Match report by Scott "Schnauzer" Delaney
Suburbs vs. George Mason University
Wednesday night, 7 PM, 27 March 2002

Wednesday night was cold, very cold, but Suburbs and George Mason battled intensely. The Suburbs forwards lost the ball in an early scrum, but came back to dominate and steal four balls in the first two 30 minute periods. The lineouts were equally strong, stealing six of their balls and only losing one in the first period and one in the third. We had some difficulty with a crafty George Mason attacking lineout which featured Keith Webb as the main point of attack, but quick thinking on Suburbs part quickly nullified their advantage.

The dominance of the scrum and efficiency in the lineout, provided good platforms for attack. However, without a full-time scrumhalf in the lineup, Bush, and later Kevin Cory, stepped in and did their best to provide good ball to the backs. Shamrock dealt commendably with difficult ball by exerting pressure on GMU with deft kicks and blinding runs. When good ball was given, the backs attacked well with loops and exhibited excellent support of one another, attacking wide then bringing it back in where the charging forwards controlled the rucks and mauls.

We did have difficulties committing the *right* number of people to breakdowns, sometimes having all eight forwards in and in others having only one or two. Luckily GMU didn't capitalize on overloads and pressure from Shamrock and Hoffman stymied most outwide attacks. The upside was that we stole an impressive eleven balls in rucks and mauls and one of these turnovers led to a score. Kurt stole a team leading three and moved mounds of people when he ploughed into rucks.

The play of the game was Suburbs' response to a GMU score in the third period. We had turned the ball over and GMU's wing had trotted in for a score. Suburbs rallied in the tryzone while the conversion was attempted, then the fellas charged back up for the kickoff, won the ball back, and drove in for the try.

Though patchworked combinations proved difficult at times, overall it was a good effort by everyone. Suburbs played hard and deservedly won 24-12.

Try scorers: Jason, Harry, Andrew, Corry
Conversions: Shamrock, 2/4
Drop Goals: Shamrock, 0/1 (but it was close!)

Match Report, by Frederic Bardot
Match with Happy Valley RFC
Saturday, 20 October 2001

After a 3 hour and 30 minute drive, the Reds played Happy Valley RFC, the division leader. Located in the shadows of Penn State gridiron stadium, the pitch was in perfect condition.

The first 10 minutes saw the Reds resisting to the Home team onslaught. Determined defense sapped the strength of the Valley forwards. Once the Reds recovered their legs, the pack started to imprint its domination in the set pieces; Amish and Jon Carter dominated their opposing numbers. Podo and Ian Wyatt provided excellent scrum work. The young Reds backs first did an admirable work on defense. As the half wore on, the Reds defense was overrun. A few mistackles, opened the door to HV. Another HV try was added shortly after excellent work from their inside center.

The Reds reaction brought a try from Jesse "Verbal" after excellent pack work. Another try opportunity was missed, when after a clean break from Dave Lyster, Eddie was tackled short of the goal line. The second half saw changes in the Reds lineup, as all those who travelled played. Despite strong play from the HV backs, the Reds never gave up. 2 more tries were scored after excellent multiple phases. Crazy Eddie touched down for his first try of the game after a good maul. Shortly afterwards, after good rucks, Kermit was able to score after a 15 yard run.

Unfortunately, those tries were too late to change the outcome of the game. Special mention go to the young players: Kiwi Martin for his strong running, Zip for good tackling, Amish for excellent forward work.

On this day, the Reds played their most complete opponent to date. The team responded with an excellent game. Lack of experience did show at some positions, but nevertheless "quitting" was not an option. On a personal note I would like to thank all those who made the effort to travel. The season is not over yet, Quantico is next week and to keep the play-offs alive, this is a must-win. See you all at practice!

RoverGram
Matches with Frederick RFC
Saturday, 25 August 2001

On a day that showed every weather variable over the course of an afternoon, the only consistency being the humidity, Western Suburbs played host to Frederick RFC, a stalwart band from the upper division in a preseason friendly.

Overall, Frederick were probably the more cohesive team and made less mistakes than Suburbs who, for a lot of the game, were their own worst enemies, making a series of back line errors (over-committed to breakdowns, and misfiring on many attacking opportunities).

From the opening kick, well turned over by Frederick, the northern visitors laid siege to the Suburbs' end. Suburbs' rugged defense kept them in touching distance of their dangerous visitors throughout a compelling game and it was John "the dirty Sanchez" Murray's and Neil "Needs a better nickname than Dev, and needs rugby shorts" Devaney's boots which kept their side in touch.

Despite the territorial disadvantage, Suburbs rallied magnificently throughout the first half with inspirational man-on-man defense. One significant breakdown however at about 18 minutes led to Frederick jumping out to a 5 - 0 lead. With neither side able to run the ball as freely as it wished, as Frederick's defense was also outstanding, the game became mired in a forwards' scramble over the ball. Breakdowns were hotly contested on both sides, and phases were difficult to string together.

After Frederick struck, (with their try coming after a pass was made from 2 meters into touch that was inexplicably missed by the touch judge, but was well worked all the same), Suburbs launched a major onslaught, without being able to break down an obstinate defense. Suburbs built momentum on the strength of two penalties. While there was much to admire about Suburbs' defense in the first half, it was difficult to escape the feeling that when Frederick finally engaged a little gray matter and stopped running laterally, the home side would be under pressure. Suburbs survived by dint of their off-the-cuff organization and application.

The Suburbs' forwards were much more united at scrum time and conceded nothing to the powerful Frederick combination. The lineouts remain a concern, however. Lack of imagination at times, and the pre-match leaking of the Suburbs lineout calls to the visitors left the lineout a 50/50 proposition at best.

The home crowd probably realized the Suburbs side were making too many unforced errors, even when leading 13-10 on the scoreboard. Too often a Suburbs player forced the issue in trying to offload in the tackle and given that they were limited to sporadic attacks, they could ill afford that profligacy. On four occasions, Suburbs players, after a break, offloaded blindly, directly into the hands of a trailing Frederick player, destroying momentum with unforced turnovers. A distinct lack of communication on both attack and defense led to much heartburn on the sidelines.

"Sanchez" Murray was an honorable exception. He was responsible for Suburbs' try in the first half, a little show of the ball before breaking a tackle and linking with support for the fly half to canter over. "Sanchez", the center pair of Scott "insert nickname here" Halinsky, and Travis "Jethro" Tull frequently broke the gain line but did not have the support and the resultant ruck ball was too slow to propagate any advantage. This allowed Frederick to regroup in defense and stall Suburbs' drive.

For Suburbs, Neil Devaney enjoyed a lively game out of position at halfback, the centers tackled strongly and fullback Nate McAtee made one or two promising incursions into the line: but even more importantly made some bone shuddering hits after Frederick breaks. This hard play is quickly becoming a trademark.

The match appeared delicately poised at 10-10 but the momentum was clearly with Western Suburbs. They kicked long, wreaked havoc with the Frederick lineout (due largely to the spoiling of "Big Head Todd" Broadhurst.) They then waited for errors and these materialized amid a host of second half changes by Suburbs. "Sanchez" landed his second penalty, putting Suburbs up 13-10.

John "Biscuit is English for Cookie" Cook was again a key performer for the Suburbs in the loose but lacked sufficient support to pressure the opposition while flyhalf "Sanchez" was a constant threat but the side lacked thrust outside. The ball consistently died in the centers due to lack of support.

Up front the pack toiled hard, "Atlanta Dave" MacEwen was conspicuous in the loose, the scrum was solid, "English" Dan Buckley and John "Slim" Carter gave a solid platform, and as the heat and humidity took its toll, they were ably deputized by MacEwen and John "Captain" Blood at the coal face.

Heavy pressure forced a miscue and a lineout close to the Frederick goal. The Braddock Field side struck with a killer blow from hooker Kevin Corry off an improvised lineout ploy to shoot into a 20-10 lead.

There was a lot of niggle at the breakdown and a lot of professional fouls to slow play. Things boiled over with 10 minutes to play, when a flagrant kick from behind by a Frederick player, in response to some niggling play, resulted in his receiving a yellow card. As it was, the sin binning with less than 10 minutes to play saw Frederick's hopes of surmounting a 10-point deficit with 14 men fizzle. The remaining play was inside the Frederick half, their yeomen-like defense gallantly keeping Suburbs off the board, but in turn they were unable to mount the offensive punch they needed.

Suburbs: 20, Tries: Murray, Corry
Conv: Murray 2 of 2?
Penalties: Devaney 1 of 1, Murray 1 of 1

Frederick: 10, 2 tries

The heat used up a lot of bodies in the first game, this left the Fairfax Reds to scramble a bit to get their combinations set for the second match of the day versus Frederick's B side. Frederick got on the board off a long run through a Reds defensive breakdown, this would be a harbinger of the day as the lack of defensive cohesion, and the ensuing lack of cover defense left the Reds exposed to long breaks. The Reds, sticking mainly with a forward based attack managed to try a shot at goal on a penalty, but the kick was off, leaving the first half at 5 - 0.

"Atlanta" Dave continued his strong play from the 1st match, working hard at the front. Pat Herrity was a constant menace around the scrum base, but lack of coordination at the front stalled many a gain line crossing run. Jason "Green Arrow" Berg went down with a Monty Python-type gusher over the eye. Jeff Bush admirably subbed him at fly half, but the back line cohesion was further eroded.

"Army" Lew Boone had some good hits and got some hard yards.

The 2nd half saw the Reds put together some phases, which earned them a penalty goal from Elvis and Jessie "Verbal " Torgensen dotting down with a converted try. Unfortunately, fitness told the tale towards the end, and the heat sapped the Reds' forward strength, and Frederick answered with two tries of their own, one converted.

Reds: 10 Tries: Torgerson
Pen: Hough (a homo) 1 of 2
Conv: Hough (a homo) 1 of 1

Frederick B: 17, 3 tries
Conv 1 of 3

At the curtain call, the Merrifield Blues played the boys going to Aspen, whose moniker ranges from the Flamers to things much worse and not suitable for young readers. The cagey veterans ran up a quick tab of 3 tries in the first half, leaving the Blues shell-shocked at the brunt of the onslaught. Finding themselves under the cosh, the Blues rallied, under the boot of Josh "Lt. Dan" Stratton at scrumhalf, and the Blues clawed back to 4 tries to 2 against and momentum looked to be swinging.

Miscommunication on defense by the Blues, due largely to their unfamiliarity, gave the Aspen team some finishing soft tries. "Amish" Adamovich had a fine 1st match at Prop, for the Blues. Terry "Quinn the Eskimo" Quinn did the close quarters work from the second row. Paul "Lumberjack" Jenkins toiled hard at the thankless jobs from the scrum base, but in all age and deceit overcame youth and exuberance with the experience and cohesion from the Aspen crowd proving the difference in this one.

The Blues suffered from the defection of some of their players to the Aspen side to make up their numbers. Hard words and hard feelings may result at the next training run. Aki kept the Aspen side going forward, which he easily could have done for the Blues, and Brad "Pom Pom" Barker held the centers together for the 1970's attired ones, when his presence in the Blues side would have been welcome.

The over abundance of referees present in the Houston Astros' colored team, both on the sidelines and on the pitch, ensured a match of constant menace. But in all seriousness, the hope is they got a good run in together, and best of luck out in Colorado gents. We're all pulling for your success.

The 29th Annual Atlantic Cup 15's Rugby Tournament
Cape Henlopen State Park
Lewes, DE
August 18 and 19, 2001

Division II Pool Play
Saturday August 18th, 2001
Pool A
Rocky Gorge 36 Aspen Prep 19
Aspen Prep 17 Md Renegades 15
Pool B
Western Suburbs 11 University of Delaware (UD) 7
Western Suburbs 17 Loyola 7

Sunday August 19th, 2001
Plate Division
Wilmington Old Boys 12 Aspen Prep 7
Aspen Prep Final Record 1-2

Cup Division
Semifinals
Western Suburbs 12 Severn River 10
Rocky Gorge 24 North Bay 5
Finals

Western Suburbs 10 Rocky Gorge 0
Western Suburbs Final Record 4-0 Cup Division Champions

Report of the Slug 7's Tournament
by Mike "Kosmo" Kramer
21 July 2001

Western Suburbs showed up Saturday with approximately 10-11 guys.  It was a mixture of experienced players and those never having played before.  Burbs won the first scheduled match of the tournament by forfeit, not having tested themselves on the pitch.  Itching to get some match  play, and after discussion with local teams in the area, Burbs played an informal match against West Potomac RFC.  West Pot destroyed us but we learned from our mistakes in that match and regrouped.

  From that point on, each of the teams we played were progressively better but... Western Suburbs managed to step it up to meet the challenge and win each time.  The final match of the day in the Social Division pitted Western Suburbs vs. West End Old Boys.  The match was pretty exciting with the score going back and forth the whole match.  In one of the final plays of the match and with West End ahead 12-10 with approximately 45 seconds to go Joe Bolavage incurred an injury 6 inches from the try zone while trying to sprint it in.  At this point, an ambulance was called to attend to Joe and the referee moved play to another pitch.  Western Suburbs was given a free kick at about the 15 meter line going in.  Chemo kicked a very high pop kick which was caught by new guy Scott who proceeded to pound it in.  He was met by 3-4 West End Boys who stopped him at the try line.  After a second effort he dotted it in but the Referee called it playing on the ground.  West End was given the ball on the try line and ran it back the length of the pitch for a try to end the match.   

Even though it was a disappointing end, Western Suburbs played with a lot of heart, coming together as a team to pull out wins all day long. Cheers to all the guys who came out and played some great rugby representing Western Suburbs.  One of the best efforts by our team in a long time.  

Results
-Suburbs won by forfeit over Towson St. Old Boys
-Suburbs won over  West End Old Boys Bs
-Suburbs won over Interior Concepts (Severn River Old Boys)
-Suburbs won over PAC Bs
-Suburbs lost to West End Old Boys A/Bs in Championship match in Social Division 19-10 in final seconds.

PAC's report
Suburbs' B/C Match with PAC
28 April 2001

It appears that PAC has a first class wit on its writing staff. Here is their entertaining match write-up for last Saturday's PAC B/C vs. Suburbs match, supplied to me by one of our intelligence agents, Schnauzer. My comments in brackets. - Wes

Victory for PAC over tough Western Suburbs

In a local friendly, the PAC B and C sides were at home against Western Suburbs. Both teams looked forward to a fun run on the rejuvenated pitch at 15th and Independence. PAC B/C/Irregulars used a hard running attack to trump 'Burbs 15-11 in a full game and 17-10 in the "third" period.

The first 5 minutes of the match was played at a blistering pace, or at least a mildly burning pace. PAC quickly marched down the field, and after driving the attack into the try zone was awarded a five meter scrum. PAC scrumhalf Jeff Collins picked up, ran a few steps and dotted down at the posts to put PAC up by 5.

After the ensuing kickoff, PAC found themselves on defense. Suburbs mounted a good attack, using repeated quick pickups to grab five yards here, five yards there. PAC responded to Suburbs success by, well, cheating, holding the ball in at the tackle, standing off sides at the ruck and so forth. Johnny Law was watching, and sent PAC backwards for their offenses and PAC eventually surrendered a couple penalties to close to the posts....putting 'Burbs up 6-5.

Western suburbs were gaining momentum from the scores. PAC defenders made numerous swarming tackles, but neglected to defend Suburbs quick pickups. 'Burbs took advantage of PAC's disorder, stringing together several phases in the forwards, then spinning the ball into their backs. 'Burbs smartly scored a try through the centers to go up 11-5.

PAC then fought back, with centers Purcell and Ruberti buckling down. After several phases of continuous play deep within the PAC twenty two, Purcell broke a 50 yard run. Craig Ruberti hustled to keep up in support, and his work paid off. As two 'Burbs players dragged Purcell down, he passed out of the tackle to Ruberti, who quickly spun it to wing "Mini" Jesse Turnier. MJ turned the corner and never looked back, running it in 35 yards for a try, dotting down between the posts. PAC trailed 11-10 at the half.

Then IT happened.
IT is not something we often report on.
But IT was too entertaining not to share.

All great fights have to have a name - "The Rumble in the Jungle", "The Thrilla in Manilla." Well, this one shall forever be known as "The Defendants at Independence." It was inevitable that there would be a fight, because Ian Speight specifically warned several of us before the match that there was to be no fighting, keep it clean! So, when Ian blasted a 'Burbs player who then flew into the ref, who then took a spill, well no one was surprised. And when Ian got into a fight, we weren't surprised either. We could blame Ian, but we won't. Like they say on Fox News, we report the news - you decide.

What is known is the ball, Ian, and a 'Burbs player crossed into touch in front of the Western Suburbs reserves. Suddenly, there was a brawl. In a good show of team spirit unmatched in any sport except perhaps baseball, PAC's whole team waded into the fray looking to hit someone, or at least looking to look like they were looking to hit someone. Several PAC reserves actually sprinted the length of the field to get in on it, no mean feat since they rarely attend practice and could have hurt themselves. Ian's account, reported verbatim, was "He pushed me or hit me or something. I got mad. I hit him." This was a Roger Clemmons-esque explanation, but he did have a bloody mouth, a shiner, and a welt on his cheek - though he might actually have punched himself out. According to innocent bystander Adam Horvath, "I don't know what happened. When I got there, Ian had pulled the guy's shirt over his head, the dude was bent over, and Ian was trying to knee him in the face. But Ian's leg is kind of fat and he couldn't get his leg that high."

But the definitive account was probably the Western Suburbs' version, overheard in the parking lot after the game:

'Burbs Player#1: "Dude, the guy with the big ass pulled his shirt right up over his head."
'Burbs Player#2: "Yeah, it was just like a hockey game. Oh man!"
'Burbs Player#3: "Well, you've got to expect a hockey game when you play PAC."

[There is only one Suburbs player who begins sentences with the word "dude" - and we all know who he is. Images here and here. - Wes]

So it appears that in a perverse twist on Rodney Dangerfield's classic one liner, we went to a rugby game and a hockey fight broke out. And like any good hockey fight, this one really got the boys fired up. Adam Horvath was the first guy to feel the emotion that Ian brought to the game. "Get off the &@*$% field, Ian. NOW!" screamed Adam. Uniquely, Ian was ejected for fighting by a fellow player, rather than a ref. This may be a PAC first.

Neither team came away with much in the way of harm or anger, especially since Ian had been tossed by his own team. The game seemed to settle down after all the non-rugby antics. Meanwhile, PAC seemed to take the throttle up on the actual rugby oriented stuff. Purcell made several strong slashing runs picking up dozens of yards at a clip. Jeff Lutton helped the forwards establish the offensive attack around the breakdowns and acquired his customary severe bleeding nose. Bleeding aside, the boys eventually put together a nice back movement that resulted in Craig Ruberti crashing through to score a try to put PAC up 15-11. The game would end on that score.

The third period started out with a great back movement. With Ruberti at fly half PAC was looking to move the ball. And when the first wide movement ended with the ball out to winger Mike Chadwick, he repaided the favor and took it in for an early try. On the ensuing kickoff, Mike Miller had a chance to scoop the ball, but he blew it and dropped it. Fortunately, the ref dropped the ball too, and missed the knock on. One of the PAC forwards alertly "stepped" on the ball, which "gently" rolled out into the backs......Ruberti picked it up, passed it to Joe Purcell, who once again displayed the "man of granite" running style....trampled three or four 'Burbs players and took the ball in for a try. With the conversion it was PAC 12 - 0.

'Burbs bravely fought back, strung together six or eight phases of forward & back play, and broke through to dot down in the corner. (PAC 12-5 Burbs). Minutes later Burbs gave up a penalty at the tackle. Srummy Brandon Wolf tapped and spun the ball out to Ruberti. The inside center dummied, and Ruberti skip passed to fullback Sketchy Steve Boitano, who crashed hard into the line. Sketchy burst through, and when he encountered the 'Burbs fullback, he slipped the ball out to Mike Chadwick, who took the ball at speed and ran it in for a try. PAC 17, 'Burbs 5.

Late in the game 'Burbs introduced PAC to their newest free agent acquisition....a rather portly gentleman whom we all assumed was a prop. The big fella ran two or three pacers in a row, at one point, he dragged three or four PAC players a good ten yards before, no, not falling - before passing. (He was understandably a bit winded at that point - you try carrying 350 pounds 50 yards on the trot). The big 'un did successfully suck in the defense; after his final pacer, 'Burbs spun the ball out wide and their wing dotted down in the corner. PAC 17, 'Burbs 10. The final minutes were a defensive struggle, final score 17-10.

[Josh Thomas' run was captured by Gwedo - see it here. - Wes]

Bottom Line Men of the Match -- Center Joe Purcell and wing Mike Chadwick, both had very strong performances in the backline, creating and finishing the offensive attack! Honorable mentions to Mike Jacobs, Mike Miller, Sketchy, MJ, Rom and Brandon Wolf at scrumhalf, wing, and flanker!

See you at the Bottom Line and at the Mall this Saturday!!!

The Rover Report
Matches with Harrisburg RFC
14 April 2001

Attacking back three entering the line. Perfect offloads in the tackle, hitting the support at pace. Exactly the game plan Suburbs wanted to play this week. Unfortunately it was the team from Harrisburg that ran our game plan to perfection; 54 - 3 was the final score. Not much positive to take from this one. I thought our forwards had it over on theirs, but the score got out of hand too early to take advantage of that. Of the few bright spots, Atlanta Dave continued his resurgence as an offensive force, he and Jon Carter did yeoman's work at the coalface. Mike Kramer, who was busier than a 10 cent whore on nickel night, had a high work rate, probably too high as he seemed to be spending his day covering missed tackles. Man of the Match goes to Atlanta Dave, he made more than his share of tackles up front and had some good tough runs through traffic.

Unfortunately we couldn't capitalize on our edge up front and instead got into a track meet that we were not prepared for. Should any one still think that teams are going to roll over because the mighty Western Suburbs is coming to town, they need to stop by their local shrink and get a nice potent prescription for their delusions.

We can mutter that injuries from week one that have mounted to epidemic proportions have depleted over one third of our ranks. We can point to the fact that this season's schedule is infinitely more difficult than last fall's. Yes, we have many guys playing out of position, and inexperience in playing together as a team against well-drilled and competent opponents.

The fact remains, with very few exceptions, no one showed up at the start of this season in playing condition. We had two practices and it was off to the matches. Showing up to practice twice a week will not suffice to get someone in playing condition. This is a mantra oft repeated at practice, but rarely heeded. We've learned the hard way that our superior athleticism that carried us through difficulties in the fall isn't going to save us against a better level of opponent. We are unfit; go through the motions at practice, figuring it will be another lark of a season. But these teams are fit; practice well and often, with athletes just as talented or more so than ours. We have played up to the level that we have prepared. As coach I bear the brunt of the blame. We spent less time than necessary on basic fundamental play. We focused on higher levels of game play, and like all structures built with foundations of sand, we were swept away with the tide.

The Reds following their usual pattern played their opponents to a stand still in the first half. Strong work from the loose trio of Owen, Crazy Eddie and Kurt kept this a tight affair. The Reds sprung a few breaks, most of which passed through the hands of Ferdie Basilio, but as in the past, we were unable to finish off our hard-earned advantage. The second half, as per a script, showed the lack of match fitness in the Reds pay its toll. Cracks emerged in the Red's defense; with Harrisburg dotting in 3 tries in the second half, putting away the Reds through sheer tenacity. Man of the Match goes to Kurt Mills who played some hard-edged defense, complemented by a few good rumbles in the loose.

The Rover Report
Matches with Severn River
7 April 2001

A fine day greeted the hosts, Western Suburbs, out at Claude Moore Park as they jousted with MARFU D-II South champions Severn River. Suburbs took the restart and worked the ball down into the visitor's end, using the typical erudite kicking for position of fly-half Neil Devaney. Their early field position advantage rewarding them with a Devaney penalty. Shortly after the next restart, Suburbs again striking deep into Severn's half, scrumhalf Iwan Williams took a quick tap, feeding Neil who dished to Chuck Coleman near the corner. It was 10 minutes into the 1st half and Suburbs, after Devaney missed the touchline conversion held an 8 - 0 lead.

Suburbs battled gamely, various individual efforts keeping the side in contention, but the wheels fell off the wagon shortly thereafter. Fine control of the ball with close-in driving led to penalties, though it was also a template to Severn River's 2nd half tactics. Severn notched 3 penalties, bracketing a try after a determined charge through the forwards. Severn led at the half, 16 - 8.

Arguably the most telling difference between the sides was the space and options available to the respective playmakers. Severn River's FH having plenty of time to plot an attack, while Neil Devaney was almost consumed each time he was in possession. Severn River was busy in the loose in the second half, with Suburbs restricted to sporadic raids. Granted this match was as much about what a focused and determined Severn River did, but the prime reason why the visitors had the more dynamic ball carriers was because their first-up tackles were also much better. Suburbs were simply unable to get their hands on the ball, and they became tackling fodder in their own half. There is only so long a defensive structure can hold together when it is forced to thwart 7 or 8 phases of play over and over again. Defense around the breakdowns was nonexistent, allowing the Severn forwards the space and time to keep the ball in hand and the Suburbs defenders on the back foot.

At the coalface, Scott Lestina put in a host of open field tackles, thwarting many Severn moves through their back line. Burbs managed a well-worked try, finished off by Rick "Ritalin" Reisser, (Devaney again barely missing the conversion from almost touch) which seemed to bolster a hope of redemption. But, Severn River cruised to a comfortable victory in the end, dotting down an additional brace of tries, matched with a pair of penalties to give a flattering final score as Suburbs composure and discipline broke down as they scrambled to halt the deluge of points. Final score: Severn 36, Western Suburbs 13. Man of the Match: Neil Devaney who was wonderfully obdurate in refusing to accept defeat.

In the Red's match, once again our guests failed to deliver the promised 2+ sides, so that the Red's fielded more than 2 complete and separate sides in their match against a mostly reclaimed Severn 1st XV. The tussle was a determined and frantic affair, the back line jousting degenerating into a collision of midfields. "Spider Man" Malisko netted a penalty for the Reds. This was countered by two converted tries from the recycled Severn River side. For the Reds, "Crazy" Eddie Harrington got through his usual Trojan workload, Jim Cleary again had a few breaks out wide, and Bill Blades was solid bullocking his way through the bunch at the breakdowns. The second half was a back and forth affair, but, alas, the Reds were naïve in their choice of play and did things we did not practice, often stymieing their efforts through lack of cohesion. It was an entertaining spectacle nonetheless, the match displaying much open play, as opposed to the stop start affair of the first match. Man of the Match: Eddie Harrington

The Rover Report
Three Club Mini Tournament
14 April 2001

Reds vs. North Bay.

On a sunny afternoon that brought out renewed hope for the resurgence of the Fairfax Reds, again bolstered by a host of players, the day again fell short of expectations. The match in contrast to the weather, descended to an error-strewn scramble, a far cry from the passages of fine rugby displayed by the Reds at the Irish tourney. The Reds conceded 16 penalties during the two twenty minute halves. Any progress by the Reds was undermined by lack of discipline. Jason Berg traded penalties with North Bay, with an additional cushion provided by a try late in the first half, allowing North Bay to walk off at the half up 10-3. The mounting penalties prevented the Reds from having a storming second half. Though the match appeared delicately poised, repeated indiscretions in loose play kept their ambitions thwarted. The lone scoring in the second half was via a penalty to North Bay. Final: North Bay 13, Reds 3. Man of the Match: Jason Berg

Suburbs A vs. Quantico

Again, the penalty count continued to mount against Suburbs. Though the first half of this match, dominated by a resurgent Suburbs pack that controlled possession, was only highlighted by a Kevin Corry penalty. Much good work in the loose was undone deep inside Quantico's end by over zealous play, leading to handling errors and denying Suburbs some well-earned points. In stark contrast to the previous match, the Suburbs forwards were tenacious on attack and ruck defense. Spearheaded by some hard yards from "Atlanta" Dave MacEwen, they were marshaled by scrum half Matt Clark, who deservedly dotted down the matches first try after he fought his way across the line, despite the close attention of three opposition players. Quantico was never able to sustain any attack, the Suburbs forwards controlling possession, when finally "Alaska" Forrest Wilder rubber-stamped a thoroughly-merited victory, when he charged in for a try in the 10th minute of the second half. Final score: Suburbs 13, Quantico 0. Man of the Match: Matt Clark.

Suburbs C vs. North Bay

Again the large numbers of Suburbs players, with the cancellation of one of our guests from Toronto, necessitated Suburbs C's, bolstered by some Old Boys and new veteran recruits, to take on virtually the same North Bay side that had played the Reds earlier in the day. The first half was punctuated by a trading of converted tries, Suburbs scored by the venerable Jeff Bush after a fine chip and chase. Some spirited play in the loose forwards by Mike "Kosmo" Kramer and Kurt Mills kept a largely non-cohesive Suburbs side in the match with their hard hits and yards off of breakdowns. Some encouraging performances by FNG's Josh from San Diego at scrum-half, and Julio "Down by the schoolyard" from Pittsburgh kept the game entertaining. North Bay's better cohesiveness proved the difference as they slotted another penalty and dotted down a try near full time to pull away, 15-7. Man of the Match: Jeff Bush

Suburbs A/Motley vs. Quantico

The absence of the Toronto team left this match as a first half replay as Suburbs A side retook the field against Quantico in the first half, followed by a contingent of random players looking for more game time. The first half was largely a repeat of the day's earlier match, Suburbs controlling the territory and possession markers. Some incisive runs by Karlis Peterson through the centers, and the usual high-level performance from Forrest Wilder in the loose largely punctuated the attack. Suburbs led through the first half 5 - 0. A slew of replacements couldn't match the team work of the first half, as by and large most players on the pitch were in their first encounter teamed with each other, as well as plying their trade in different positions than usual. Jason Berg had a solid and steady match at fullback, Eddie Harrington finally displaying his tenacious form from last fall, and Harry Donovan roaming the pitch doing the dirty work upon which he thrives. Forrest put another try on the boards, but the second missed conversion was telling as the Quantico side managed to dot down two disjointed tries, both converted, to take the match home, 14-10. Man of the Match: Forrest Wilder

The Rover Report
Matches with South Jersey
31 March 2001

Kudos to all the Suburbs guys who made the 3+ hours trek up to South Jersey. It would be a fair assessment that we outnumbered the other side 2 to1 in numbers. Alas, the score line went near on 2 to 1 to the hosts. The day ended with the A-side dropping their match 35 - 19, Fairfax Reds going down 29 - 12.

Attitude, respect, diligence. Three attributes significant in their absence on the day for Suburbs A's. The game plan worked on so carefully Tuesday and Thursday never reared its head on Saturday. The day was reminiscent of the club a few years back, players finger-pointing blame on each other, bickering, and otherwise playing as fifteen individuals, all of which culminated in a near-total collapse of fortitude at game's end. So sudden is the slide from prosperity into despair... Lest anyone still harbor the pre-season arrogance built on last season's success, it should surely be torn by the miserable performance displayed by Western Suburbs.

We went over the top with our decision-making. There was no seeming agenda to the play on the field. Our defensive shortcomings leaving us sitting exposed, down 15 - nil 20 minutes in. Rather than remain composed Suburbs reverted to long thought lost attributes, individuals playing alone, ignoring those around them. Any thoughts of a collective effort went into ashes as South Jersey dotted down their second try. Our cheap shots were uncalled for; we played like a pack of dogs, yet still could have won. We threw a lot of tries away, and during the match created more opportunities than South Jersey. Most went for naught as individual brilliance was often undone by lack of unified support.

A fine try by Steve Carter, set up by a great run and dish off by Chuck Coleman got Suburbs back into the match. A failure to ruthlessly exploit a numerical advantage on a couple of occasions kept Suburbs from closing the gap more. The half ended 15 - 7, but Suburbs looked the stronger side.

The scrum crumbled concertina-like whenever the mood struck South Jersey to exert pressure. But it was open side flanker Forrest Wilder who permitted his side to play the expansive game, thus guaranteeing continuity. Forrest was also wonderfully tenacious and abrasive in the tackle. Decimated in the scrums, Suburbs were forced to play the ball out of the tackle to avoid set pieces, something accomplished to telling effect. Forrest scored two tries after the break. Suburbs could have grabbed a couple more as they produced a tempo with which South Jersey struggled to cope. John Blood was particularly vicious in attack and defense, his shuddering hand-off and rumble leading to Forrest's first score. He made some solid hits, and some good runs from in tight.

Suburbs battled back to within a point, momentum in their favor, twice, but both times tackling failures and some poor decision making in our own end led to Jersey each time regaining the advantage, until ultimately the final melt down late in the match and South Jersey piling on 2 tries.

The Fairfax Reds took the field and produced a much more positive game of rugby. Some hard tackling by Bill Blades and Mike "Sailor" Scully kept the pressure on the Jersey side. A fine individual try by Jesse Torgerson left the Reds up at the break 5-0, and all seemed in the Fairfax side's favor. They had moved the ball well, a few miscues at key moments breaking down advantages gained. Support showed a marked improvement over the previous week's match.

The drop in performance in the second half was alarming. The lack of fitness as a whole was the undoing of the Reds this day. Despite some excellent tackling by Matt Sowers in the centers, and some penetrating runs by "Army Lew" Boone and Jim Cleary, Jersey crossed the line often, punctuated by lost Suburbs Alumni, Cormac, dotting one down after some tight forward play near the Red's posts.

The Reds showed a lot of composure this day, their wearied legs betraying strong hearts. Even as the tide turned into a flood against, they stuck to their mates, rewarded by a nice try by Roland "Machine" Mancini after a solid build up of phases, hopefully a harbinger of things to come from the much-improved Red's performance.

The Rover Report
Match with West Potomac
24 March 2001

On a day that started with the promise of a fine spring day, which quickly turned by kick-off into a threatening, cold, and somber afternoon at Kenilworth Park, Western Suburbs had their annual rivalry renewed against West Potomac. The weather was perfect backdrop for the uninspiring performance on the pitch witnessed by the shivering spectators, a large crowd having stayed after the Women's MARFU collegiate playoff curtain-raiser.

Western Suburbs emerged victorious, with a final score of 18 - 3. The match spoke volumes of the character of the team. They may rue, however, the several handling errors behind the scrum, over complication of attacking gambits and the inability to translate the progress of the attack into points against sterner opposition. As is their wont, Suburbs conformed their style to their opponents, rather than imposing their will. The result was a slog of a match, with two forward packs slagging each other for three-quarters of the match. The opening half-hour developed into a duel between opposition packs, the stentorian pace resulting in a drop goal by West Pot's scrum half, to open the scoring.

Suburbs, though physically lighter, battled tenaciously up front and managed to completely disrupt the West Pot lineout. Though their own was lacking in a commanding presence as well, multiple handling errors disrupting many potential attacking opportunities. They managed to pressure from the ensuing restart; the result was a Neil Devaney penalty, knotting the score.

West Potomac appeared to lack the inspiration and the patience to unravel the Suburbs defense. They repeatedly pounded the fringes, gaining a huge advantage in time of possession, but managing little in terms of territorial gains. Suburbs, for their part, acutely aware that there was a huge mismatch on the wing, was unable to exploit this Achilles heel with the exception of a wasted Steve Carter 50 meter run in the first half and an equally un-exploited 2nd half 35 meter jaunt by Mike Clark.

Behind the scrum, Iwan Williams had a quality performance, his pinpoint accuracy a festering sore on the West Pot consciousness, this despite being constantly harassed in trying to deliver quality ball from the disrupting tactics of the West Pot scrumhalf. The joint tactical kicking from Iwan and Neil kept up the pressure on West Potomac, who stubbornly continued their barge and ruck attack. Their eventual breakdown in their half was quickly exploited, the ball going wide, for one of the few times in the first half, which resulted in a spectacular individual try to Rick "Ritalin" Reisser. Neil Devaney missed the tough conversion, but quickly followed by tagging a penalty on to one of many West Potomac transgressions. The first half whistle sounded on an 11-3 Suburbs lead.

There was a distinct lack of width in the Suburbs attacking efforts, and Suburbs coughed up too many turnovers and rarely established momentum in chasing the hard yards in an undistinguished display. Western Suburbs victory was a monument to pragmatism and to the quality of their defense. The back rows worked extremely hard.

West Potomac continued with their fringe attack, eating up the game clock and denying attack options to Suburbs. They rarely ventured wide, to their eventual demise as no one puts up the shutters better than Suburbs as evidenced by a succession of offensive tackles by Brian Laird, and Atlanta Dave MacEwen. West Potomac had lost a lot of steam by a quarter of the way through the second half, their lack of bench strength glaringly exposed with the Suburbs counter of replacing their front row with John "Captain" Blood and Jon Carter, who, with their entry, stole forward dominance and ended any pretense of an attack from West Potomac. This intense pressure eventually saw the ever-dangerous Chuck Coleman burst past the hard work of Prop Jon Carter, and with the Devaney conversion, to take the Burbs to the final score. 18 -3

The Fairfax Reds came out in the second match of the day, and showed tremendous promise that always seemed to fall just short of rewards due to lack of continued support when there were breaks. As is the pattern, West Pot drilled a drop goal to open the scoring. The Reds then took over the half, three solid gain line breaking runs by Jim Cleary, got Suburbs deep in the West Pot end, the resulting pressure capitalized by "Army" Lew Boone's dotting down for the try. Elvis missed the conversion; the swirling wind seeming to throw him off his stride.

The Reds maintained their pressure in the first half, the dwindling of support at crucial junctures left them wanting for points, however. Final: West Pot 10, Fairfax Reds 5. Afterwards we all repaired to Sullivan's Emerald Isle in Washington, D.C., where West Potomac hosted us in memorable style.

The Rover Report
Washington Irish St. Pat's Day Tournament
17 & 18 March 2001

All and all it was a disappointing weekend for Suburbs. It was readily evident that other clubs had been training and playing the last month or so, while the Burbs had only come out of hibernation 2 weeks ago. The sides we faced were coherent in play, rehearsed in their fundamentals, and disciplined in their approach. With only a smattering of these attributes at times, Suburbs showed its lack of preparation with abysmal rucking, inadequate support, nonexistent ball retention, and not an ounce of communication or team work to be seen.

Some tremendous individual efforts were almost always undone by a lack of support, and miserable communication resulted in the more rehearsed and coherent opponents to exploit Suburbs 15 individuals playing on islands at virtually every opportunity. We showed we have the athletes and the people with individual skills and talents to contend, but as seen this weekend, 15 less gifted players, working together will out perform 15 more talented individuals playing by themselves every time.

Suburbs had 47 players sign in Saturday morning. Unfortunately some did not appreciate the seriousness of previous correspondence that no dues, no CIPP and showing up late were not going to get you playing time or endear one to one's teammates. I am not going to belabor this subject, nor bring it up again, those few who disregarded the message saw the policy in action. I apologize for the few who didn't get in on Sunday, tournament rules limited subs to 5 per match (as opposed to the usual 7), which I was unprepared for. With only one match on Sunday, it was impossible to get everyone in the Reds, and with injuries in the A's, we were out of subs in that match as well.

The Fairfax Reds under skipper Freddie Bardot did a super job, matched up against various Div III sides, they went 2-1 for the tourney, beating Erie, 8-7 (Wang Try, Berg Pen and Conv) and Widener 17-0 (Herrity 2 tries, Ibach try, Bush conv), losing in the Bracket Semi to Charles River 19-0. Though Freddie seems to have picked up some lingua franca from the coach, it was a determined side that did very well. Jeff Linden, Andrew Wang, Ritalin, Jason all had solid, steady performances.

They were bolstered by Old Boys Pat Herrity and Jeff Bush who added some discipline and fire to a relatively inexperienced side. Some rookies showed some promise, Jim Cleary had some good plays, and Josh Thomas, formed with the brothers Robertory, had some bone cracking hits, and put out one of the most intimidating packs (someone dubbed them the "Biker pack", another the "moving mountains") in the tournament.

The eventual downfall was seen as a unified side that was able to work in concert against a group not familiar with playing with each other, using the advantage of wind and slope in concert to exert the inevitable outcome. The Red's had this same natural advantage in the first half, but were unable to punch through. As seen throughout the weekend, that combination of wind and slope were worth 3 tries. Charles River got theirs, the Reds did not. Suburbs A, was faced with opening against Div I Brandywine in its opener. The first 10 minutes seemed as though Burbs had conceded defeat before kick off. Missed tackles and hesitant play gave an early try to Brandywine after which the boys settled down and played with more conviction, playing to a score line 0-0 draw the rest of the way, much of which was in the BWine end.

2 opportunities within their 22 went wanting, but Forrest scored a try early in the 2nd half, converted by Dev and Burbs finally realized they could play with these boys. Alas for another 2 wasted opportunities, deep in their territory to put the match away, then indiscipline cost a penalty goal for Brandywine and the final was 8-7 them.

The second match vs. Lancaster was punctuated by a nice cold pelting rain for most of the first half. Again, Burbs came out flat, Lancaster's efficiency and better preparation got them 2 quick tries. Suburbs fought back, punctuated by a Slim Carter (that's Jon, not Steve "Flash") driving one through. But as the clock waned, and the skies rained, Suburbs frantic attempts for an evening try resulted in an end of time try to Lancaster, Suburbs on the short end of a 4 tries to 2 finish.

Day 2, in the consolation semi, saw Suburbs match up against Wilmington, at least they were a Div II side. The wind and field slope were the determinant on this day, all scores going with the wind and slope, those going against it never crossing half way. Suburbs came out on top of a chippy, sluggish match, 17-12, Kosmo Kramer, El Jefe, and Alaska Forest dotting down, Dev making 1 of 3 conversions. That put Burbs in the consolation final against the Nashville Vandals, a touring side up for the weekend.

Burbs was down to its last 2 props, John Carter and Nels doing yeoman work in the trenches. A controversial try early (it was a try, the controversy was the try zone at that corner was about 2 meters deep and went into the woods, a kick went in and was thought to be through but was touched down by the Vandals for a heartbreaking try) seemed to deflate Suburbs. The boys battled gamely, but whenever they threatened, the ball would be lost in the tackle or misplayed to their Fullback who would boom another clearing kick the length of the field, for Suburbs to try and work it up again.

This strategy was successful as continually Suburbs would break down by themselves, through lost ball in the tackle, poor handling and poor rucking which would hand the ball back to the Vandals in Suburbs' end. The result was a 13-0 whitewash. On the weekend, Forrest, as usual, was stellar. His play in the loose was enormous, his lineout and restart play as always was superb. Kosmo Kramer had an excellent weekend, his work rate was high and error rate low, he was rewarded for his tenacity with a deserved try vs. Wilmington. Chuck Coleman continued his run of strong play, but all in all there were too few bright individual spots to overcome the overall lack of team concerted play.

The Rover Report
Match with Virginia RFC
21 October 2000

A glorious sunny day greeted the Fairfax men in black and white. They needed to put up big numbers on the visitors from Virginia RFC and they needed Richmond United to win their game to make the playoffs. The lads from Western Suburbs did their part in spades, securing a first place tie, but, alas, United lost their match, which left the tie breaker to the advantage of Severn River RFC.

The eventual outcome was never really in doubt. Suburbs spent the extensive amounts of the first half perched within Virginia's 22 meter line. Seven times Suburbs got possession in the money zone, only to come away with but two tries, one by the irrepressible lock Forrest Wilder on a quick tap, and Pete Murray on a determined drive over after considerable phases and indomitable forward play.

The match was still in debate at this point, when after one of a myriad of Suburbs penalties inside the 22, Virginia got a sterling kick to touch into Suburbs end, then got inside the Suburbs 5 meter line for a good 4-6 minutes of repeated attacks. A defense of Spartan-like heroics, led in most part by the ageless wonder at flank Harry Donovan, with cohorts Matt Clark (SH) and Dave MacEwen (Prop), Suburbs repeatedly drove Virginia back.

A miscue by the visitors was turned into a long burst from wing Steve Carter, and through a couple of quick movements hooker Kevin Corry dotted down behind the posts and the first nails were in the now-dispirited Virginia RFC's coffin. That ended the half at 21-0.

The second half started as the first ended, Kevin Corry again touching down after a long break brought on by quick passes and ruck work done perfectly by the back line, and when Forrest touched down soon after the rout was on. There followed a merciless progression of tries.

Note must be taken of the overshadowed, yet still outstanding defense, with Jimmy Thompson and Eddie Harrington superbly shutting down Virginia's back line attack, and making their fly half's day miserable. It should be noted this effort in no small account led to Virginia's lack of points on the gallant goal line stand, as they would not even dare a back line move, lest they lose considerable ground or risk a turnover. Such was the pressure exerted by these two defensive stalwarts. Virginia were forced to try and crash with their forwards, much to their dismay.

Harry Donovan was everywhere all day, doing the dirty work in rucks and mauls, gaining or keeping crucial possession in a yeoman-like performance at flank. There were few movements that led to tries that didn't pass through Harry's hands at some point.

A total team effort was on display this day. Final score: 61-0.

The Rover Report
Match with James River
October 14 2000 - Richmond, VA

On a balmy day in Richmond, Suburbs arrived, thinking their mere presence would give them victory. James River had other ideas, and they played inspired if uninventive rugby, giving better than they received and taking a half time lead of 7-0.

A couple of bad bounces cost Suburbs points in the first half and otherwise spoiled an excellent tactical kicking lesson put on by Burbs fly Neil Devaney. An inability to use our own lineout (or even get our own throw in), a predicament that continued throughout the game, spoiled other Suburbs sojourns into JR's half.

Many missed first up tackles allowed River to escape their own end repeatedly. Their speedy outhalf and bruising center repeatedly broke Suburbs defensive line for good chunks of yardage, always taking their club out of danger when Suburbs seemed to be knocking.

Some outstanding covering tackles by Nate McAtee at fullback and Steve Carter on the wing saved the Burbs from being further behind, and probably saved the match, as River looked to take the game away early. Jimmy Thompson came in and kept up his reputation as the assassin, steadying the back line defensively for the rest of the match.

The match got into a defensive deadlock until River's bruising center plowed for chunks of yardage through a wilting Suburbs defense. It was 14-0 River, and the boys from Fairfax had a hard road to travel. As has been the case all season, however, the heads did not drop. The tactical kicking continued, this time bolstered by some fresh legs, and was rewarded by flanker Scott "Schnauzer" Delaney touching down, soon followed by a determined try from Jimmy "Tackles" Thompson. The tide had turned, as Suburbs numbers provided fresh legs, while River had nothing to throw in to turn the tide. The increasing pressure by Suburbs got them the game winner, fittingly dotted down under the posts by captain Neil Devaney who also slotted his third conversion of the day. A fitting reward for his superb tactical kicking throughout the day that kept River back on its heels for most of the afternoon.

The Rover Report
Match with United of Richmond RFC
7 October 2000, Richmond, VA

Match summary

Suburbs 25 United 19

1st Half:
Suburbs 8
Tries: Devaney
Penalties: Devaney (1 of 2)
Conv: 0-1
United 5
Tries: 1 (missed conv)

2nd Half:
Suburbs 17 (25)
Tries: Devaney, Schnauzer Delaney
Penalties: Devaney
Conv: 2-2
United 14 (19)
Tries: 2 (both converted).

It was a good omen that the temperature was below 90, though it was still much warmer than the advertised 50's. Things got grim when United informed us there was no referee due to work commitments, and no spare available through the society or their club. Faced with giving up Kevin Corry, taking their choice, or possibly forfeiting, we opted for their choice. One of their coaches, a respected USA Rugby coaching instructor, who had taken the refs course but never had any refereeing experience, filled in. He did an admirable job, and truth be told I detected absolutely no bias. Unfortunately, his fitness restricted him to only the first half, which repercussions will be discussed later.

The Pack played very well as a unit. In fact, there was discussion to name the pack as a whole as man of the match. Pete Parsons and Atlanta Dave held their own admirably up front. Our locks and loose forwards played a solid defense first game that was key. We certainly weren't dominant, but the backs got good ball most of the day. Pete Murray (at 8) was everywhere. Tackling, rucking, running through contact. He was immense, and hence his naming as man of the match. He played a selfless role, committed to the tight defense and excelled. The same selfless role can be attributed to all the forwards. They played the game plan perfectly, and it showed.

Chuck was his usual rock at inside, making the 1st up tackles and getting some tough crash yards. The back 3 had some good penetrating runs, Nate and Steve Carter getting some solid breaks. Our forward commitment to defense left them largely unsupported, however.

A less modest narrator would take the full credit for a change of strategy in the 2nd half, as Neil went to Garryowens in the 2nd half as their back 3 seemed shaky and not working well as a unit. This strategy paid off in lots of yardage and points, Neil running down two and Schnauzer Delaney getting one with a good effort while expertly cutting off Neil from his hat trick.

Defense, except for the last 10-15 minutes was huge. Their forwards were rarely a factor. The commitment by the tight 8 to defense was noticeable. They had to play wide, where I thought we had an edge in speed and skill. Alaska Forrest, though he didn't steal any I can think of, disrupted their ball so they only got their maul going a few times (and they drove us pretty good).

Forrest had his usual excellent all around game, as he also won all our own ball. He had some good open field drives as well. Kevin Corry was steady at hook, he made all his throws, and had some good supporting runs in the loose. The loose forward combos with Eddie, Jesse, Kramer and Delaney kept up the pressure all day on their attack.

The score wasn't as close as the final line. They got two soft converted tries at the end (mainly in that their captain was refereeing, too long a story, but suffice to say there were some questions) to make it close.

Rugby Scores Server write-up

Severn River 16 - Western Suburbs 10

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Scoring for Severn River:

Trys:2
Pens:2-5
Convs:0-2
DGs:

Scoring for Western Suburbs:

Trys: C. Jenkins, McAtee
Pens:0-1
Convs:0-2
DGs:

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Comments:

A back & forth match between the recently promoted Severn River and 'Burbs. After spending the first 20 minutes in their own half, River went on the board first with a Penalty kick and then added another shortly thereafter. A Suburbs flanker was sent to the sin bin for stomping and 'Burbs spent the last 10 minutes with a man down. Did that stop them from scoring, in short: NO. C. Jenkins dotted down on in the Severn try zone to send the lads off at half-time 6-5.

Suburbs opened the second half scoring about 25 minutes in and went ahead 6-10. Suburbs broke down on the ensuing kickoff as both props were called for incidently obsruction. Severn scored off the scrum down to take a 11-10 lead. The scoreline stayed that way until Severn dotted a final try w/ less then 30 seconds remaining.

Severn moved into a tie w/ United of Richmond for first place at 2-0. Suburbs moved into 4th place by virtue of point differential behind Virginia. Severn meets United this coming Saturday in Annapolis, Md and Suburbs has an off weekend.

Write-up about the 9/23/00 match with Severn River by an admittedly biased author...

Severn River report (by Coach Quigg of Severn River) 9/23/00

A-Side (Won 16-10)
Severn River used smothering 1st phase defense and dominating forward play to over come a very tough Western Suburbs team 16-10. The game began, as it seems all Severn games have this season with Severn being whistled for 3 penalties in a row. In this case I cannot complain about the ref. All of the penalties were well-deserved mental errors by Severn.

Suburbs failed to take advantage of these mistakes however when they missed a PK from around 35-meters out.

For most of the remainder of the half the game was played within Suburbs 40-meter line.

Consistent pressure by the Severn defense lead to many attacking opportunities which we did not take advantage of. The normal culprits were to blame, bad passes, no passes, sideways running, not taking the ball at pace, and not sticking to the game plan. We did manage to take advantage of a Suburb penalty to slot a PK by Jason Dunbar from the center of the 22-meter line for an early Severn lead, 3-0.

After the Severn forwards put the Suburbs pack on roller-skates and ran over their scrum to steal ball, the Severn back line attacked nicely up field but we missed the ensuing PK opportunity.

After again winning possession of the ball, Severn attacked nicely in multiple phases down to the Suburbs 30-meter line, only to miss-play a Punch play and hand possession back to Suburbs. Suburbs quickly took advantage of our inability to transition from offense to defense, executing a nicely run counter attack across the field. Several missed tackles later and the ball was put down for an unconverted Suburbs try, Suburbs 5-3. With very little time left in the half, Severn showed that we do not roll over, by again attacking in multiple phases, drawing a penalty at the center of the 22-meter line. Jason Dunbar converted for a Severn lead at half, 6-5. The 2nd half was more of the same.

Good 1st phase pressure by Severn removed any threat from the Suburbs backline. Consistent running of the fringe defense by Severn forwards spoiled Suburb attempts to use short lineouts and peels to punch the ball down the field. The pack again took several opportunities to flex their newfound muscle, driving Suburbs back in the scrums and stealing several balls. The backline not taking the ball at pace and a general lack of cohesion on 2nd, 3rd and 4th phase offset all of this good play by the Severn team. Suburbs again took advantage of our failure to transition from offense to defense, when Severn misplayed an opportunity to clear a kicked ball from within our 22. Suburbs quickly won the ball and set a backline, creating an overload. As good as he is, Ryhan Scott can not defend a well run 3 on 1 attack. This resulted in an unconverted try,

Suburbs 10-6. After this the Severn forwards really began to dominate. Off of a lineout from the Suburbs 22-meter line, Severn ran the ball straight at Suburbs, recycled and did it again. After 5 phases Suburbs was whistled for offside. Since the penalty was not in the center of the 22-meter line (no offense Jason), Severn decided to do the smart thing. Take the ball and run straight, recycle and do it again. The result was Frank Buckland picking the ball up off the base of a ruck and placing down an unconverted try from the 1-meter line, Severn 11-10. After a missed PK by Suburbs from the 40-meter line, Severn was at it again.

Nice multi-phase ball movement resulted in a Suburbs penalty, which Severn converted into a 22-meter lineout. From that point on, the backs might as well of gone to the party.

The Severn forwards consolidated good ball on the lineout, set a good platform, put the opposition pack on a forklift and drove them 22-meters into the try zone, at pace. I did not know some of those guys could run that fast, not to mention drive a maul that fast. Zack Mann placed the unconverted try down, but it was earned by all of the forwards, Severn 16-10. Man of the match honors should have been awarded to every one of the forwards, but since I had to pick one, it was awarded to Zack Mann for moving from flanker to hooker and doing a great job. Well done Severn!

B-Side (Won 25-5)

Playing with a couple of A-side players filling in, the Severn B-side dominated the Western Suburbs B's.

The first Severn try was a result of good multiphase attack, solid rucks, pick-and-goes, and just playing keep away with the ball. The final movement had the ball go from John Burke, to Steve Palmer, to Ryhan Cole, who placed down an unconverted try, Severn 5-0. With Severn playing good defense in all phases, it was not long before the ball was again inside the Suburbs 22. John Burke took advantage of more multiphase ball from Severn to dive over for another unconverted Severn try, Severn 10-0. After a nice run by Mat Laine off of the kick-off, Severn again used fast rucks to move the ball inside the Suburbs 5-meter line. This time Kevin Sellers took advantage of the opportunity to place down another unconverted Severn try, 15-0.

The second half started off with Suburbs being called for obstruction on the kickoff. This gave Jason Dunbar an opportunity to kick another of his 22-meter, center of the field PK's, Severn 18-0. In the second half, fitness became a big issue for the Severn side. With many of the people that had been getting around the field in support dogging it and many people playing out of position (hooker at IC, #8 at OC, 100 year old FB), good defense was the only thing that held together. There was however enough gas left in several tanks to sustain one more multiphase movement. This was finished off when Kevin Sellers set a nice punch, Pete Freeman got fast ball to Al Washington who moved it nicely to Mat Laine for a converted (go figure Jason, even a blind dog finds a bone once in a while) try, Severn 25-0.

Suburbs showed that they do not quit by taking advantage of some nice ball movement on 2nd phase to score a long unconverted try for the final score, Severn 25-5. Many people played well in the game, but man of the match has to go to Mat Laine for his consistent support in 1st phase. This set the stage for all of the subsequent attacks and kept the machine moving. Great job all!

Western Suburbs 21 - Rocky Gorge 20

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Scoring for Western Suburbs:

Trys: Wilder, "Shandy" Devaney (?)
Pens:3
Convs:1-2
DGs:

Scoring for Rocky Gorge:

Trys:3
Pens:1-1
Convs:1-3
DGs:

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Comments:

September 16, 2000 Centreville, VA

Western Suburbs held off a LARGE Gorge side to win this MARFU D-II "Territoral" match. Suburbs kicked off the match to Gorge, who used their size and the downhill slope of the pitch to their advantage to take a 17-8 halftime lead.

The second had the downhill to Suburbs advantage and Burbs used their speed and conditioning to put 13 additional points on the board to take home a well deserved victory.

It was the first time since the 1998 "Anti-Playoffs" match that Burbs had claimed victory over Gorge.

West Potomac 8 - Western Suburbs Country 45

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Scoring for West Potomac:

Trys:1
Pens:
Convs:0-1
DGs:1

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Comments:

September 9, 2000 Kenilworth Park, Washington, DC

Using a mixture of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd side players, Western Suburbs beat D-III West Pot on a HOT and HUMID day in Northeast Washington. West Pot used their size advantage for the first 10 minutes to push the D-II boys around but promptly ran out of gas. Suburbs used superior speed and fitness to put this one out of reach early.

Fairfax Reds 10 - Quantico 25 (The "Fairfax Reds" are Western Suburbs "B")

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Scoring for Fairfax Reds:

Trys:5
Pens:
Convs:
DGs:

Scoring for Quantico:

Trys:2
Pens:
Convs:
DGs:

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Comments:

September 9, 2000 Kenilworth Park, Washington DC

The Marines showed way they are the premier team in D-III this fall in the PRU. They handled the Fairfax County Reds (Western Suburbs mixture of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd siders) on this hot and humid day in Northeast Washington. The Marines played very aggressively and beat the Reds to breakdowns on a consistent basis. But when the Reds did win clean ball, their backs did a fine job getting up the field.

West Potomac Old Boys 24 - Suburbs Old Boys 10

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Scoring for West Potomac Old Boys:

Trys:3
Pens:1-1
Convs:3-3
DGs:

Scoring for Suburbs Old Boys:

Trys:2
Pens:
Convs:0-2
DGs:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Comments:

September 9, 2000 Kenilworth Park, Washington DC

The West Pot Old Boys beat up on the undermanned Suburbs Old Boys (SOBS) on a HOT & HUMID day in Northeast Washington. The SOBS were forced to use very stout backs (read former props) in the backline and West Pot used their quickness to out gun the SOBS. SOBS Chairman Steve McNair was quoted as saying "Man, this is the first time these guys have beat us in 4 or 5 years." The SOBS then lived up to their acronym by drinking much of the water brought for all four of the Suburbs sides slated to play that day!

Results of the Slug 7's tournament, 7/22/00, Laurel, MD

A-side, won 1, lost 2...win over Rocky Gorge Old Boys, loss to to Catholic Alumni, lost in plate semis to PAC.
B-side, won 0, lost 3...losses to PAC, Quantico, North Bay.

Results of the Shamrock Sevens Tournament, 7/15/00, Manassas, VA

Suburbs A 31- West Potomac 5 Trys: Princess, Jesse (2), Brad, Jefe Convs: 3
Suburbs B 5 - Irish B 31 Trys: Nels (!) Convs: 0
Suburbs A 14- Rocky Gorge 26 Trys: Princess, Jefe Convs: 2
Suburbs B 5- Severn River 26 Trys: Gene Convs: 0
Suburbs B 21- West Potomac 5 Trys: Bacon (2), Johnny Johnson Convs: 3
Suburbs A 17 - Irish B 5 Trys: Jefe (2), Jesse Convs: 1
Social Bowl Final: Suburbs B 7- Wash B 28 Trys: Johnny Johnson Convs: 1
Social Plate Final: Suburbs A 0- Frederick 31 Trys: None Convs: None

Results of the Second City 7's tournament, 6/17/00, Bryn Mawr, PA

Game, Team, Score, Comments
1: Suburbs 5, Georgetown OB 26 - Jean (Try)
2: Suburbs 14, Bayonne 28 - Jean (Try), Jimmy Dum Dum (Try), Corry (2 Convs)
3: Suburbs 7, Old Gaelic 28 - Corry (Try, Conv)
Plate Semi: Suburbs 5, Blackthorn 0 - Forfeit
Plate Final: Suburbs 7, Brandywine 28 - Clark (Try), Corry (Conv)

Western Suburbs 8 - Washington Irish 45+

Scoring for Western Suburbs:

Trys: Shandy
Pens: Shandy
Convs:
DGs:

Scoring for Washington Irish:

Trys: Several Kiwis and one American Pens:
Convs:
DGs:

Comments:

3/25/00 - Centreville, VA The rugby gods are apparently not yet satisfied with Western Suburbs rebuilding. For they unleashed a furious Irish backline, filled w/ funny accents, whom pounced on every ready made mistake by their Suburbs counterparts. It could be said that (once again) Suburbs had the odds stacked against as they fielded a back line that was essentially playing together for the first time. Anyway the Irish looked like a team that is ready for the playoffs and Suburbs looked like a team that is trying to find it's course. All is not dim at Braddock Park, for Suburbs did field three full sides this weekend.

Report submitted by: Nutsonthewall@wallnutz.com

Western Suburbs 14 - Washington Irish 39

Scoring for Western Suburbs:

Trys: 1 Paul Jenkins, 1 Kevin Gallagher
Pens:
Convs: 2 "Shandy" Devaney
DGs:

Scoring for Washington Irish:

Trys:6
Pens:1
Convs:3
DGs:

Comments:

Braddock Park, Centreville, VA 10-30-99

The old rivals met for Suburbs final MARFU D-II South match. Irish subsituted wisely and frequently to add fresh legs in the 2nd half. This helped them open up what had been a close match. The Irish took advantage of lapses in the Suburbs defense to score on several big plays that really made the difference in the match. Halftime 21-7

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Western Suburbs "B" 17 - Washington Irish "B" 15

Scoring for Western Suburbs "B":

Trys: 3
Pens:
Convs: 1
DGs:

Scoring for Washington Irish "B":

Trys: 3
Pens:
Convs:
DGs:

Comments:

Braddock Park, Centreville, VA 10-30-99

There was a lot of gray hair out there for Suburbs and quite a few teens too, as the old and brand new 'Burbs came away w/ a victory. The difference in the match was centre come prop Tom "Colonel/Assman" Loesel's right foot. Cheers to the Killer Bees as they improved their season record to 3-4!

Report submitted by:

Rocky Gorge 15 - Western Suburbs 8

Scoring for Rocky Gorge:

Trys:3
Pens:
Convs:
DGs:

Scoring for Western Suburbs:

Trys:1 Gravatt
Pens:1 Devaney
Convs:
DGs:

Comments:

Laurel, MD September 18, 1999

Gorge jumped out to the early lead then made a valiant goal line stand at the end of the half. Suburbs had to settled for a Devaney penalty kick.

Gorge again were on their heels the second half, always bending but never breaking. A 70 meter try by OC Tom Henry put Gorge in the lead 15-3. Suburbs was finally able to dot one down as former PRU player Jeff Gravatt scored in the corner. Gorge was able to hold on for the victory.

Report submitted by: [no name]

Rocky Gorge B 7 - Western Suburbs B 33

Scoring for Rocky Gorge B:

Trys:1
Pens:
Convs:
DGs:

Scoring for Western Suburbs B:

Trys:5
Pens:
Convs:4
DGs:

Comments:

September 18, Laurel, MD

Chuck Coleman lead the Suburbs B side w/ 3 tries. This is the 1st victory for either A or B side this season.

Report submitted by: [No name]

Rocky Gorge OB 22 - Suburbs Old Boys (SOBS) 24

Scoring for Rocky Gorge OB:

Trys:4
Pens:
Convs:
DGs:

Scoring for Suburbs Old Boys (SOBS):

Trys:4
Pens:
Convs:
DGs:

Comments:

September 18, Laurel, MD

Actually I don't know the exact amount of tries scored in this match. SOB and WSRFC head coach Dave Lyster did dot one down on this, his wedding day. It was Rocky Gorge OB first time out.

Report submitted by: [no name]

Western Suburbs 21 - United of Richmond 35

Scoring for Western Suburbs:

Trys: 1 Jeff Gravatt, 1 "Sal" Mennella, 1 Pen
Pens:
Convs: 2 Kevin Corry, 1 "Shandy" Devaney
DGs:

Scoring for United of Richmond:

Trys:5
Pens:5
Convs:
DGs:

Comments:

Braddock Park, Centreville, VA 9-11-99

United of Richmond stormed back from a 21-7 halftime defecit to snatch this victory from host Western Suburbs (who could say they snatched defeat from the jaws of victory!) Suburbs started the scoring off w/ a penalty try several minutes into the game. United responded several minutes later w/ a try of their own. Nothing much occured during the next 10 minutes, just each team probing for a weak spot in the other's defence. With 10 minutes remaining in the half each team had a player sent off for a punch up. Suburbs threw their game into high gear at this point. Ageless wonder and recently unretired Jeff Gravatt started the Suburbs scoring w/ a try off second phase ball. The former PRU representive dotted down on a penalty play from about 5 meters out. Suburbs responded w/ another try by inside centre Sal Mennella who threaded the United defence w/ a 30 meter sprint to dot down underneath the posts. The second half openned w/ alot of pressure from Suburbs inside United's 22 meter line. Just as it looked like Suburbs was ready to put the last nail in the coffin, United winger Scott Wenger picked up loose ball and chipped it forwarded only to scoop it up and trot 70 meters for a try. That was the begining of the end. Suburbs was able to not hold on and United poured in 3 more tries to earn a great come from behind victory.

Report submitted by: [No nam