First-Ever St. Andy's Action
St. Andrew's Rugby Football Club traveled up to Gastonia on July 18, and heard for the first time the sound of a rugby ball fired in anger. We went up for a couple of 10's matches with exactly 10 guys, the first Andys to don a jersey and represent...and represent they did. St. Andy's went out there and hit it hard, earning a split with home side Gastonia Gargoyles.
The first game kicked off, and St. Andy's went after the ball aggressively, showing good discipline for such a new side. The guys adapted well to the speed of the game, and after they got hit in the ruck a couple of times, they started figuring out how to ruck as well. From the beginning, St. Andy's aggression played havoc with Gastonia's offense, disrupting passing lanes and slowing the ball down in the ruck. Nonetheless, the Gargoyles drew first blood.
Todd Seay and Jason Ledford, two rookies with silver on their backs, set the tone for the younger guys by ripping off a couple of good runs down the middle in response. St. Andy's managed to get within fifteen meters of the try line, but looked to be losing the ball as three Gargoyles blew one St. Andy's out of the ruck. Aggressive counter-rucking saved that ball, and Mike “Tex” Miller, playing scrum-half, was able to exploit Gastonia's commitment to the middle by running weak side and creating an overlap. The pass went to Ryan “'The' Beefcake” Longwood looping around the outside, and the first try in St. Andy's history was scored.
St. Andy's aggressive tackling, solid (for rookies) scrums, and shifty lineouts kept Gastonia on the back foot, so that they were not able to use their experience to their advantage. Although St. Andy's gave up another try and a questionable penalty kick, we were able to respond. Tex's kicking and aggressive chasing gave Gastonia a lineout at their five, but big Joffre Swait managed to steal the ball and touch it down six inches inside the try line. Tex's conversion brought St. Andy's to within three as the clock continued to tick.
A couple of minutes later, Joffre was somehow able to get outside for rumbling 30-meter run, and the try put St. Andy's up 17-15. After weathering a couple of flurries from Gastonia, 17-15 ended up being the final score of the first match.
The second match was another story, and our fitness caught up with us, and as Gastonia realized we were there to play rugby. Being slower by a step in the second match, we gave up several runs down the middle.
Highlights for St. Andy's included Ryan 'The' Beefcake's defensive aggression, as he chased down a long Tex kick and found himself alone with three Gargoyles. Staying on his feet, he collared and threw down one, as his victim offloaded awkwardly. 'The' Beefcake slid over a couple of steps and dragged down the second Gargoyle, still staying on his feet. Ryan engaged the third opponent as his teammates finally arrived.
Our only score in the second match came courtesy of Jason Ledford...kind of. Jason tore off a huge run up the middle, and broke open for the try. Or so we thought. Halfway to the try zone, Jason slipped out of fourth and into third, and we could all hear the clutch screaming. Thankfully, borrowed player Asheville Matt was able to finish off the play for us. Final score St. Andy's 5, Gastonia 29.
All in all a great day of rugby, and the new guys represented! Big Alex lining up at prop was a force. The club will only get better with each practice and match. Great first action for St. Andy's!
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