The Gentlemen Of Dubuque

-Match Results-

Spring 2008

Written by Dave Schlueter

March 29, 2008: Gentlemen of Dubuque 10 - Rockford Ravens RFC 0

MATCH SYNOPSIS:

It was a beautiful day for a rugby match. Temps were in the 40’s and the wind was minimal. The Gentlemen headed to Rockford to play the Ravens and kitted 26 players for the match. Many players were new faces and the veterans were playing in new positions. The match went as expected, a hard hitting match with Rockford doing their best to slow the ball and draw the Gentlemen out of the type of game they needed to play---disciplined!! After playing much of the 1^st half on our side of the pitch, the Gentlemen capitalized on a few Rockford miscues and in pushed in the 1^st try near the end of the half with Billy Maloney dotting down in the far corner. The conversion was skew. In the 2^nd half the Gentlemen seemed to take over the match. Controlling most of the ball and spending a good portion of their time on Rockford’s half. The half only saw 1 try, on a banger by Mark Smith, near the end of the match, however, the opportunities for 2 to 4 more try’s was apparent. Again the conversion was unsuccessful. A 3^rd half was played to get everyone action with Rockford scoring 2 try’s to nil for the Gentlemen.

POSITIVES:

Obviously, the numbers situation was a huge plus. And not only in players, but also in support as many traveled to support the lad’s effort. Discipline on the pitch was also excellent. Players worked well together, we didn’t get caught up in situations with the opposition that could have changed the course of the match, players did a good job of listening and executing according to wishes of Head coach Steve Ruden. The team showed beautiful solidarity in all aspects of the match!! Tackling was committed and the players were making 1^st time tackles. Rucking was also a positive in the match. The Gentlemen played aggressive and committed defense, especially in the backline, the entire match!

NEGATIVES:

Yes, we do have many things to work on. However, that is not a huge negative as all these aspects, as we improve on them, will make us into a stronger side. Set pieces need plenty of work. We seem to have the player’s, we just need to work the technique’s in these situations. The Gentlemen lost more of their own scrums and lineouts then we won. This is a priority to get right!! We’ll have a hard time down the line if we can’t win our own ball, and in converse our rugby will be so much more enjoyable as we learn to win and control our own ball on set pieces. Kicking was also a glaring area of concern. I think we have the people, we just need to take our time and be efficient when we kick. We don’t seem to have any big boots, so we need to make sure that when we kick, we stay within our abilities. An extra 10 meters on a kick for touch doesn’t help us if doesn’t find touch. Points after try’s, and penalties are essential to win big matches! Our backline, which is very new, needs to work at playing at greater depth on offense and attacking with more pace and timing.

All and all, a great 1^st effort!

SCORING: TRIES; BILLY MALONEY, MARK SMITH, CONVERSIONS; ALEC 0/1, MATT DERBY 0/1

MEN OF THE MATCH: Billy Maloney-Forwards, Tommy Jahnke-Backs

April 5, 2008: Gentlemen of Dubuque 13 (2) - Pearl City Pumas RFC 15 (3)

MATCH SYNOPSIS:

The Gentlemen traveled to Muscatine to play a strong, well coached, well run organization in the Pearl City Puma’s. The weather was brilliant with temps in the 50’s and a slight breeze on a sunny afternoon. Again we traveled with 26 players and a goodly number of supporters. The 1^st half ended with the match noted at 5 all as each team pushed in a try and failed to convert the kick after. Pearl scored first but the Gentlemen responded with a beautiful length of the pitch try that ended with Sam Campillo dotting down. During the attack the ball was handled by 4 different players with Sam receiving a return pass for the try. The match seesawed back and forth in the second half with the Gentlemen breaking to the lead with a penalty kick, Pearl responding with a try, the Gentlemen regaining the lead with a try of their own by Nick Syska (playing in his first match), and finally Pearl putting in the game winner with no time on the clock. A great match to watch!

POSITIVES: It was a much improved effort from the 1^st match against Rockford. Set pieces, scrums and lineouts, were improved though we do have more work to do. Our loose play, rucks, was superior to the previous week as the Gentlemen controlled a majority of the 2^nd half against Pearl in both possession and position. Our numbers situation continues to be a plus and coach Steve Ruden did a nice job of getting as many players into the match as possible while still giving the team an opportunity to win against a strong side which definitely was focused on defending their own house. Discipline and attitude continue to be a point of pride, the lads played committed to one another and appeared to have a great time!

NEGATIVES: Of course we don’t like coming out on the short end of the final tally, but we have to keep in mind all the young player’s and the process of building a club for the Fall season, where we hope to make a run at Nationals. Our kicking is still a point of concern especially for post. These close games are the one’s that are won or lost by the boot. Strategic kicking and for touch was improved. We still need to work on solidifying our set pieces. We need to get out of the gates a little quicker especially as far as playing tough defense, as Pearl’s first try seemed to come early on while our lad’s were getting themselves "into" the match. We need to be there at kickoff!

A great match to watch and a brilliant learning experience for our young players! Three cheers!

SCORING: TRIES; SAM CAMPILLO, NICK SYSKA, PENALTIES; MATT DERBY 1/1, CONVERSIONS; MATT DERBY 0/2

MEN OF THE MATCH: Jesse Miller-Forwards, Sam Campillo-Backs

April 14, 2008: Gentlemen of Dubuque 17 (3) - Onconomowoc 8 (1)

MATCH SYNOPSIS:

The Gentlemen traveled to Okachee Wisconsin to play the Oconomowoc RFC with 24 kitted players. The weather, which was kind of ugly at home, was beautiful with temps in the 60’s, slightly overcast skies, and a negligible wind. Again, the Gentlemen got out of the block’s a little slowly as Oconomowoc drew 1^st blood with a penalty kick less then 10 minutes into the game. However, 10 minutes later, Nick Syska was able to beat his man on the outside and dotted down a try in the far corner of the trie zone to finish a 60 meter break. The conversion was missed but 10 minutes later the lads secured a push over try out of a "maul type" situation with Mark Smith ending on top of the ball. Ryan Oberhoeffer tacked on the conversion from front of the post and the Gentlemen went to break up 12 to 3. The second half saw Nick tack on a 2^nd try on another breakaway from about 40 meters out. The conversion from front of the post was missed by Alec. In the last 10 minutes of an incredibly long and poorly officiated match, the opposition scored a try and of their own to bring the final tally of 17 to 8. A 3^rd half , divided into two 20 minute periods, was played with Oconomowoc outscoring the G O D by a 19 to 7 margin. The Gentlemen scored on a penalty try from 40 meters out (longest penalty try ever!) and a conversion kick by Alec (longest conversion kick in front of the post ever!)

NEGATIVES: I normally start with the positives from a match, but this match requires that I reverse that trend. DISCIPLINE!!!! That was the problem in this match. The discipline of our team on the pitch AND of our supporter’s on the sideline was very poor. We had 2 yellow cards, almost a player asked to leave the match (which I guess would be a red card) and at least twice we were penalized an extra 10 meters for backchat. We played like everyone was captain and our sideline only added fuel to the referee’s fire! Now granted, he was unfit and very unsatisfactory as our sir, but we cannot allow that situation to dictate how the match is played---and we did! Before we worry about anything else we need to clean that situation up and get back to what makes us a successful club, and that applies from the very top of our organization, administration and coaching to our newest supporters. LET’S FIX IT!! Kicking remains an area of concern in that under pressure we had a couple of instances of putting boot to ball with no plan. Still need to get out of the block’s a little quicker. We need to continue to work on set pieces. Penalty play needs some work. Defense must return to a more attacking style on a consistent basis.

POSITIVES: We won and we traveled with 24 players and played them all. Goal kicking seems to be headed in the right direction. Anything else we did right was overshadowed by the issue I address in NEGATIVES.

I know we’ll sort out the main issue of this match. We need to get to practice and work to improve. This was a plateau game for us, no better then the first match of the year 4 weeks ago. The "W" was good as were the numbers, but let’s recommit ourselves over the last part of this rugby season! WETSU!!

SCORING: TRYS; NICK SYSKA (2), MARK SMITH, CONVERSIONS; RYAN OBERHOFFER 1/2, ALEC 0/1

MEN OF THE MATCH: Ryan Oberhoffer-Forwards, Kevin O'Connor-Backs

April 26, 2008: Gentlemen of Dubuque Rugby Challenge - Canceled (pitch under water)

April 26, 2008: Gentlemen of Dubuque 23 (4) - UW Platteville RFC 23 (3)

SCORING: TRYS; ZACH SINGSANK (2), MARK SMITH, MATT ROBERTS, CONVERSIONS; ZACH SINGSANK 0/1, RYAN OBERHOFFER 0/3, PENALTY KICKS; RYAN OBERHOFFER 1/1

MEN OF THE MATCH: Joe Liles-Forwards, Zach Singsank-Backs

May 3-4, 2008: All Iowa Tournament 1-2

Game 1: Gentlemen of Dubuque 22 (4) - Pearl City Pumas 20 (4)

SCORING: TRIES; NICK SYSKA (2), MATT DERBY, JEREMY ANSEL, CONVERSIONS; RYAN OBERHOFFER 1/4

MEN OF THE MATCH: Matt Roberts-Forwards, Matt Derby-Backs

Game 2: Gentlemen of Dubuque 5 (1) - UNI RFC 7 (1)

SCORING: TRIES; WILLIE HAMMEL, CONVERSIONS; RYAN OBERHOFFER 0/1

MEN OF THE MATCH: Mark Smith-Forwards, Willie Hammel-Backs

Game 3: Gentlemen of Dubuque 0 - Algona RFC 30 (5)

MEN OF THE MATCH: Mike Schaefer-Forwards, Jesse Miller-Backs

MATCH DISCUSSION:

I’m going to combine all the final matches into one discussion. Weather was a problem this Spring as our only 2 home dates, one of them being our tourney, had to be canceled due to pitch conditions. Since the Oconomowac match, the team made some definite progress. We started very slow in the Platteville match and were knocking on the door in the end in an effort to win the match. At the All-Iowa, the lad’s played quite well for the most part. We were the only team to beat the Puma’s and pretty much dominated UNI everywhere except in the final tally. The final match on Sunday against Gopher left a score which wasn’t very indicative of how the match was played, and we were able to give all of our gentlemen a run.

POSITIVES: Our numbers stayed positive throughout the Spring season, despite injuries too key performers. The lads ’s improved in their play, especially in the forwards, and in their discipline as these final games of the season were played. There is definitely a great deal of potential for the future if recruiting and attitude toward practice and discipline continues on the current path. All in all, a very rewarding season other then the weather issue’s.

NEGATIVES: Considering the patch work we were forced to undergo this Spring due to injuries, negatives at season’s end are minimal. We still need to work on our boot as far as use during the match for position and for post, this is a crucial aspect to play higher level rugby. However, I do think we have the athlete’s on board to get this done with a little extra work. We are still working on our decision making and game preparation as far as putting together and executing a game plan.

Let’s keep things together over the Summer and work on some skills with the C-Side Cmen 7’s aside team and soccer player’s try to get together and put in a little time to improve our goal kicking and kicking for touch. Thanks for an enjoyable season!

Cheers,

David