Sweet picture of our seniors with the Trophy after the game. From left to right Nafiz Aziz, Alan Hopper, Juwan Johnson, Caleb, Keirran McCullough and Tejas Goodbole are our seniors that have helped rebuild the program with their hard work and dedication to the team. ***My son sophomore Gerod Latham and my daughter Tasha photo bombed this pic on the back left.
OSU vs UO Game Summary by Geoff Latham
As an Alum and a dad of a current OSU player I could not be prouder of the lunch pal effort by our young men in Orange and Black. From the moment I walked up to the field I knew our boys were dialed in. It starts with a culture change and a commitment to set the bar high and this team has it. From the opening kick off in really crappy conditions our defense was stellar again. It was apparent the bigger duck pack intended to pic and go or ruck all day long but they came up against a united stone wall of solid tackling and communication. Going with our back up scrum half did not set us back a bit and we pulled out to a 19-0 lead that could have easily been 30 something to zip if a couple of close ones on the try line had gone our way. We came so close to getting home field advantage this weekend but our boys have won three of the last four against the ducks! All in all it was a great day to be a beaver rugby player and fan.
Coaches Match Report -
Oregon State vs. University of Oregon 2/23/19
6:00pm, Student Legacy Park, OSU
On a wet and rainy Saturday evening, we came out on top over a physical Ducks Team, 19-7. This was a quality outing after an under-par performance in the fall vs. the Ducks.
We had not played for a few weeks and were eager to get back on the field. With both us and UO already in the playoffs, there was still plenty to play for so the match was always going to be a cracker! There were a couple of other factors that came into play as well. To play a home semi-final on 3/2, we had to beat Oregon by more than 18 points and score 4 tries. The challenge became that much more difficult when the weather turned on us. But with that said, we were well up for it, even in the awful weather, but just came up short.
Defense was the name of the game. In preparation for this match we spent a good amount of time working on our defensive structure and linespeed. We knew that if we could pressure the Ducks every time they had possession, we could test their skill levels with ball in hand, and in the rain. Defensively, we were sharp, and will look to continue that in the playoffs.
Attack was great at times - but plenty to work on and need to be more ruthless when we have the ball. We are putting a huge emphasis on 'tempo' at practice. We want to be the most dynamic and creative attacking team in our League. We scored 3 brilliant tries vs. the Ducks. 2nd year player, Dane McKinney (wing) scored a brace, and No. 8 Ian Mann scored the other. All 3 tries were scored on the edges, attacking the ducks out wide. Senior, Tejas Godbole converted 2/3.
Final Score: 19-7.
Following the A-side match was a 12 a-side B-side match! These matches are so key in the development of our younger players. The passion is there, and the boys loved every minute of it out there. Thank you to Winston for refereeing this one.
Lastly, we are looking forward to the challenge of traveling to Eugene on Saturday, and putting in a massive performance. The boys are up for it - and will be the first time in a playoff match in a long time.
Moving forward....
Meet the starters. Presenting of the jerseys video.