SMUS FRANCE/ITALY RUGBY TOUR 2024
3/29/2024 0 Comments Final boys' GameHere is the Boys Report from Mr. Kim: The boys’ fourth and final match on tour took place at Frascati Rugby Club, located about an hour’s drive East of the Rome city centre. A sneaky stomach bug had been causing gastrointestinal problems for a few of the guys, but upon arriving at the pitch and taking in the local fans’ hospitality and atmosphere, the team was able to rally and take to the field with all 27 available players. This was our first game played under the lights, and singing a rousing rendition of the School Song together with the girls’ team was the perfect way to state our collective intent. School song from afar with a beautiful sunset video School song 6-nations style video Running onto the field video The first half of the boys’ match was an entertaining one, with the lads in white dominating proceedings for the first 20 minutes. The play was contained to the Frascati half, with any attempt of an Italian exit being thwarted by Jack D and Henry W in the backfield with their security under the high ball and astute kicks into the corners. However, simple errors on our part let us down, and we were not able to walk away from our multiple visits to their 22 with any points. As so often happens in rugby, an inability to take the points on the table ended up punishing us in the long run, with a momentum swing to Frascati, combined with generous home-court advantage from the local mens’-player-turned-ref, allowing Frascati to kick a penalty into the corner (on their second attempt - see 27:28) and pick and go from the ensuing line out to tally the first try of the game - 5-0 Frascati. Wholesale changes were made at half-time, with the coaches agreeing that the spirit of rugby tour lends itself to equal playing time, learning and enjoyment for all players regardless of prior experience, stature or grade. The second stanza of the match saw Frascati begin to grab hold of the game more and more, with a SMUS defensive mishap allowing the Italians to score in the corner. Missed conversion, 10-0 Frascati. SMUS at this point were in need of a spark, and it was Samuel B who provided it, with an intercept try that showed off his pace to take the match to 10-5. The Italians then hit back with a tally of their own to take the score to 17-5, but Jordan M, on his birthday, wasn’t about to let them run away with the game and scored under the posts. 3 minutes left, 17-12 to Frascati. Alas, the fairytale comeback was not meant to be, with a mis-orchestrated set play from a scrum seeing the ball hit the floor, be kicked through by a Frascati foot and dotted down for the final try on the day. Final score, 24-12. While it was not the result we were hoping for at the end of our French and Italian rugby journey, feedback from the boys suggested that this was their most enjoyable match on tour. We were treated to delicious pasta and roast pork post-match, all of which was topped off by an impressive speech delivered in Italian by our captain on the day, Rohan L. (sorry about the angle again...)
Throughout tour, each of the 29 boys rose to the challenge and contributed to the collective effort, leaving plenty of excitement for the continued growth and achievement that is on the horizon upon our return to BC. A huge thank-you to the officials, coaches, directors and players from Lycée Bellevue, LEGTA Toulouse-Auzeville, Lycée La Saulaie, CUS Torino and Frascati Rugby Club who have all helped to create lifelong memories for our boys’ and girls’ teams. To all parents and friends who have followed along with the rugby reports along the way, everyone here says “Grazie mille!”
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
|