San Diego Legion signed Ben Mitchell for the 2020 Major League Rugby season. The 25-year-old lock is 6’7″, and 255 lbs.
Ben was the captain of Austin Elite Rugby from 2018 through 2019. He was regarded as the best player on the team and played in 15 of the team’s 16 games. He was among the league leaders in dominant tackles and in carries. He also was named to the All-MLR Second Team.
Mitchell was born in Nottingham, England and moved to Ireland when he was 6 years old. He then began playing rugby that same year at Youghal RFC, East Cork, Ireland, the local club side. Mitchell attended High school at Midleton College, East Cork, playing center and fullback and was selected on the Munster School’s team in 2011 as a center.
After graduating high school, he attended University College Cork in 2012, majoring in Economics and Finance. He also played rugby with UCC RFC. During his first year with the club, he was moved from center to the second row. For the first one and a half years, he played on the under 20s team and by 2014 made his debut in the senior/ All Ireland league, where he played on the senior team for over 5 seasons from 2014 through to the 2017/18 season. The UCC RFC was promoted from division 2 to division 1 of the All Ireland League in the 2015/2016 season. Mitchell was also honored as the UCC RFC player of the year on 2 occasions and played his last game for the team in November 2017.
Representative Rugby Honors
Ben Mitchell played for Munster A/Development team against the Ireland 20s in May 2016 at Thomond Park in Limerick. He also played on the Irish Universities team in 2016 and 2017.
Rugby in the United States
Mitchell played for the Gentlemen of Aspen in the Rocky Mountain Summer League during 2016 and 2017. Following the 2019 season, he was named the Head Coach of the Gentlemen of Aspen.
He signed with Austin Elite Rugby in October 2017 and was the perceived team MVP during the 2018 & 2019 Major League Rugby seasons.
DJCoil Rugby Interview with Ben Mitchell
Ben Mitchell, Captain Austin Elite Rugby, discusses his rugby aspirations, as well as, the responsibilities and challenges of being captain. (Interview on May 19, 2019, at MCU Park)
Other Articles
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