2008 Woodie Awards
Saturday is a Rugby day
Chris Yow
Issue date: 11/10/05 Section: Sports
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Yes, for those of you keeping score, our boys in the black and red jerseys with no pads played big, bad Bama on Saturday.
"We didn't do so bad against Bama and I feel good about that," said Coach Mike Trowse of the 28-15 loss.
Bama scored the first try after a hard-fought push down the field. Within two minutes, JSU answered with their own score. However, they missed the conversion, giving Bama a 7-5 advantage.
The two teams exchanged tries twice more before the end of the half. Each time, Bama's kicks were good, while JSU's fell short or wide. The last two tries occurred shortly before halftime with Justin Armstrong taking the ball in for the last JSU score of the day.
The teams returned to the field for a hard-fought, nearly scoreless second half. Each team had several occasions where they nearly got the ball over the goal line, only to be denied by a kick from the opposing team.
Daniel "DJ" Jordan carried the ball through two intense mauls…one lasting nearly 20 meters.
Finally, toward the end of the second 40-minute half, Bama scored the final try of the day.
"We probably played the best game that we played all year," said CJ McLeod.
The game against Bama was the final match for the rugby team this semester. However, the real games begin again January 28 when they take on Kennesaw State in Georgia.
Next semester they begin a matrix tournament that will pit them against the other Division 3, Conference A teams in the USA Rugby South Collegiate like Lee University, Tennessee Tech, Bryan College and, the team they consider to be their toughest competition, the University of the South, located in Sewanee, TN.
"They killed us last year, so we've really got to be sharp to beat them," said Trowse.
JSU's Cock Rugby team has begun to pick up a following as it's moved from season to season.
"Last year we had two people at our games," said McLeod. "People are catching on."
Of course, part of the reason for that could be the third half.
"We may not win the first half, we may not win the second half, but we always win the third half," said Bradley "Wilson" Hurd.
Anyone interested in joining the group should keep a few things in mind.
"The things that I require are you have to be fit, you have to be fast and you have to be well-tempered," said Trowse, adding that he doesn't put up with players who take cheap shots on the field. "You have to cool down really fast."
You can contact them at wilsoncrp1@yahoo.com for further information.
Rugby Dictionary
Rugby is a bit of a cross between soccer and American football. Rumor has it that it began as a bastardization of a soccer game at Rugby school in England when William Webb Ellis picked up the soccer ball and ran it downfield.
Since that time it has evolved into a sport all its own and the basics of rugby evolved further to become what we know as American football.
So, here, for clarification, are a few rugby terms you need to know. Who knows, you may find yourself on the sidelines next semester yelling for "cock support."
Scrum: When play is stopped for any reason other than a penalty or a line out, the ball is put back into play in a scrum. It's actually a shortened term of the word "scrummage" which you may recognize as the origin of football's "scrimmage." In rugby, the players from each team who make up the pack link arms and push the ball with their feet until it emerges back in play.
Ruck: When a player is tackled with the ball, a ruck ensues where both teams vie for control of the ball. This usually entails a large amount of kicking and juggling of the ball.
Maul: When a player tucks the ball to his chest and rushes forward with his teammates pushing him from behind and the opposing team pushes from the front.
Try: Essentially, a touchdown. The player crosses the goal line with enough control over the ball to touch it to the ground or the padding of the goal posts.
Line Out: Whenever a ball is thrown, kicked or pushed out of bounds, the players must line up and form two groups of players. They then lift the middle players of the groups into the air to catch or swat at the ball.
Drop Kick: During kickoff or whenever a player is attempting a field goal (worth 3 points if it isn't the extra point at the end of a try) the player has to drop the ball on the ground and let it bounce before he can kick it.
Support: During a ruck, the players who are helping to get the ball out of the melee and back into play are the support. The term is also used during a maul to describe the players pushing the ball carrier down the field.
Pitch: The field. Unlike American football, it's 100 meters long, 70 meters wide and the goal posts are in the front of the end zone, instead of the back.