Wheeling, W. Va. – On Thursday night, Major League Rugby (MLR) will hold its annual MLR Draft, opening opportunities for some of the best collegiate rugby players to make the jump to the pro level.
Among the draft eligible players will be former Cardinal Aaron Juma, who is looking to take his talents to professional rugby after playing for the Zimbabwe National Team this summer, and helping Wheeling Rugby get to the National tournament in both 15’s and 7’s season.
He looks to become the second Cardinal in program history to play in the MLR and he will have his fate decided on August 17.
Juma burst onto the scene with the Cardinals during the Fall 15’s season after missing the first three games of the year.
He made his season debut against Marian University, and never looked back.
He scored at least one try in six of the seven games he played in during the year and led the team with 14 for the fall season.
In the inaugural BRRC Wild Card game against Adrian, Juma scored one of the team’s three tries on their way to a 33-21 win that helped them clinch a spot in the National Collegiate Rugby (NCR) National 15’s playoffs.
He was named an NCR Division I All-American, becoming just the second freshman in program history to win the award.
In the spring season, he didn’t spend much time with the Cardinals as he and teammate Chief Chipfumbu were selected to play on the Zimbabwe National Team.
He participated in the team’s first spring tournament, and picked up right where he left off, scoring six tries on the afternoon.
He wouldn’t return to the Cardinals until the CRC 7’s, where he was again Wheeling’s leading scorer in the playoffs, scoring four tries over the team’s three games.
He had two tries in the opener against Howard University and came back with one try each against Thomas More and Mt. Saint Mary’s before the run ended.
The 2023 MLR Draft is set to begin on Thursday, August 17th, at 6:30 PM on Fox Sports 2 and the Rugby Network.