get us a playoff spot, so we're really gunning hard for that.”
DC has been a perennial contender in the MLR over the past several seasons, making the postseason the past three years. The club’s first playoff appearance came in 2023, when Old Glory DC won an eliminator round game before bowing out in the Eastern Conference Finals against the New England Free Jacks.
A season later, DC made the postseason and fell again to New England in the opening round, and in 2025, Old Glory DC fell in their opening playoff game against Chicago. Robertson remembers that 2024 meeting against the Free Jacks, a match where he converted three kicks but ultimately fell four points short, and the team has built upon that result.
“Obviously, those experiences stick with you,” Robertson said. “That one in 2024, we had had it well within our grasp, and we let it slip. We knew what to do in order to beat the Free Jacks, and we haven't lost to them since then.”
Robertson’s development and career spans continents as the New Zealander earned his first professional caps in his home country. He joined DC’s inaugural team in 2020 – earning him the moniker of an “OGOG” – before spending two seasons with French sides Bayonne and Narbonne. Robertson returned to the DMV in 2024 for his second stint with the club with a renewed sense of responsibility.
“I learned a lot about myself on and off the field, but certainly learned a lot on the field about how to manage games, especially in different languages,” Robertson said. “Over there, it became more apparent how much I needed to control the game individually. It's quite nice to bring some of that experience I had over there back to Old Glory, and hopefully that's paying off with the club here.”
After honing his kicking and playmaking abilities overseas, Robertson delivered in his return, starting 15 matches and amassing 158 points in 2024. In 2025, he started the team’s first seven games before being sidelined due to a season-ending injury. Robertson returned this season without skipping a beat, starting every match so far and amassing 62 points.
“I guess in my position, it needs to be a game driver of sense,” Robertson said. “I take a big leadership role in terms of how we manage the game from start to finish, and having five years in the bank here always helps. I take pride in being a leader on the team, and it's something I aspire to do pretty well.”
DC’s final regular-season matches will take place at home, giving them a bit of an advantage. Robertson has seen several iterations of Old Glory DC host venues, but none have felt more like home than George Mason Stadium this year.
“Coming from us players, it’s certainly by far and above the best venue we’ve played at in Old Glory's history,” Robertson said. “The playing field's elite, it's awesome, and probably the best crowds we've ever had with Old Glory. It's becoming a nice little fortress for us. Hopefully, we can keep it like that with a few wins and keep more fans coming week to week.”
This week, fans will flood Fairfax for Old Glory DC’s date with the Chicago Hounds, the top team on the MLR Table. Old Glory DC has only one win against the Hounds in its past five meetings, but The Flags have game-planned Chicago in hopes of handing the Hounds their first loss of the season.
“Obviously, every team has struggled against them defensively; they can score points quite comfortably,” Robertson said. “I think we need to starve them of the ball in the right areas of the field. (We need to) kick to compete, and if they're going to play, make them play in their half and give them as little ball as possible.”
There’s plenty on the line in these next two fixtures, including DC’s three-year postseason streak. In previous seasons, DC has found itself fighting for a playoff spot late in the season, and Robertson and company are ready to give it their all for a berth in 2026.
“We're treating these next two weeks as pretty much playoffs already,” Robertson said. “If we win these next two games, we've got another shot at the playoffs, so these two games are pretty much an extended playoffs. It's kind of like a win-or-go-home mentality for us at the moment.
“If we get an opportunity to make the playoffs, it’s a massive opportunity for us to go a step further, take the club a little further than it has been in the past.”
