Not ready for Prime Time Sports Writer

Since the season began I have been in contact with the local paper trying to drum up support for my beloved Rugby club. They have been responsive, even to the extent of sending their Sports Editor and his son to cover the season’s first game. This Saturday I invited them again but they did not show. So I took matters in hand and wrote a short summary of the game and made an appeal to the reader to come and join us on the pitch.



I have been working diligently to recruit players from work. My efforts have given the team 5 starters including myself. You can count a 6th player indirectly as one of the guys I recruited brought one of our former colleagues to play. As a result of my efforts I have been put in charge of the recruiting effort for the fall season. I guess the four intense years as a Marine Corps recruiter in San Antonio, TX will now pay off. I am excited to try my hand at building a team. This especially exciting because it is in a sport that I knew very little about a year ago.




I like to think it is a one of those little life’s motivational truths that armed with a vision and drive you can achieve anything in life. Of course, it is easy to say that now, I haven’t done anything yet other than talk to a few people at work and write one article; but it’s a damn good start if I can say so myself. Who knows, maybe this blog will go from being a personal outlet to viral therapy for the masses? For now I will settle for the satisfaction of the small success of being in the local paper. Heck even Skip Bayless had to start somewhere.

The try that never was; or try and try again.

It was my best game so far, but one of the most physically demanding. We played the Northwest Woodsmen from Schaumburg Illinois, a team we merged with last fall before going our separate ways again this spring. It was obvious from the start that they had the advantage in speed and even size, but we were stronger up front. We used this to our advantage. We used our forwards to pound the ball over and over again. I got into a rhythm of following my locks and props into the ruck and acted as the push for the maul. It seemed that I was on the ground every third touch of the ball. This gave me opportunity after opportunity to either get my hands on the ball or make a play on it.

The Woodsmen benefited from their fleetness as their backs took advantage of missed open-field tackles to speed across the try-line, three times in the first half. However, one of their potential scores became a turnover when the back did not go to ground and was tackled by one scrumhalf and knocked the ball out of the field of play. Our first score came on the heels of the Woodsmen’s second score. For a moment, I thought I had scored the try. A ruck formed at about the 7-meter line. I saw an opportunity to pick-up the ball and slip around the side of the ruck and score. My problem was I thought the 5-meter line was the try line. So I dove in hard and crossed the 5-meter line with a thunderous rush. As soon as I hit the ground and there was a rush to ruck over me I instantly realized what I had done. So I presented the ball as quickly as I could, which then went across the try line the next play. You could say I loosened the defense up for the score.

During the first part of the second half we made a push for the lead. With the Woodsmen maintaining a 10-5 lead, we moved the ball steadily downfield. Our Hooker picked up the ball and rolled over several Woodsmen to advance the ball. As he was being wrapped up I moved in to support the maul. With my assistance and his “never surrender” attitude, He and I barreled through the last 10 meters of his 25-meter run for our second score. We missed the conversion to tie the game. I felt like I had a hand in the score even though my assistance may not have been that big a factor.


My big play of the day came about 70 minutes into the game. We had the ball at the Woodsmen 5-meter line and were set to score, but a small infraction gave the scrum to the Woodsmen. They won the scrum and quickly pitched it back for the punt. Having flashbacks of Lake Forest I sprinted and jumped catching the football style punt right in my sternum. I followed with my momentum toward the blocked punt racing to jump on the free ball for a score. Unfortunately, two Woodsmen were in position to jump on the loose ball and send it through the dead-ball line. Once again I was so close, yet so far away. Had I gotten my hands on the ball I would have been the hero, as we possibly would have won the game. Alas, due to a few injuries we were down to 13 players on the pitch, and the Woodsmen took advantage of it to showcase their speed and scored another try.


To add to the pain of losing I was spiked in my left ankle and hobbled for the last 5 minutes of the game. So far victory on the rugby pitch has been elusive, however, I am playing with more confidence and vision. I think that by this fall we will have gained enough experience to make us truly competitive.