Back Bay Rugby Football Club

Back Bay vs. Los Angeles Rugby Club Game Notes (12/17/11)

Written by Brett Moore

Palos Verdes, California– Coming off a tough match last weekend against the San Diego Old Aztecs that slipped away in the final minutes, the Back Bay Sharks sought to recover this week against Los Angeles Rugby Club in their first D1 matchup of the preseason. The Sharks’ ability to play as a cohesive unit saw improvement over previous weeks and resulted in a final score of 31-5.

The Sharks were the first on the scoreboard early in the game with a try by Nick Cadet off of a brilliantly placed chip kick that caught the defense off guard. LA rebounded with a quick score after the kickoff, but it was their first and last try of the game.

The forward pack set the tone for the day by dominating set pieces, keeping the ball out of their opponent’s hands. Their control over the opposing forward pack was clear in the scrum but was also epitomized by a maul that was driven in for try off of a line out.

Back Bay vs. Old Aztecs Game Notes (12/10/11)

Written by Brett Moore

Back Bayvs. Old Aztecs Game Notes (12/10/11)

San Diego, California– In their second pre-season matchup, the Sharks traveled to San Diego to face off against the San Diego Old Aztecs, a tough opponent that went undefeated last year in their Division II conference. The Sharks had a strong showing and dominated much of the game play, but ultimately lost the game in the final minutes with a score of 22-24.

A quick try by the Old Aztecs in the first few minutes of the game served as a wakeup call for The Sharks who spent the majority of the following 70 minutes in their opponent’s territory. Capitalizing on a break through the Old Aztec’s defense, Derrick Nguyen caught a pass on the wing and was headed in for a try, but was drug down by the neck inside five meters. A penalty try was awarded by the referee for a dangerous tackle to tie up the game. After the Old Aztecs responded with another try of their own to take the lead, captain Taylor Alston took advantage of a penalty just outside of the Old Aztecs’ 22 and ran the ball past several defenders for another score.

Back Bay vs. North County Gurkhas Game Notes (11/19/11)

Written by Carlos Jovel

San Marcos, California– After a long off season the Sharks dusted off the rust and started their pre-season schedule with an emphatic 56-19 win over the North County Gurkhas.

The day began with 40 plus players showing up for the two matches, yet another sign that Back Bay’s marketing effort is paying off. But the tone of the day was set by the Sharks forward pack as each set piece was dominated. This control of the home teams pack lead to two of the three tries scored by flanker Nick Surdyka.

Not to be out done the Sharks back line looked dangerous all day as Matt Tracy and Martin Pedreira constantly broke the line keeping the Gurkhas defense on the back foot. Taylor Alston making his debut as captain had a great game leading the team and scoring twice.