2006 AMNRL season
Rugby league season
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The 2006 American National Rugby League season was the ninth annual American National Rugby League (AMNRL) season, and the 26th since the first season of semi-professional rugby league began in North America. The season began on May 17, 2006 with a match between defending premiers Glen Mills Bulls and the Philadelphia Fight, played at Jack Pearson Stadium. The same venue hosted the Grand Final between the Connecticut Wildcats and Glen Mills Bulls on August 19, 2006 in front of a crowd of 2,500.[1]
| 2006 American National Rugby League | |
|---|---|
| Teams | 11 |
| Premiers |  Connecticut Wildcats (2nd title) |
| Minor premiers |  Glen Mills Bulls (6th title) |
Three expansion teams, the Jacksonville Axemen, the New Haven Warriors, and the Boston Braves joined the AMNRL for the 2006 season. With these additions, there were eleven teams that participated throughout the ten rounds of the regular season. After the regular season concluded, six of these teams qualified for the first week of the playoff series, with the Connecticut Wildcats victors in the Grand Final, securing their second championship title.
Pre-season
- Three new teams entered the competition for the 2006 season which took the number of teams in the American National Rugby League to eleven. These teams were the Jacksonville Axemen, Boston Braves (whom were originally called the Boston Wolfhounds), and the New Haven Warriors. It was originally believed that a team from Chicago would also enter the competition but the AMNRL turned down their application.
Regular season results
Ladder
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Glen Mills Bulls |
35 | ||||||||
| 2 |  Jacksonville Axemen |
34 | ||||||||
| 3 |  New Jersey Sharks |
32 | ||||||||
| 4 | Connecticut Wildcats |
32 | ||||||||
| 5 |  Washington D.C. Slayers |
32 | ||||||||
| 6 |  New York Knights |
32 | ||||||||
| 7 |  New Haven Warriors |
30 | ||||||||
| 8 |  Northern Raiders |
28 | ||||||||
| 9 |  Philadelphia Fight |
26 | ||||||||
| 10 |  Delaware Valley Mantarays |
24 | ||||||||
| 11 |  Boston Braves |
24 |
Playoffs
Week 1
August 5, 2006 |
Jack Casagrande Stadium, Norwalk, Connecticut Referee: John Ryan |
August 5, 2006 |
Pier 40, Hudson River Park, New York City Referee: Benjamin Kelly |
August 5, 2006 |
| New Jersey Sharks |
50–24 | Jacksonville Axemen |
|---|---|---|
| Phil Shipos (18), Steve Thompson (12), Zac Padgett (8), G. Mendez (4), Jim Sweeney (4), Justin Zadnick (4) | Will Fletcher (8), Dan Van Dellen (8), Perry Vaught (8) |
Shark Park, Levittown, Pennsylvania Referee: Ryan McGough |
Week 2
August 12, 2006 |
| Connecticut Wildcats |
54–6 | New York Knights |
|---|---|---|
| Damien O’Malvaney (16), Steve Annunziato (12), Nathan Hollingsworth (10)Danny Bull (4), Brent Griffiths (4), Doug Griffiths (4), Mike McGeachy (4) | (Report) |
Adam Nable (6) |
Jack Casagrande Stadium, Norwalk, Connecticut Referee: Ben Wards |
August 12, 2006 |
| Glen Mills Bulls |
54–18 | New Jersey Sharks |
|---|---|---|
| (Report) |
Jack Pearson Stadium, Pennsylvania Referee: Ryan McGough |
Championship Match
The season culminated on August 19, 2006, with the 4th placed Connecticut Wildcats defeating the minor premiers Glen Mills Bulls 36-28 in the Grand Final Championship Match in front of 2,500 people at Jack Pearson Stadium in Concordville, Pennsylvania. The victory was Connecticut's second premiership in successive years.