St. Louis Bombers Rugby Football Club

A young Bomber developmental side hosted Truman State in a friendly match with the common goal of gaining much needed experience. Both sides put in solid performances with the Bombers coming away with a 34-5 victory against a very young Truman side. Truman showed they have some serious potential and should soon be back as a force in the Western collegiate ranks.

But the real story for the Bombers was the performance of the new squad members. Five Bombers competed in their first-ever rugby match: prop Tom Klepzig, halfback Scott Wozniak, wings Doug Ashton and Brad Panke, and lock Jon Ford. Also in the side were three teenagers with highschool experience: center Nick Godfrey-18, lock Ted Dunn-17, and prop Jahaan Ashfaq-18. Wing Chris Wilson played in his second-ever rugby match, while #8 Sam Stahnke was held out with injury and missed his second-ever match. 20 year old Canadian lock Matt Gleed, from Toronto's Ajax club, put in a very strong performance.

Bomber legend and Hall of Famer Sterling Hayden was amazed by their performances. "I would never have believed these guys were playing their first-ever matches by watching the game. I'm shocked by how quickly they picked up the game and how they all did several positive things to help the team win" said Sterling.

Tom Klepzig was a force in the scrums and made a thundering 30 meter run to set up a try. Nick Godfrey scored two tries and was impressive on defense and with ball in hand. Jahaan Ashfaq scored his first Bomber try, well deserved after the work he put in to get around the pitch. Wing Doug Ashton scored a try in his first-ever rugby match, and time will tell if he can keep that scoring pace. Collegiate Kyle Manley added a try, but will have to work hard to match the rugby abilities of his father Bill, or uncle Jim (this sentence sponsored by Manley & Manley). Scott Wozniak, whose father and uncle were also strong players, improved every minute and also was a leader in the tackle count.

Youngster Kevin Brown, Seamus Gilligan, Kingpin Gunnell and Jon Ford made strong showings in the pack, especially in primary phase. So based on their first outing, the next generation of Bombers have laid a good foundation to build upon. This infusion of young players keeps the club strong and comes at a great time.

The Whites shutout the Ramblers 43-0 in a MRFU behind two tries apiece from center Oscar Iglesias and hooker Josh Witten. The Black side had recently blanked the Ramblers 80-0 in the Marceline tournament, bringing the combined total to 123-0 in a two week span.

The Whites also received tries from flanker Jim Hoffmann from a driving maul and from speedy wing Tim Stolarski, who looked dangerous with every touch of the ball. The team played a very structured pattern and methodically put the Ramblers away. Props Gio Lafata and Tim Basler led the way up front, with locks Brandon Hamburg and Josh Rainey showing great pace around the pitch. Opensider Zach Giljum seemed to be everywhere, and Hoffmann and #8 Ben Schwab were not far behind.

Halfback Kevin Tucker played another solid match, providing good ball to flyhalf Justin Mastroianni and centers Joe Mertz and Oscar Iglesias. Fullback Jim Morrison was safe at fullback. Wings Tim Stolarski and Nic Clark did a great job of keeeping the ball in front of the forwards.

Replacement props Vinnie Wroughton and Seamus Gilligan made a big impact with fresh legs in the second half, along with fresh lock Kingpin Gunnell. The forwards domination set the table for a solid win in an important cup match.