-Match Results-

Fall 2006

October 21, 2006: Gentlemen of Dubuque 27  - Quad City Irish 26

ANOTHER PERFECT DAY FOR RUGBY, TEMPERATURE IN THE 50’S, NO WIND, OVERCAST SKIES, AND DRY.  THE GENTLEMEN TRAVELED WITH 19 PLAYERS, COACH DAN DAUGHERTY, AND A BEVY OF SUPPORTERS TO PLAY AGAINST PLAYOFF BOUND, QCI RFC.  THE GAME GOT GOING RIGHT FROM THE OPENING KICKOFF WITH HARD PACK RUNNING AND GOOD RUCKING.  THE GENTLEMEN OPENED THE SCORING WITH A PENALTY KICK IN FRONT OF THE POST 10 MINUTES INTO THE GAME.  FROM THERE THE GAME SEE-SAWED BACK AND FORTH, WITH THE IRISH TAKING A 19-17 LEAD TO THE HALF.  AT ONE POINT IN THE 1ST HALF, AFTER DOTTING DOWN A TRY IN THE OUTSIDE CORNER OF THE TRY ZONE, AUSTIN GOODMAN CONNECTED WITH A SUPERB CONVERSION STRIKE.  AND IN THE END, THE 1ST POINTS OF THE GAME, THE PENALTY KICK, PROVED TO PROVIDE THE MARGIN OF VICTORY.

     THE 2ND HALF, AFTER MAKING SOME ADJUSTMENTS AT THE HALF, THE GENTLEMEN GAINED SOME CONTROL OVER THE PACE AND DIRECTION OF THE MATCH.  EVEN THOUGH OVERMATCHED IN THE SCRUM, WITH FRENCHIE WORKING HARD TO CLEAN UP SCRUM BALL, THE GENTLEMEN FORWARD PACK PROVED THE BETTER.  THIS WAS DUE TO BETTER RUCKING, MORE COMMITMENT TO THE BALL, PATIENCE AT THE BREAKDOWN OFFENSIVELY, SPREAD ATTACK DEFENSIVELY AT THE RUCK, AND MOST IMPORTANT, BETTER CONDITIONING AND GREATER MOBILITY AROUND THE PITCH.  WITHIN THIS STRATEGY OF SPREADING AND EXTENDING THE PITCH (MAKING THE BIG GUYS RUN), THE GENTLEMEN WERE ABLE TO USE SUPERIOR SPEED IN THE BACKLINE ALONG WITH THE USE OF THE BOOT TO KEEP THE IRISH’S BIG PACK CONSTANTLY RUNNING BACK TO SUPPORT INSIDE THEIR OWN 40 METER LINE. AFTER A QUAD CITIES IRISH TRY TO START THE 2ND HALF THE GENTLEMEN RESPONDED WITH 2 UNANSWERED TRIES TO RECORD THE VICTORY BY A SINGLE POINT!  THE WINNING TRY CAME WITH LESS THEN 10 MINUTES TO PLAY, OFF OF A PENALTY, WITH STEVE RUDEN PLAYING THE BALL OFF TO “FLY-BOY” BRAD, WHO DOTTED IT DOWN IN THE CORNER.  IT WAS A TREMENDOUSLY EXCITING AND SATISFYING WIN FOR A TEAM WHICH HAS COME ALONG WAY FROM WEEK 1 AND IS DEFINITELY, AT THIS POINT, ONE OF THE MOST DANGEROUS DIII TEAMS IN THE COUNTRY. AND AS ALWAYS, ONE OF THE MOST IMPRESSIVE POINTS OF THIS TEAM, PLAYING WITH DISCIPLINE, COMPOSURE, AND CONFIDENCE.  WELL DONE!!

      BESIDES THE POINTS SCORERS AND MEN OF THE MATCH, THOSE WHO ALSO PLAYED WITH DISTINCTION WERE: MATT ROBERTS, PLAYED 3 DIFFERENT SPOTS IN THE FORWARD PACK AND WAS A DEFINITE FACTOR ON KICKOFF RECEIVING; MATT DERBY AND BRANDON JONES, POSSIBLY THE SMALLEST YET MOST DEVASTATING FLANKER DUO IN IOWA DIII RUGBY—AND THEY DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT THEIR DOING YET!!!; KEVIN O’CONNOR, GREAT JOB TAKING KICKS IN THE AIR; COREY BIRKEL, PLAYED WITH COMPOSURE AND CONTROL; DAMIEN ARENSDORF, A PLAYER WHO’S IMPROVEMENT THIS SEASON HAS BEEN NOTICEABLE!

SPECIAL ACKNOWLEDGEMENT TO THE PLAYERS WHO EITHER STARTED THE GAME AND CAME OUT FOR GIVING THEIR ALL AND TO THE ONE'S WHO CAME IN AS THE GAME WENT ON! EVERYONE WHO STARTED EMPTIED THEIR TANKS. THOSE WHO CAME ON; BRANDON JONES, 2ND ROW JASON, ZACH SINGSANK, AND CURLY HAIRED "FLY-BOY" BRAD, EACH GAVE THE TEAM A LIFT WHICH IS CRITICAL WHEN YOUR PLAYING, IN THIS CASE, 19-MAN RUGBY!!

TRYS-STEVE RUDEN, AUSTIN GOODMAN, MARK SMITH, BRAD; CONVERSIONS-AUSTIN GOODMAN 2/4; PENALTY KICKS-AUSTIN GOODMAN 1/1.

MEN OF THE MATCH: Bill Maloney-Forwards, Kevin Bulava-Backs

 

October 14, 2006: Gentlemen of Dubuque 47  - Gopher College of Algona 12

THE GAME WAS PLAYED UNDER ALMOST IDEAL WEATHER CONDITIONS. A LITTLE BREEZY BUT TEMP ABOUT 60 DEGREES, FIELD DRY, AND PARTLY SUNNY SKIES.  THE PITCH WAS A LITTLE NARROW WHICH AFFECTED OUR GAME PLAN TO EXPAND THE FIELD SOMEWHAT BUT WAS OTHERWISE IN PLAYABLE CONDITION.  THE GENTLEMEN TRAVELED WITH A STRONG CONTINGENT 18 PLAYERS, A SIDELINE COACH AND 4, "DEAD SEXY", SUPPORTERS!

THE GENTLEMEN CONTROLLED THE 1ST HALF AND WENT TO THE BREAK WITH A 26 TO NIL SCORE.  A SMALL NEGATIVE AT THE END OF THE 1ST HALF WAS OUR LACK OF PATIENCE WHICH PROBABLY COST A TRY AS THE HALF EXPIRED.  THE 2ND HALF SAW THE GENTLEMEN TACK ON 21 MORE POINTS TO 12 BY GOPHER.  AGAIN, A SMALL NEGATIVE WAS OUR SLOW 2ND HALF START WHICH SAW GOPHER SCORING A TRY 3 MINUTES INTO THE 2ND HALF.  ALL AND ALL A VERY GOOD DAY. THE GENTLEMEN DID WHAT THEY HAD TO DO TO TRY TO MAKE THE PLAYOFFS—WINNING WITH A BONUS POINT! OUR PROBLEMS WERE PATIENCE WITH THE BALL, SOME QUESTIONABLE KICKING DECISIONS (WE ALSO HAD SOME VERY GOOD KICKING CHOICES AND ARE LEARNING TO UTILIZE THE BOOT AS AN OFFENSIVE WEAPON) A LITTLE DISCIPLINE PROBLEM AT THE CENTERS, AND LEARNING TO GO FOR THE JUGULAR!!  MEANING THAT IF WE GO OUT WITH INCREASED INTENSITY TO START THE 2ND HALF, THEY PSYCHOLOGICALLY QUIT AND WE HAVE A HUGE MENTAL ADVANTAGE THE NEXT TIME THEY STEP ON THE PITCH WITH US. THE TEAM IS STILL LEARNING TO TRUST EACH OTHER BUT IS STARTING TO PLAY THE BEST RUGBY I’VE SEEN OUT OF A GOD SIDE IN YEARS!

GENTLEMEN WHO PLAYED WITH DISTINCTION BESIDES THE OBVIOUS POINT SCORERS AND MEN OF THE MATCH WERE: MATT DERBY, BRANDON JONES, HIRAM HAYSINGER, AND KEVIN "FRENCHIE" BULAVA

TRYS-MATT ROBERTS (2), STEVE RUDEN,  KEVIN O'CONNOR, AUSTIN GOODMAN, COREY BIRKEL, MARK SMITH; CONVERSIONS-AUSTING GOODMAN 6/7

MEN OF THE MATCH: Ben Roberts-Forwards, Austin Goodman-Backs

 

October 7, 2006: Gentlemen of Dubuque 34  - Cedar Rapids Headhunters 14

IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL DAY FOR RUGBY, PARTLY CLOUDY WITH A BIT OF A WIND RUNNING NORTH AND TEMPERATURES IN THE HIGH 60’S. THE MATCH STARTED WITH CEDAR RAPIDS SCORING THE 1ST TRY ON A CENTER BREAK. DUBUQUE RESPONDED WITH A TRY AND THE GAME SEE-SAWED THE 1ST HALF WITH THE GENTLEMEN HOLDING A 17-14 ADVANTAGE AT THE BREAK. THE SECOND HALF SAW THE GENTLEMEN TACK ON 17 MORE POINTS WHICH WERE UNMATCHED BY THE OPPOSITION.

IT WAS BIG MATCH, A MUST WIN MATCH, FOR THE GENTLEMEN AND THE BOYS RESPONDED WITH THEIR BEST EFFORT OF THE YEAR! RUCKING WAS MUCH IMPROVED, LOWER AND MORE COMMITTED. TACKLING AND COMING UP STRONG ON DEFENSE TO MEET THE OPPOSITION BEHIND THE GAIN LINE WAS ALSO IMPROVED AND PROVED INVALUABLE ESPECIALLY IN THE FINAL 20 MINUTES OR SO WHICH SAW THE GENTLEMEN PUT UP A DEFENSIVE STAND INSIDE THEIR OWN 22 METER LINE WHICH YIELDED NO POINTS! OFFENSIVELY, THE GENTLEMEN USED THE PITCH AND EXPANDED THE PLAYING FIELD BY MOVING THE BALL WIDE-NOTICE THAT 5/6 TRIES WERE SCORED OUT OF THE BACKLINE AND THE ONE THAT WASN’T WAS SETUP BY A BACKLINE MOVE. THE USE OF THE FOOT WAS ALSO EFFECTIVE FOR THE MOST PART. TEAM COMPOSURE AND DISCIPLINE SEEMS TO BE ON THE RISE AS WELL AS CONFIDENCE. THREE CHEERS TO ALL WHO PLAYED AND TO DAN DAUGHERTY AND STEVE RUDEN FOR THEIR COACHING. THE MOST OBVIOUS AREA OF IMPROVEMENT IN THE MATCH WAS THE IMPLEMENTING AND EXECUTING OF AN EFFECTIVE GAME PLAN!! WELL DONE!

STANDOUTS IN THE MATCH WERE NUMEROUS. SINGLED OUT BESIDES THE OBVIOUS POINT SCORERS AND MEN OF THE MATCH ARE: BEN ROBERTS, MATT DERBY, KEVIN O’CONNOR, THE ENTIRE TIGHT 5. GOOD STUFF!!

TRYS-STEVE RUDEN (3), DAMIEN ARENSORF DAVID HAMMILL, BRANDON JONES;               CONVERSIONS-AUSTING GOODMAN 2/6

MEN OF THE MATCH: David Hammill-Forwards, Steve Ruden-Backs

 

September 23, 2006: Gentlemen of Dubuque 5  - Iowa City Ducks 24

IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL DAY TO PLAY RUGBY, MILD MISTY RAIN AT TIMES, COOL OVERCAST SKY, AND LITTLE IF ANY WIND. THE GENTLEMEN AGAIN SUITED A FULL 22 MAN SIDE TO PLAY AGAINST A STRONG IOWA CITY SIDE. IOWA CITY SCORED FIRST WITH ONE OF 2 TRIES SCORED BY THEIR 8-MAN AND HELD A 10-0 LEAD BEFORE THE GENTLEMEN GOT ON THE BOARD WITH A TRY BY MARK SMITH.

MATCH NEGATIVES: WE PLAYED HIGH AT THE RUCK AND AT THE TACKLE WHICH PREVENTED US FROM CONTROLLING OUR OWN BALL OR STEALING THEIRS. WE HAD DIFFICULTY WINNING CLEAN BALL AT OUR OWN SET PIECES-MEANING LINE OUTS, SCRUMS, AND RUCKS. WE MUST BE ABLE TO SLOT THE PENALTY KICKS IN FRONT OF THE POST. AND, PROBABLY MOST IMPORTANTLY, WE SEEMED TO PLAY WITHOUT A GAME PLAN FOR THE BEST WAY TO PLAY IOWA CITY. IT SEEMED WE TRIED TO PLAY A "GENERIC GAME PLAN" WITHOUT TAKING INTO ACCOUNT THE WEATHER CONDITIONS (WET), PERSONNEL FOR BOTH TEAMS, PLAYING STYLE OF THE OPPOSITION, AND ADJUSTMENTS REQUIRED DURING PLAY.

MATCH POSITIVES: TACKLING WAS IMPROVED AND A BIG PART OF THAT WAS THE DEFENSE DID A MUCH IMPROVED JOB OF COMING UP STRONG WHEN THE BALL WAS OUT AND MEETING THE OFFENSE AS THEY WERE RECEIVING BALL AND BEHIND GAIN LINE. WHEN WE BRIDGED OVER RUCK BALL, THE BALL WAS MUCH CLEANER. OUR USE OF THE BOOT OUT OF THE BACKLINE AS AN ATTACK ALTERNATIVE WAS EFFECTIVE (AND ALMOST RESULTED IN A TRY) WHEN WE PROBED THAT OPTION. OTHER THAN 1 INSTANCE, WE PLAYED SMART RUGBY WHEN WE DEFENDED INSIDE OUR 5 METER LINE PLAYING FOR TOUCH. ATTITUDE WAS GOOD AND DISCIPLINE AS FAR AS BEHAVIOR ON THE PITCH AND TO EACH OTHER WAS A POSITIVE.

MEN OF THE MATCH: Matt Derby-Forwards, Rick Besler-Backs

Fall 2006

THE GENTLEMEN OF DUBUQUE RUGBY CLUB PROUDLY ANNOUNCES THE ADDITION OF DAN "BIG DOG" DOUGHERTY TO THE COACHING STAFF. DAN PLAYED FOR DUBUQUE IN THE 80'S AND THEN FOR JONES COUNTY BEFORE STARTING TO COACH THE GOTHICS. HE LEAD THE GOTHICS TO THE DIII ALL-IOWA CHAMPIONSHIP AND ENGINEERED A VICTORY OVER A STRONG CEDAR RAPIDS HEADHUNTER SIDE. DAN'S FOCUS WILL BE THE FORWARDS AND IMPLEMENTING A SYSTEM OF RUCKING. HE WILL BE THE SIDELINE COACH AT GAMES MAKING ADJUSTMENTS AND TAKING CHARGE OF SUBSTITUTION PATTERNS. THREE CHEERS AND MAY THE RUGBY GODS SHINE ON US ALL.

CHEERS,

DAVID SCHLUETER

PRES. G OF DBQ RFC

 

September 16, 2006: Gentlemen of Dubuque 34  - Iowa Falls 19

IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL DAY FOR RUGBY, A LITTLE BIT OF A WIND FACTOR WAS PRESENT. THE GENTLEMEN STARTED SLOW, FALLING BEHIND 5 TO 0. HOWEVER, AFTER THAT, THE TEAM STARTED TO DOMINATE BALL POSSESSION AND WERE UP AT THE HALF BY A 20-5 COUNT. THE LEAD INCREASED IN THE 2ND HALF TO 34 -5 UNTIL THE LAST 10 MINUTES OF THE GAME WHEN IOWA FALLS CAME BACK WITH 2 TRIES. TRIES WERE SCORED BY BEN ROBERTS, STEVE RUDEN, MARK SMITH, AND BRANDON JONES. AUSTIN GOODMAN MADE 2 PENALTY KICKS AND 2 CONVERSION KICKS, COREY BIRKEL ALSO MADE 2 CONVERSION KICKS.

IT WAS THE FIRST TIME WE’VE DEFEATED IOWA FALLS IN A GOOD MANY YEARS. AND OTHER THEN THE BREAKDOWNS ON EACH END OF THE GAME, THE TEAM LOOKED MUCH IMPROVED. RUCKING WAS IMPROVED, ORGANIZATION OF ATTACK AND COMMITMENT TO EACH OTHER WAS DEFINITELY IMPROVED. THE KICKING GAME FOR POINTS WAS PERFECT AND OUR KICKS DURING PLAY WERE MOSTLY EFFECTIVE. AREAS OF CONCERN ARE CONTINUING TO WORK OUT THE NEW RUCKING SCHEME (WHICH REQUIRES A BIT OF CONDITIONING AND EFFORT), CERTAINLY, OTHER THEN BRANDON JONES AND MATT DERBY, WE ALL NEED TO WORK ON IMPROVED TACKLING. AND LASTLY, WE MUST KEEP OUR DISCIPLINE ON THE PITCH IN HOW WE ADDRESS EACH OTHER AND IN HOW WE CARRY OURSELVES IN RESPECT TO THE SIR AND THE OPPOSING PLAYERS. OTHER PLAYERS WHO PLAYED WITH DISTINCTION, BESIDES THE POINT SCORERS AND MEN OF THE MATCH, WERE JAMISON KUHLE, MATT DERBY, FRENCHIE, FRENCH MATTHIEU, RICKY BESLER, WINGER BRAD, KRIS KIRKPATRICK, AND DAVE THE FLANK. GOOD JOB BY ALL!!

MEN OF THE MATCH: Corey Birkel-Backs, Matt Roberts-Forwards

 

September 9, 2006: Gentlemen of Dubuque 10  - Bremer County 39

THE GENTLEMEN TRAVELED TO WAVERLY TO PLAY A STRONG BREMER COUNTY TEAM (2 MATCHES FROM FINAL 4 IN 2005). THE HALFTIME SCORE WAS 15-0 BREMER. THE SECOND HALF SAW THE GENTLEMEN TACK ON 2 SCORES AND PLAY EVEN RUGBY WITH THE HOME SIDE (MARK SMITH AND MATT DERBY SCORED). SOME POSITIVES WERE, TRAVELED TO AN EARLY GAME WITH 17 PLAYERS, 2 OF THE NEW ADDITIONS TO THE TEAM WERE MEN OF THE MATCH, ATTITUDES REMAIN POSITIVE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE SEASON. OBVIOUSLY THE CHANGES BEING IMPLEMENTED ARE GOING TO GO THROUGH A FEW GROWING PAINS, BUT IF WE STAY THE COURSE, THE FUTURE LOOKS VERY PROMISING. THE BOY’S ARE DEFINITELY PLAYING WITH THEIR HEARTS!

MEN OF THE MATCH: Kevin O'Connor-Backs, Hiram Haysinger-Forwards