The St. Louis Bombers recently traveled down to Irving, TX to take part in the DII Sweet 16s playoffs for a chance to move onto the Final 4 and National Championship.
The Bombers first match was against Santa Rosa from California. The Bombers opened up strong and lead at half, but would struggle in the second half. The heat made for an exhausting game and USA Rugby would mandate breaks at the 20 and 60 minute marks for water. Santa Rosa would capitalize on miss plays by the Bombers and scored back to back tries within 5 minutes. The Bombers would have strong play sets but were unable to get more than one try in the second half. The Bombers would fall to Santa Rosa 47-21 in the Sweet 16s and face the Frisco Griffins in Sundays match.
Despite both teams losing their chance to continue onto the Elite 8 and Final 4, the Bombers and the Griffins were playing for something a little more; Pride.
Sunday match was a little cooler with overcast, which felt great, but it was warming up quick. The Bombers came out hitting hard and holding the line. Rucking was some of the best it has been all season with Josh Rainey just plowing through the defensive player. The Bombers again lead at half 13-12, and were determined not to give it up. The scrums were pretty well matched in the first half, but when Jay Gorenstein and Chris Wroughton entered the scrum, it was complete annihilation. All but 10 minutes of the second half was played in Frisco’s half and the Bombers were able to score a try near the end of the game by Jay Gorenstein. Bombers would beat Frisco 18-12 in our final game of the 2013 season.
The Bombers DII finished 8-3 in League and Playoff games and 10-6 overall for the 2012-2013 season. Bombers also took 1st place in both the Little Rock and Ruggerfest Tournaments.
Big thanks to all the players for a great season as well for the Old Boys. The club would like to thank Robbie for having the team over to his house down in Texas for BBQ and Vinny for his commitment to the club through all of the appeals. Thanks to Ben Meyer and Aaron Spencer for stepping up and coaching this year.
Crawfish boil is this upcoming Saturday, June 1st, at Bob Jones’ house starting around 4:00pm. All are welcome and please bring a side dish and some drinks as well. Also the Bomber’s Golf Open will be August 10th so mark your calendar and more info will be coming soon!
Bombers 7s is starting this week and if you’re interested in playing or just staying in shape come on out to Steger around 6:30pm on Tuesday and Thursday. 7s in Forest Park starts June 13th and are every other Thursday. If you know anyone interested in playing rugby, bring them to practice to play some touch and learn the game or email Mike McMillion.
Looking forward to next season!
To the All Mighty Bombers!
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