NYC Rugby Cup Wrap-up
Jaz-Michael King
more than a few questions and comments and I'd like to answer some of
those to the club at large.
First of all, the Dragons had a brilliant morning in their pool games,
I saw a tight, disciplined defense that allowed only one try through
while scoring eight against. The boys held their lines, worked
methodically, retreated well and generally played the best I've ever
seen from them. It was a proud moment for me to watch them work
together, communicate well, they have truly come a long way. They
represented the club tremendously well, it was by far the best rugby
I've seen from them.
To address some concerns about their knockout game, I'll go through
the questions I received:
Why did we play, knowing what we had heard from other teams?
I received reports of some consistently rough play in the morning from
the opposing team in question, I considered forfeiting but frankly
many of us thought this year was the boys' best chance at winning the
thing or at the very least making the final two and I decided to forge
on and removed the smaller, younger players from the starting lineup.
Why didn't the ref make them play a man down?
One opposing player was removed from the game for violent behaviour,
but it is unknown to me if it was considered a red card or yellow
card. A red card violation would have put the opposing team a man
down, but a yellow card allows the team to sub in a different player.
I did try to ask the ref once after the replacement player came on,
but I couldn't get his attention while play resumed, and I was more
concerned about getting the game back on after a two minute delay.
Why didn't we get extra time?
Would a few more minutes have helped us equalise the score? Maybe. The
two stoppages cost us about three minutes of the ten minutes allotted.
Time for stoppages is not discussed in the rules, but my understanding
is the ten minutes is all we get, no timeouts, no injury time, no
extra time of any kind. When the horn blows, the game is over.
Why was the opposing team allowed to make so much contact?
I observed a lot of attempts at stripping the ball and a lot of
careless body checking from the opposing team. I think in all fairness
the ref did a great job of stopping the game (again) and talking to
the players, but given the rain, the wet field, the way the other team
kept clumping around the ball offside, it was a tough call on how much
of the contact was intentional. The tripping of a player at the try
line and the intentional body checks were egregious in my view, but as
many of us know, you play with the ref you have on the day. The
organisers put together a tremendous day of rugby and the refs that
volunteer are a big part of what makes it possible.
Were all those kids 5th grade?
The organisers work hard to ensure age appropriateness. I highly doubt
any member of the opposing team was over the age of 11. We generally
have a mix of kids from grade 3 through 5, some smaller teams may only
have one grade to draw from, so it's possible that the entire team was
5th grade.
In summary:
I'm not known for my feel-good, everyone's a winner mentality. If we
lose to a better team we take it on the chin and learn from it. The
Dragons were cut short surprisingly early in this tournament and at a
glance it's disappointing, especially as the boys themselves had high
expectations of themselves. However, even comparing this year to last
when the boys went to one try down in their final game, in so many
ways this year was better rugby in my opinion, and I'll tell you why.
Not once did I see the boys gripe or moan during the game. No-one back
talked the ref. No-one showed any animosity. Two players were put flat
on the ground, dusted themselves off and got back up and played. This
from a team that knows it can play well, knows it had the opportunity
to progress, and takes the game very seriously. While I didn't see the
score I would have liked, what I did see was a team. Not a bunch of
kids shouting at each other for the ball, I saw a team, working
together, protecting each other, passing, talking, supporting. Despite
the score, this was the very best rugby I've ever seen from them, and
by rugby I mean everything that makes the game so special.
It's easy to pick up the ball and run.
It's not easy to run three quarters the length of the field passing
six of the opposing seven and then hand off the try to your team mate
as he's better placed.
It's not easy to be called on a knock forward after being tripped and
retreat silently to form a defensive line.
It's not easy to face off against players nearly twice your height.
It's not easy to take a clothesline to the neck and get back up and
play forward.
It's not easy to not eat crisps all morning during the breaks :o)
It's not easy to congratulate a team that beat you in ways you might
not think fair.
All this and more I saw from the boys. I'd love a winning score, but
the real reason I coach rugby is to see what I saw in the list above.
When your ruggers tell you of their disappointment, please remind them
that their display was the best I've ever seen. For those of the team
going into contact this coming Autumn, I have no qualms about their
ability to conduct themselves respectfully with sportsmanship. While I
share in their disappointment for the day, they earned a lot of
respect, played their best, and will continue to excel.
I look forward to seeing you all this Sunday for our last session in
Prospect Park, thanks for all the support this season!
Jaz
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Brooklyn Dragons Youth Rugby
http://www.brooklyndragons.org/
New York Rugby Club
http://www.newyorkrugby.com/