Charleston, SC –
It was a clear and sunny Saturday at
Summerall Field, the rugby pitch on The
Citadel’s campus where the Bulldogs’
A-side faced off with USC’s C-side. The
Division III Palmetto League match-up
was the only action of the weekend for
the Gamecocks, as the club's Division I
sides (A & B) rested for their
doubleheader next weekend against UNC
and East Carolina. USC’s C side showed
repeating signs of an improved offense
throughout the game, but fell plenty
short as The Citadel Bulldogs ran away
with a 37-05 victory.
It was the Bulldogs unmatched efforts in
the scrums and rucks which allowed them
to come away with an early 1st-half
lead. Their first try was scored in the
opening minutes, catching USC’s back
line out of position. Two more tries
were scored by the Bulldogs before the
moment USC’s C-side had been waiting
for.
Scrum half Mike Varga took the ball out
of a ruck and sprinted down inside the
Bulldogs’ 22. The ball popped loose on a
fumbled pass to loose-head prop Wilson
Ranney, who made great efforts to
advance the ball forward. His pass to
hooker Adam Walker developed into the
Gamecocks’ lone try on the afternoon,
with Walker making a dive into the try
zone as he was hit by a Citadel
defender. The try ended a streak of
scoreless games for the young C-side, a
stretch over its previous 3 matches -
all against A-side competition. Although
this is a sign of great improvement for
the developing squad, they know much can
still be done, and must be done, in
order to get into the win column.
Multiple other drives in which solid
defense and offensive ball movement put
the Gamecocks in scoring position did
not result in tries.
“It is something we need to work on,” C
side captain Mike Varga stated. “When we
get down inside the opponent’s 22, we
have to increase the intensity while
still making good decisions. Our line
outs must improve as well. Overall, we
are making strides each week, but wins
would be much nicer.”
In addition to the match between each
side, each team agreed to play a 40
minute match immediately afterwards as
both USC and The Citadel brought 25+
players. The match gave a great
opportunity for solid rugby to be played
while players gained invaluable, quality
experience. Though the match was
unofficial, it yielded a 07-05 victory
for what could be called USC’s D side, a
side composed of C-side reserves and a
handful of C-side starters. Scoring in
this match consisted of a try by center
Dwight Sharpe, followed by a conversion
from fly-half Andrew Thorndyke.
USC’s C side will next compete against
Armstrong Atlantic State University in
Savannah, GA this Saturday, February
27th. The A & B sides will travel to
Chapel Hill, NC on the same day to take
on UNC in what is sure to be a heated
battle for first place in the CRL.
B-side kickoff is set at 2:00pm, while
the A side will start at 3:30pm. Both
matches will take place on
Ehringhuas
Field.
Support the USC Men’s Rugby Club by
logging on to
www.uscrugby.org and following all
upcoming matches.
___
|
Palmetto League
Standings |
|
|
|
|
Record |
|
|
Bonus |
|
|
Team |
Div |
GP |
W |
L |
T |
PF |
PA |
+4 |
-7 |
POINTS |
|
Coastal Carolina
University
|
III |
03 |
03 |
00 |
00 |
126 |
032 |
03 |
00 |
15 |
|
Furman University
|
III |
03 |
03 |
00 |
00 |
110 |
029 |
02 |
00 |
14 |
|
Citadel Military Academy |
III |
03 |
02 |
01 |
00 |
098 |
028 |
02 |
01 |
11 |
|
College of Charleston |
III |
03 |
02 |
01 |
00 |
080 |
034 |
02 |
01 |
11 |
|
University of South
Carolina C |
N/A |
04 |
00 |
04 |
00 |
005 |
135 |
00 |
00 |
00 |
|
Armstrong Atlantic State
Univ. |
III |
04 |
00 |
04 |
00 |
045 |
201 |
00 |
00 |
00 |
___
The
Carolinas Rugby
League is USC's new spring matrix, and consists of the top 7 clubs
in North and South Carolina, including
USC, Wake Forest, Clemson, North
Carolina, Appalachian State University,
North Carolina State University, and
East Carolina University. As the league
is a mixture of Division I and Division
II competition, it will send its top DI
school into the South DI Final Four and
its top two DII clubs to the South DII
Quarter-Finals. The CRL will be naming
its own all-star team, as selected by
coaches and referees, and will reward
the top club with its own trophy at the
end of each season. The brainchild of
former UNC head coach Andy Richards, the
league is intended to limit regional
clubs' travel time while promoting local
growth through rivaled competition.
The Gamecocks Palmetto ('C') side is
playing in USA Rugby South's Division III
competition, taking on Furman, College
of Charleston, The Citadel, Coastal
Carolina, and Armstrong Atlantic State
in the Palmetto League - a brutal
conference that has produced the last 7
South Championships while capturing 4 of
the last 7 Division III National
Championships. Such competition will do
wonders for the continued growth and
success of USC rugby, as participation
in last year's league is a large factor
behind USC's dominant run in Fall 2009.
The University of South Carolina is the
only school in all of USA Rugby South to
operate 3 full sides in South matrix
competition, with USC A and B
participating in USA Rugby Division I. |
|
