Tuesday, April 25, 2006

WRITING FOR PLEASURE

HAIL, PELICUS!

PROMOTIONS

It gives us great pride to be able to announce the following promotions, all of which have occurred in the past week:

B2: Tony Latu
C2: John Coppinger
C3: Steve DiSalvo
Barry Welsh

We love seeing our blowers get better!

SOCIETY BANQUET JUNE 9

Mark your calendars now for the NCRRS ANNUAL SEASON-ENDING BANQUET which will be held in San Jose on FRIDAY, JUNE 9.

The banquet will the night before the New Zealand Maori – Ireland A game in nearby Santa Clara . It will also be the evening of the close of our Pelicanrefs conference, Rugby Through the Looking Glass.

All are invited. We hope that some of the international referees in town for the Churchill Cup will attend, and the conference attendees from across the USA . But primarily, this will be our society banquet – so plan to attend even if you can't make it to the conference.

We will be awarding our famous and coveted Pelican Awards!

You might want to bring a date, get a room at the conference hotel, and stay for the big match the next day!

VOLUNTEERS SOUGHT FOR THE CHURCHILL CUP GAMES

Speaking of the Churchill Cup, USA Rugby is seeking volunteers on their website. These are game-day opportunities to get in free, help out, and rub shoulders with some other rugby folk.

Click here: USA Rugby

WANT TO BE A PROFESSIONAL WRITER?

Ed Hagerty needs someone to report on the collegiate finals at Stanford May 5-6. A stipend will be paid for this work.

There is a fine tradition in the Pelican Society of writing for Rugby Magazine.

Scriptoris cannot count the articles and letters he's had published in that esteemed periodical, but alas, he will be refereeing the military nationals in Georgia that weekend.

Brian Gildea often reported for them and Ray Schwartz has more recently been gracing their pages with regularity. Ray is unavailable that weekend.

Do not fear if your wordsmithing skills are not of the first water, if in turning a phrase you often strangle it, or if you evince a paucity of sesquipedalian lexicon: Ed edits submissions to death. Some of this writer's most mellifluously flowing sentences have engendered three or four pedestrian, staccato paragraphs.

If you have the facts right we'll have you writing in precisely the style the young Scriptoris was using in his pages a quarter-century and more ago now. And your own byline to boot!

PACIFIC COAST HIGH SCHOOL INVITATIONAL

This tournament, now in its second year at Stanford, now has a website and Dan Hickey would like for you to have a look at it:

http://www.pacificcoastinvitational.com/

Touch judges are needed for this event, May 13-14, at the Steuber Family Rugby Stadium.

USA PLAYOFFS: D1, COMPETITIVE REGION ONE

OLYMPIC CLUB 29 – Huntington Beach 11 Referee: Jim Crenshaw
Touch Judges: Sam Reagle, Pete Smith
Fourth Official: Scott Wood
Assessor: Dixon Smith

The Olympic Club and San Mateo will travel and swap opponents next week.

San Mateo 20 – LAS VEGAS 31 Referee: Pete Smith
Touch Judges: John Pohlman, Sandy Robertson
Fourth Official: Jim Crenshaw
Evaluator: Mike Malone

San Mateo scored the first twenty points and then saw their lead evaporate in the second half. This is reminiscent of last year, when San Mateo lost to Las Vegas at the same stage of the USA playoffs.

Last year they both managed to advance from the CR1 playoffs to the nationals.

Back Bay 23 – HAYWARD 25 Referee: Dana Teagarden

Hayward went to Orange County and came home with a victory over the team that came in second in the USA last year.

As a reward, now they get to play the team that came in first, Santa Monica , at home next Saturday. Tony Latu will referee this one.

Haggis lost to defending champions Santa Monica .

The current standing, based on won-loss records with bonus points and point differential, are as follows:

Olympic Club
Las Vegas
Hayward
Santa Monica
Back Bay
Haggis
San Mateo
Unicorns

Each team has one more game and then the top five advance to the USA playoffs. San Mateo will travel to play the Unicorns. If they can win with four tries, they should be through.

Olympic Club will play in Vegas. A victory, or a close loss, and they will be through.

Hayward will host Santa Monica on Saturday, with Tony Latu refereeing. This will be an epic match. Plan to attend!

PACIFIC COAST PLAYOFFS: MEN'S D2

Santa Rosa and Baracus both lost in the first round of these playoffs in Tucson . Lois Bukowski and Aruna Ranaweera refereed at the event.

PACIFIC COAST PLAYOFFS: MENS' D3

MISSION defeated Bend
STANISLAUS defeated Scottsdale

MISSION defeated Stanislaus and advances to the nationals May 13-14.

USA PLAYOFFS: WOMEN'S COLLEGE D1

California 17 – AIR FORCE 20

Chico State 8 – ARMY 15

STANFORD 50 – West Chester 11
STANFORD 79 – North Carolina 7

Stanford, defending their national title and on a bit of a roll, advances to the final four at home and will play Navy in one semi-final. Penn State and Ohio State are the other two teams.

USA PLAYOFFS: MEN'S COLLEGE D1

UC Davis 11 – PENN STATE 34

The men's semi-finals at Stanford will be Cal – Utah and BYU – Penn State .

USA PLAYOFFS: WOMEN'S COLLEGE D2

UC SANTA CRUZ 36 – Denison University 7
UC SANTA CRUZ 32 – Northeastern 29

The finalists at Stanford will be the Banana Slugs and Plymouth State .

USA PLAYOFFS: MEN'S COLLEGE D2

HUMBOLDT STATE 28 – Georgia Southern 27
Humboldt State 6 – COAST GUARD 12

This will be the only competition at Stanford in two weeks that does not have a Northern California team involved. The Coast Guard Academy will play defending champs Northern Colorado for the title.

Further details on the games played at Witter Field this past weekend:

Friday

BRIGHAM YOUNG 73 – Wyoming 3 Referee: Pat McNally ( USA )
Touch Judges: Jim Crenshaw, Bruce Carter
Fourth Officials: Scott Wood, David Williamson

CAL POLY SLO 83 – Perdue 13 Referee: Jason Harper (SoCal)
Touch Judges: Jim Crenshaw, Bruce Carter
Fourth Official: Scott Wood
Referee Coach: David Williamson

Saturday

CALIFORNIA 45 – UC Santa Barbara 15
NAVY 46 – Clemson 35
PERDUE 22 – Wyoming 15 Referee: Jason Harper (SoCal)
BYU 55 – Cal Poly 7 Referee: Pat McNally ( USA )

All who watched BYU had to have been impressed with the weekend's performance. They are big, strong, fast and almost always not only do they tackle behind the gainline, they drive the ball-carrier even further back.

Sunday

UC SANTA BARBARA 32 – Clemson 22
Referee: Bob Toomy
Touch Judges: Kat Todd-Schwartz, David Williamson
Fourth Officials: Pat McNally, Scott Wood

CALIFORNIA 29 – Navy 12
Referee: Tim Luscombe
Touch Judges: Pat McNally, Bob Toomy
Fourth Officials: Rob Hendrickson, Scott Wood

The referees for this pool were Tim Luscombe and Bob Toomy (both USA ). We do not know which games they each did (but the webmaster does).

OTHER GAMES

SF/Golden Gate OB 24 - HAYWARD OLD BOYS 33 Referee: Ray Schwartz
Touch Judge: Terry Gascoigne

I arrived at TI early to find the field looking good, but getting watered. After 8 weeks of rain, the thought was, "How crazy is that?" Still the rain predicted for the weekend never materialized, and the sun even poked out at times.

Upon parking right in front of the Clubhouse, I found Bjorn Stumer assembling furniture for the new referee's room. I helped him by sorting out the seat cushions, and carrying many loads of goods into the room. Then made my way out to check on the field and the gathering players. There I encountered Ray Sheeran, the old SF Irish rugger who has served so well as this new field's keeper.

Ray explained with the lack of rain the past 7 days, the surface was getting quite hard, and so the one cycle across with the automatic sprinklers would provide a little give. Ray also pointed out two small iffy patches, where I would later make certain no scrums took place.

As I prodded him with questions, he then went into a lengthy discussion of how the field was built, and how with its heavy use, plus 8 straight weeks of rain, the pitch has been put to an extraordinary test. One persistent muddy patch had worried him. He dug down to find a concrete floor that had trapped storm runoff. A new pile of broken concrete added to the pile of old barracks' footings (along the northeast corner of the try zone) and that problem area was solved.

Two full sides were slowly assembling. Time was taken to say hi to several old friends. And then back to the clubhouse where I enjoyed the special distinction of being the first to kit up (and to later hold a post-match court) in our new ref's lounge. 10 weeks from my left knee cleanup and microfracture, I strapped on my hi-tech DonJoy brace, and stepped outside to coax some rugby out of a bunch of old men!

Hayward sported a few massive Islanders: Fijian Ben Whiskey, and Tongans Takataka and Loketi. That plus the likes of Adam Perry and Kyle Davis in the back line and I wondered if this would be a slaughter. But SFGG countered with Mike Comstock, and the fight was on.

Hayward scored first and looked to be in command. Gate answered back, but the Griffins took a 19-5 lead into the half. I 'felt' my knee just a few times, but the brace kept my tracking true. Overall I was amazed to feel just fine. I was able to keep up with slow-as-molasses play, as well as doing a decent job of keeping players on their feet, and on sides.

It was actually starting to warm up. As the second half started, the Golden Gaters started grousing, "How much time ref?" This went on for the next 20 minutes, but they raised their game well, actually drawing to within 2 points late in the second half. Mike Gadoua finished a nifty outside move. Richie Hennum did some smackin' about. Dude Bernstein surprised even himself stripping a ball at a tackle. Barry Welsh distributed the ball well at times for Gate. Dan "Sticks" O'Connell played great outside Barry Welsh for the Gaters, setting up trys and scoring his own as well..

But Hayward closed out the scoring. After about 45 minutes of 'action' I could hardly coax another moment out of these clowns. Cheers all around, and then a few funny sodas started to flow.

We were amused to watch Comstock and Whiskey play again, in the Berkeley v. SFGG match handled by Bjorn. We then retired to the clubhouse and were pleased to find the walls just keep getting covered with more and more cool rugby memorabilia. The food and grog was good for sure, but the camaraderie was awesome. So many of us who were once rivals now sat together to revel in the glory of it all.

Denver arrived, and eventually the Super League match started up. For those who saw SFGG earlier in the year, I can report the pace of the game they are playing really has gone up a few notches. Aaron Satchwell and Phillipe Farner were on the sidelines, but youngsters were stepping up and stepping in well.

Checked in with Dan Hickey were we talked some business for the upcoming Pacific Coast Invitational HS Tournament. Enjoyed saying hello to the likes of Fred Forester and Paul Still, and then ran into Eagle Tina Nesberg, just back from her trip to Hong Kong . She had kindly scored some booty on my behalf, and so I promptly put my new pink polka-dotted Pot Bellied Pigs RFC jersey!

Late in the day, after the Super League match I came back to the ref's room to shower and clear out my gear. I walked in on Dave Peters being debriefed by Bunny. They were in great spirits. Dave exclaimed, "This is the best ref's quarters in the land!" That's pretty good, especially considering the paint is still drying and the lockers haven't even gone in yet.

SFGG D1/U23, 43 – Berkeley RFC 10 Referee: Bjorn Stumer

Ominous clouds gave way to brilliant sunshine at the Treasure Island home of SF Golden Gate where the hosts' under 23 side met to face a determined Berkeley R.C. side. Although SF Golden Gate prevailed on the day, Berkeley surprised with a spirited performance that saw them only 5 points behind their hosts at the closing of the first half. Of notice was their bullocking try by local Fijian stalwart Ben "Whiskey".

SF Golden Gate likes its tries from deep and hugging the touch line. Their number 11 obliged with a couple of them, one of which was converted. They did not change their game plan at the second half and more of the same ensued with their numbers 14 & 20 both notching a couple of tries. Four conversions sealed the score, but Berkeley refused to give up & scored a brilliant try in the corner at the closing minutes of the match.

It was obvious that both sides were missing players, but they both played a clean, hard, and fast match. It is to be noted that a few players, like old hand front row Mike Comstock, were on their second match of the day. Overall a great day of rugby at Treasure Island . Final score: SFGG 43 - Berkeley R.C. 10

SF/GOLDEN GATE 36 – Denver 21 Referee: Dave Peters
Touch Judges: John Coppinger, Tony Latu
Fourth Official: Scott Wood
Assessor: David Williamson

The Defenders of the Golden Gate solidified their hold on second place with a victory in their third (and last) home game of the regular season.

They have road games the next two weekends at undefeated Belmont Shore and at tied-for-next-to-last Dallas .

HIGH SCHOOL PLAYOFFS

TIER ONE

JESUIT 50 – East Palo Alto 0 Referee: Sam Reagle
Touch Judges: Mike Villierme, Dave Miller

Silicon Valley , the second place finisher in the Skyhawk conference, cried out of this match. The third- and fourth-place teams declined the opportunity to step up and play Jesuit. Fifth-place finisher East Palo Alto were happy to compete, even though they didn't have a full squad.

East Palo Alto represents much that is good about our game: driving a long way, without fifteen, to play against the best. Good for them!

Jesuit and their fans, we are sure, appreciate the game. They are in the fine-tuning stages for another run at a national title.

Jesuit will next play the winner of Lamorinda – Montgomery in a semi-final that will be refereed by Pete Smith.

Wednesday, 7:30 PM:

Lamorinda – Montgomery Referee: Lois Bukowski
TOUCH JUDGES NEEDED

Live Oak 7 – VACAVILLE 12 Referee: Rich Anderson

If anybody has any question as to what high school rugby is all about, this playoff match between Live Oak and Vacaville would have been a great place to catch the fever: A nice well-marked pitch in Morgan Hill; parents covering both side lines; coaches who were really invested into their players; and players playing hard, tough Rugby.

Live Oak scored the only points in the first half with a converted try minutes in the match. The rest of the first half saw Oak squander a few scoring opportunities and Vacaville beginning to get their bearings. In the second half, Vacaville began pounding the ball time and time again with their centers and almost always gaining positive yards. Two Vacaville tries put them up by 5 with about 10 minutes remaining. The remainder of the match saw aggressive rucking and tackling from both squads, with both teams laying everything on the line. No points were scored, but it was a wonderful 10 minutes with back and forth play and intensity.

Final score was Vacaville 12-Live Oak-7. It was a fine day of rugby for everyone present, including my wife who found many ways to kill 3 hours at the Gilroy Mall Outlets.

Vacaville will face the winner of Elsie Allen – Hayward in a semi-final that will be refereed by Jim Crenshaw.

Elsie Allen – Hayward Referee: Joe Leisek
Touch Judges: Bo Rodman, ONE MORE NEEDED

This game will be Saturday, April 29, at noon.

TIER TWO

BURBANK walked over Peninsula Green by forfeit. Burbank will host GOLDEN GATE, who also won by forfeit from Santa Rosa .

Aptos 0 – RIO RUGBY 24 Referee: John Pohlman

The high school playoffs have started. Aptos was hosting Rio Americana at Aptos High School 's football field. The field is pretty beat-up but it's the same for both teams, so play on.

This was a very physical game. Many hard tackles but very clean without any big flair-ups.

Aptos won the toss and decided to kick off. Rio recycled well. Continued to wear down the Aptos defense until Rio was able to convert their first score at the 13th minute. #1 Cody Dodge finished off a numerous phase ball with a crashing drive over the line.

The rest of the game was outstanding recycling by Rio with great tackling by Aptos.

Captain and #10 Sean Gallingar did all the kicking for Rio . Sean converted a penalty and all three tries for Rio . He was the man of the match.

Rio Rugby will play the winner of:

Friday 6 PM:

Sonoma– Antioch Referee: Bo Rodman

All four Sacramento Valley teams defeated or won by forfeit against the four Skyhawk conference teams.

The Sac Valley conference must be one of the strongest in the USA .

Tune-up Match for the Bingham Cup:

USF over Fog Referee: Bryant Byrnes

after 2 after 3

USF 41 58
Fog 26 33

Beach Chalet Field, GG Park. The Fog - 100 members strong - are tuning up to defend the Bingham Cup in NY in May. This is in memory of Mark Bingham, former Cal player, former Fog player and one of the heroes of Flight 93 on 9/11. There will be 30 teams competing for the Cup this year. The Fog have won the first two.

USF - who started with 16 players - is simply one of those D2 teams that has gotten immeasurably better over the season. My first match of the season in October was with these two teams and Fog won easily.

There were three 30-minute periods. The Fog tried various combinations and played 40 plus players. USF simply played.

The extraordinarily jolly and somewhat incestuous relationship between the teams (whodda thunk it?) was amply demonstrated at the drink-up at one of the Fog's many, many watering holes. Delightful; hilarious.

PS-check out the Fog website:

Fog Rugby | Home of the San Francisco Fog R.F.C.

San Jose State women 12 - SAN JOSE STATE ALUMNAE- 56 Referee: Larry Freitas

Played at Spartan Stadium's side pitch, with a few less each side than the 15 players needed, Alumnae ran in a number of tries to win in the curtain raiser to the alumni match. Some of the Alumnae had played in the first year of women's rugby at San Jose State , 1998, and on through to the early 2000's. The older players, many not playing currently, hadn't lost any form.

Karl Laucher is organizing a new women's club for next season, recruiting some of his former SJS players, based out of Los Gatos .

OTHER HIGH SCHOOL GAMES

Post-season high school friendly:

PITS 32 – Berkeley 15 Referee: Rob Hendrickson

Berkeley Rhinos finally got to play on their home field to host their long time rival PITS at Gabe's Field in Berkeley . PITS had a strong first half with 4 tries, while the Rhinos came back in the second half to score 3 tries to 2.

Piedmont 3 – LAMORINDA 48 Referee: Bryant Byrnes

Monday night. After waiting for the current bane of high school rugby – high school lacrosse – to remove themselves from the field, a traditional rivalry was renewed. Indeed, these teams played each other for the State championship in 1997.

This year Lamo had all of the guns. In a tune-up for the play-offs, the first side played perhaps 20 minutes and there was no stopping these boys. I think their inside center scored three times. But Piedmont refused to be lashed and played hard for 70 minutes.

BERKELEY RHINOS 29 – Antioch 26 Referee: Bryant Byrnes

Tuesday night. ''Sure you missed that knock on. But it was a clean game, there were lots of points, and it was close at the end. A good game!'' So said one of my touch judges.

Indeed. Although Berkeley takes its Free Speech legacy a bit too seriously, it played opportunistically and aggressively, scoring quickly and keeping the pressure on. 12-7 at half, Antioch opened it up in the second half, niftily dotting it in the corner for the last score, but ran out of time. Congratulations to both teams and their coaches for good rugby and fine seasons.

THIS WEEK'S PHOTO
april_meeting

This was certainly the best-attended April society meeting we've ever had. Is it the quality of the speakers? It is the free buffet dinner? Is it the SF/Golden Gate clubhouse, bar and fantastic referee changing room?

It's the clubhouse!

Standing, left to right: Tom Martinez, Dixon Smith, Jake Rubin, Sam Reagle, Lois Bukowski, Bartender Pete Smith, Kat Todd-Schwartz, Mike Malone, Paul Bretz, Chris Parkhouse, John Pohlman, Rich Anderson, John Cullom, John Coppinger, Edward Barfels, Toshi Paloma

Front leaning rest: Scott Wood

Not standing, left to right: Bruce Carter, Aruna Ranaweera, Deb Hart, Tony Latu, Jim Crenshaw, David Williamson

Photographer: Mike Gadoua

HAIL, PELICUS!

For the Senate
Pelicus Scriptoris

Monday, April 17, 2006

PELICANS LOVE THE RAIN

HAIL, PELICUS!

APRIL PELICAN SOCIETY MEETING THIS THURSDAY

We will be meeting at the SF/Golden Gate clubhouse on Treasure Island this Thursday, April 20, from 7 to 9 PM. There will be food and drink available from 6 PM for those who arrive early.

Paul Bretz and Mike Malone will be the featured speakers.

The Referee Development Committee will meet at six.

There will be a special bonus for all who attend: THE 2006 LAW BOOKS HAVE ARRIVED, ONLY SIX MONTHS LATE. All Society members can pick one up for free.


ASPEN EXCHANGE ANNOUNCED

John Pohlman will be our exchangee to the Aspen Ruggerfest in September.

Congratulations to John! We know John will have a great time and represent the flock well.


PACIFIC COAST HIGH SCHOOL INVITATIONAL

This tournament, now in its second year at Stanford, now has a website and Dan Hickey would like for you to have a look at it:

http://www.pacificcoastinvitational.com/

We will need touch judges for this event May 13-14.


WHO’S MOVING ON – A PLAYOFF PRÉCIS

Super League:

The season is just past the halfway point, with every team in the Western Conference having played four of seven matches.

SF/GOLDEN GATE is now in sole possession of second place. The top four qualify for the playoffs.

Division One:

The Competitive Region playoffs are this weekend and next. These playoffs serve to reduce the current seven territories back to the original four (prior to ten years ago). These are really the ‘old’ Pacific Coast playoffs.

Four teams from SoCal and four from the current Pacific Coast play against two opponents from the other area. After these games, a complex algorithm rank-orders the eight teams and the top five move on to the national round of sixteen, played May 13-14.

This weekend, OLYMPIC CLUB hosts Huntington Beach and SAN MATEO hosts Las Vegas. These games will probably both be played in Hayward Saturday evening. HAYWARD is playing at Back Bay.

Division Two:

This weekend in Arizona is the Pacific Coast playoffs.

SANTA ROSA plays Tempe, paired with Red Mountain and Valley.
BARACUS plays Oregon Rugby Sports Union, paired with Old Pueblo and Provo.

The winner of each pool advances to the nationals May 13-14.

Division Three:

Also in Arizona, MISSION plays Bend and STANISLAUS plays Scottsdale. The winner of those winners advances to the nationals, also May 13-14.

Colleges: The winners of each of the four-team brackets list below will advance to Stanford May 5-6.

Women’s College Division One:

Stanford and California are both in Gainesville, Fla, this weekend for the sweet sixteen.

STANFORD plays West Chester, paired with North Carolina and Princeton.
CALIFORNIA plays Air Force, paired with Central Florida and Navy.
CHICO STATE will play Army in State College, Penn.

These teams are paired with Northern Iowa and Penn State

Men’s College Division One:

CALIFORNIA will be playing in the sweet sixteen at home this weekend. They face UC Santa Barbara on Saturday. They are paired with Clemson and Navy.
UC DAVIS plays Penn State at West Point, NY, this weekend. The other half of the draw there is Dartmouth – Ohio State.

Women’s College Division Two:

UC SANTA CRUZ will play Denison University in the round of eight at Sanford, Fla. They are paired with Northeastern and Mary Washington.

Men’s College Division Two:

Also in Sanford, HUMBOLDT STATE will play Georgia Southern, paired with Coast Guard and Salisbury.

High School:

This weekend there will be quarterfinals in Tier One and Tier Two.

These cannot be assigned until the pairings are confirmed.

This, by the way, is a major pain the neck. No-one is in charge and there is squabbling with respect to several of the standings, who’s the home team, what day they ‘ have’ to play, etc.

We cannot vouch for the veracity of these pairings, notwithstanding our usual caveats about our execrable fact-checker. The problem here is the people who are responsible for knowing the high school standings use words like “I think” and “I’m not sure” in communicating them to us, or they disagree about whether the lower-rated team should travel.

Of course they do. Conference champions host second-place finishers in Tier One, and third-place teams host fourth-place teams in Tier Two.


PLEASE CORRECT US IF WE ARE WRONG HERE.

As always in rugby, the home team is listed first:

TIER ONE
Jesuit – Silicon Valley
Elsie Allen – Hayward
Live Oak – Vacaville
Lamorinda – Montgomery

TIER TWO
Burbank – Peninsula Green
Sonoma – Golden Gate
Aptos – Rio Rugby
De La Salle – Santa Rosa


HIGH SCHOOL GAMES

Marin 12 – GOLDEN GATE 33 Referee: Bruce Carter
Touch Judges: Steve DiSalvo, Bill Cody/Mike Gadoua
Videographer: Susan Pease Gadoua

The final game of the regular season found Golden Gate trying to get off the schneid. They went through the first half of the season undefeated but then had lost three games come springtime.

It was a drizzly and dreary day in what would have been the shadow of Mt. Tam, had the sun appeared in the past six weeks. But the artificial playing surface of Redwood High School in Corte Madera was in perfect shape for this match.

The referee was supported by his old friend Septenae; Septenae’s wife Susan working the camera; and some with the deepest bonds of all, those going back to the rugby-playing days of the Hastings RFC, Artie and Susanne Fisher and Bill Travis.

Late-season high school rugby is an especial joy to referee. The players have learnt their lessons: they play to a plan, possession is reliable, and the ball tends to go left or right as the referee anticipates – depending on where the offense has momentum and/or more players than the defense.

The players know what number they are wearing and they respond to the referee’s suggestions that they roll away, release, keep their hands off the ball or mind the back foot.

Rugby flows from the pump that coaches have spent months priming.

The season always ends too soon for many teams. It ends just when it is becoming more fun for everyone involved, particularly for superannuated referees who don’t do as many post-season fixtures as they used to, alas.

But this ref, on this day, was in bed with his Muse from the first whistle to the last. The players listened; proactive advice led to productive play. Up and down the pitch they ran.

Even when a brawl inexplicably broke out in the second half, it was directly between Scriptoris and Septenae, two of the most experienced and reliable witnesses to be found in the refereeing kingdom. And the camera, of course, was running…

Cards were issued (one yellow, two reds for those curious about such matters) and the ruggers that remained on the pitch, as so often happens, were those who wanted most of all to play.

All of us fortunate enough to know her love this game.

JV: Marin – SF/Golden Gate Referee: Steve DiSalvo
Referee Coach: Bruce Carter

Berkeley 10 – LAMORINDA B 12 Referee: Steve Jarmek

In a hard fought match, Lamorinda beat Berkeley by converting a 2nd half try, breaking a 5-5 halftime deadlock. The venue was moved to the brand new artificial turf field at Campolindo High School, a welcomed change from the mud-slide conditions of the past few months.

Other games that were scheduled (no reports received):

Elsie Allen – Santa Rosa
Montgomery – Sonoma
Rancho Cotate – Windburg
Mother Lode – Cougars
Davis – Del Oro
Christian Brothers – Jesuit II
Jesuit I – Rio Rugby
Islanders – VACAVILLE
HAYWARD – De La Salle Referee: Pete Smith
Piedmont – Lamorinda
Alameda – Tri-Valley Referee: Lois Bukowski
Antioch – Oakland Military

Chico State women 2 – Sac State
Stanford women 2 – Santa Clara Referee: Sandy Robertson


RED AND YELLOW CARDS FOR NON-PARTICIPANTS

Talk about a tempest in a teapot, showing a red card to a coach.

There is not now and never has been any basis to do so. No basis in Law, no regulations or rulings, nothing in the bylaws or guidelines or operating procedures of any rugby administrative body.

The Laws of the Game (available to read and/or download at http://www.irb.com/Laws/) authorize referees to issue red and yellow cards for players during a match.

Showing a red card to a non-participant, or after the conclusion of a match or after you have abandoned it, has no more meaning than showing a red card to your boss or the traffic cop who stops you for speeding.

This is not to say that referees cannot file reports containing complaints about the behavior of non-participants during or after a match, or players after a match. The USA Guidelines on the game give referees that authority and empower disciplinary bodies to take action on that basis.

If you have a problem with the behavior of a non-participant, by all means file a report and describe the action, along with your response. According to time-honored practice, you can eject someone from the playing enclosure. But if they don’t leave, you can only ask the team in question to help you enforce your ban and then abandon the match if this is not done.

The showing of a red card has certain automatic implications for participants: automatic and mandatory suspensions, lack of appeal, etc. The showing of a red card to a non-participant, or after a match, or by someone other than the referee, has no implications whatsoever. It is a bad form of theater.

It is also highly inflammatory and will tend to escalate any situation. It is not to be recommended.

To repeat, non-participants are not immune from action by the ref. But that action is limited to asking the perpetrator to desist, asking participants to help enforce the request, abandoning the match if necessary, and filing a report to the disciplinary body that has jurisdiction over the match.

The report should of course describe the behavior, the steps the referee took to remedy the situation, and the response of the other party or parties.

We don’t make this stuff up. There was a ruling on this specific issue made and announced three years ago:

http://www.usarugby.org/cgi-bin/02/press/displayFullAnnouncement.pl?announcementId=312


HERE’S SOMETHING YOU’VE NEVER SEEN BEFORE

A jigsaw puzzle where the image on the pieces moves, even while you are trying to assemble them:

http://www.brl.ntt.co.jp/people/hara/fly.swf


THIS WEEK’S PHOTO

Easter_Photo

From Easter Parade, copyrighted lyrics by Irving Berlin:

On the avenue, Fifth Avenue,
The photographers will snap us
And you'll find that you're in the rotogravure.
Oh, I could write a sonnet, about your Easter bonnet
And of the guy I'm taking to the Easter Parade.


HAIL, PELICUS!


For the Senate
Pelicus Scriptoris

Tuesday, April 11, 2006

PLAY ON AND PLAYOFFS

HAIL, PELICUS!

TOUCH JUDGES NEEDED APRIL 21-22-23

College playoffs at Cal:

Four games Saturday
Two games Sunday

Other games Saturday:

Super League:
SF/Golden Gate – Denver

Competitive Region One (National first division)
Two games, hosted by San Mateo and Olympic Club


EXCHANGES ANNOUNCED

Lois Bukowski will be traveling to the Eastern Rockies for their U-19 championships in mid-June.

Bjorn Stumer and Bo Rodman will go to the Pacific Northwest for their U-19 championships May 6-7.

Good luck and happy whistling!


GAMES PLAYED IN NORCAL

Golden Gate U23, 12 – CALIFORNIA 35 Referee: Rachel Lawton

Ra, the ancient Egyptian sun god, woke up from it's lazy slumber on Saturday to shine upon the young men from Cal and the host, Golden Gate. A bit of a pleasant surprise for everyone, even if it wasn't enough to dry the pitch. But rugby players like mud, right?

Cal broke the ice, so to speak, with a quick break from the outside center between the posts about 6 minutes in. This would set the scene, but this was not apparent until the second half. A penalty kick brought Cal to 10, but the hard fighting Golden Gate forwards pushed back, and brought the backs into Cal's red-zone. A few exciting
charges later, the ball was touched down and GG was on the scoreboard with 5. Not long after, the boys in green would charge back in a similar fashion to put it down in almost the same spot, but the kicker (the captain in this case) lined up his kick more carefully and converted the try for a score that would remain tied for fifteen
minutes. Cal spent a good portion of the rest of the half keeping GG on their heels, and finally made good on a hard hitting battle of the forwards by splashing the ball in the mud (just in in-goal, as it happened). The first forty minutes would end with a clean uniform nowhere to be found.

Cal was given some zippy juice at half time (and didn't share with the Defenders of the Golden Gate, who warmed up in their swanky new clubhouse), and blew out of the gate with a try that left us all blinking for a minute. The rest of this story sounds very similar, with three more unanswered tries from Cal. The mud slowed everyone down, but the Bear's fitness was clearly evident. As they often do, Cal took the game in the second half where their discipline and efficiency dominated play. Though many of Cal's tries were scored between the posts (by number 13, I might add), the kicker for blue and gold hit his target on all seven attempts. Impressive to watch from a university underclassmen.

The field battered and bruised and the players muddy (and vice-versa), we all went to clean up in the afore-mentioned club house and were treated to a fantastic feast of barbequed beast and beans. Jovial words were exchanged and from what I overheard, all had fun, most especially Yours Truly.


PACIFIC COAST MEN'S D1 COLLEGE PLAYOFFS

Saturday:

UC DAVIS 20 – Oregon State 13 Referee: Tony Latu
Touch Judges: Chris Parkhouse, Sam Reagle
Fourth Official: Ray Schwartz
Formal Evaluator: Dixon Smith
Referee Coach: Matt Eason
Informal Advisors: Paul Bretz, Scott Wood
Location: Solano College, Fairfield, CA

The forecast called for showers, on/off rain throughout the day. Fortunately they mis-calculated the rain and it went some place else. Thus, Saturday was sunny and warm, just like the week before in Richmond, Virginia.

The game kick off at 11:00 and both teams knew the situation. The winner will have a chance on Sunday to represent the Pacific Coast. The not-so-winner...it's always next year. Oregon State used their packs and Davis used their backs. Davis drew first blood on an up-and-under to the full back. And it looked like they will control
the game, but OSU had other plans. There were some great runs, great tackles, but at the end, Davis prevailed. OSU-13, UCDavis-20.

WASHINGTON STATE 17 – Sac State 10 Referee: Paul Bretz
Touch Judges: Dixon Smith, Ray Schwartz
Fourth and Fifth Officials: Sam Reagle, Chris Parkhouse

Sunday:

Oregon State 21 – SAC STATE 26 Referee: Tony Latu
Touch Judges: Ray Schwartz, Chris Parkhouse

Seniors played their last college games for both teams. They played for pride and seeding for next year. Sac State ran in three tries in the first half. And as soon as they relaxed, OSU rumbled back and tied the game (21 all) at the final minute.

Sac was attacking within ten meters of OSU's goalline minutes into the injury time. OSU stood their ground with their defense. Unfortunately, they got penalized for hands in the ruck with no time left. Sac took a quick tap and scored, 26-21 to Sac.

I would like to say thank you Dixon and the rest for keeping me on my toes. Thanks to Britt and his lovely wife for cooking the Lu. This is a Polynesian dish, taro leaves, corned beef and coconut milk. By the way, Britt is not a Poly, but he cooked like one.

Until next time!

UC DAVIS 36 – Washington State 8 Referee: Paul Bretz
Touch Judges: Sam Reagle, Ray Schwartz
Evaluator: Dixon Smith

Final Pacific Coast seedings into the USA Rugby playoffs:

University of California
Brigham Young University
University of Utah
UC Davis

These first two will be playing at Witter Field in two weeks. The others will be at West Point, NY, at the US Military Academy.


PACIFIC COAST WOMEN'S D1 COLLEGE PLAYOFFS

At Stanford's Steuber Family Rugby Stadium

Saturday:

STANFORD 47 – Nevada 0 Referee: Bruce Carter
Touch Judges: Deb Hart, James Hinkin
Referee Coach: David Williamson

Stanford began their national title defense with the first game on a gloriously sunny day. There were concerns about the pitch: like the rest of Pelicanland, it's been drenched for the past six weeks. It is due to host four national college championships in less than a month. And the forecast had called for rain all day.

The forecasts were off, stalled by some high pressure that kept the clouds at bay, actually kept them out of the Bay. So the sun shone on the ruggers all the livelong day.

If you look through the scores from Steuber this weekend, you'll see that Stanford, Chico State and Cal crushed their opposition. The only close game was when Stanford met Chico State. And Stanford set the pattern in the first game of the weekend, controlling the ball and the flow of play.

As dominant as the Cardinal backs can be, they still preserve possession in close for long stretches of time. But when they spin it out, it's time for the referee to get on his horse.

The second half was horseback riding time.

Oregon 13 – CALIFORNIA 52 Referee: Aruna Ranaweera
Touch Judges: James Hinkin, Sandy Robertson

Cal was the superior team, tallying a 20-3 halftime lead. Oregon played well in spurts, particularly in the forwards, but they could not keep up with Cal's backs, whose offense was more disciplined and sophisticated. Final try count was 9-2.

CHICO STATE 71 – Oregon State 3 Referee: Lois Bukowski
Touch Judges: Deb Hart, Paul Berman

UC DAVIS 31 – Reed College 5 Referee: Giles Wilson
Touch Judges: Paul Berman, Sandy Robertson

The last game of two pools of the women's college was UC Davis vs. Reed College from Portland.

UCD came out hard and looked as though they'd dominate but Reed were scrappy and Davis didn't commit enough players to safely secure quick recycle ball. Reed used their feet intelligently to "poach" ruck ball legally and thus keep themselves in the game. The half ended 7 - 5 for Davis.

Davis' size and overall speed advantage began to tell in the second half, when they managed to run in 4 tries for no reply from Reed. It could have been many more if the backs would have exploited several 2 on 1 overlaps instead of turning back in to contact.

Sunday:

STANFORD 33 v. Chico State 28 Referee: Aruna Ranaweera
Touch judges: Deb Hart, Paul Berman
Evaluator: Dave Williamson.

Two high calibre teams + no rain = excellent rugby match. The first half was a battle as both teams ran at each other at full pace, with plenty of hard hits. Stanford had numerous individual breaks, but their uncharacteristic lack of support was a liability as the Chico defense intelligently handled the isolated ballcarriers, earning
turnovers and penalties. Neither team could break loose and Chico took an 8-7 lead into the half, 1 try apiece.

Stanford started the second half with authority, scoring 4 open-field tries while Chico could only manage a penalty. Stanford's right wing was unstoppable out wide, while Stanford's #5 had a brilliant match all over the field. Leading 33-11, Stanford looked to have the match in the bag, but Chico suddenly started clicking on all cylinders, mounting an enthralling comeback. Chico displayed team play at its best with their backs and forwards combining to storm through the Stanford defense, quickly recycling ball through numerous phases, not giving the defense chance to regroup. Led by their irrepressible #3 and experienced half-backs, Chico scored three well-crafted tries to close within 33-28 of Stanford's lead. Stanford curiously spurned a penalty kick opportunity late in the match and Chico--with all the momentum--was able to mount one last attack at the Stanford goal-line. Under severe pressure within their own 22, Stanford's forwards showed character, held firm, and forced a knock-on that ended the game.

Stanford deservedly won the Pacific Coast Championship (and USA #1 seed at Nationals), but runner-up Chico State should fancy its own chances at nationals. This was an exciting game from start to finish. Much thanks to Dave Williamson and the touch judges for their help throughout the weekend.

CALIFORNIA 41 – UC Davis 0 Referee: Lois Bukowski

Stanford and Cal will be in the USA playoffs in two weeks in Gainesville, Fla. Chico State will be in State College, Penn.


PACIFIC COAST MEN'S D1 PLAYOFFS

At Hayward

Saturday:

HAGGIS 34 – Hayward 22 Referee: Jim Crenshaw
Touch Judges: Joe Saccomanno, Bruce Carter
Evaluator: Bryan Porter

This was an amazing game. The current national D2 champions came out like they had something to prove, scoring three unconverted tries to go up 15 – 0 in the first twenty minutes or so.

Unfortunately for Hayward, Mose Timoteo went off with a knee injury in the early going. He might have been able to organize the defense a little better. Haggis had two runners who proved well-nigh unstoppable, #8 and #13, both keen to seek contact and shed tacklers.

Hayward played a patient game and took the lead by converting their own third try, 17 – 15, with about ten minutes to play.

But Haggis scored two more tries, both from long range with some remarkable pace on the wings.

Diablo Gaels 19 – OLYMPIC CLUB 34 Referee: Pete Smith
Touch Judges: Bruce Carter, Joe Saccomanno/Jim Crenshaw

Sunday:

HAYWARD 22 – Diablo Gaels 10 Referee: Jim Crenshaw

OLYMPIC CLUB 37 – Haggis 24 Referee: Pete Smith
Evaluator: Bryan Porter

Pete Smith's report on the weekend:

Saturday and Sunday I was fortunate enough to get assigned to the division 1 men's playoffs in Hayward. The games were every bit as tough and entertaining as you would imagine a men's playoff game to be. Saturday I was in charge of Olympic Club and the Diablo Gaels and on Sunday the game between Haggis from Utah and Olympic Club. There are reasonable write ups on both Goffonrugby.com and Americanrugbynews.com. Olympic Club won over Diablo Gaels on Saturday by a score of 34-19 and the Olympic Club over Haggis on Sunday 37-24.

Sorry I am not a big try-by-try writer when it comes to my games, but I have a hard time remembering who scored and when. I do however remember elements as a whole and want to focus on what was and has been a major portion of my games over the past few seasons-working with the captains. The main reason I have isolated the Captain for this weeks report is that I worked with three excellent captains over the weekend.-Andrew from Olympic Club, Ryan from Haggis and Darren
from Diablo Gaels. All three are excellent captains in the traditional role as a leader and decision maker. Before my Sunday match, in my pre-game conversation with the captains, I noted one issues that I had had with Olympic Club and asked Andrew to talk to his team about it. Likewise, I had noted an issue from the sideline in the Haggis game that I talked to Ryan about and low and behold I had virtually no problem with either issue from the previous day. I give full credit to the captains!

When I was a new referee, I had not work much with the captain beyond the coin toss and any direct decisions that needed to be made by the captain. It took a few bad experiences with coaches to make me realize that it is the captain that I need to work with to be a more effective referee. Almost everything I do as a referee goes through the captains. I empower them at my first contact. I let them know that I will be working with them to help us produce a better game. Anytime I have an issue on or off the field it is the captain I go to. Working with the captain helps me to de-emotionalize the situation. In the past, when I had a problem with a player, I dealt with the player-now I deal with the captain and have the player present. I must have a working relationship with the captain and hopefully I have developed
some rapport and earned their confidence and respect so that we can work effectively together.

If I have problems with the sidelines or coaches-it is the captain that I empower to handle the situation. At the highest levels of play, the coaches are in the press box or stands and it is solely the captain's responsibility to handle the team. In fact, the law book references captains but makes no reference to coaches. Too many teams
do not put enough importance on their selection of a captain-it tends to be a reward of sorts rather than appointing the player that is best suited for the job. Domestically, the sport may be better served to take the lead from our international counterparts as I think it will help to improve the sports image and potentially head off any possible conflicts. I think if this custom is adopted here is the US, then you will see better choices made for selecting captains.

A good captain is not necessarily the 'best' player on the team. Unfortunately, many coaches pick their best player as their captain and not the best person for the job. A good captain is someone that must have the respect and confidence of their teammates first and foremost. Secondly, a good captain needs to make correct tactical
decisions throughout the game. And most importantly to the referee, the captain needs to maintain a level head regardless of the circumstance. There is nothing worse than to have a problem on the field and it IS the captain that is the problem. Not to say that the captain can never be penalized, but the captain should not be in the
center of an un-sportsmanlike situation. Personally, I like a tight five player as the captain-you know the 'strong-silent' type. I would much prefer a player who just wants the facts and/or a brief explanation versus a chatty player that questions everything and is always 'working' the referee for calls.

I hope that if you are a referee and am reading this, if you don't already empower and build a relationship with the captains at your games, start doing so immediately. If you are a coach, please choose your captain wisely, likewise empower them to carryout what they perceive to be your wishes and game plan. I know it is a lot to ask a coach, but let go of the things that you can't control (what is happening on the field) and trust your captain to handle the issues as they arise. If you are a captain, take your responsibility seriously, make an effort to work with the referee as the referee should be making an effort to work with you and try to work on the areas that
will make you a more effective captain because your team needs you. A good captain can make the difference between winning and losing.


Final Pacific Coast seedings into the Competitive Region One playoffs:

San Mateo
Olympic Club
Haggis
Hayward

Each of these teams will play home and away matches against top four SoCal finishers, April 22 and 29.


HIGH SCHOOL GAMES

The Northern California high school playoffs begin on April 22, with each of the four conferences sending their first two finishers into Tier One and their third and fourth place teams into Tier Two.


SKYHAWK CONFERENCE PLAYOFFS

Tier One Playoff:

LIVE OAK 8 – Silicon Valley 3 Referee: John Pohlman

Live Oak of Morgan Hill hosted two important games for high school playoff seating. The first game was Live Oak versus Silicon Valley, the winner hosting Burbank and loser playing at Jesuit in the first round of the NCRFU HS playoffs April 22.

It was a perfect day for rugby: 60 degrees, partly cloudy and a soft, well-marked field.

Live Oak dominated possession throughout the game. It was a testament to Silicon Valley's tackling that the game was so close.

Live Oak scored in the first minutes of the game. The kick was unconverted. 5-0. Live Oak followed with a penalty. And right before half time Silicon Valley got on the score board with their own penalty. Half time Live Oak 8- Silicon Valley 3.

Live Oak had a large, lively crowd. At the start of the second half the fans screamed their support for the home town men. I was a bit moved by the enthusiasm.

The second half was filled with big hits and loads of scoring opportunities by both sides. Late in the game Silicon Valley had a break which could have tied the score but alas: a forward pass.

Thanks for some good rugby. These are both well coached teams, with good supporters. A joy to officiate.

Tier Two Playoff:

Peninsula Green 5 – APTOS 10 Referee: James Hinkin
Touch Judge: John Pohlman
Just Hanging Around and Watching: Bruce Carter

A high school playoff game played to determine seeding Saturday afternoon lived up to expectations as a fast and determined contest. Both sides were committed in the tackle and ran with determination but handling and the occasional ill discipline let the sides down.

The game remained scoreless until late in the first half when PG finally was able to break through the center and the resulting support garnered a try out wide. The conversion was unsuccessful to leave the score at 5-0. Aptos began applying pressure as the half was winding down and an appeal for a try went unanswered as the Aptos flyhalf lunged towards the line. The referee was in poor position to award a try so instead awarded a scrum, but his bacon was saved when the Aptos
captain and 8-man picked up the ball from the base of the scrum and powered over for a clear try. The conversion was once again unsuccessful so the half ended tied at 5 apiece.

The second half saw much of the same as both sides tried to break the deadlock. Goal kicking at both ends was poor as both sides missed makeable penalties so it looked like a game to be decided the old-fashioned way: tries. The scrums, which had been stable for three quarters of the match suddenly started getting wobbly as both sides tried to gain an advantage but that nonsense was soon sorted and the real game of rugby commenced in earnest. Peninsula Green looked likely to score late in the second half when a pass was thrown ever so slightly forward ended the run. The stalemate continued and the referee was looking a round of beers in the face when time was stopped to allow treatment to the PG scrumhalf who went off with an injured shoulder. Both sides were informed at the ensuing lineout that there
were 2 minutes remaining. Aptos won their own throw and started charging ahead with determination. The ball was eventually spun wide to the right but turned over by an enterprising PG defense. The ball was then hacked forward and the chase was on with the Aptos fullback winning the race followed closely by the PG captain and #13 who unfortunately decided that this would be a good time to play the ball while on his knees. Aptos tapped the penalty quickly and was
immediately hit giving them an advantage as the recycled ball was spun back to the right. The beep signaling time has run out sounded as Aptos knocked on but was saved by the not 10 penalty advantage being played. Realizing that time was out Aptos quickly tapped and ran back to the right and slick passing through several hands finally garnered the winning try as Aptos dove over the line to steal the game. A well played match and a finish that couldn't get any better.

DE LA SALLE 29 – San Francisco Golden Gate 7 Referee: Chris Parkhouse

This was an extremely hard fought game with the score not truly reflective of the passage of play and evenness of the game. It took nearly 10 minutes for the first try to be scored. A breakdown at a ruck saw DLS go blind side and go all the way to score in the corner from about 20 m out without any opposition. A similar blind side try
was followed by a late score in the first half and DLS going in with a 15-0 lead.

From the kick off in the second half it was all Golden Gate. Wave after wave of attack, staunch defending and solid tackling by DLS. Had their handling been more assured and their game less error prone Golden Gate could easily have been tied within the first 10 minutes. As it was sustained pressure for 25 mins eventually lead to a Golden Gate try and with the ensuing conversion we were in for one hell of a last ten minutes. It was a piece of individual brilliance that eventually decided the game. Tim Maupin the De La Salle Captain picking up from 30m out went on one of his jinking runs carving through three defenders and then breaking through two more before touching down under the posts. With two minutes left De La Salle made the most of a defensive penalty and scored again to finally seal a very hard fought victory. The score certainly did not reflect the passage of play and territorial possession of Golden Gate - but that's Rugby!

Thursday: Berkeley/Tri Valley-rain cancellation
Friday: Alameda/Lamo-rain cancellation

Tri-Valley 10 – ANTIOCH 34 Referee: Bryant Byrnes

At the rather fascinating Contra Costa Fairgrounds in Antioch. It is a bit like the Field of Dreams – in the most unlikely venue of a (presently) decrepit public grounds there is a well lined, freshly mowed regulation pitch. Good on Mike Sagehorn.

A lively game with a markedly low penalty count-these boys knew where the off sides line was. Antioch was a well oiled machine, very opportunistic. While not in the hunt after the half, Tri-Valley never quit; indeed, two nifty 2nd half tries. And the money NorCal has spent on anger (angst?) management for Giles has paid off. It was as if he wrote the Guidelines himself.

ALAMEDA RIPTIDE – Motherlode Referee: Sam Davis

Great game sun was shining for once this month. Both teams were moving the ball between the 22 meter lines. Motherlode scored on the 20 min mark with a nice multi-phase movement that scored in the corner. The half ended with Motherlode ahead 5-0. Alameda came back in the second half with a penalty on their 22 which the Motherlode flyhalf did a very nice drop kick to go ahead 8-0. Riptide came back with a score that was set up by a very long run by their center who was run out of
bounds. Motherlode mishandled the ball on the line out and took it into there in-goal and Alameda touched it down. Alameda was driving to score as time ran out, the ball carrier was striped of the ball and Motherlode player went into touch and end the game. Very nice game and looks like all had fun.

Friday 4/6/06

Windburg 0 – ELSIE ALLEN 42 Referee: Bo Rodman
Venue: Piner High School

At kickoff there was sideways rain pelting the field. Luckily we were on an all-weather pitch so there was no mud; but, I could not see my watch and I was starting to lose feeling in my extremities. Remind me again why I moved here from Seattle...

My obviously water-logged match card shows Elsie Allen prevailing 42 -0. Windburg is a new team in the Redwood league this year and taking on the Lobos was a daunting task. Nonetheless, the Windburg side did not give up and showed a lot of effort against a team that will be competing for state/nationals.

Prop Craig Manno scored 4 tries, 8-man Mike Phipps scored 2 tries, and Prop Terrence McCarter scored his first try of the year.

As I bundle my rain-soaked body into the car for the ride home all I can think of is "These are the times that try (pun unintended) men's souls." Oh well, at least the boys seemed to have a good run!


GAMES PLAYED ELSEWHERE

PACIFIC COAST MEN'S D1 COLLEGE PLAYOFFS

In Utah:
BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY 51 – Chico State 7

In Washington:
UTAH – Washington
Central Washington – ST. MARY'S

Final:
UTAH 22 – St. Mary's 20


PACIFIC COAST MEN'S D2 COLLEGE PLAYOFFS

In Oregon:

Pacific Coast Playoffs
College Division II Men and Women
Western Oregon University, Monmouth, Oregon

Saturday, April 8
HUMBOLDT STATE 39 – Western Oregon University 8 Referee: Joe Leisek
Touch Judges: Craig Parish (PNRFU), Jim Kautz (PNRFU)

The first men's semi-final of the weekend pitted the home team against the undefeated Lumberjacks of Humboldt State. The game took some time to settle, but Humboldt State scored first and never really were challenged. WOU has talent and athleticism, and are well-coached, but were starved of ball and unable to defend against the more experienced, bigger team. Humboldt State are a very strong side again this year.

Later in the day I ran touch for Craig 'Wags' Parish in the other men's semi-final. In that game, Santa Rosa Junior College came from behind to defeat Utah State 15 - 10, setting up an all-California final on Sunday: two NCRFU teams and a Pelican ref.

Sunday, April 9
HUMBOLDT STATE 39 Santa Rosa Junior College 10 Referee: Joe Leisek
Touch Judges: Craig Parish (PNRFU), Eric Zimmerman (PNRFU)

The teams were fired up for the final. It was hard to hear my own whistle to start the game, with all the yells and screams from players and supporters. The first 40 minutes were a cracker, with both sides running the ball and retaining possession well. Humboldt State scored first with a penalty kick, then at about the 25 minute mark, flyhalf Trevor Payne took charge. Santa Rosa's young flyhalf is an Elsie Allen grad and a soft-spoken guy. But he is focused, very skilled, and the leader of his team. Trevor took a pass from scrumhalf Balamcab Guitierrez (also an Elsie grad) and, holding the ball in both hands in front of him, dashed about 40 meters through traffic for a try near the left post. Absolutely thrilling stuff and winner of my vote for Try of the Tournament. Mike Rodrigues, yet another Elsie grad, calmly
slotted the conversion. I had refereed these three players throughout their high school careers doing the same thing.

Humboldt State also scored a try in the first half, which ended with Santa Rosa on top, 10-8.

The second half was all Humboldt. They put on a massive display of forward power and backline organization. They scored five unanswered tries, I believe by five different players. Santa Rosa began to tire. They moved backwards most of the time and they met swarming defense whenever they did have the ball. Humboldt powered their way to the try line via a pushover scrum, rolling maul, backline distribution...you name it. The Lumberjacks' ball retention was vastly superior in the
second half as well.

A great weekend of rugby in a beautiful setting.

Best wishes to Humboldt State and UC Santa Cruz (winner of the women's bracket) at the Elite Eight in Sanford, Florida, in two weeks.


PACIFIC COAST WOMEN'S D2 COLLEGE PLAYOFFS

In Oregon:

WESTERN OREGON 22 – St. Mary's 0
UC SANTA CRUZ 45 – St. Mary's 5
UC SANTA CRUZ 34 – Western Oregon 24


THIS WEEK'S PHOTO

Fairfields_Fine_Flock

Sunday found a fine flock in Fairfield for the playoffs:

Left to Right, Standing: Scott Wood, Dixon Smith, Jim Crenshaw, Paul Bretz, Matt Eason, Tony Latu, Jackson (extra credit for finding him)
Kneeling: Ray Schwartz, Bo Rodman, Chris Parkhouse, Sam Reagle


HAIL, PELICUS!


For the Senate
Pelicus Scriptoris

IN THE MIDDLE

March 27, 2006

HAIL, PELICUS!

PRECIPITATION'S PRELUDE

Friday afternoon and night, yet another heavy rainstorm passed through the area just ahead of rugby time. Storm fronts have

been marching off the Pacific and into Northern California at regularly intervals for too long now. Most of the regions

reservoirs are full and a heaping snowpack has yet to begin melting. We don't ‘need' any more water. Trees are budding, roses

are blooming, California poppies are popping out all along the roadsides and songbird serenade accompanies the morning's walk

down the driveway to pick up the newspaper.

It's getting to be time for playoff rugby!

HIGH SCHOOL TOUR TO NZ-OZ

San Francisco Golden Gate will be taking a large group of players on an Under-19 tour of Australia and New Zealand for three

weekends in June.

They would be happy to have some referees accompany the group.

If you might be able to travel with them for all or part of the tour, please let us know and we will help you make

arrangements. It should also be no problem arranging matches for you to referee in the various cities.

NEW EXCHANGE OFFICER

Joe Leisek has passed the Exchange Officer's baton to Kat Todd-Schwartz.

Assignments and exchanges are the life's blood of referee development.

We would like to acknowledge the effort that Joe has put in over the past three years and voice our appreciation for the

results thereof: more outgoing exchangees, many happy visitors, better referees throughout rugbydom and friendships on and

off the pitch made and nurtured.

To keep pace with the growth and improvement in NCRFU rugby, our Pelican Society needs to improve and expand our

already-strong exchange program. This is the task that Kat has accepted. We thank her for her willingness to contribute to

our betterment and promise total support for her initiatives.

SEASON RESET

Boys' high schools:
The overall NorCal playoffs begin in Tiers One and Two with quarterfinals on April 22. There are two weeks left in the

regular season for all of the conferences save the Skyhawk.

The Skyhawk conference has now finished its season and will have internal playoffs the next two weekends.

Girls' high schools:
The season begins this Saturday. It will extend for seven or eight Saturdays, with a bye week for Easter. We are not aware of

any plans for playoffs.

Colleges:
There are a handful of college games April 1. Pacific Coast playoffs begin April 8 for men and women, divisions one and two.

Clubs:
Division 2 and 3: The last regular-season games are played April 1. Pacific Coast playoffs begin April 22.

Division 1: The season ends April 1. Pacific Coast playoffs start April 8.

Super League:
The seven-match season is two weeks old. Playoffs begin with quarterfinals on May 22.

MATCH REPORTS

Monday:
USF 22 – Seattle University 21 Referee: Joe Androvich

Saturday:

Super League:

SF/GOLDEN GATE 22– Old Mission Beach AC 15 Referee: Al Klemp
Touch Judges: John Pohlman, Paul Bretz/Bruce Carter
Evaluator: Dixon Smith

This was a very big early-season matchup. These two teams, along with Belmont Shore , are favored in the western conference.

( Golden Gate will play at Belmont April 29.)

A good crowd extended about 80% of the way around the pitch. If bleachers can be installed with controlled access, it would

appear that Gate could begin to make money by charging for big games such as this.

OMBAC has always been known for a speed game. Scouting reports suggested that this year would be no different. Their home

turf, the Little Q, lends itself to such rugby.

But on this day, après le deluge , Golden Gate 's pitch did not.

The San Diegans came out throwing the ball around – until Brian Barnard intercepted a pass and went two-thirds the length of

the pitch to score. They seemed to change their style after that. Whether it was a deliberate choice, the result of the muddy

conditions, or something dictated to them by their opponents is difficult to say.

On this day, in these conditions, the teams were very evenly matched. In the first half, each scored two tries and converted

one, OMBAC adding a penalty kick for 15 – 12 lead at the break.

In the second half it became clear that there weren't going to be any more easy tries. Grant Wells began to offer for goal

anywhere across the midway line, and connected with about fifteen minutes left to tie the game.

At this point it became an absolute classic, intense and uncompromising. The crowd was in a fever pitch. And so it was until

Brian McClenahan charged down a clearing kick and fell on it just short of the dead ball line for the deciding points.

This occurred directly in front of the VIP tent, filled with Golden Gate sponsors, a very nice touch. And then the game ended

with the home team forcing a five-meter attacking scrum at the same corner of the pitch. Al Klemp's watch was beeping as

OMBAC had to ground a ball they'd taken back themselves.

The existence of a clubhouse on Treasure Island has produced instant karma of the rugby club variety. A quick survey of the

post-match camaraderie turned up players from every era of NorCal rugby and probably half the teams that have existed here in

the last thirty years. For those whose playing days are over, if they don't want to be a club administrator being a casual

fan of most clubs doesn't have a lot of rewards. But here – you have a clubhouse to socialize in afterwards with a

like-minded lot.

While we remember the day when such facilities were non-existent in the USA , we can now dream of the day when they are

commonplace.

A wonderful moment occurred during the post-match remarks by each team.

The speakers on these occasions are generally chosen because of their ability to lead men in battle on the playing fields of

honor, so the occasion usually lends itself to the most formulaic and uninspiring oratory. But this day was memorable and

different.

OMBAC's Captain Dan Payne was in the midst of his thank-yous when his cell phone rang. He took it out of his pocket and

looked at the screen in that automatic and absent-minded way folks do even when they have no intention of answering the

thing.

But he answered it.

There was a moment's intake of breath in the room at the faux pas – surely a man standing on a chair, graciously speaking to

a room full of friends and respected opponents; surely he would not take a phone call at such a moment.

But he was way ahead of his audience. He answered and leaving no time for his interrogator to speak said, “We lost. I'm in

the middle of something. I'll call you back,” and hung up.

It was a spectacular play of a miserable lie, a moment of grace and kind humility by a hard-nosed rugby man, and it made him

instant friends with all who heard his words.

Bald Eagles – SILVERHAWKS Referee: Bruce Bernstein
The Silverhawks outscored the Bald Eagles 5 tries to 3 on the practice field at Treasure Island .

It was mostly a forwards match because of the wet pitch. The Bald Eagles new, relatively young flyhalf ran the opening kick

back for a quick try. The Silverhawks responded with a forwards try converted by Dave Richards. Most of the first half was

spent in the Bald Eagle half & the Silverhawks scored twice more. Each team scored once in the second half. Unfortunately

the ball never made it out past both teams' inside centers due to the sloppy field, tight defense/good tackling, & Fred

Forester's Kamikaze get-up, so the Bald Eagles couldn't take advantage of their faster centers & backs.

San Mateo – SF/GG Not played.
We are not sure whether this was a weather-related cancellation or a forfeiture.

Hayward 21 – DIABLO GAELS 40 Referee: Pete Smith
It was a heavy weight prize fight for the first 40 minutes. I thought for sure someone was going to get seriously injured as

both teams were tackling as hard as any two teams I have ever seen. Vaea Anitoni and Jay Wilkerson make a huge difference to

Diablo.

Seconds: HAYWARD 3 tries – Diablo Gaels 2 tries Referee: Joe Saccomanno
Due to time constraints, Hayward 's lights go off at 10pm , only a half was played. Hayward started out strong scoring three

tries. Diablo came roaring back with two quick game ending tries.

Seahawks 10 – OLYMPIC CLUB 42 Referee: Judah Boulet ( New England )
Videographer: Bruce Carter
The first half was pretty even but the O's stretched it out, showing playoff form as the game went on.

Seconds: SEAHAWKS 53 – Olympic Club 15 Referee: Bryant Byrnes
At the too wide Watson Bowl. True club side seconds matches are a rarity for the simple reason that few D1s have full second

sides. Crisp seconds games are even more rare.

This was very nice, crisp game the first half, with the score 10-10 at mid point. However, the Hawks began (continued) to

feed first side fellas in in the second half, with predictable results.

SANTA ROSA 9 – Sacramento Referee: Joe Leisek
Touch Judges: Bo Rodman, Rachel Lawton (and Alan Petty)

This was to be Rachel's Team of Three. However, weather conditions prevented her from arriving until well into the first

half, which itself had been pushed well back hoping she would arrive. Finally, the two teams could wait no longer and made

their intentions clear by lining up for the kickoff. Thanking the teams for their patience, I jogged to midfield and tried to

quickly put myself into Referee Frame of Mind.

The game was a very intense contest, sort of a grinder, with a muddy pitch and rain off and on during play. The most

difficult challenge may have been wind, which blew from the west. The teams could not run the ball successfully (something

they both like to do), so they kicked for territorial gain, lobbed the ball out about as wide as the inside center, and

picked it up and jammed up the middle from rucks and mauls.

One thing we did not see: tries. All points came from penalty kicks with the wind.

Sacramento scored first, from a Santa Rosa penalty for not releasing. The score stood at 3-0 at halftime. All of Santa Rosa

's scoring came in the second half.

Thanks to Bo and Rachel for their help and for reminding me at halftime to look in their direction. Thanks also to spectator

and Pelican Alan Petty, who ran touch until Rachel arrived. I look forward to running touch for Rachel another time.

Seconds: Santa Rosa – Sacramento Referee: Rachel Lawton
No report received.

ARROYO GRANDE 36 – Fresno 15 Referee: Giles Wilson
Looking forward to my first game in nearly a month due to injury and surgery I set out for the 4 hour drive to Arroyo Grande;

about 90 minutes in I met up with the Lone Pelican, himself migrating northward for his games, for my morning coffee. Then

onwards through the rain to my destination, hoping that the rain would break but thinking that I'd need to purchase some sort

of undershirt to stay warm. Through SLO the rain fell heavily but as I descended to Pismo the curtain lifted, just in time.

I'd planned enough time to stop and stretch my legs at Pismo, and to purchase frozen chowder from Splash café; the

interesting response to my order for a frozen quart was “is that to go????” Ah well.

Then on down to River bottom in AG; the farm track was thick with mud (some of which came home with me) but dropping down to

the field it was in perfect shape. There followed a brief spell of drizzle before the rugby gods overcame for a beautiful

sunny rugby day.

Fresno had beaten AG handily early in the season bit these teams are moving in opposite directions; AG have their exchange

players in and Fresno have lost a number who performed well early in the year.

The kiwi pair in the center worked the inexperienced Fresno back 3 to a charm; 4 first half tries (a hat trick to the outside

center) came from cross kicks; either well followed and caught on the fly or muffed by the receiver. In the second half the

wiser JoJo McKenzie moved from center back to fullback and the tactic was solved. By the end of the first half a dispirited

Fresno was looking up at a 22 – 3 deficit.

Fresno came a little alive in the second half but this was not the Fresno of previous years and while they applied pressure,

AG played as though they were the team in arrears and still won the second half by 2 points 14 – 12. Overall a well earned 36

– 15 victory for AG.

The drive back home was uneventful, now all that's left is a car wash.

CHICO STATE 38 – St. Mary's 23 Referee: Sam Reagle
Conditions: Cloudy, damp
At the last minute, CSUC nixed the use of their on-campus pitch due to too much rain so we played at Bidwell Jr. HS, home

pitch of the Chico men's club. This pitch had pretty good traction, but was a bit "lumpy" in spots. The rain waited until

after the game, but the strong winds did not appear to be a factor as there was only 1 missed conversion and no missed

penalty goals.

Chico won the toss and quickly went to work attacking the middle of the defense. Several phases later, the SMC backs were

overanxious and with only 2 minutes gone, Chico led 3-0. Chico looked to extend their lead a few minutes later when their

inside center split the defense and headed for the goal line only to slip, land on his back and knock-on about 1 meter out.

SMC added their own penalty kick at the 13 minute mark to tie the game. Both teams added a converted try and then SMC added

another penalty kick to go into halftime with the lead 13-10, despite having a man in the bin for repeated offenses.

In the second half, Chico kicked off to SMC, picked up the loose ball and scored a converted try with less than a minute

played. Chico added another penalty kick before SMC answered with their own converted try at the 50 minute mark and another

penalty kick 6 minutes later to tie it at 23.

Chico scored a converted try 61 minutes in to break the tie and scored their last try at the 75 minute mark while SMC had

another man in the bin for repeated infringements. The teams ended the game at full strength with Chico on the attack only

to lose the ball in touch. All in all, a very entertaining game from 2 very respectful teams.

Seconds: CHICO STATE 48 – St. Mary's 14 Ref: Reagle
Appointed referee Rich Anderson went to St. Mary's and wondered where everyone was.

UC DAVIS 27 – Sacramento State 19 Referee: John Coppinger
Referee Coach: David Williamson

Seconds: UC DAVIS 14 – Sacramento State 10 Referee: Tony Latu
Sac State struck first in a 75 m run by their outside center, conversion good. Sac was leading 10-7 with two minutes to go.

But Davis came back and hard, and at the end....Sac-10, Davis-14.

UOP forfeits to Santa Rosa JC

Humboldt State women – Chico State
Canceled by HSU for ‘disciplinary reasons' according to Jim Crenshaw

HUMBOLDT STATE 36 – U. of San Francisco 10 Referee: Jim Crenshaw
Drove up to Humboldt County Friday night and spent the night with some friends in Garberville. Got up and headed to Arcata

for the Humboldt State - USF game under cloudy skies and cool temperatures. Half way there, the rain started, then the hail

started, but by the time I arrived in Arcata, it was back to just hard rain.

Amazingly, at kickoff, the rain stopped and by the beginning of the second half the sun was shining.

We started the scoring with USF scoring a penalty kick. It was the last lead they would have. Humboldt scored five tries, two

of them converted in the first half. Score at halftime Humboldt 29 USF 3.

Humboldt and USF both made a couple of substitutions at halftime. USF scored a converted try about 15 minutes into the second

half and Humboldt answered about 10 minutes later. The field was very wet and muddy in the second half, with knock-ons and

the resulting scrums taking up a significant portion of the game.

Final score: Humboldt 36 USF 10

Fog B side 0 – SEATTLE UNIVERSITY 52 Referee: Kat Todd-Schwartz
At Herz Park in SF
Seattle University is on tour this week and had already played two games prior to the Fog B side match. The Fog wanted their

B side players to get more game time; the whole club is preparing for the Bingham Cup in New York in May.

Seattle scored three converted tries in the first half of the game, with another five in the second half. After issuing cards

to both teams for repeat infringements, the second half cleaned up and both teams had moments of fairly inspired rugby.

Seattle is a brand new team at a small university of 2700 students; Coach Alvin has strong connections to NorCal rugby and

the Fog. Kudos to the Fog who again put on a fun post game social at the Metro (in the Castro). The Seattle boys were selling

a "beefcake" calendar for fundraising, and appeared to do a good business at the Metro!

THE GAME YOU'VE ALREADY HEARD ABOUT

Here is my match report for today's (Monday) game for the pelicanrefs.com newsletter.

Univ. of Washington 3 (8th minute) – Cal 5 (5th minute) Referee: Craig Parish
Match Abandoned 10th minute.
Touch Judges: Ron Myers, Tom Mershon
Coach/Evaluator: None

UW kicked off going downhill. After a series of rucks, scrums and lineouts Cal scored an unconverted try. Upon the restart

another series of rucks and mishandled balls occurred which eventually saw Cal conceding a penalty about 25m out from goal.

Subsequent to that penalty being awarded to UW, an exchange took place between the Referee and Cal 's Head Coach which

culminated in a red card being issued. The penalty was goaled, Cal left the pitch, and the match was over.

Report provided by:

Ron Myers, TJ
Pacific Northwest Rugby Referee Society
Oregon Youth Rugby Referee Society
Northern California Rugby Referee Society

HIGH SCHOOL GAMES

Thursday 3/23 under the lights at Oak Ridge

Oak Ridge Frosh/Soph7 – JESUIT "C" side 17 Referee: Sam Reagle
Conditions: Recent rain
Not much to report. Some knew the laws, many didn't. Good play by both scrumhalves with mostly good decisions and sharp

passes.

Oak Ridge 36 – JESUIT "B" side 0 Referee: Sam Reagle
Probably a good decision by Oak Ridge to keep the ball in the forwards most of the game given the muddy pitch. OR repeatedly

picked and drove in 5 meter chunks with good coordination and timing. Jesuit had moments of good teamwork, but rarely could

gain an overlap or make the key pass to cross the goal line. Jesuit had opportunities; it wasn't the blowout that the score

implies.

Friday Games

Del Campo 20 – Rio Americano 29 Referee: Sam Reagle
This was a seesaw contest between two pretty evenly matched teams. Rio seemed better disciplined in sticking to their game

plan and the Cougars wide open style resulted in multiple scores by their backs, mostly near the lake at one end of the pitch

that left the wingers isolated.

Del Campo scored an unconverted try just 2 minutes into the game with Rio Americano answering with their own unconverted try

4 minutes later. Then, Del Campo scored (unconverted) again 3 minutes after that and Rio closed out the half with a

converted try to lead 12-10.

The second half was just like the first. Del Campo scored 4 minutes in (15-12), then Rio (19-15), then Rio again (24-15),

then Del Campo (20-24) with 15 minutes to play. This game was clearly up for grabs until Rio scored again to settle into the

final score of 29-20.

ELSIE ALLEN 46 – Rancho Cotate 0 Referee: Joe Leisek
A tough, physical contest played in aromatic, adobe pudding. (Players and coaches are all looking for a little sun and

slightly dryer playing fields.) Elsie played well in spite of the muck, taking advantage of mistakes and creating

opportunities quickly. They also managed to retain the ball through several possessions, as is their trademark. Among the

Elsie players, prop Craig Manno had a very good game, as did Josh Berto, who has been moved out to center. Captain Manny

Ambriz did as well...this is a front row that can match up with any high school side. Rancho is still coming together as a

team; I enjoy them very much and see progress from just a few weeks ago.

APTOS 14 – Los Altos 12 Referee: Bruce Carter
Answer: Leave the office in Salinas at six to drive up Highway One along the shores of the Monterey Bay at sunset to referee

a high school rugby game in Aptos.

Question: What is the perfect antidote to another sixty-hour work week?

The pitch at Aptos High School was given over to lacrosse as the ruggers assembled. Five minutes on the clock translated to

almost half an hour. One of the frustrated footballers was heard to say that the “Quidditch faeries” probably had “two more

chukkers to screw around”.

(But finish they did, the homestanding Mariners winning 8 – 2 in their first season over an unidentified opponent.)

Coaches of the two teams, Greg Stohr of Los Altos and Vaughn Stumpf of Aptos, have more in common than names ending in

uncommon consonant clusters. The ref is lucky enough to consider them both old friends, another wonderful feature of our

code.

This game started fast and furious, if not somewhat chaotic. Even though Skyhawk conference playoffs begin next Saturday,

there were a number of players in their first or second games, and some lineup shuffles due to unavailability.

Each team scored two tries in the first half. Aptos converted two to Los Altos' one, perhaps due to the expert holding of the

ball for the place kicks on the muddy grass by Aptos coach Marcel Herle.

In the second half, defense got the better of offense on the narrow pitch and no more points were forthcoming. One conversion

proved to be the difference.

3/21/06

Sonoma 10 – ELSIE ALLEN 20 Referee: Bo Rodman
Venue: Hanna Boys Center ( Sonoma )

On a beautiful Tuesday evening, Elsie Allen came over to Sonoma to play the host Dragons on what can best be described as a

'questionable' pitch - pun intended. The field lists noticeably from east to west...

The Lobos, coming off a very successful tour of Southern California played mostly 2nd and 3rd side players. The hosts got

out to an early 5-0 lead; but, Elsie played aggressively through the back line and was able to hold on to a 20-10 final

score.

No goal posts present so no conversions and no penalty kicks.

3/24/06

SONOMA 20 – Santa Rosa 5 Referee: Bo Rodman
Venue: Hanna Boys Center ( Sonoma )

I take back everything bad I said about this venue on Tuesday night (except for the rocks poking up out of the ground). On a

wet and cold Friday afternoon we were able to get a game of rugby played.

The hosts were clearly more determined and the play and results are indicative.

Getting out to a 17-0 lead at halftime, the Dragons held on to win 20-5.

Note - an industrious parent had added goalposts since Tuesday!!!

Saturday:

3/25/06
Piedmont @ Golden Gate U-19
Venue: Treasure Island
Would Be Referee: Bo Rodman
I have no idea what happened to this match... I woke up at 5:45 on a Saturday morning for an 8:30 kickoff at Treasure Island

.

Arriving at the pitch I couldn't help but notice great conditions and clear skies. No standing water, no existing mud to

suggest that the field was beat up. Suffice to say that I was surprised to find the visiting coach who informed me that the

match was cancelled. A phone call would have been nice...

Oh well, off to Santa Rosa to see if I can run touch for someone.

Silicon Valley 10 – EAST PALO ALTO 46 Referee: Bruce Carter
After a close first fifty minutes, EPA ran the tries in freely.

HAYWARD 36 – Lamorinda 19 Referee: Joe Androvich
Evaluator: Bryan Porter

LIVE OAK 32 – Peninsula Green 0 Referee: Sandy Robertson
Live Oak came out strong in the first half, controlling the ball and making the most of their penalty opportunities, scoring

3 converted tries and kicking 2 penalties before the intermission. Peninsula Green's defense stiffened in the 2nd stanza and

made some good use of their possession but they were unable to cross Live Oak's line.

DE LA SALLE 43 – Marin 10 Referee: Chris Parkhouse
DLS came flying out of the blocks scoring the first try inside 2 mins and adding a second with barely 5 mins on the clock. A

third would have been added in quick succession barring a forward pass 5m out with the try line begging. After this initial

onslaught Marin battled their way back into the game with a bulldozing try from the forwards followed by a conversion and

penalty which brought them to within 7 points. That was as close as it got, DLS slowly exerting their dominance in forward

play and probing runs from the backs to run out winners.

GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL PRESEASON MATCH

ALAMEDA 32 – Berkeley U19, 10 Referee: Steve Jarmek
Match was close with the sides tied 5-5 at the half, Berkeley playing short with 3 "converted" Alameda players. Second half,

Alameda took control powered by strong breakaway runs of their #6 Flanker.

GARY MALPAS LIVES ON-LINE

Our recent visitor was the one who checked with potential billets to see what speed Internet connections they had.

He found something on E-Bay that you might be interested in:

“Looks like we should have gone into badge commodities guys!”

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NORTERN-CALIFORNIA-REFEREE-SOCIETY-RUGBY-BADGE_W0QQitemZ8786624105QQcategoryZ2881QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

THE SAGA OF THE LAW BOOKS

Readers with prodigious and far-reaching memories will recall way back in November of 2005, when the IRB asked us how many

lawbooks we wanted.

Having withdrawn permission from national unions to publish the book without paying royalties, the IRB decided to take over

vending worldwide. However, they wanted to deal with a minimum number of folks in each country, hardly the model for a

successful retail endeavor.

So your Pelican Society dutifully ordered a hundred books for its members. We were promised delivery either in time for the

December 1 beginning of our season or soon thereafter.

The order was placed through Peter Watson, who no doubt rues the day his name was spelled for the first time, such must be

the number of queries he has received after the appearance of these long-rumored books.

Bear in mind that the IRB is known as an organization with global interests and investments. It funds a number of

multi-national competitions and coordinates the affairs of thousands of professionals. It is the custodian of our sacred

game.

Now let us inhabit the mind of Peter Watson for a moment. He has been letting the phone ring, shunning e-mail, ignoring the

blinking beacon of the answering machine, knowing that another lawless and ignorant waif out there is helpless without a

printed law book, pleading for satisfaction; and no doubt there are many fifteens of players suffering under such ignorant

fools. After all, anyone can find the Laws on the Internet for free…

But Peter Watson is a rugby man – an optimist. He knows that, as certain as the first red robin will replace the snow drifts

of the New England winter, a package will arrive at his address from the IRB, a bounty of lawbooks to satisfy the blowers

from sea to shining sea.

And as many inquiries as he fields and avoids, yet still he must at least ask up the chain at least every so often. So he

e-mailed Sadie Thomas:

“Should I assume from this that the 2006 books STILL HAVE NOT ARRIVED?”

(emphasis in the original)

Now imagine the normally implacable Peter when he read this reply:

“No, the law books have not arrived at the National Office. I just received a
phone call from Oregon customs wondering what to do with this order large
mysterious order that arrived. They do not know where it came from or where
it is supposed to go. Somehow they saw your name and found the NO phone
number but they will not release the boxes until they have been paid for.
Apparently they are on consignment or something?”

Good thing Dubai Ports World isn't running our portals of entry. They might let a ‘large mysterious order' of unknown

provenance and cryptic destination proceed merely upon payment of postage due.

Ah, but the mystery is at least solved. A nice, neat shipment of lawbooks from Dublin to Peter Watson of Oregon , USA .

But as with any good mystery, when you turn the page there is another surprise. In this case it is a fax received by the

National Orifice last week, presumably announcing the shipment.

See if you can get your intellect around this one:

ATT TO: PETER WATSON
FROM: TATIANA LARRACHE / GIMEX S.A.

DEAR MR. WATSON:

WE ARE THE FORWARDING AGENTS TO GRAFICEMS IN SPAIN . WE HAVE AN AIR SHIPMENT GOING YOUR WAY OF 600 KGS AND THE COMMODITY ARE

( sic ) BOOKS.

WE DECIDED TO SEND IT TROUGH ( sic ) UPS – SIC (THE CARGO BRANCE OF UPS) AND THE MASTER AIRWAY BILL IS MAWB: 406 9200 0462 (I

IMAGINE THAT YOU ARE FAMILIAR WITH THE TERMS BUT I HAD TO TELL YOU ANYWAY THIS NUMBER IS LIKE A TRACKING NUMBER).

THE FLIGHTS ARE AS THEY FOLLOW:

MADRID-COLOGNE…5X 0249 / MARCH 14 th
COLOGNE-LOUISVILLE…5X 0214 / MARCH 15 th
LOUISVILLE-DENVER…5X 0896 / MARCH 16 th

IF YOU HAVE ANY PROBLEM WHATSOEVER OR YOU MAY NEED ANY INFORMATION, PLEASE DON'T HESITATE TO GET IN TOUCH WITH ME, THE DIRECT

PHONE NUMBER IS ___________, ETC.

HAVE A NICE DAY, KIND REGARDS,

TATIANA LARRACHE / AIR DEPARTMENT AT GIMEX S. A.

P. S.:

NOW THAT WE HAVE TRANSACTED BUSINESS ON THIS BASIS, I HAVE A CONFIDENTIAL OFFER FOR YOU AND YOU ALONE.

FIRST, I MUST SOLICIT YOUR STRICTEST CONFIDENCE IN THIS TRANSACTION. THIS IS BY VIRTUE OF ITS NATURE AS BEING UTTERLY

CONFIDENTIAL AND 'TOP SECRET'. I AM SURE AND HAVE CONFIDENCE OF YOUR ABILITY AND RELIABILITY TO PROSECUTE A TRANSACTION OF

THIS GREAT MAGNITUDE INVOLVING A PENDING TRANSACTION REQUIRING MAXIMUM CONFIDENCE.

HERE AT GIMEX S. A. WE DO A LOT OF BUSINESS WITH DISCRETE MEN OF MEANS SUCH AS YOURSELF. SOME ARE, BY NECESSITY, MORE

DISCRETE THAN OTHERS. THIS IS WHERE YOUR ASSISTANCE WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED AND REMUNERATION COULD BE SUBSTANTIAL.

A LARGE CONSIGNMENT OF RUGBY LAWBOOKS, WORLD CUP MEMORABILIA, AUTOGRAPHED TOUR JERSEYS , KIDNAPPED MASCOTS, SIGNED SCORECARDS

AND IRB BEER MATS HAS BEEN MISDIRECTED TO NIGERIA . AS YOU KNOW, GIMEX S. A. NORMALLY USES ONLY THE MOST LOGICAL AND DIRECT

SHIPPING METHODS AND ROUTES, WITH ABSOLUTE IDENTIFICATION OF ALL THE PARTIES INVOLVED. SO WE HAVE NO IDEA HOW THIS HAPPENED.

FORMER NIGERIAN MILITARY REGIMENS MALCONTENTS EXHILED TO THE CUSTOMS DEPARTMENT HAVE BEEN WORKING A SCHEME WITH THE CENTRAL

BANK OF NIGERIA WHEREBY THEY: CERTIFY THE VALUE OF IMPORTED OR IN-TRANSIT GOODS AT INFLATED LEVELS; OBTAIN SHORT-TERM

DELIVERY INSURANCE AGAINST SUCH VALUATIONS; REPORT THE GOODS AS STOLEN; ‘RECOVER' THEM AT GREAT EFFORT ONLY AFTER THE

SPECIFIED TIME FOR DELIVERY HAS PASSED; COLLECT ON THE INSURANCE; GIVE A KICKBACK TO OTHER FORMER REGIMEN OFFICIALS AT THE

BANK; RE-INSURE AT A HIGHER RATE GIVEN THE OBVIOUS DESIRABILITY OF THE GOODS TO THE CRIMINAL CLASSES; AND REPEAT AD

INFINITUM.

THIS OBVIOUSLY DEFRAUDS SHARE HOLDERS IN THE BANK AND THE SURITY COMPANY AND DENIES THE LEGITIMATE OWNERS OF THE

TRANS-SHIPPED MERCHANDISE THE USE OF THEIR COMMODITIES.

HOWEVER, BY VIRTUE OF THE AMOUNT OF BUSINESS THAT GIMEX S. A. DOES WITH THE NIGERIAN REGIMEN AND ITS DISCONTENTS, WE CANNOT

AFFORD TO ‘BLOW THE WHISTLE' ON THIS SCHEME.

THE LARGE CONSIGNMENT MARKED ONLY “TO PETER WATSON, OREGON , USA ” HAS BEEN INSURED, STOLEN, RECOVERED AND RE-APPRAISED

FIFTEEN TIMES. IT WOULD CURRENTLY REQUIRE A PAYMENT OF US $21,320,000.00 (TWENTY ONE MILLION, THREE HUNDRED AND TWENTY

THOUSAND U.S DOLLARS) TO ACQUIRE THIS CONSIGNMENT FREE AND CLEAR.

I HAVE THEREFORE, BEEN DELEGATED AS A MATTER OF TRUST BY MY COLLEAGUES OF THE BOARD TO LOOK FOR AN OVERSEAS PARTNER INTO

WHOSE ACCOUNT WE WOULD TRANSFER THE SUM OF HENCE WE ARE WRITING YOU THIS LETTER. YOU WOULD THEN BE ABLE TO CLAIM THE

MERCHANDISE.

OBVIOUSLY, WE CANNOT SEND YOU A DRAFT OR CHEQUE FOR SUCH A LARGE AMOUNT. WE WILL NEED TO DEPOSIT IT DIRECTLY TO YOUR ACCOUNT.

PLEASE SEND US YOUR ACCOUNT NUMBER. WE WILL ALSO NEED YOUR PASSWORDS TO SATISFY THE BANK THAT SUCH A LARGE TRANSACTION IS

LEGITIMATE. ALSO, ANY CREDIT CARD NUMBERS ALONG WITH THE NAMES AS WRITTEN ON THE CARD, BILLING ADDRESSES INCLUDING ZIP CODES,

AND THREE-DIGIT SECURITY CODES WOULD HELP US ESTABLISH OUR BONA FIDES WITH YOUR BANK, THAT WE HAVE YOUR TRUST.

PLEASE, NOTE THAT THIS TRANSACTION IS 100% SAFE AND WE HOPE TO COMMENCE THE TRANSFER LATEST SEVEN (7) BANKING DAYS FROM THE

DATE OF THE RECEIPT OF THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION BY TEL/FAX; 234-1-7740449.

WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO DOING THIS BUSINESS WITH YOU AND SOLICIT YOUR CONFIDENTIALITY IN THIS TRANSATION. PLEASE

ACKNOWLEDGE THE RECEIPT OF THIS LETTER USING THE ABOVE TEL/FAX NUMBERS. I WILL SEND YOU DETAILED INFORMATION OF THIS PENDING

PROJECT WHEN I HAVE HEARD FROM YOU.

AND WE SINCERELY HOPE THAT YOU LEARN A LOT FROM YOUR LAW BOOKS.

YOURS FAITHFULLY,

DR TATIANA LARRACHE OKON

NOTE; PLEASE QUOTE THIS REFERENCE NUMBER (VE/S/09/6B6) IN ALL YOUR RESPONSES.

THIS WEEK'S PHOTO

beer_garden

The beer garden at Witter Field doubles as the referee hangout. We have no idea how such a tradition began.

This picture was taken after the final of the Cal Invitational, March 19 th .

Left to Right:

David Buckey, Rich Anderson, Elaine Baggott, Ron Gore, Ron Myers, David Williamson, Bob Tustin, Paul ‘Boomer' Andrews, Bryan

Porter, Ian Baggott.

Paul Andrews, for the non-initiates, founded the first fifteen-a-side rugby tournament in history. In world history. In the

history of this sport. The very first one, the granddaddy of them all.

That was the Monterey Tournament, which began in mid-fifties. And it was Boomer's idea, to bridge the distances involved in

American rugby by offering teams the chance to play more than one game on a weekend.

HAIL, PELICUS!

For the Senate
Pelicus Scriptoris