DII coached up in win

Details

Published on Monday, October 29, 2012

Written by Phillipa Snyman

Harbor knocks the ball loose

Rugby fans at Infinity Park were treated to yet another two games of exciting rugby by the Raptors on Saturday as the DI and DII teams took on the Air Force Academy Zoomies in somewhat chilly conditions.

The Raptors DII team ran home 10 tries, of which 4 were converted to beat the Zoomies DII team, 58-16.

Jesus Flores once again turned up the heat on the pitch with a sensational display of rugby talent and was rewarded for his hard work with two tries. The Raptors backline were the top scorers of the match with Rashad Harbor, Braden Shoop, Greg Mohrman and Dustin Gordon all crossing the line, while Mohrman’s boot was responsible for two conversions, and Shoop and Leon Perez added one apiece.

Raptors Head Coach Andre Snyman put in a run with the DII team during the match along with DI Forwards Coach Robbie Dawe and DII Assistant Coach Joe Bradley, much to the enjoyment of the team.

“Due to various DI players not being able to commit to the game on Saturday, the opportunity became available for various DII players to make their appearance for the DI team,” said Snyman. “This left us a little sparse in the DII ranks and so we (coaches) decided to fill in where we could and assist the team.

Snyman laces up

“I also hoped that this would be a good team building opportunity for DII and the coaches to work together,” added Snyman.

The forwards held their own against the fitter Air Force Academy team and the backs were tested with good attacking and defensive play from the Zoomies. An area of concern, according to Snyman, was the lack of defensive line speed as well as the width of the defense.

“We need to sharpen up and trust our defensive structure,” commented Snyman. “We need to keep working at it during training sessions and the rest will fall into place if we can master this aspect of our game.”

Nese Malifa, while recovering from his knee surgery, has been assisting Bradley and Snyman with the coaching of the DII backline. “I’m impressed with the way Nese has implemented the game plan and structures which the DII backline has been displaying during the games,” said Snyman. “I’m thankful to Nese and Joe for the hard work that they’ve put in this fall season and appreciate the commitment they’ve shown to the team and to me.”

The Raptors DII squad will play their last league and home game of the fall season on Saturday, Nov. 3, against the Denver Harlequins at noon on the turf pitch at Infinity Park.

Match Statistics:

Glendale: tries 10, conversions 4
Air Force Academy: tries 2, conversions 2