NEWS

News Feb-16-2025

Shilo Klein – Back In San Diego And Better Than Ever

Written by Joe Harvey

Shilo Klein’s last Major League Rugby game ended in Championship Final defeat.

The San Diego Legion hooker was a regular feature in the 2023 season as the California club ended the regular season with a 15-1 record and battled to the showpiece finale against the New England Free Jacks.

Coming off the bench at SeatGeek Stadium, the 25-year-old and his teammates were powerless as Le Roux Malan’s late score handed New England the Shield.

Now, after a year away back home in New Zealand as a wider squad member with the Blues in Super Rugby, Klein is back for more.

“I think we’ve got a really good balance of leadership, young, keen guys and the group has gelled together really well,” Klein said.

“I think that’s probably a combination of guys being on the same page about how we want to play the game and off the field building some strong connections.

“The main difference I’d say now, versus a couple of years ago, is that I feel we’re really on the same page around how we want to play the game.”

Klein’s stint in Auckland came thanks to a good run of form for North Harbour in the National Provincial Championship.

A move to the north island saw Klein introduced to a different rugby culture, allowing him to develop different parts of his game as he looked to continue his development.

“The main motivator was just that I was keen to keep getting better and keep growing,” he said.

“I felt like putting myself in a new environment with different players, different coaches and a new city would give me a base to continue to grow my game.

“I think I got that up there with the Blues. They have a very physical game, kind of similar to the Northern Hemisphere style.

“Coming back over here, I really feel like that’s helped me a lot and given me some good growth and experience and made me better.”

With a particular focus on breakdown and collision work, Klein will bring his added physical edge to San Diego.

Adding that abrasiveness to his dynamic game makes the hooker one to watch as the new season gets underway this weekend.

In a squad full to the brim with All Blacks, the 25-year-old was there every step as the Blues were crowned Super Rugby champions for a fourth time.

In addition to personal development, Klein spent a year living alongside some of the world’s best rugby players and got to see first-hand how they run their business.

“What I learned is that they’re just ruthless in their preparation and the structures they’ve got,” Klein said.

“That’s what gives those guys the consistency to go out and perform at that level consistently.

“Being a fly on the wall and keeping in mind how they are approaching their week, what they are doing in their game, you take bits out of everyone’s book and try to create something for myself.

“That was super valuable for me being in that environment.”

Along with everything learned in Auckland, Klein also returns to San Diego as an international.

Last autumn the 25-year-old made his USA debut against Portugal in a 21-17 win and achieved a long-held dream.

Born to American parents (Howard and Wendy) in Sacramento, California, after his family emigrated to Christchurch, New Zealand, the notion of representing the Eagles had always been a key motivation.

“It was really special,” Klein said. “Growing up, even though I was in New Zealand, playing for the Eagles was something I had aspired to do since I was really young.

“It was quite a surreal feeling being in Portugal, the squad, and just being in that environment.

“The boys brought me in and it just really felt like home. It really motivated me to keep sticking my hand up and trying to stay in that squad.

“It really feels like the start of something pretty special.”

That notion of creating something and leaving a legacy is close to the heart of Klein.

After years of harboring international hope, the 25-year-old hopes that his commitment to the USA and MLR will help the nation in the long term.

Klein’s voice is clear excitement as he discusses what is in store for American rugby in the years to come.

Whether it is the continued development of MLR or the 2031 Rugby World Cup, it is clear that the hooker is in it for the long haul.

“Being an American-born player, with American parents and growing up in New Zealand, I probably didn’t understand what American rugby was, what it meant to be American and represent my country,” Klein said.

“I set out to do as much as I could in Super Rugby, and I got the growth that I wanted out of playing over there.

“Where American rugby is at right now, it’s in a really exciting spot and it’s something that I am motivated to be a part of.

“Talking to Scott Lawrence, I decided that USA Rugby is where I wanted to align myself and be a part of the growth of the game not only in America and San Diego, but hopefully help the USA create a name for itself on the world stage.”

Since Klein was last in SoCal there has been plenty of change.

The key difference is the arrival of John Manenti as head coach, who has promised a San Diego team that will work hard to achieve the team’s ultimate aim of lifting the Shield.

Establishing a new mentality in the playing group, Klein and his teammates know that they will have to dig deep this year.

“Obviously, we’ve got the long-term goal of winning the competition,” Klein said.

“But we’ve been very clear as a playing group that that only happens if we do the job at hand each week.

“It’s very exciting having that end goal in mind, but we know we’ve got a job against Seattle this weekend, and that’s where the coaching group and senior players have been very good at pushing that narrative about the job at hand, coming in and nailing each day.

“Aspirations long-term, win the Shield, but right now, we’ve just set that goal of doing a job at Torero Stadium on Sunday.”

To start their latest title tilt, Legion host the Seattle Seawolves in the Game of the Week.

A bitter Western Conference rivalry that dates all the way back to 2018, it is a fixture that means plenty to both sets of players.

After coming off the bench in three encounters with the Seawolves in 2023, Klein is yet to taste defeat in the clash and is hoping that the winning streak will not end on Sunday.

“As a group, we’re pretty excited to lace up this weekend and try to kick the door down against Seattle,” Klein said. “It’s a rivalry game, so we don’t need too much more motivation in Week 1.”

“That will take us a lot further than we have been in the past.”