HAIL, PELICUS!
PROMOTIONS
Jordan Bruno has been promoted to L2, and Bob Polito has also been promoted to L3.
Onward and upward!
THE FEW, THE PROUD, THE PELICAN REFS
This Saturday, February 4, we are only able to cover a couple of second-side matches. If anyone reading this wants a game, there are six club and college matches without assigned referees.
After February 11, a slow week, it gets worse:
Feb. 18: 31 refs 39 games
Feb. 25: 36 refs 45 games
(The referee count is optimistic: it includes Maybes. We have already lost four refs to surgery or medical problems, before things even crank up in earnest.)
If you can help out, please let us know. It’s not too early to send in March availability, by the way.
FRIDAY
ST. MARY’S GAELS 41 – University of Utah Utes 10 Referee: Chris Tucker
AR: Jordan Bruno
Blazingly fast game as the Gaels showed mid-season form in a warm-up match. First try 2 minutes in went the length of the field, and the width of it twice as well. The game did not slow down.
Both teams were over-competing at the breakdown in the first half, leading to more penalties than we would like, but it settled in the second as the teams decided to keep a full fifteen on the field. Well, at least until near the end of the game when a dangerous tackle from the Gaels (thanks Jordan for getting the number - I was busy in-goal) and a trip from the Utes earned matching yellows. But this did not detract overly from a fun exhibition game that points to goods things this year from the Moraga boys.
Seconds: ST. MARY’s 40 – University of Utah 17 Referee: Jordan Bruno
On a bright Friday afternoon in Moraga SMC seemed well on their way to moving into the season as top national contenders as they handily defeated Utah’s A and B sides. Structured, organized, and well-disciplined support, back line defense, and scrummaging saw St. Mary’s B side run up the score after a close first half. Utah came to the match fit and experienced, contesting at the scrums and tackling hard in the open field. More successful backline play allowed SMC to score early and often. The end score did not do Utah’s side justice--the match was much closer than the end score would suggest. Both sides were well matched with a fit “hybrid” forward pack that moved around the field effortlessly, inserting into the backline with ease.
UC DAVIS women 17 – Oregon State 14 Referee: Scott Wood
AR: Donal Walsh, Jim Crenshaw
Location: Russell Field, Davis
A late afternoon Friday match. The turf was soft but held well. Both teams were short on experienced players, especially Oregon State who was missing a number of the stalwart front rows. Sizing the teams up, Davis looked to bigger in the pack and OSU had some fleet-footed backs. This proved the case as the game went on. The Aggies spent much of the first half pressuring the Beavers; however, OSU was able to steal the ball and score two converted tries. Halftime: OSU led 14-0.
The second half was a bit different. OSU had problems with understanding the tackler assist's responsibilities. Davis moved the ball well but knock-ons and poor backline decisions (e.g., predictive dummy-dummy-cut) prevented positive advancement. Davis turned up the heat in the final 20 minutes and capitalized off OSU's errors to score two converted tries. With two minutes remaining, OSU won the restart and worked downfield to within five meters of the try line. A penalty was awarded against Davis for failing to roll away. OSU started on the right 15-meter line and spun the ball in front of the posts. An opportune tackle by Davis. The ballcarrier released the ball, stood up and...knocked-on the ball as she tried to regather it. A most unfortunate ending to an awesome game.
SATURDAY
SF/Golden Gate D1 24 – UNIVERSITY OF UTAH seconds 27 Referee: Pete Smith
SF/GOLDEN GATE SL 56 – University of Utah 19 Referee: Tom Zanarini
AR: Pete Smith, Ron DeCausemaker
Assessor: Bryan Porter
A beautiful day on Treasure Island. My mother is in town for my birthday and got a taste of Norcal rugby. Big and fast players for both sides. Utah seemed a little worn down from their Friday night match but nonetheless put in a very good show. Thanks to Pete, Ron and Bryan for their assistance.
Sacramento State 3 – CALIFORNIA 48 Referee: Angus McDonald-Watson
ARs: Phil Akroyd, JC van Staden
(The referee was visiting Lake Tahoe from South Africa and happened to be able to help us with a late-addition game.)
Sacramento Capitals 19 – OLYMPIC CLUB 54 Referee: Chris Tucker
A sharp contrast to my Friday game, this was exactly what you might expect from a preseason game. The Caps scrapped together 15 by kickoff -for a home game - and O Club seemed to be missing a few regulars. Result was more offense than defense, both teams getting their fair share of ball, score and penalties. Of note was the scrum, utterly dominated by OC. I told OC's props to keep it safe, but there was a time when they were pushing early and earning free kicks against themselves. Quoth the prop 'we're not exactly getting much resistance', 'Yes, but you know that in advance, don't you?' I replied, and promptly awarded another FK. They sorted it out after that. To their credit, the Caps kept pushing until the end, played hard and extracted 3 tries for their efforts. The result, however, was not in doubt.
EPA RAZORBACKS 42 – Sacramento Lions 38 Referee: JC van Staden
Yet another great day for rugby!!! Great pre-season game. After EPA announced they could not travel, Sac Lions agreed to travel down to meet them. Even with a few men down, EPA shared some players to help out the Lions. Great running rugby, cause for some spectacular tries, with EPA clenching the win with only 1 min on the clock.
Good luck to both teams for the rest of the season. May it be as spectator-friendly as this game.
DIABLO GAELS 69 – Chico Mighty Oaks 19 Referee: James Hinkin
Last week we discussed the gods and their appreciation of the oval ball. It seems that their appreciation has extended as, in a hotly contested debate, the gods of winter were shouted down by the gods of summer - highlighted by a volcano goddess accusing the storm gods of "only wanting to rain on her lava", resulting in another weekend of springlike weather slated for late January. Mid 60s temperatures and bright sunshine on a perfectly marked field (even the flags were in the right place!) almost caused this referee to start channeling Belinda Carlisle at the top of his voice.
Almost.
Diablo as the home side were out in numbers and ready from the start. Chico was only able to travel with 15 players but all 15 were ready to go at the whistle. Numbers may be an issue this year as one of the 15 was a player I played with in college - and he was a senior my first year.
Diablo kicked into a strong wind but did not let that have any effect on their play. They ran a high-pressure defense and a relentless offense that, after an early penalty to get things started, put up a steady stream of tries. Chico struggled to reorganize on multiple phases and Diablo took advantage. 5 tries in each half was the result of a steady and effective game plan.
Chico played hard and clean, not giving in to temptation as the score mounted. The aforementioned gods looked kindly upon this and did grin, so they rewarded the Mighty Oaks with a triad of opportunistic tries near the end of the match. Two charged-down kicks and an interception resulted in three tries for the visiting 15.
While heaven may be a place on earth I would expect that winter will make itself felt sooner rather than later. In the meantime, this was rugby at its finest.
Seconds: DIABLO GAELS 24 – Chico 20 Referee: Giles Wilson
Chico was very short on numbers and agreed to a 40 minute 2nd side game with their numbers supported by some Vallejo players who were on hand.
Gaels pulled out to a 10 - 0 and then 17 - 0 lead before Chico started to drive tight and make ground first for a try and then a drop goal (don't see those that often in D2) and 17 - 8. Another Gaels score brought up 24 - 8 before Chico finished with 2 more scores for 24 - 20 in favour of the Gaels.
SEAHAWKS 47 – South Valley 15 Referee: Bruce Bernstein
Very impressive for San Jose Seahawks in all phases of play Saturday which began at Yerba Beuna HS in San Jose with very sunny 70 degree weather: Coming from behind to outscore South Valley 21-10 in the first half followed by a similar result in the second; their tight 5 dominated all set play, their #8 broke the game line with a number of runs, great half back combo & both wingers never died with the ball making for some exciting backline play. Oh yeah their kicker converted 6 of 7 opportunities & bounced the 7th off the crossbar.
South Valley was overmatched mainly because of their numbers and when they lost their scrumhalf to a twisted ankle things got worse. The Seahawks had depth, fans, and a great party venue in downtown San Jose Britannia Arms complete with both teams a great spread, drink & rugby songs.
Seconds: Seahawks – South Valley Referee: Sandy Robertson
Nothing to report--though San Jose had a full contingent, South Valley had no 2nd side bodies. SV put together a motley crew, we scrimmaged for one 20 minute period. 2 guys went at it as we lined up for the 2nd period. I gave them the rest of the day off. A few minutes into the 2nd period a San Jose player went after an SV player. I red carded the SJ player (have sent info to the NCRFU judiciary), and called it a day.
Berkeley 7 – FRESNO 40 Referee: Phil Akroyd
AR: Dave Newport
This was a sloppy, stop and go game, interspersed with short periods of break out rugby, resulting in tries.
Fresno travelled with about 22 players for round one of D2 league play, while the home team had around 32, but Fresno looked physically superior with a team that has played together for a while. The game started tight and there was only one try in the first half, going to Fresno, resulting in a 0-7 lead at half.
Right after the half, Fresno fielded a kick in their own 22 and appeared to have too much time in which to make a decision. The 9 threw a long floaty pass to his fly-half in the middle of the field and almost immediately regretted it. A Berkeley chaser picked off the pass and ran in unopposed for the try under the sticks. Game tied at 7s.
That seemed to be the slap around the chops that Fresno needed and they started playing a more polished, aggressive game with more successful backs moves. They scored off a Berkeley dropped pass, another from deep within their own half from their electric winger Grayson and one from the forwards in a goal line stand, near the end (amongst others). Overall a decent game but these teams will improve and deliver more as the season progresses.
After the game I jumped in the car and made it back to the KOT just in time to see the team I have been helping out with coaching - Rancho Cordova PAL U14 - play Lamorinda.
Following that game, I along with JC van Staden AR'd the Sac State v Cal game in the 7:30pm Kick-off at Lancer Stadium. The game was reffed by Angus McDonald-Watson from Durban who happened to be in Tahoe on vacation with his family. It just so happened he also had his boots with him. Cal won pretty comfortably in the end by 3-48.
Sunday involved more KOT action, but there were too many games to go into.
Seconds: Berkeley 10 – FRESNO 14 Referee: Jen Tetler
After a hard fought 1st side match, the Berkeley subs were jonesing to take the field while the Fresno boys (11 of whom had played in the earlier match) were hoping to head straight to the bar. That came a little too close to happening when, in the first 5 minutes of the game, one of the Berkeley players broke his leg...badly enough that several players had to look away so they didn't puke and an ambulance was called. After the player was stabilized, we continued on with the game, agreeing to 20 minutes left in the 1st half and 30 for the 2nd.Berkeley looked quite good in the first half, putting up 2 tries, but were unable to convert. The half ended 10-0. Fresno came out in the 2nd half with a bit more gusto and after a few back and forth stands, they were able to put 7 points on the board. They scored another try with two minutes left in the half, and converted as well, putting them ahead by 4. Berkeley tried to get the ball back, but just didn't have the time. Final score Fresno 14 - Berkeley 10.
SANTA ROSA 16 – Baracus 7 Referee: John Coppinger
For Pete's Sake Field
Tight game as two teams went at each other hard. Both teams struggled with the tackle law; BA Baracus falling over the ball and Santa Rosa failing to release the tackled player. A penalty goal to Santa Rosa was the only score in the first half.
Both teams made adjustments to score tries in the second half; but Rosa found cohesion to score two unconverted tries and a penalty goal to Baracus' one converted try for a 16-7 final.
Seconds: SANTA ROSA 33 – Baracus 14 Referee: Mike Gadoua
Great Rosa weather, the game was close from kick off to the final whistle.
The backs of both teams appeared mutually comparable at first glance, but the well-coached forwards of Rosa dominated scrums, rucks and mauls. Rosa also tended to pick up the ball in loose play. Rugby 101: You can’t score without possession. Picking the ball up satisfies that element. The forwards would then advance and spin it out to the backs who penetrated well into the visitor’s defense.
The hosts seem to run out of gas in the end but despite the score, they played well despite being a little disorganized.
MARIN REDS 21 – Vacaville Dogs 12 Referee: George O'Neil
Seconds: MARIN 26 – Vacaville 15 Ref: O’Neil
Marin were great hosts. The weather was perfect for two great games. The first game was a very close game with Marin pulling away in the last 10 minutes to seal the win. The second side match was played in great spirits. Both games were a pleasure to referee.
STANFORD women 67 – Triple Threat 5 Referee: Brad Richey
STANFORD women seconds 28 – Fresno State 20 Referee: Bob Polito
Referee Coach: John Pohlman
Stanford – CALIFORNIA 109 Referee: Aruna Ranaweera
Assistant Referees: John Pohlman, Brad Richey
One-way traffic at Steuber Field. Cal led 62-0 at half and tallied a total of 17 tries. The final score had to be abbreviated on the scoreboard which read "Stanford 00, Guest 09" at the final whistle. Much thanks to John and Brad for their help.
Stanford seconds 14 – STANFORD GSB 34 Referee: John Pohlman
AR: Aruna Ranaweera TJ: Stanford player
Northern California is blessed with a number of outstanding venues. This past Saturday I was graced with officiating at one of them, Stanford's Steuber Family Rugby Stadium.
Stanford men and women hosted four games. The women's II played Fresno State at 10:30AM, their first side hosted a combination Triple Threat/FOG at 12:00. Then the Men's I hosted Cal. I at 2:00PM.
My game was a combination of Stanford's II and III playing the Stanford Graduate Schools.
I had just finished running AR for Aruna's A side game, and running is the appropriate word. I thought Cal's II would be playing Stanford II, which could have been a lot of scoring. Instead the Stanford had a game scrimmage which allowed close to 30 players to see action. Many of these players showing some good stuff, but possibly one of their first games.
The game started as very competitive and hard-fought. The first try was by Stanford at 26 minutes. The Graduates took charge late in the first half with two scores at 32 and 38 minutes.
The second half saw a lot of substitutions. At one point it looked like all fifteen were subbed.
In fact, one of the Graduate players said "Hey ref they got 16 players on the field". They did.
With the young players working hard but disorganized, the grads pulled away with 4 trys in the second half. The youngsters were encouraged when they scored a final try to end the game.
Thanks for a great rugby experience.
Chico State women – Oregon CANCELED
Chico State 22 – ST. MARY’S 36 Referee: Eric Geib (ERRRS)
AR: Paul Johnston (ERRRS)
Referee Coach: Kat Todd-Schwartz
Videographer: Bruce Carter
Seconds: Chico State 5 – ST. MARY’S 27 Referee: Paul Johnston (ERRRS)
AR: Eric Geib (ERRRS)
Referee Coach: Bruce Carter
At For Pete's Sake in Santa Rosa
SANTA ROSA JC 31 – UC Santa Cruz 10 Referee: Cary Bertolone
I received a call at 9:00 AM asking if we could kick off a half hour early so we had time for a second side game. UC Santa Cruz was already at the pitch. So we kicked off at 10:30am and Santa Cruz dominated the first 8 minutes before Santa Rosa made a quick pass and their big fullback scored a 50 meter try. Santa Cruz resumed their domination, especially in the scrums and in their rucking and three minutes later answered with a try of their own. Santa Cruz continued beating SRJC in most phases of the game until Santa Rosa once again had a long run from their backs for another try, making it 12-5, Rosa.
The next twenty minutes was pretty even and Rosa started winning their scrums (Santa Cruz lost a big lock and they apparently lost their advantage in the scrums). The last 5 minutes of the half, Rosa repeatedly almost scored, were held up twice and finally punched it in for a 19-5 halftime advantage.
In the second half, SRJC scored right away and dominated Santa Cruz the rest of the game. UC Santa Cruz never gave up and actually got on a roll the last 10 minutes, rucking well and finally scored at full time for the final 31-10 score.
Seconds: SANTA ROSA JC 12 – UC Santa Cruz 7 Ref: Bertolone
We played a 60 minute second side game before the Baracus vs Santa Rosa match.
It was fun and evenly contested. SRJC scored first with a try, Santa Cruz came
back and took the lead 7-5 and then Santa Rosa scored to win the game 12-7. The
ref was lagging and blowing the whistle from a long ways away, at times.
FRESNO STATE 37– Nevada 10 Referee: Jeff Jury
Warm day/good running; Reno starting to understand the kicking game - failed with their wings and 15.
Seconds: FRESNO STATE 12– 10 Nevada Ref: Jury
Kinda loose scrums that eventually tightened up, good deliberate running at goal. Breakdown still an adventure.
San Jose State 0 – MARITIME ACADEMY 41 Referee: Bruce Ricard
Beautiful January summer day in San Jose. Very intense game between those two teams, SJ scored at the 6th and 29th minute, and MA at the 18th and 36th, after a SJ player was temporarily excluded at the 34th. 10 - 10 at the break.
The second half was totally different, San Jose started to infringe at every ruck, either in the ruck, or the other players being off-side. At the 6th minute, a SJ player is temporarily excluded for repeated infringements at rucks. MA then scored 3 tries at the 6th, 8th (beautiful solo try from a back on the restart kick, not even on the open side), and 19th minutes. At the 34th minute, a SJ player is not rolling away from the tackle, he receives a yellow card for repeated infringements, and the number 10 of MA, who talks a lot, bitches about the sent off player, so I exclude him too. Finally MA scored 2 more tries at the 25th and 40th minutes of the game.
Final Score: San Jose 10 - Maritime Academy 41
Seconds: San Jose State 0 – MARITIME ACADEMY 20 Ref: Ricard
A lot of infringements at ruck from San Jose State. At the 5th minute, I temporarily exclude a SJ player after two dangerous tackles happened in 30 seconds. Maritime Academy managed to use this advantage and scored two tries at the 7th and 11th minutes. At the 14th minute, another SJ player is temporarily excluded for repeated infringements at rucks, and MA scores another try at the 16th minute.
At the 27th minute of the game, I awarded a penalty try to Maritime Academy, after their maul progressed 20m, and was collapsed 5m from SJ try line. SJ captain comes to me and tells me that I can't do that, because it was the other team that collapsed the maul, and after telling him that my decision was made, he kept arguing on with a pretty aggressive tone. Being the Nth time someone contests, I ask him once again to stop contesting the decisions and that we will restart with a penalty kick at the center for contesting. After having stepped back behind his line, the captain said "F___ that referee", so I asked him to come back, showed him the red card, and he kept insulting me while walking away. I asked the newly promoted captain the names and CIPP of the former captain, who went ask the information to his coach. We had to wait about 5 minutes on the pitch because the coach didn't have that number, and didn't want to say it, so the captain had to run back and forth between the coach and me to try to convince me to keep going and that I will have the number at the end of the game. I told him that the game would not resume before I had this number, they finally admitted that they didn't have it, and I ended the game. By the way, during those 5 (maybe 10 actually) minutes of waiting, we could hear from the rest of SJ team some "racist" insults concerning the French referee.
Final Score: 20 - 0
I stayed, as usual, in the middle of the pitch to shake hands with the players. The Maritime Academy players shaked, but none of the San Jose players.
I walk back to my bag, stretch, and grab my motorcycle boots to start getting changed, and I find a crumbled granola bar with water in them. A few minutes later I go speak with the SJ coach, who is horrified by the boots, and apologies. I talked a bit more with him and 2 of the A-team players who seem to be the leaders, and they told me that they would work a lot on discipline.
I managed to reach home after riding with my rugby boots...
[Editor’s Note: We usually exclude these sorts of narratives. However, this season is shaping up to be different.
[We have about half as many referees as we need to properly cover the games in the NCRFU. Your writer is also the one who sweats over the assignments, not merely a thankless task but a major pain in the neck that takes several hours out of my family life.
[I would be more than happy to have one less team that needs referees. This better not happen again, and this referee better received an apology from the individuals involved.
[We are volunteers. Teams pay referee fees but the referees are not paid – no expenses, no mileage, nothing. Not a penny.
[You think you had a bad ref? Try refereeing yourself. Or try having no ref at all. ]
Humboldt State 3 – SIERRA COLLEGE 38 Referee: Mike King
The trip from the North Bay to the North Coast is spectacular even in the rain, but on a bright, sunny day it was even more magnificent. Humboldt is blessed with a new home artificial pitch which is a welcome change from the sometimes challenging surface of Manila Park where matches were played in inclement weather. The weather was not a worry on this day- almost perfect conditions for a fast paced game between two teams that wanted to run.
The tackling was stellar and the contest was tight for the first portion of the first half. Sierra seems ready to repeat its past success into the playoffs, with Humboldt giving no quarter at the breakdown. Neither side seemed to dominate early in the set pieces, and the table was set for a see-saw match. Sierra did handle the ball deftly to allow a try in the far corner to get the score rolling.
At that point, with some momentum, Sierra seemed to step it up a notch. HSU had a Fall semester of inactivity (college sanction) and less experience overall, which began to tell. Sierra was able to ramp it up to score 3 more tries before half, with 2 converted. 24-0 at half. Near the close of the half, an altercation occurred after play moved on. Both sides received warnings and the rest of the match was mostly without incident.
The second half again saw Humboldt a little rusty relative to the Sierra side. HSU remained game throughout, and made several strong forays into Sierra territory, leading to another penalty kick, this time with success. It appeared that Humboldt had several former football linemen who got to carry the ball into contact, and were loving it! Sierra did have 2 more tries, one on a long run by its #10 who also converted both. Final Sierra 38- HSU 3.
UOP 22 – CSU-Monterey Bay 12 Referee: Scott Wood
TJs: Craig Leoni (UOP), Jesus (CSUMB player)
Location: Gardemeyer Field, UOP, Stockton
A fine sunny day. Need I say more? Of course I do. Saturday's a rugby day on a weekend of rugby. The Otters and Tigers were warming up when I arrived. It was a blistering five minute drive to the pitch (may I have another?....).
UOP opened up the attack but CSUMB did not waver. Pile-ups occurred as both teams were knocking off the rust (which is why more pre-season matches should occur) but the players sorted it out (with a little help from Mr. A. Thunderer) and continuity became the name of the game. Silly penalties and knock-ons notwithstanding, both teams put in a great effort on both sides of the ball.
CSUMB led 12-7 at the half. And that was the end of their scoring. UOP's coach, the venerable Kreg Nelson, read his Riot Act and his boys put his words to action. Again, the Otters were not unrelenting but constantly tackling takes a physical toll.
One piece of advice to all players, especially backs: Read Law 18...
SF BATS 43 – Nevada 3 Referee: Lois Bukowski
This game was closer than the score indicated. 10-3 at half after a couple of quick scores by SF Bats. Reno slotted a last minute penalty with time expiring at the half.
The second half showcased relentless BAT energy and phase work sprinkled with some poor ball handling and sloppy scrummaging; early season rugby for sure.
It was highlighted by their Scrumhalf (who moved to the backline for half 2) breaking several long runs with swivel hips that left defenders grasping for air.
One particular beaut was a kick and chase; she caught on the perfect bounce and was GONE.
This kid (sorry, roster not avail at this moment) has promise, we'll see her in Red, White and Blue someday for sure!
We ran a fun 15 minute B side after and it actually produced a couple of tries.
All in all stunning rugby day at Negoesco Field in the beautiful city by the Bay.
Santa Clara women 48 – SACRAMENTO STATE 51 Referee: Tony Levitan
16 tries, 8 conversions, 1 penalty kick and loads of back and forth play later, Sac State eked out a win over the short-handed hosts, 51-48. Starting the match with only 13 players due to injuries and conflicts, Santa Clara looked the much stronger, skilled side in the opening half, jumping out to a 29-12 lead. Sac State answered quickly in the second stanza, pulling to within a converted try before the two sides volleyed tries for a solid 20 minutes. Sac State finally climbed on top after Santa Clara's talented #15 went off with a knee injury and Santa Clara got overrun a number of times due to sheer numbers. A final charge by the home side ended the match with a converted try, bringing a well-fought contest by both sides to a close.
SIX HUNDRED AND SIXTY-SIX MILES
That was the mileage on the Pelicanmobile’s trip odometer when we pulled back into the nest from a rugby round-robin involving Salinas – Sacramento – San Francisco – Salinas.
Friday, Penelope and I took half-days off, fetched my favorite AR from Palma School in Salinas, and headed up over the Pacheco Pass with visions of rugby balls bouncing in our heads.
Persephone stayed home with her mother this year. It’s February now and winter has not arrived in California. The cherry trees were not only blossoming in San Francisco, some of them have already spread their carpets of pink petals at their feet. It’s been in the sixties and seventies, beach weather, kids splashing in the surf on the Monterey Peninsula as I bicycle by in shorts and tee.
It was Kick-Off Tournament weekend, the biggest youth rugby tournament in the world. Has to be. Nine pitches going (seven, with two playing two games crossways). Refs shooting off in all directions. Kids buzzing with the recognition that they are not alone in having fallen in love with this ‘new’ game.
An early morning Saturday found ice on the ground at Rancho Cordova HS, but the extensive parking lots filling up even as the sun broke the horizon. I got to meet a few new friends and greet some old ones, watch Ben’s first U12 match, and then leave my wife and grandson to drive two visitors up to Chico for their games.
Afterwards, I tried to hurry back for the evening’s banquet, but our Colorado guests had heard of In ‘N Out Burger and we could not get through Yuba City without stopping.
Did you see the sunset Saturday? It was pink. The whole western vista was orange shaded to purple with lots of pink in between, cloudy wisps aglow, pure magic in the heavens.
We saw it double: a lot of the acreage just west of Highway 99 was flooded, the firmament mirrored, the magic now also in the fields.
At the banquet I became aware that there wasn’t a ref for a Sunday game in San Francisco. Let’s see: one of the most beautiful and interesting cities in the world, perfect weather with no fog, and a game to ref not far from where I lived when I met and courted my wife thirty-plus years ago. Versus having a weekend without refereeing, albeit hanging out at the KOT and probably running some touch.
Easy call: ref. I’m not that old yet! Blowing the whistle makes the week worthwhile.
We drove across the Bay Bridge filled with excitement. The City never gets old, and we share in its youth anew every time.
U. of San Francisco 8 – ST. MARY’S thirds 65 Referee: Bruce Carter
AR: Ben Bravo
Negoesco Field is tucked under the dome of St. Ignatius, with views of the Lone Mountain campus complementing the scene. My wife and grandson distributed KOT programs to the assembled fans.
St. Mary’s has a stable of horses. They played two games against Utah on Friday, two against Chico State on Saturday, and then rubbed the muscles to suit up once more.
This game was a lot of fun to officiate. There were a couple of tackles that slipped up around the neck, but nothing deliberate and nothing requiring me to go all ref over anyone.
Artificial turf suits these old bones, but then again I don’t get slammed to the pitch. And the best innovation yet for seasoned officials is this whole ball-line-running business. Take the perpendicular when they make a break, draw level, turn ninety and close the gap. Track the passes across the pitch. Be the third man at the tackles.
[Those non-baby boomer refs might not have ever heard of S-curve running, getting in behind the ball-carrier, then swinging alongside. Good for showing off, not as good for seeing the tackles.]
USF showed grit and stayed in the match, scoring a late try after hammering the line for several phases.
One real pleasure for this ref: a St. Mary’s coach approached afterwards and wanted clarification on one particular call – from the day before. Not my call, but happily my explanation (and the ref had gotten it right).
Even driving home was a pleasure after such a weekend in Northern California.
UC Davis women – Oregon CANCELED
JANUARY 21:
Shasta 10 – MEDFORD 22 Referee: Jim Crenshaw
The rain forecast for last Saturday failed to materialize in Palo Cedro (Redding area for the map challenged) and instead it was partly sunny and a perfect rugby day. The field, however was still very wet from the night before, with a fair amount of standing water and small lakes in abundance. I didn't actually see any fish, but...
I arrived at the pitch a little before1for the 2pm kickoff and Medford was already there. Seems they had heard the forecast too and left Medford at 7am. Clear skies and roads allowed them to arrive in 2 and a half hours instead of the 5 or 6 it would take with chain controls.
There were 3 Shasta guys there when I arrived, but slowly the rest of them trickled in.
We started promptly at 2, and Medford scored a try between the posts at about 2:01. The outside center for Medford decided to test the Shasta backline and the 2 Shasta players must have thought we were playing touch. The Medford center didn't even slow down and then sold a very nice dummy to the Shasta fullback to score almost untouched between the posts!!
While Medford lined up for the kick, a couple of the Shasta forwards had a 'come to Jesus' meeting at the goal line with the topic of discussion being the fact the we were NOT playing touch and that it was going to be a long day if folks didn't start tackling.
After that things settled down for the next 25 minutes or so with Medford's backs making another break and scoring an unconverted try.
Shasta got on the board late in the half scoring an unconverted try after about 10 minutes of goal line stand by Medford, making the score at halftime Medford 12 Shasta 5.
The second half was even more of a scrum fest then the first with knock-ons, forward passes and dropped balls be the highlights of a good portion of the match, thanks to wet ball, early season rust and FNG's.
Medford again scored first in the corner with a nice break and a couple of give-and-goes, even though Shasta had them pinned down behind their own 22 for the first 10 minutes of the half.
Shasta came back about half way through with an unconverted try of their own to make the score 17 to 10, and was constantly pressuring Medford throughout the half, but they just couldn't manage to finish.
Near the end of the match, Shasta won a scrum, but were undone by a couple of very slow passes, the last of which was intercepted by the Medford inside center scoring untouched between the posts.
The wet field conditions didn't help the kickers and this one too was missed to make the final score Shasta 10, Medford 22.
We all retired to the local pizza joint around the corner from the pitch to test the local Palo Cedro fare and toast the match and the end of a very nice day!!
THIS WEEK’S PHOTO
I’d planned to get some photos at the KOT on Sunday, but didn’t attend. Imagine a bunch of happy refs from all over, doing what they love to do, and knowing that rugby is a place on Earth.
HAIL, PELICUS!
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Friday, January 27, 2012
THE FUN THEY HAD
HAIL, PELICUS!
PROMOTION
Mike King has been promoted to L2 by the Referee Development Committee. Congratulations to one of our harder-working and farther-traveling referees.
DIRE NEED UP NORTH
No, we’re not referring to the icebreaker-assisted delivery of fuel oil to Nome through a record ice-pack (wait a minute – didn’t I read that the Artic was practically ice-free by now?).
We are referring to one of the constancies of referee assignments: every week at least one referee will be unavailable to keep an assignment and every week it will be the one who had the farthest to travel.
So it is that we need a ref to cover Humboldt State’s game with Sierra College this Saturday, January 28. Please let us know if you can make the journey.
Last weekend JC van Staden covered a game up there on one-day notice.
You’re writer would do it but he’s taking two exchange refs up to Chico, a long way from his base in Salinas.
[webmaster note: Kudos to the aforementioned Mike King for answering the call.]
FEBRUARY 4: 20 REFS AND 36 GAMES
Not many responses have come in concerning availability to referee in February.
Let’s take Feb. 4 as an example: 29 refs have listed their availability. Twenty of them are available. There are 36 club and college matches that day.
By the end of February, the 25th, we have 24 refs for 45 games.
The good news is, more than 40 refs have not responded. If half of you are available, the teams of the NCRFU can continue to rely on us for coverage.
Please let me know which Saturdays in February you can referee. We cannot make bricks without straw.
Available? Able to travel?
Feb. 4
Feb. 11 (only three games so far)
Feb. 18
Feb. 25
REFS WHO WERE AVAILABLE AND THE FUN THEY HAD:
Wednesday, 7PM
Stanford Graduate School of Business 17 – SEAHAWKS 28 Referee: Tony Levitan
On an awesome January evening for rugby, the GSB hosted the Seahawks for a pre-season run comprised of three 20-minute periods. Overall, the rugby was played at a good pace with lots of up-and-back creative play by both sides. The evening was carried by the Seahawks dominance in the scrums and some strong play in the backs where San Jose benefited from doses of inexperienced play by the GSB. Nonetheless, the loose was well contested when fair (SJ took way too many penalties at the breakdown for a side as experienced as they) and the B-school side showed both exciting flashes in the backs and strong lineout play.
Friday, 7 PM
Maritime Academy – California RAINED OUT
Saturday
For Pete's Sake, Santa Rosa
SANTA ROSA 41 – SF/Golden Gate 17 Referee: Tom Zanarini
Assistant Referee: Cary Bertolone
The weather cooperated on Saturday for a mostly sunny and fast affair on a great pitch at For Pete's Sake Field. Both teams contested well but Santa Rosa had a nose for the in-goal. This was my first match of the season. The pace definitely helped shake the rust off quickly. Thanks to Carey for his AR duties and taking the second side match as well.
Santa Rosa 15 – SFGG 22 Referee: Cary Bertolone
After watching (touch judging) a great, action packed, high scoring first side game, I reffed the 2nd game, by default (no one else was around). My first game in 6 months and it showed as I'm out of shape, for starters.
The first half consisted of a lot of poor, high tackles by Santa Rosa, along with several other "rookie" mistakes that cost them multiple penalties. Golden Gate took advantage and scored three tries for a 15-0 lead at half. In the second half, Santa Rosa, while playing a man down (yellow for high tackle-shocking!), scored two tries to close the gap. Golden Gate rallied and ended up winning 22-15, but not without a lot of talking and whining about my calls. It's great to be back!!!
STANISLAUS 43 – Sierra Foothills 26 Referee: Scott Wood
Location: Christofferson & Panorama Drainage Basin Fields, Turlock, CA
Weather: Sunny
We had a great break between the rain on a pitch that was very well-drained.
Both teams have a lot of strengths and some weaknesses. The weaknesses are primarily due to inexperience by the younger players. That should go away with additional training and competition.
SF Fog 25 – SAN JOSE STATE 26 Referee: Mike Gadoua
The threat of rain did not materialize but the ball seemed hard to handle. Both teams had a number of knock-ons. And both teams played well as they continue training for the season, each utilizing their strengths. At first blush, it appeared that Fog dominated play, attacked with effective phase-ball, and spent most of the match in the opposition’s half. Fog even scored more tries (5-4). The Spartans’ tries came from good back running that found holes in the Fog defense. Fog’s failure to make a single conversion, while SJS made three, allowed for the six additional points - which outweighed the one-try difference.
Seconds: SF Fog 5 –SAN JOSE STATE 33 Referee: Rob Hendrickson
SF Fog hosted San Jose State at the Fog's Treasure Island pitch which was in remarkably good condition after Friday night's rain. The B sides played 2 X 20 minute halves, with San Jose in control most of the game. A stiff breeze running down the pitch made for challenging lineouts. A good-spirited and well-played game by both teams.
SACRAMENTO CAPITALS 46 – Diablo Gaels 44 Referee: Phil Akroyd
After my originally assigned game in Chico fell through, I picked up an in-town fixture of the Capitals versus Diablo Gaels. As the field is only a few miles from home, I certainly didn’t need my white stick and dog to help me find my way.
Having had nightmares on Friday night related to the potentially catastrophic field conditions, it was a nice surprise to turn up and see the ground in very good condition, with a light breeze and warm, clear blue skies.
Sac played in blue shorts, blue socks and broadly hooped shirts of blue and white, while the Gaels played in blue shorts, blue socks and broadly hooped shirts of dark blue and white. Not having a blue and white shirt of my own to hand, I went with the yellow.
Each team played close to their first sides for the first two quarters of 20 minutes with the Gaels comfortably dominating the game. Diablo wanted to keep it fast and open, while Sac were more comfortable trying to keep it tight, away from the larger and faster opposition backs. The Gaels won the "A side" forty minute section by 19-32.
The second half saw a number of personnel changes, particularly in the front rows, meaning that all of the solid, hard work at the scrum from the first half went out of the window. In a complete flip of the first half situation, Sacramento widened the ball to the backs and scored six second-half tries, compared to Diablo's' four. The second half played out much like a second side game with more errors, silly penalties from the new guys and a little less flow.
Diablo had a chance to tie with the last kick of the game but a difficult conversion meant that they finished two back, although the half-time score is the more significant. Overall, both teams appeared to get a lot out of the game.
ST. MARY’S seconds 24 – Vacaville 17 Referee: Bruce Bernstein
At Moraga under relatively clear skies and Dave Williamson's son helped me as a touch judge for the first half before subbing as a wing for Vacaville in the 2nd.
Both teams tackled, rucked & won line outs extremely well; with very few penalties & no dirty plays.
St. Mary’s looked very fit & bigger than a scrappy Vacaville team that played as a team. Score was 17-10 at half & both teams each scored only once more after halftime with Vacaville doing so as time expired. Both teams looked like they were ready to have a successful season.
ST MARY’S 53 – Sacramento State 7 Referee: James Hinkin
ARs: Ron DeCausemaker, Bruce Ricard
As rugby is obviously the game played in heaven it seemed fitting that the gods, after taking their morning ambrosia and talking it over amongst themselves, decided to halt the rain for the duration of the rugby day, leaving mostly sunny skies so they had an unimpeded view of the St Mary’s campus. I arrived with Brice Ricard just before the start of the St Mary’s C side v Vacaville match and saw Rob DeCausemaker had already arrived as well. A team of three ready to go 90 minutes before kickoff – that is how we do it in the NCRRS. After being gently harangued by Mrs Bunny, Helen, who was there to support family, I strolled around the soggy pitch to greet the coaches and start preparing.
Word to the wise: St Mary’s – at least on rainy days – now prefers to warm up on the field hockey turf field, a significant hike uphill (both ways?) half way across campus. On the plus side, trying and eventually succeeding in finding them started my warmup nicely.
The game started with Sac State kicking off, a play they would repeat many times. St Mary’s was able to control territory and possession to a degree that long periods were spent in the Sac St half, usually culminating in a try. The muddy conditions resulted in more knock ons than I would have expected or the coached would have liked, but handling was generally not a major issue. Sac St was able to make a few forays into the St Mary’s end and were rewarded with penalties, but their kicker was having an off day and missed the two shots at goal that were attempted. St Mary’s never let the pressure off and the half ended 29-0 to the home side. Outstanding support when the inevitable line breaks occurred combined with 15 players committed to the breakdowns is a recipe for success.
The second half started with St Mary’s kicking off – the only time in the match they would do this – and was a repeat of the first half with one difference: Sac St was finally able to capitalize on their hard work. This half had a number of breaks by the visitors that were not converted – such as the daring run by their #15 from deep in his own end that fizzled when he was being tacked at midfield and attempted to pass to his support and it went forward. With the game comfortably won both sides were still playing hard and committing to the breakdowns all around the field and as time expired, Sac St had their break with support. The Sac St runner was brought down 3 meters short (by the collar – penalty advantage) and support arrived in numbers to secure the ruck and then power over for the try. Advantage gained. A difficult conversion was perfect and the game ended on that high note.
ST. MARY’S thirds over Sacramento State seconds on a large score: Referee: Bruce Ricard
AR: James Hinkin
Two inexperienced teams entered the pitch, was the first game for a number of players. A huge amount of infringements at rucks (from side, off feet, off side last foot... ), but it seems that after some talking and explanations they understood what they were allowed to do. The second half was pretty clean. Thanks to James for running touch and driving me to the pitch on one of those rainy days that my two-wheeler doesn't like.
Santa Clara 7 – CALIFORNIA 83 Referee: Leah Berard
ARs: Tony Levitan, Mike King
Leah flew in from Minnesota to get some outdoor exercise ahead of serving as an AR at the IRB Sevens in Las Vegas two weeks from now. This game appeared and seemed probable to offer an aerobic workout.
Cal score twice in the first five minutes, but then the Broncos’ defense took shape and yielded only two more tries before the interval.
Your reporter left at the half, satisfied that the ref had the game in hand, and it would appear that the second half was a different story.
Leah then helped out at the Stanford Invitational and refereed the final there on Sunday.
Stanford – UC Davis CANCELED
Chico State – UC Santa Cruz CANCELED
Shasta – Medford Referee: Jim Crenshaw
No report received.
CSUMB 17 – Aptos 10 Referee: Bruce Carter
Not sure whether the visitors are known as Monterey Bay or Aptos. The team is dividing practices between Aptos and Monterey, uniting the Bay as in the days of the old D1 men’s club in the early nineties that made a splash, especially on the national Sevens scene.
The old Monterey team was the last team I played for, and the font of many fond memories. Cal State – Monterey Bay makes its home on Fort Ord, where I spent the best days of my adult life, raising my family and training interns and residents for the US Army Medical Corps.
Not only that: the pitch is less than ten miles from my home and kickoff was at 10 AM: perfect for ref whoring, getting multiple games in multiple locations on the same weekend!
Rain clouds finally broke the schneid. We hadn’t had any precipitation in the middle of California since Thanksgiving. (San Diego has had more rain that Santa Rosa during that interval…) This is unusual: 37 million people and the agriculture that feeds the nation depend on rain and snow that falls only between November and April. Half that season is over already.
So it rained Friday, and especially so on Friday night, raising the temperature which had actually hit freezing a time or two due to a lingering high pressure ridge. Back to our California rugby weather: pissing down, closing some pitches, keeping the casual fans away.
But as you would have read several times in these reports, the rugby god has a high place at the table in Olympus and can dictate to our needs. Dark clouds and howling, swirling rainfall at my house were replaced by scudding clouds, the sun playing hopscotch, by the time I arrived at the pitch.
The Preston Park pitch is possibly the world’s narrowest. (Those who have played on the Old Boy’s pitch on Catalina Island may be in a position to dispute this.) I paced it at fifty yards. Seventy meters, standard for rugby, is almost 76 yards.
Always look on the bright side of life. I get to work on my tackle/ruck and can worry about open field sprinting some other time.
The Otters are managed and coached (by default) by Scott Ryan, who is doing a fine job with a new squad. They’ve got a good halfback combination to build on.
Aptos is benefitting from the latest coaching resurrection of Vaughn Stumpf, who greeted me by saying, “Is either of us ever going to die?” Such is the nature of perennial rugby friendship among those who can conceive of no other life, when to stop Rugby would be to die.
My wife came out to watch. We used to live two blocks from the pitch in the Army housing. We hold hands and travel back our adult children’s lifetimes in an instant.
The rugby was pretty good. The narrow pitch bottled up the runners so that the ruckers could ply their trade. The homies came out ahead.
I then saddled up the Pelicanmobile to visit Santa Clara, watching Leah Berard referee their game with Cal, and then buzzed up to Stanford to AR the last two games of the day at the Invitational.
Sunday morning I video-coached three refs at Stanford and then ARed for my grandson Ben’s U-12 game across the street at Palo Alto High School.
Referee whoring: catch the bug!
Seconds: CSUMB – Monterey Bay Rebels Referee: Francois Nel
No report received.
HUMBOLDT STATE women 17 – UC Santa Cruz 12 Referee: JC van Staden
Everybody knows I'm pretty good under pressure, quick decisions etc.... but, not planning well will always have the habit of biting you somewhere down the line.... New refs, take NOTE.... Plan, plan again, and plan one last time....
After my Friday's game got canceled, and the Saturday Girls KOT got smaller, my assignment moved to Humboldt.... A 6h05 drive from my house... Snoozing the clock a few times, did not help, so I decided to drive up I5 and cut over 299 to make up some time....Theoretically it worked.... Big mistake, 299 had 1-2 feet of snow the previous night, with snow coming down as I drove. On the back end of 299, traffic was standing still. Mudslide!! With 5 cars in front of me, I got out to ask them what they intended to do. They informed me that Cal-Trans was on their way, and would be there in an hour. Well, I had not driven all this way, 40min from the pitch, just to totally miss my game... "Move over guys, I have a game to get to"....I could see nobody believed me it was for rugby, and even a comment of, "You’re crazy" to which I gracefully replied, "I guess so" I pushed through.... and with some off road finesse, and of course, good old American V8 power, I made my way through it...
The game, starting only 30 min late, and for a pre-season game, it was a pretty good one, with a lot of counter rucking.... Ball possession decided the game, and with both teams giving all they got, it ended up to be a close one... With No. 8 of Humboldt and #14 of Santa Cruz to watch for maybe higher honors in the next couple of years....
Seconds: HUMBOLDT STATE 17 – UC Santa Cruz 12 Ref: van Staden
After negotiating a shower and a cold beer, the seconds were kicking off.... Santa Cruz showed up with a full 2 teams, and cheerfully, sending Humboldt some players, with a good 7 girls playing against their own teammates... Great sportsmanship.... or must I say sportswomanship, they played a respectful game to make my drive all the way worth it.
Thanks for the hospitality, and good-luck with the season...
NCYRA GIRLS’ KICK-OFF TOURNAMENT
Oak Ridge High School
El Dorado Hills
Report by Jeff Richmond:
After the storms of last week forced relocation and near cancellation, Saturday proved to be a darn nice day to have a rugby tournament. Congrats to Rod and Karen Chance for persevering and making the event happen.
DIXON 15 – Humboldt 10 Ref: Richmond
The Dixon team was made up entirely of first year players and Humboldt had just a handful of experienced players. Both teams played spirited ball. Humboldt displayed a bit more skill in loose play, rucking well and retaining possession after a tackle. Dixon had some speed in their backline, breaking a 60 m run and score by their inside center. The teams demonstrated pretty good tackling for young players – not much arm grabbing and only one minor caution for a tackle up high on the shoulders.
BISHOP O’DOWD 25 – Davis 0 Ref: Richmond
BOD had total control of the match, with Davis playing most of the game in their half of the field. BOD dominated in the loose and had strong attacking moves from their backs. Davis could not match BOD’s speed and struggled to make tackles – BOD made 10 and 15 yards off the advantage line nearly every time they moved the ball out to the backs. Davis did not give up though and put together a solid 6-7 phases of play the last minute or two to end the match on a high note.
Report by Chris Tucker:
Refs:
Favor Taueva
Jeff Richmond
Rod Chance
Chris Tucker
Donal Walsh
Ray Schwartz
Mark Godfrey
Tons of rain might have forced a venue change, reduced the number of pitches from two to one, and thrown everything out of kilter, but rugby happened in large quantity on Saturday as teams from all over Norcal (plus a team from Beaverton OR) came to play. Props to Karen Chance for rescuing the tournament with resourcefulness and flexibility and more grace than I could ever have managed.
The games themselves were an entertaining mix of rookies at varying levels of preparedness, most of them well matched and competitive. The refs took the opportunity to get ready for the season that is almost upon us, and to have a little fun to boot. No scores were kept, although i'm sure Ray had a tie...
STANFORD WOMEN’S INVITATIONAL
Saturday and Sunday
Refs:
Leah Berard (Minnesota)
Jordan Bruno
Lee Salgado
Phil Ulibarri
Eric Rauscher
Brad Richey
Sandy Robertson
Tony Levitan
Jen Tetler
Bruce Carter
AR:
Bob Polito
Ben Bravo
Referee Coaches:
Kat Todd-Schwartz
Mike King
Mike Malone
Bruce Carter
Report by Eric Rauscher:
Nine teams showed up; Colorado, Cal, Oregon, Stanford, UCLA, Sac. State, Chico State, UC Davis and Western Washington. Some teams had numerous players, others showed up with a little over 15, so the time honored tradition of loaning players was displayed.
Three pools of three and then on to playoffs. The schedule ran like clock-work thanks to the use of an airhorn to start and stop 40 min games (no half).
The kicking team was whoever was listed first, kicking from the north end of the pitch, so no time-wasting coin toss was needed.
Nine refs showed up; Phil Ulibarri, Jordan Bruno, Leah Berard (Minn), Lee Salgado, Jen Tetler, Eric Rauscher, Bruce Carter, Sandy Robertson, and Brad Richey. Each ref did at least one game, some did four. Leah, a national panel ref in from Minnesota did the final. The final was between Stanford and Cal. with Stanford showing their championship form.
Also in attendance were; Kat Todd Schwartz, Mike Malone, and Mike King acting as ref coaches.
And last but not least we had Tony Levitan, Mike King, Ben Bravo, Bruce Carter and Bob Polito acting as ARs.
Most of the games had teams of three with refs running AR for games in their spare time.
The weather was a bit moist but the spirits were warm and the rugby was what it should be at this time of the year.
I look forward to this tourney each year as a time of development both for the teams that show up, and for the rich interaction between refs and coaches.
STANFORD 19 v. Western Washington 5 Referee: Eric Rauscher
Stanford seemed surprised and how hard Western came out, especially once they scored in the 10th minute. Western didn't make the conversion of their only try. Stanford came back with 3 more tries and 2 conversions to win it. Both teams were very aggressive, taking quick taps left and right, making some great tackles and excellent runs.
Western Washington 10 v. OREGON 27 Ref: Rauscher
This game started early so that both teams could head north and get over the pass into Oregon. Western started the game quickly with a try in the first 3 minutes scored around the corner with almost no defense. The Ducks pulled themselves together and retaliated fairly quickly with two tries in the next 10 minutes. After 15 minutes of play, the score was tied 10-10. Both teams kept playing well and you could tell players from everyone had the love of rugby in their hearts! Oregon happened to be the team that could capitalize better on mistakes. They scored 3 more times with one conversion (5th time's a charm!) for a final 7th place match score of 27-10.
COLORADO 21 – Western Washington 12 Referee: Bruce Carter
This Sunday-morning game on the squeegee pitch was a lot of fun.
Colorado’s Captain, Erin #13, led a dynamic backline that made the difference.
THIS WEEK’S PHOTO
Back to Hawaii. This is what happens when you get to referee rugby: you can pose with the tournament winners and their trophy.
Ever see referees in the team pictures in any other sport?
HAIL, PELICUS!
For the Senate
Pelicus Scriptoris
PROMOTION
Mike King has been promoted to L2 by the Referee Development Committee. Congratulations to one of our harder-working and farther-traveling referees.
DIRE NEED UP NORTH
No, we’re not referring to the icebreaker-assisted delivery of fuel oil to Nome through a record ice-pack (wait a minute – didn’t I read that the Artic was practically ice-free by now?).
We are referring to one of the constancies of referee assignments: every week at least one referee will be unavailable to keep an assignment and every week it will be the one who had the farthest to travel.
So it is that we need a ref to cover Humboldt State’s game with Sierra College this Saturday, January 28. Please let us know if you can make the journey.
Last weekend JC van Staden covered a game up there on one-day notice.
You’re writer would do it but he’s taking two exchange refs up to Chico, a long way from his base in Salinas.
[webmaster note: Kudos to the aforementioned Mike King for answering the call.]
FEBRUARY 4: 20 REFS AND 36 GAMES
Not many responses have come in concerning availability to referee in February.
Let’s take Feb. 4 as an example: 29 refs have listed their availability. Twenty of them are available. There are 36 club and college matches that day.
By the end of February, the 25th, we have 24 refs for 45 games.
The good news is, more than 40 refs have not responded. If half of you are available, the teams of the NCRFU can continue to rely on us for coverage.
Please let me know which Saturdays in February you can referee. We cannot make bricks without straw.
Available? Able to travel?
Feb. 4
Feb. 11 (only three games so far)
Feb. 18
Feb. 25
REFS WHO WERE AVAILABLE AND THE FUN THEY HAD:
Wednesday, 7PM
Stanford Graduate School of Business 17 – SEAHAWKS 28 Referee: Tony Levitan
On an awesome January evening for rugby, the GSB hosted the Seahawks for a pre-season run comprised of three 20-minute periods. Overall, the rugby was played at a good pace with lots of up-and-back creative play by both sides. The evening was carried by the Seahawks dominance in the scrums and some strong play in the backs where San Jose benefited from doses of inexperienced play by the GSB. Nonetheless, the loose was well contested when fair (SJ took way too many penalties at the breakdown for a side as experienced as they) and the B-school side showed both exciting flashes in the backs and strong lineout play.
Friday, 7 PM
Maritime Academy – California RAINED OUT
Saturday
For Pete's Sake, Santa Rosa
SANTA ROSA 41 – SF/Golden Gate 17 Referee: Tom Zanarini
Assistant Referee: Cary Bertolone
The weather cooperated on Saturday for a mostly sunny and fast affair on a great pitch at For Pete's Sake Field. Both teams contested well but Santa Rosa had a nose for the in-goal. This was my first match of the season. The pace definitely helped shake the rust off quickly. Thanks to Carey for his AR duties and taking the second side match as well.
Santa Rosa 15 – SFGG 22 Referee: Cary Bertolone
After watching (touch judging) a great, action packed, high scoring first side game, I reffed the 2nd game, by default (no one else was around). My first game in 6 months and it showed as I'm out of shape, for starters.
The first half consisted of a lot of poor, high tackles by Santa Rosa, along with several other "rookie" mistakes that cost them multiple penalties. Golden Gate took advantage and scored three tries for a 15-0 lead at half. In the second half, Santa Rosa, while playing a man down (yellow for high tackle-shocking!), scored two tries to close the gap. Golden Gate rallied and ended up winning 22-15, but not without a lot of talking and whining about my calls. It's great to be back!!!
STANISLAUS 43 – Sierra Foothills 26 Referee: Scott Wood
Location: Christofferson & Panorama Drainage Basin Fields, Turlock, CA
Weather: Sunny
We had a great break between the rain on a pitch that was very well-drained.
Both teams have a lot of strengths and some weaknesses. The weaknesses are primarily due to inexperience by the younger players. That should go away with additional training and competition.
SF Fog 25 – SAN JOSE STATE 26 Referee: Mike Gadoua
The threat of rain did not materialize but the ball seemed hard to handle. Both teams had a number of knock-ons. And both teams played well as they continue training for the season, each utilizing their strengths. At first blush, it appeared that Fog dominated play, attacked with effective phase-ball, and spent most of the match in the opposition’s half. Fog even scored more tries (5-4). The Spartans’ tries came from good back running that found holes in the Fog defense. Fog’s failure to make a single conversion, while SJS made three, allowed for the six additional points - which outweighed the one-try difference.
Seconds: SF Fog 5 –SAN JOSE STATE 33 Referee: Rob Hendrickson
SF Fog hosted San Jose State at the Fog's Treasure Island pitch which was in remarkably good condition after Friday night's rain. The B sides played 2 X 20 minute halves, with San Jose in control most of the game. A stiff breeze running down the pitch made for challenging lineouts. A good-spirited and well-played game by both teams.
SACRAMENTO CAPITALS 46 – Diablo Gaels 44 Referee: Phil Akroyd
After my originally assigned game in Chico fell through, I picked up an in-town fixture of the Capitals versus Diablo Gaels. As the field is only a few miles from home, I certainly didn’t need my white stick and dog to help me find my way.
Having had nightmares on Friday night related to the potentially catastrophic field conditions, it was a nice surprise to turn up and see the ground in very good condition, with a light breeze and warm, clear blue skies.
Sac played in blue shorts, blue socks and broadly hooped shirts of blue and white, while the Gaels played in blue shorts, blue socks and broadly hooped shirts of dark blue and white. Not having a blue and white shirt of my own to hand, I went with the yellow.
Each team played close to their first sides for the first two quarters of 20 minutes with the Gaels comfortably dominating the game. Diablo wanted to keep it fast and open, while Sac were more comfortable trying to keep it tight, away from the larger and faster opposition backs. The Gaels won the "A side" forty minute section by 19-32.
The second half saw a number of personnel changes, particularly in the front rows, meaning that all of the solid, hard work at the scrum from the first half went out of the window. In a complete flip of the first half situation, Sacramento widened the ball to the backs and scored six second-half tries, compared to Diablo's' four. The second half played out much like a second side game with more errors, silly penalties from the new guys and a little less flow.
Diablo had a chance to tie with the last kick of the game but a difficult conversion meant that they finished two back, although the half-time score is the more significant. Overall, both teams appeared to get a lot out of the game.
ST. MARY’S seconds 24 – Vacaville 17 Referee: Bruce Bernstein
At Moraga under relatively clear skies and Dave Williamson's son helped me as a touch judge for the first half before subbing as a wing for Vacaville in the 2nd.
Both teams tackled, rucked & won line outs extremely well; with very few penalties & no dirty plays.
St. Mary’s looked very fit & bigger than a scrappy Vacaville team that played as a team. Score was 17-10 at half & both teams each scored only once more after halftime with Vacaville doing so as time expired. Both teams looked like they were ready to have a successful season.
ST MARY’S 53 – Sacramento State 7 Referee: James Hinkin
ARs: Ron DeCausemaker, Bruce Ricard
As rugby is obviously the game played in heaven it seemed fitting that the gods, after taking their morning ambrosia and talking it over amongst themselves, decided to halt the rain for the duration of the rugby day, leaving mostly sunny skies so they had an unimpeded view of the St Mary’s campus. I arrived with Brice Ricard just before the start of the St Mary’s C side v Vacaville match and saw Rob DeCausemaker had already arrived as well. A team of three ready to go 90 minutes before kickoff – that is how we do it in the NCRRS. After being gently harangued by Mrs Bunny, Helen, who was there to support family, I strolled around the soggy pitch to greet the coaches and start preparing.
Word to the wise: St Mary’s – at least on rainy days – now prefers to warm up on the field hockey turf field, a significant hike uphill (both ways?) half way across campus. On the plus side, trying and eventually succeeding in finding them started my warmup nicely.
The game started with Sac State kicking off, a play they would repeat many times. St Mary’s was able to control territory and possession to a degree that long periods were spent in the Sac St half, usually culminating in a try. The muddy conditions resulted in more knock ons than I would have expected or the coached would have liked, but handling was generally not a major issue. Sac St was able to make a few forays into the St Mary’s end and were rewarded with penalties, but their kicker was having an off day and missed the two shots at goal that were attempted. St Mary’s never let the pressure off and the half ended 29-0 to the home side. Outstanding support when the inevitable line breaks occurred combined with 15 players committed to the breakdowns is a recipe for success.
The second half started with St Mary’s kicking off – the only time in the match they would do this – and was a repeat of the first half with one difference: Sac St was finally able to capitalize on their hard work. This half had a number of breaks by the visitors that were not converted – such as the daring run by their #15 from deep in his own end that fizzled when he was being tacked at midfield and attempted to pass to his support and it went forward. With the game comfortably won both sides were still playing hard and committing to the breakdowns all around the field and as time expired, Sac St had their break with support. The Sac St runner was brought down 3 meters short (by the collar – penalty advantage) and support arrived in numbers to secure the ruck and then power over for the try. Advantage gained. A difficult conversion was perfect and the game ended on that high note.
ST. MARY’S thirds over Sacramento State seconds on a large score: Referee: Bruce Ricard
AR: James Hinkin
Two inexperienced teams entered the pitch, was the first game for a number of players. A huge amount of infringements at rucks (from side, off feet, off side last foot... ), but it seems that after some talking and explanations they understood what they were allowed to do. The second half was pretty clean. Thanks to James for running touch and driving me to the pitch on one of those rainy days that my two-wheeler doesn't like.
Santa Clara 7 – CALIFORNIA 83 Referee: Leah Berard
ARs: Tony Levitan, Mike King
Leah flew in from Minnesota to get some outdoor exercise ahead of serving as an AR at the IRB Sevens in Las Vegas two weeks from now. This game appeared and seemed probable to offer an aerobic workout.
Cal score twice in the first five minutes, but then the Broncos’ defense took shape and yielded only two more tries before the interval.
Your reporter left at the half, satisfied that the ref had the game in hand, and it would appear that the second half was a different story.
Leah then helped out at the Stanford Invitational and refereed the final there on Sunday.
Stanford – UC Davis CANCELED
Chico State – UC Santa Cruz CANCELED
Shasta – Medford Referee: Jim Crenshaw
No report received.
CSUMB 17 – Aptos 10 Referee: Bruce Carter
Not sure whether the visitors are known as Monterey Bay or Aptos. The team is dividing practices between Aptos and Monterey, uniting the Bay as in the days of the old D1 men’s club in the early nineties that made a splash, especially on the national Sevens scene.
The old Monterey team was the last team I played for, and the font of many fond memories. Cal State – Monterey Bay makes its home on Fort Ord, where I spent the best days of my adult life, raising my family and training interns and residents for the US Army Medical Corps.
Not only that: the pitch is less than ten miles from my home and kickoff was at 10 AM: perfect for ref whoring, getting multiple games in multiple locations on the same weekend!
Rain clouds finally broke the schneid. We hadn’t had any precipitation in the middle of California since Thanksgiving. (San Diego has had more rain that Santa Rosa during that interval…) This is unusual: 37 million people and the agriculture that feeds the nation depend on rain and snow that falls only between November and April. Half that season is over already.
So it rained Friday, and especially so on Friday night, raising the temperature which had actually hit freezing a time or two due to a lingering high pressure ridge. Back to our California rugby weather: pissing down, closing some pitches, keeping the casual fans away.
But as you would have read several times in these reports, the rugby god has a high place at the table in Olympus and can dictate to our needs. Dark clouds and howling, swirling rainfall at my house were replaced by scudding clouds, the sun playing hopscotch, by the time I arrived at the pitch.
The Preston Park pitch is possibly the world’s narrowest. (Those who have played on the Old Boy’s pitch on Catalina Island may be in a position to dispute this.) I paced it at fifty yards. Seventy meters, standard for rugby, is almost 76 yards.
Always look on the bright side of life. I get to work on my tackle/ruck and can worry about open field sprinting some other time.
The Otters are managed and coached (by default) by Scott Ryan, who is doing a fine job with a new squad. They’ve got a good halfback combination to build on.
Aptos is benefitting from the latest coaching resurrection of Vaughn Stumpf, who greeted me by saying, “Is either of us ever going to die?” Such is the nature of perennial rugby friendship among those who can conceive of no other life, when to stop Rugby would be to die.
My wife came out to watch. We used to live two blocks from the pitch in the Army housing. We hold hands and travel back our adult children’s lifetimes in an instant.
The rugby was pretty good. The narrow pitch bottled up the runners so that the ruckers could ply their trade. The homies came out ahead.
I then saddled up the Pelicanmobile to visit Santa Clara, watching Leah Berard referee their game with Cal, and then buzzed up to Stanford to AR the last two games of the day at the Invitational.
Sunday morning I video-coached three refs at Stanford and then ARed for my grandson Ben’s U-12 game across the street at Palo Alto High School.
Referee whoring: catch the bug!
Seconds: CSUMB – Monterey Bay Rebels Referee: Francois Nel
No report received.
HUMBOLDT STATE women 17 – UC Santa Cruz 12 Referee: JC van Staden
Everybody knows I'm pretty good under pressure, quick decisions etc.... but, not planning well will always have the habit of biting you somewhere down the line.... New refs, take NOTE.... Plan, plan again, and plan one last time....
After my Friday's game got canceled, and the Saturday Girls KOT got smaller, my assignment moved to Humboldt.... A 6h05 drive from my house... Snoozing the clock a few times, did not help, so I decided to drive up I5 and cut over 299 to make up some time....Theoretically it worked.... Big mistake, 299 had 1-2 feet of snow the previous night, with snow coming down as I drove. On the back end of 299, traffic was standing still. Mudslide!! With 5 cars in front of me, I got out to ask them what they intended to do. They informed me that Cal-Trans was on their way, and would be there in an hour. Well, I had not driven all this way, 40min from the pitch, just to totally miss my game... "Move over guys, I have a game to get to"....I could see nobody believed me it was for rugby, and even a comment of, "You’re crazy" to which I gracefully replied, "I guess so" I pushed through.... and with some off road finesse, and of course, good old American V8 power, I made my way through it...
The game, starting only 30 min late, and for a pre-season game, it was a pretty good one, with a lot of counter rucking.... Ball possession decided the game, and with both teams giving all they got, it ended up to be a close one... With No. 8 of Humboldt and #14 of Santa Cruz to watch for maybe higher honors in the next couple of years....
Seconds: HUMBOLDT STATE 17 – UC Santa Cruz 12 Ref: van Staden
After negotiating a shower and a cold beer, the seconds were kicking off.... Santa Cruz showed up with a full 2 teams, and cheerfully, sending Humboldt some players, with a good 7 girls playing against their own teammates... Great sportsmanship.... or must I say sportswomanship, they played a respectful game to make my drive all the way worth it.
Thanks for the hospitality, and good-luck with the season...
NCYRA GIRLS’ KICK-OFF TOURNAMENT
Oak Ridge High School
El Dorado Hills
Report by Jeff Richmond:
After the storms of last week forced relocation and near cancellation, Saturday proved to be a darn nice day to have a rugby tournament. Congrats to Rod and Karen Chance for persevering and making the event happen.
DIXON 15 – Humboldt 10 Ref: Richmond
The Dixon team was made up entirely of first year players and Humboldt had just a handful of experienced players. Both teams played spirited ball. Humboldt displayed a bit more skill in loose play, rucking well and retaining possession after a tackle. Dixon had some speed in their backline, breaking a 60 m run and score by their inside center. The teams demonstrated pretty good tackling for young players – not much arm grabbing and only one minor caution for a tackle up high on the shoulders.
BISHOP O’DOWD 25 – Davis 0 Ref: Richmond
BOD had total control of the match, with Davis playing most of the game in their half of the field. BOD dominated in the loose and had strong attacking moves from their backs. Davis could not match BOD’s speed and struggled to make tackles – BOD made 10 and 15 yards off the advantage line nearly every time they moved the ball out to the backs. Davis did not give up though and put together a solid 6-7 phases of play the last minute or two to end the match on a high note.
Report by Chris Tucker:
Refs:
Favor Taueva
Jeff Richmond
Rod Chance
Chris Tucker
Donal Walsh
Ray Schwartz
Mark Godfrey
Tons of rain might have forced a venue change, reduced the number of pitches from two to one, and thrown everything out of kilter, but rugby happened in large quantity on Saturday as teams from all over Norcal (plus a team from Beaverton OR) came to play. Props to Karen Chance for rescuing the tournament with resourcefulness and flexibility and more grace than I could ever have managed.
The games themselves were an entertaining mix of rookies at varying levels of preparedness, most of them well matched and competitive. The refs took the opportunity to get ready for the season that is almost upon us, and to have a little fun to boot. No scores were kept, although i'm sure Ray had a tie...
STANFORD WOMEN’S INVITATIONAL
Saturday and Sunday
Refs:
Leah Berard (Minnesota)
Jordan Bruno
Lee Salgado
Phil Ulibarri
Eric Rauscher
Brad Richey
Sandy Robertson
Tony Levitan
Jen Tetler
Bruce Carter
AR:
Bob Polito
Ben Bravo
Referee Coaches:
Kat Todd-Schwartz
Mike King
Mike Malone
Bruce Carter
Report by Eric Rauscher:
Nine teams showed up; Colorado, Cal, Oregon, Stanford, UCLA, Sac. State, Chico State, UC Davis and Western Washington. Some teams had numerous players, others showed up with a little over 15, so the time honored tradition of loaning players was displayed.
Three pools of three and then on to playoffs. The schedule ran like clock-work thanks to the use of an airhorn to start and stop 40 min games (no half).
The kicking team was whoever was listed first, kicking from the north end of the pitch, so no time-wasting coin toss was needed.
Nine refs showed up; Phil Ulibarri, Jordan Bruno, Leah Berard (Minn), Lee Salgado, Jen Tetler, Eric Rauscher, Bruce Carter, Sandy Robertson, and Brad Richey. Each ref did at least one game, some did four. Leah, a national panel ref in from Minnesota did the final. The final was between Stanford and Cal. with Stanford showing their championship form.
Also in attendance were; Kat Todd Schwartz, Mike Malone, and Mike King acting as ref coaches.
And last but not least we had Tony Levitan, Mike King, Ben Bravo, Bruce Carter and Bob Polito acting as ARs.
Most of the games had teams of three with refs running AR for games in their spare time.
The weather was a bit moist but the spirits were warm and the rugby was what it should be at this time of the year.
I look forward to this tourney each year as a time of development both for the teams that show up, and for the rich interaction between refs and coaches.
STANFORD 19 v. Western Washington 5 Referee: Eric Rauscher
Stanford seemed surprised and how hard Western came out, especially once they scored in the 10th minute. Western didn't make the conversion of their only try. Stanford came back with 3 more tries and 2 conversions to win it. Both teams were very aggressive, taking quick taps left and right, making some great tackles and excellent runs.
Western Washington 10 v. OREGON 27 Ref: Rauscher
This game started early so that both teams could head north and get over the pass into Oregon. Western started the game quickly with a try in the first 3 minutes scored around the corner with almost no defense. The Ducks pulled themselves together and retaliated fairly quickly with two tries in the next 10 minutes. After 15 minutes of play, the score was tied 10-10. Both teams kept playing well and you could tell players from everyone had the love of rugby in their hearts! Oregon happened to be the team that could capitalize better on mistakes. They scored 3 more times with one conversion (5th time's a charm!) for a final 7th place match score of 27-10.
COLORADO 21 – Western Washington 12 Referee: Bruce Carter
This Sunday-morning game on the squeegee pitch was a lot of fun.
Colorado’s Captain, Erin #13, led a dynamic backline that made the difference.
THIS WEEK’S PHOTO
Back to Hawaii. This is what happens when you get to referee rugby: you can pose with the tournament winners and their trophy.
Ever see referees in the team pictures in any other sport?
HAIL, PELICUS!
For the Senate
Pelicus Scriptoris
Thursday, January 19, 2012
WHY A DUCK?
HAIL, PELICUS!
ROAD WARRIORS
The first column is the number of games each weekend for Humboldt - Shasta - Siskiyou - Chico - Colusa - Mendocino - Reno - Fresno - Arroyo Grande - Paso Robles.
If we leave out Mendocino, Chico and Colusa, which are within two hours of a number of our referees, and Reno and Fresno, where some referees live, that leaves the long drives to Humboldt, Shasta, Siskiyou, Arroyo Grande and Paso Robles, and we get the second column. (This does not count any second-side matches.)
Long Drives Really Long Drives
Jan 28 4 1 Humboldt
Feb 4 10 3 Siskiyou, Humboldt, Arroyo Grande
Feb 11
Feb 18 5 4 Siskiyou, Shasta, Humboldt, Paso Robles
Mar 3 13 4 Siskiyou, Arroyo Grande, Humboldt (men and women)
Mar 10 3
Mar 17 5 4 Shasta, Humboldt, Paso Robles, Arroyo Grande
Mar 24 5 2 Humboldt, Arroyo Grande
Mar 31 9 2 Siskiyou, Paso Robles
Apr 7
Apr 14 2
Totals: 56 20
As you can see, we need everyone to do at least one game from each column. But especially difficult to schedule are the Really Long Drives.
Your writer has already taken one-and-two-half Fridays off and made room reservations to cover a game in Arroyo Grande (March 17), a game in Humboldt (March 3), and a game in Chico (a long way from Salinas) on January 28. Leading from the front...
Please have look at your calendar and plan a weekend around one of these fixtures. How about a romantic weekend? Let me know if you need more information or if you can set a date right now.
AVAILABILITY NEEDED
So far I’ve heard from 14 people about availability for February. And looking at Feb. 4 (say), five of the fourteen are not available. That’s 9 refs for 36 games.
Here’s the preferred format. You can cut-and-paste and fill-in-the-blanks.
Available? Able to travel?
Feb. 4
Feb. 11 (only three games so far)
Feb. 18
Feb. 25
Thanks!
RUGBY GAMES
Friday, 7PM
MARITIME ACADEMY 29 – Berkeley RFC 22 Referee: Craig Smith
AR: Mike King
Evaluator: Todd-Schwartz
Seconds: Maritime Academy 0 – BERKELEY RFC 39 Referee: Bruce Bernstein
AR: Mike King
Referee Coach: David Williamson
Saw a real good match in for both sides' first teams; then reffed their seconds; both under the lights Friday night at Vallejo's home field (Morton) on Mare Island (while Cal Maritime's gets synthetic installed).
Berkeley went ahead 24-0 at half & continued to romp the second half. Pretty sure Cal Maritime had many rookies & Berkeley used more than a few from their first team.
Also all four teams were very well behaved as far as penalties/dangerous/dirty plays.
Lastly, thanks for Dave Williamson's "positive" coaching pointers & pizza pretty late at night after the match & Mike King's assistant reffing in shorts (despite the cold).
Saturday
Sacramento Lions 22 – SANTA ROSA 24 Referee: JC Van Staden
AR: John V
Again, one spectacular day for rugby. Sac Lions came out with a bang, dominating the first half, but injuries, lack of fitness and the lack of conversions sank them in the second half... Not taking anything away from Santa Rosa, who stopped them twice on the goal line, and ran in 3 great back-line tries to steal the win away with only a couple of minutes on the clock.
Good luck to both teams for the rest of the season.
Seconds: Sacramento Lions II – Santa Rosa II Referee: Thee Alan Petty (apparently his 12th season of refereeing)
AR: John V
After a long hmmmm and haaaa , the Lions only managed to field 10 players (apparently because of the Niners playing in the NFL (Nice Friendly Ladies) play-offs, probably another tee party), but like we all know, a "friendly" match does not exist, and the ref had his work cut out for him. The final score is still a mystery, after he called the "last" try at least 3 times, yet the players took up their positions again, and instructed the fly-half to kick off again... [Editor’s Note: there can never be too much rugby.]
Thanks to John V, who have just completed his Level 1, and will have his first run at the KOT. Driving out to a field and offering to be AR just to learn more, is a pretty good start if you ask me...
BARACUS 12 - Samoa United 10 Referee: Bryant Byrnes
Hard men playing hard rugby at the Baracus's lumpy but regulation-size SF pitch. Like American gridiron, the defenses were better that the offense these early days.
High quality, high intensity D2 stuff. The first half was all Samoa, who scored early and led 10-0. But Baracus steadied, settled, and with fresh legs got two in the second half. The conversion of their first wins it. (A referee sandwich/take down was enjoyed by almost all; there were wagers if the fellow was going to get up.)
Seconds: Baracus 7 - SAMOA UNITED 10 Ref: Byrnes
Samoa returns the favor by winning the seconds match 10-7.
Fresno – Paso Robles CANCELED
Chico 5 – SACRAMENTO CAPITALS 46 Referee: John Pohlman
After getting home around 9:00PM Friday from refereeing a high school game, my Saturday came around pretty early. I met fellow Pelican Jordan Bruno in Walnut Creek for the drive to Chico.
Chico Rugby has started a rugby foundation and was hosting a rugby jamboree. The day had been planned as a youth rugby curtain raiser, followed by Chico State Woman hosting UC Santa Cruz, then Chico State Men's hosting UC Davis. Chico Men's Club would finish the day against Sacramento Capitals.
Unfortunately, UC Davis was forced to cancel.
The Chico Oaks game was moved up and to a high school field. Both games were moved to a 1:00PM start. I dropped off Jordan around 11:30 to do the women's game.
Lots of youth rugby was being played on a lovely, well-marked regulation pitch with plenty of supporters
On the other hand the high school field I was running on was pitiful. The Chico men have lost a couple of better fields due to construction. The field was somewhat lined and of regulation size, with good goal posts and barrier ropes. But it was hard and didn’t have a smooth, flat square yard of playing surface.
This was a friendly and both teams had 15-18 players each.
Sacramento was led by #10 Shaun who was the best player on the field today. He scored three trys in the first half and set up the other two first half trys with some crisp passes.
Chico was missing both starting centers and had difficulty breaking the gain line in the backs.
Again early rugby, and similar to the high school JV game I did the night before, lots of penalties at the breakdown, strong counter rucks but players losing their feet and ignoring the gates.
First half score Sacramento 27 Chico 5.
The second half saw the Capitals score three unanswered trys for a final of Sacramento 46 Chico 5.
Back to campus to pick up Jordan and listen to the 49er game for the drive home.
Wow, now that was an exciting game!
CHICO STATE women 59 – UC Santa Cruz 0 Referee: Jordan Bruno
On a surprisingly bright and warm winter day up north, the Chico women's rugby club squared off against a motley crew from UCSC. The Chico Women's side was more experienced, disciplined, and physical, proving to be too much for the Slugs. In the first thirty, UCSC advanced into Chico's half of the field only twice. UCSC struggled with securing the ball when using speed to their advantage--the Slugs' faster backs gained ground only to be left without support leading to loss of possession. Scrums were stable and well contested on both sides--the Slugs' front row did well in their first competitive match in engaging a more experienced forward pack.
The Chico women's side had several standouts--a center who poached ball six or seven times leading to a couple of successful tries, a speedy fullback who dotted a hat trick against a spotty defense, and a number eight who repeatedly broke tackles to gain ground and march the Chico women's offense up the field.
Following the match, Mitch, the women's side coach, gave good feedback, mentioning that during the match, defensive players were living offside at rucks and entering from the side. I agreed, but noted that even his side did not do a good enough job in securing the ball in the ruck to manage these aspects of the game effectively. The ball was out as soon as either team went into contact, leaving the rucks a sloppy free for all that had to be cleaned up with scrum resets and friendly advice to do a better job at securing the ball at rucks.
St. Mary's thirds 5 – SIERRA COLLEGE 64 Referee: John Coppinger
Sierra College ran by and over Saint Mary's College III 64-5 in the early match at Saint Mary's on Saturday.
While the result really isn't a surprise--Sierra did make the Men's College D2 Final Four last year--it did seem a little surreal to watch a systematic demolition of a Gaels side. The Gaels had few answers for the power, pace and cohesive nature of the Sierra attack. To add to their woes, the Gaels uncharacteristically struggled to comply with the laws of the game, particularly the offside law.
To their credit, SMC battled to the end and were rewarded with a try in the last minute to avoid the shutout.
ST. MARY’S 79 – Back Bay 10 Referee: Pete Smith
SMC was 2 for 15 on conversions; they might have broken 100 if they had a kicker. Typical pre-season game for them with no kicking with ball in hand. I think the coach tells them not to kick. They did twice and both times the players immediately regretted it despite having made good kicks. Really fun game to ref, I ran my tail off as the ball was whipping around the field.
Seconds: ST. MARY’S 82 – Back Bay 24 Referee: Paul Bretz
Back Bay practiced their kickoffs a lot in this one-sided match.
11am kick off:
Seconds: SANTA CLARA 53 - Santa Cruz 20 Referee: Bruce Ricard
Game starts very quickly with Santa Cruz scoring a penalty kick at the 2nd minute, and 2 tries at the 8th and 16 minute. But after one of their locks is temporarily excluded for having made 2 dangerous tackles at the 18th minute, they seemed to lose concentration, and Santa Clara scored 4 tries in the 20 last minutes of the first half. 20 - 13 at the break.
Second half starts how the first ended, with a very strong Santa Clara. They scored 5 tries during this half, even with one yellow card, against only one try for Santa Cruz. Final score : 53 - 20.
(1pm kick off) :
SANTA CLARA 53 - Santa Cruz 15 Ref: Ricard
One way first half, with Santa Clara scoring 5 tries, and Santa Cruz only a penalty kick. 29 - 3 at the break. Santa Clara scored 3 more tries in the first 20 minutes of the second half, before letting Santa Cruz score 2 tries, and scoring a last try in the last quarter of the game. Final Score : 53 - 15
ROUND ROBIN IN TURLOCK
Stanislaus 7 – SOUTH VALLEY 27 Referee: Giles Wilson
Diablo Gaels and South Valley got together with Stanislaus to play a round robin of games. A great day, sunshine and a firm field - it must be a rugby day.
Stanislaus and South Valley got things started - Stanislaus have some old faces with a lot of youngsters; South Valley are young with most players coming from their youth program. The difference in experience was the difference between the teams; with South Valley able to utilize space. In the first half Stanislaus was able to keep things tight but still gave up two tries to nil. In the second half South Valley ran in three more tries while Stanislaus punched over one for a final of 27 - 7.
Stanislaus 12 – DIABLO GAELS 52 Referees: Giles Wilson/Gene Baker
Stanislaus then stayed out to take on Gaels. In the first 30 Stanislaus were initially able to counter ruck and limit Gaels desire to use space and a good off-loading game. This frustrated the Gaels until they began to manage the contact area and ruck better allowing them the quick ball they wanted, which really started to take the wind out of an already tired Stanislaus. Once Gaels controlled the contact, the flood gates opened and the half ended at 26 - 7. Gene Baker took over for the second half and then the Gaels vs South Valley game.
DIABLO GAELS 19 - South Valley 17 Referee: Gene Baker
Lots of young and first-time players suiting up for Stanislaus and South Valley.
Good weather, postmatch at the Dust Bowl brewpub.
Blackhawks some points – COLUSA more points Referee: Eric Rauscher
On a dry grass field under cloudless skies with cool temperature we had four 20-min periods of new players getting to know the game mixed in with seasoned ruggers. The Blackhawk coach, Ben Parker, had a coaching session for the Colusa players before the game. It was interesting to sit in on the session and even more interesting that he would do it for the opposition. Colusa is an established club with the Blackhawks the new kids on the block.
The outcome was predictable, but I was very impressed with the speed of the Blackhawk players. If one of them could get open, they would be down the field in a flash, but with little or no support. I am sure that under Ben’s direction this can only improve. The play was mostly friendly, but tempers flared in the third quarter and I had to give out a red card to a Blackhawk player. Scott Griffin showed up to do the U19 game to follow, so I had him do the fourth quarter and he did a fine job. Good things to look forward to on all fronts for the coming season.
GEORGE O’NEIL MINI-TOUR TO SOCAL
Saturday January 14th, High School:
LA Cougars 15 – MARIN 21
20 min halves
Sunday January 15th, Pac-12 Tournament:
STANFORD 35 – Oregon state 27
30 min halves
Stanford came back from being down 24-0 at one point to win.
UCLA was a great venue and the SoCal society were gracious hosts.
HIGH SCHOOL
LIVE OAK 19 – Pleasanton 15 Referee: John Pohlman
My rugby weekend started with a 6:00PM JV high school game in Morgan Hill. Live Oak hosted the Pleasanton Cavaliers under the lights at the Sports Complex.
This is a nice venue with both natural and artificial turf and covered grandstands for fans. Our game was on the artificial turf field. There were three games being played with the JV game starting things off.
It was good to see two coaches I've known for some time, Ken and Bart. Both teams looked to have 25-plus players for this game.
Early-season rugby thus lots of penalties at the tackle, with leaving your feet at the tackle and coming in from the side being the most frequent calls.
Live Oak scored first, fifteen minutes, in putting their fullback away. Pleasanton was very aggressive at the tackle and ruck, winning the breakdowns and were rewarded with a try at 28 minutes.
Another try by Live Oak scrum half and captain Cookie made it 14-5 at half.
The Live Oak #8 did the kicking and he slotted the first two conversions with ease. One from the touch line. He maybe the best kicker I've seen at age 15.
Another stand out player was Live Oak open side flanker who poached possibly 20 balls. Really amazing skills for a 15-year old.
The second half saw Pleasanton score first to bring the score to 14-10. Except for a messy tackle area this was a very entertaining highly contested match.
Live Oak scored their final try at 17 minutes. Pleasanton roared back with a try at 25 minutes, making the score 19 to 15.
The last 10 minutes was good stuff both teams fighting for the win.
McCLATCHY 27 – Elk Grove 25 Referee: Scott Griffin
Referee Coach: Eric Rauscher
Two very capable opponents, McClatchy having more polish, competed at an off color pitch (dirt brown and dead grass tan instead of green) on Power Inn Road in Sacramento. McClatchy’s skipper, Tyler, informed me he was a certified ref, and seemed more intent on refereeing the game rather than playing in it. The amount of chirping (McClatchy: Coaches, Elk Grove: Players) by both teams reminded me of an American football game instead of rugby, although I can surely understand that as most of our roots for school-aged players are in that sport.
Elk Grove was interested in contact and solo running, whereas McClatchy was interested in getting the ball over the try line. Despite a slight physical disadvantage, McClatchy’s superiority, although tested, prevailed in the end, 27-25, over three 20 minute periods.
Sunday
Lobo Invitational at Elsie Allen – Santa Rosa U19 Round Robin
Refs: Sean Peters, Mike Gadoua, Phil Akroyd
Referee Manager: Mike King
Report by Phil Akroyd:
A total of about 14 games were played with the format of 10 minute games, one side stays on and cycles out after two games, ten-a-sides. This is designed to get newer players and newly returning players back into the swing of Rugby without it being overly competitive. Teams from Elsie Allen, Montgomery and Santa Rosa brought a couple of teams each, so there was plenty of play for everyone. Nobody kept score but most games were very competitive and closely matched.
The area was socked in fog during warm ups, but the sun appeared just after the first game started. The conditions helped for some solid pre-season rugby. It seems that pre-season does not mean what it used to: lots of dropped passes, bad passes, missed tackles and general disarray. Not so these days. These guys are coming out of the blocks with more than solid basic skills. Maybe the emergence of summer 7s is allowing them to maintain their skills.
GAMES JANUARY 7
San Mateo 0 – SACRAMENTO LIONS 27 Referee: Lee Salgado
This was the first game of the day. Kick off was supposed to be at 10 but finally got going around 11:30. It was sunny but chilly and you could feel the wind getting stronger. Fitness and good passing is what won this game. San Mateo started strong but was unable to keep up with Sac who was moving the ball well wide and finding the space outside. The field was a little muddy so scrums resets were frequent, but both teams fought hard through the two 25 minute halves.
SAC LIONS A/B/C mix 14 – San Mateo/Barbarians mix 10 Ref: Salgado
This was the last game of the day and time to buck up with the tired muscles and frigid wind. This was a fun game to ref, tempers that were flaring early in the day had subsided and everyone was enjoying the last game of the day. Because the teams were mixes it made for a good game which is apparent by the closer score. This was a very hard hitting game and really challenged me to stay up with play. Both teams moved well up the field but again, as with the first game of the day, it was Sac's fitness and a good kicker that sealed the deal for the day
THIS WEEK’S PHOTO
Ed and Berry Todd were hiking in the New Mexico desert when they came across an unusual but oddly familiar trail duck.
HAIL, PELICUS!
For the Senate
Pelicus Scriptoris
ROAD WARRIORS
The first column is the number of games each weekend for Humboldt - Shasta - Siskiyou - Chico - Colusa - Mendocino - Reno - Fresno - Arroyo Grande - Paso Robles.
If we leave out Mendocino, Chico and Colusa, which are within two hours of a number of our referees, and Reno and Fresno, where some referees live, that leaves the long drives to Humboldt, Shasta, Siskiyou, Arroyo Grande and Paso Robles, and we get the second column. (This does not count any second-side matches.)
Long Drives Really Long Drives
Jan 28 4 1 Humboldt
Feb 4 10 3 Siskiyou, Humboldt, Arroyo Grande
Feb 11
Feb 18 5 4 Siskiyou, Shasta, Humboldt, Paso Robles
Mar 3 13 4 Siskiyou, Arroyo Grande, Humboldt (men and women)
Mar 10 3
Mar 17 5 4 Shasta, Humboldt, Paso Robles, Arroyo Grande
Mar 24 5 2 Humboldt, Arroyo Grande
Mar 31 9 2 Siskiyou, Paso Robles
Apr 7
Apr 14 2
Totals: 56 20
As you can see, we need everyone to do at least one game from each column. But especially difficult to schedule are the Really Long Drives.
Your writer has already taken one-and-two-half Fridays off and made room reservations to cover a game in Arroyo Grande (March 17), a game in Humboldt (March 3), and a game in Chico (a long way from Salinas) on January 28. Leading from the front...
Please have look at your calendar and plan a weekend around one of these fixtures. How about a romantic weekend? Let me know if you need more information or if you can set a date right now.
AVAILABILITY NEEDED
So far I’ve heard from 14 people about availability for February. And looking at Feb. 4 (say), five of the fourteen are not available. That’s 9 refs for 36 games.
Here’s the preferred format. You can cut-and-paste and fill-in-the-blanks.
Available? Able to travel?
Feb. 4
Feb. 11 (only three games so far)
Feb. 18
Feb. 25
Thanks!
RUGBY GAMES
Friday, 7PM
MARITIME ACADEMY 29 – Berkeley RFC 22 Referee: Craig Smith
AR: Mike King
Evaluator: Todd-Schwartz
Seconds: Maritime Academy 0 – BERKELEY RFC 39 Referee: Bruce Bernstein
AR: Mike King
Referee Coach: David Williamson
Saw a real good match in for both sides' first teams; then reffed their seconds; both under the lights Friday night at Vallejo's home field (Morton) on Mare Island (while Cal Maritime's gets synthetic installed).
Berkeley went ahead 24-0 at half & continued to romp the second half. Pretty sure Cal Maritime had many rookies & Berkeley used more than a few from their first team.
Also all four teams were very well behaved as far as penalties/dangerous/dirty plays.
Lastly, thanks for Dave Williamson's "positive" coaching pointers & pizza pretty late at night after the match & Mike King's assistant reffing in shorts (despite the cold).
Saturday
Sacramento Lions 22 – SANTA ROSA 24 Referee: JC Van Staden
AR: John V
Again, one spectacular day for rugby. Sac Lions came out with a bang, dominating the first half, but injuries, lack of fitness and the lack of conversions sank them in the second half... Not taking anything away from Santa Rosa, who stopped them twice on the goal line, and ran in 3 great back-line tries to steal the win away with only a couple of minutes on the clock.
Good luck to both teams for the rest of the season.
Seconds: Sacramento Lions II – Santa Rosa II Referee: Thee Alan Petty (apparently his 12th season of refereeing)
AR: John V
After a long hmmmm and haaaa , the Lions only managed to field 10 players (apparently because of the Niners playing in the NFL (Nice Friendly Ladies) play-offs, probably another tee party), but like we all know, a "friendly" match does not exist, and the ref had his work cut out for him. The final score is still a mystery, after he called the "last" try at least 3 times, yet the players took up their positions again, and instructed the fly-half to kick off again... [Editor’s Note: there can never be too much rugby.]
Thanks to John V, who have just completed his Level 1, and will have his first run at the KOT. Driving out to a field and offering to be AR just to learn more, is a pretty good start if you ask me...
BARACUS 12 - Samoa United 10 Referee: Bryant Byrnes
Hard men playing hard rugby at the Baracus's lumpy but regulation-size SF pitch. Like American gridiron, the defenses were better that the offense these early days.
High quality, high intensity D2 stuff. The first half was all Samoa, who scored early and led 10-0. But Baracus steadied, settled, and with fresh legs got two in the second half. The conversion of their first wins it. (A referee sandwich/take down was enjoyed by almost all; there were wagers if the fellow was going to get up.)
Seconds: Baracus 7 - SAMOA UNITED 10 Ref: Byrnes
Samoa returns the favor by winning the seconds match 10-7.
Fresno – Paso Robles CANCELED
Chico 5 – SACRAMENTO CAPITALS 46 Referee: John Pohlman
After getting home around 9:00PM Friday from refereeing a high school game, my Saturday came around pretty early. I met fellow Pelican Jordan Bruno in Walnut Creek for the drive to Chico.
Chico Rugby has started a rugby foundation and was hosting a rugby jamboree. The day had been planned as a youth rugby curtain raiser, followed by Chico State Woman hosting UC Santa Cruz, then Chico State Men's hosting UC Davis. Chico Men's Club would finish the day against Sacramento Capitals.
Unfortunately, UC Davis was forced to cancel.
The Chico Oaks game was moved up and to a high school field. Both games were moved to a 1:00PM start. I dropped off Jordan around 11:30 to do the women's game.
Lots of youth rugby was being played on a lovely, well-marked regulation pitch with plenty of supporters
On the other hand the high school field I was running on was pitiful. The Chico men have lost a couple of better fields due to construction. The field was somewhat lined and of regulation size, with good goal posts and barrier ropes. But it was hard and didn’t have a smooth, flat square yard of playing surface.
This was a friendly and both teams had 15-18 players each.
Sacramento was led by #10 Shaun who was the best player on the field today. He scored three trys in the first half and set up the other two first half trys with some crisp passes.
Chico was missing both starting centers and had difficulty breaking the gain line in the backs.
Again early rugby, and similar to the high school JV game I did the night before, lots of penalties at the breakdown, strong counter rucks but players losing their feet and ignoring the gates.
First half score Sacramento 27 Chico 5.
The second half saw the Capitals score three unanswered trys for a final of Sacramento 46 Chico 5.
Back to campus to pick up Jordan and listen to the 49er game for the drive home.
Wow, now that was an exciting game!
CHICO STATE women 59 – UC Santa Cruz 0 Referee: Jordan Bruno
On a surprisingly bright and warm winter day up north, the Chico women's rugby club squared off against a motley crew from UCSC. The Chico Women's side was more experienced, disciplined, and physical, proving to be too much for the Slugs. In the first thirty, UCSC advanced into Chico's half of the field only twice. UCSC struggled with securing the ball when using speed to their advantage--the Slugs' faster backs gained ground only to be left without support leading to loss of possession. Scrums were stable and well contested on both sides--the Slugs' front row did well in their first competitive match in engaging a more experienced forward pack.
The Chico women's side had several standouts--a center who poached ball six or seven times leading to a couple of successful tries, a speedy fullback who dotted a hat trick against a spotty defense, and a number eight who repeatedly broke tackles to gain ground and march the Chico women's offense up the field.
Following the match, Mitch, the women's side coach, gave good feedback, mentioning that during the match, defensive players were living offside at rucks and entering from the side. I agreed, but noted that even his side did not do a good enough job in securing the ball in the ruck to manage these aspects of the game effectively. The ball was out as soon as either team went into contact, leaving the rucks a sloppy free for all that had to be cleaned up with scrum resets and friendly advice to do a better job at securing the ball at rucks.
St. Mary's thirds 5 – SIERRA COLLEGE 64 Referee: John Coppinger
Sierra College ran by and over Saint Mary's College III 64-5 in the early match at Saint Mary's on Saturday.
While the result really isn't a surprise--Sierra did make the Men's College D2 Final Four last year--it did seem a little surreal to watch a systematic demolition of a Gaels side. The Gaels had few answers for the power, pace and cohesive nature of the Sierra attack. To add to their woes, the Gaels uncharacteristically struggled to comply with the laws of the game, particularly the offside law.
To their credit, SMC battled to the end and were rewarded with a try in the last minute to avoid the shutout.
ST. MARY’S 79 – Back Bay 10 Referee: Pete Smith
SMC was 2 for 15 on conversions; they might have broken 100 if they had a kicker. Typical pre-season game for them with no kicking with ball in hand. I think the coach tells them not to kick. They did twice and both times the players immediately regretted it despite having made good kicks. Really fun game to ref, I ran my tail off as the ball was whipping around the field.
Seconds: ST. MARY’S 82 – Back Bay 24 Referee: Paul Bretz
Back Bay practiced their kickoffs a lot in this one-sided match.
11am kick off:
Seconds: SANTA CLARA 53 - Santa Cruz 20 Referee: Bruce Ricard
Game starts very quickly with Santa Cruz scoring a penalty kick at the 2nd minute, and 2 tries at the 8th and 16 minute. But after one of their locks is temporarily excluded for having made 2 dangerous tackles at the 18th minute, they seemed to lose concentration, and Santa Clara scored 4 tries in the 20 last minutes of the first half. 20 - 13 at the break.
Second half starts how the first ended, with a very strong Santa Clara. They scored 5 tries during this half, even with one yellow card, against only one try for Santa Cruz. Final score : 53 - 20.
(1pm kick off) :
SANTA CLARA 53 - Santa Cruz 15 Ref: Ricard
One way first half, with Santa Clara scoring 5 tries, and Santa Cruz only a penalty kick. 29 - 3 at the break. Santa Clara scored 3 more tries in the first 20 minutes of the second half, before letting Santa Cruz score 2 tries, and scoring a last try in the last quarter of the game. Final Score : 53 - 15
ROUND ROBIN IN TURLOCK
Stanislaus 7 – SOUTH VALLEY 27 Referee: Giles Wilson
Diablo Gaels and South Valley got together with Stanislaus to play a round robin of games. A great day, sunshine and a firm field - it must be a rugby day.
Stanislaus and South Valley got things started - Stanislaus have some old faces with a lot of youngsters; South Valley are young with most players coming from their youth program. The difference in experience was the difference between the teams; with South Valley able to utilize space. In the first half Stanislaus was able to keep things tight but still gave up two tries to nil. In the second half South Valley ran in three more tries while Stanislaus punched over one for a final of 27 - 7.
Stanislaus 12 – DIABLO GAELS 52 Referees: Giles Wilson/Gene Baker
Stanislaus then stayed out to take on Gaels. In the first 30 Stanislaus were initially able to counter ruck and limit Gaels desire to use space and a good off-loading game. This frustrated the Gaels until they began to manage the contact area and ruck better allowing them the quick ball they wanted, which really started to take the wind out of an already tired Stanislaus. Once Gaels controlled the contact, the flood gates opened and the half ended at 26 - 7. Gene Baker took over for the second half and then the Gaels vs South Valley game.
DIABLO GAELS 19 - South Valley 17 Referee: Gene Baker
Lots of young and first-time players suiting up for Stanislaus and South Valley.
Good weather, postmatch at the Dust Bowl brewpub.
Blackhawks some points – COLUSA more points Referee: Eric Rauscher
On a dry grass field under cloudless skies with cool temperature we had four 20-min periods of new players getting to know the game mixed in with seasoned ruggers. The Blackhawk coach, Ben Parker, had a coaching session for the Colusa players before the game. It was interesting to sit in on the session and even more interesting that he would do it for the opposition. Colusa is an established club with the Blackhawks the new kids on the block.
The outcome was predictable, but I was very impressed with the speed of the Blackhawk players. If one of them could get open, they would be down the field in a flash, but with little or no support. I am sure that under Ben’s direction this can only improve. The play was mostly friendly, but tempers flared in the third quarter and I had to give out a red card to a Blackhawk player. Scott Griffin showed up to do the U19 game to follow, so I had him do the fourth quarter and he did a fine job. Good things to look forward to on all fronts for the coming season.
GEORGE O’NEIL MINI-TOUR TO SOCAL
Saturday January 14th, High School:
LA Cougars 15 – MARIN 21
20 min halves
Sunday January 15th, Pac-12 Tournament:
STANFORD 35 – Oregon state 27
30 min halves
Stanford came back from being down 24-0 at one point to win.
UCLA was a great venue and the SoCal society were gracious hosts.
HIGH SCHOOL
LIVE OAK 19 – Pleasanton 15 Referee: John Pohlman
My rugby weekend started with a 6:00PM JV high school game in Morgan Hill. Live Oak hosted the Pleasanton Cavaliers under the lights at the Sports Complex.
This is a nice venue with both natural and artificial turf and covered grandstands for fans. Our game was on the artificial turf field. There were three games being played with the JV game starting things off.
It was good to see two coaches I've known for some time, Ken and Bart. Both teams looked to have 25-plus players for this game.
Early-season rugby thus lots of penalties at the tackle, with leaving your feet at the tackle and coming in from the side being the most frequent calls.
Live Oak scored first, fifteen minutes, in putting their fullback away. Pleasanton was very aggressive at the tackle and ruck, winning the breakdowns and were rewarded with a try at 28 minutes.
Another try by Live Oak scrum half and captain Cookie made it 14-5 at half.
The Live Oak #8 did the kicking and he slotted the first two conversions with ease. One from the touch line. He maybe the best kicker I've seen at age 15.
Another stand out player was Live Oak open side flanker who poached possibly 20 balls. Really amazing skills for a 15-year old.
The second half saw Pleasanton score first to bring the score to 14-10. Except for a messy tackle area this was a very entertaining highly contested match.
Live Oak scored their final try at 17 minutes. Pleasanton roared back with a try at 25 minutes, making the score 19 to 15.
The last 10 minutes was good stuff both teams fighting for the win.
McCLATCHY 27 – Elk Grove 25 Referee: Scott Griffin
Referee Coach: Eric Rauscher
Two very capable opponents, McClatchy having more polish, competed at an off color pitch (dirt brown and dead grass tan instead of green) on Power Inn Road in Sacramento. McClatchy’s skipper, Tyler, informed me he was a certified ref, and seemed more intent on refereeing the game rather than playing in it. The amount of chirping (McClatchy: Coaches, Elk Grove: Players) by both teams reminded me of an American football game instead of rugby, although I can surely understand that as most of our roots for school-aged players are in that sport.
Elk Grove was interested in contact and solo running, whereas McClatchy was interested in getting the ball over the try line. Despite a slight physical disadvantage, McClatchy’s superiority, although tested, prevailed in the end, 27-25, over three 20 minute periods.
Sunday
Lobo Invitational at Elsie Allen – Santa Rosa U19 Round Robin
Refs: Sean Peters, Mike Gadoua, Phil Akroyd
Referee Manager: Mike King
Report by Phil Akroyd:
A total of about 14 games were played with the format of 10 minute games, one side stays on and cycles out after two games, ten-a-sides. This is designed to get newer players and newly returning players back into the swing of Rugby without it being overly competitive. Teams from Elsie Allen, Montgomery and Santa Rosa brought a couple of teams each, so there was plenty of play for everyone. Nobody kept score but most games were very competitive and closely matched.
The area was socked in fog during warm ups, but the sun appeared just after the first game started. The conditions helped for some solid pre-season rugby. It seems that pre-season does not mean what it used to: lots of dropped passes, bad passes, missed tackles and general disarray. Not so these days. These guys are coming out of the blocks with more than solid basic skills. Maybe the emergence of summer 7s is allowing them to maintain their skills.
GAMES JANUARY 7
San Mateo 0 – SACRAMENTO LIONS 27 Referee: Lee Salgado
This was the first game of the day. Kick off was supposed to be at 10 but finally got going around 11:30. It was sunny but chilly and you could feel the wind getting stronger. Fitness and good passing is what won this game. San Mateo started strong but was unable to keep up with Sac who was moving the ball well wide and finding the space outside. The field was a little muddy so scrums resets were frequent, but both teams fought hard through the two 25 minute halves.
SAC LIONS A/B/C mix 14 – San Mateo/Barbarians mix 10 Ref: Salgado
This was the last game of the day and time to buck up with the tired muscles and frigid wind. This was a fun game to ref, tempers that were flaring early in the day had subsided and everyone was enjoying the last game of the day. Because the teams were mixes it made for a good game which is apparent by the closer score. This was a very hard hitting game and really challenged me to stay up with play. Both teams moved well up the field but again, as with the first game of the day, it was Sac's fitness and a good kicker that sealed the deal for the day
THIS WEEK’S PHOTO
Ed and Berry Todd were hiking in the New Mexico desert when they came across an unusual but oddly familiar trail duck.
HAIL, PELICUS!
For the Senate
Pelicus Scriptoris
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
TOO BEAUTIFUL FOR WORDS
HAIL, PELICUS!
NEED REFS THIS WEDNESDAY...
...at the first NCRRS meeting of the 2012 season.
We’ll be meeting from 7 until 9 on Wednesday, January 11, at the SFGG clubhouse on Treasure Island, for referee training. Food will be provided beginning at 6, so plan to arrive early and talk rugby with your peers.
That way, if you get stuck in traffic, you’ll still be in time for the meeting and you’ll still get something to eat.
The Referee Development Committee will meet from 6 to 7. If you coach or evaluate referees, or plan to do so this season, you are welcome.
NEED REFS THIS SATURDAY
We could use several refs this Saturday in the Sacramento area, and probably one or more in the Bay Area.
GAMES PAST WEEK
Monday, January 9
Sheeran Field, 10 AM
USA U20 Red – USA U20 Blue Referee: Pete Smith
AR: James Hinkin
I didn’t keep score, but there was only one conversion missed and a ton of tries in a dead even game. My guess was that it was 49-47 final. USA U20 Blue versus USA U20 Red. James Hinkin and I carpooled up. The weather was PERFECT at 60 degrees and not a cloud in the sky.
Not an ounce of funny stuff from either team, they both came to show why they deserve to represent the US of A. I can’t believe the quality of athletes that are playing at that level now. These are kids that would otherwise be getting scholarships in other sports, just top flight athletes with size and speed.
If you had never seen a game of rugby before in your life, this would have been the game to see to make you fall in love with the sport. Just sucks that the best game I will get all year is on Jan 9th; now I get 356 days of really good rugby but not the crazy-amazing game I had today.
It was an honor and a treat!
PRE-SEASON ROUND-ROBIN IN SACRAMENTO
Other games were refereed by Lee Salgado and Jeff Richmond, but no reports were received from them.
SAN MATEO 24 – Bay Barbarians 0 Referee: Phil Akroyd
Referee Coach: Kat Todd-Schwartz
Match three of the Sac Lions pre-season round robin got under way some time after 1:30pm in the same sunny but windy conditions as the previous two games. San Mateo played into the wind in the first half and dominated play in the loose. The Barbos didn’t catch on to letting the wind help them out of their own territory with the boot, but no player through the entire day seemed to. San Mateo went into the (25 minute half up 12-0.
Much the same happened in the second half but as players got more tired, their laziness increased and so did the penalty count. San Mateo added the same number of second half points as first half, resulting in a 24-0 full time score.
The Sac Lions seemed to have secured themselves a good field for the season ahead – full size and relatively flat, so unsurprisingly, they are working on their fitness.
Fresno 20 - KERN COUNTY 21 Referee: JV Van Staden
One more perfect day for rugby, around 70F, dry, and the leaves barely moving... After a 2:30hour train ride, I got picked up by Pastor John at the train station. In my 12 years of refereeing, this was the most I have been relaxed arriving at a pitch EVER (I can so recommend this)
Fresno went up first with 2 unanswered tries in the left corner, but Kern pulled it together, and after a yellow on Fresno, Kern scored their first converted try. Fresno 10 - Kern 7
Second half, Fresno started out fast again, and ran in one more, but with an un-experience wing, scored it on the side line again, without any defense within 30 yards from him. Kern work hard for their tries, and scored another converted try, which put them within 1 point. With, yet another man down, Fresno scored one more unconverted try after about 15 rucks within 5m from Kern's goal line. Fresno suffered a few injuries, which cost them in the center field. Kern ran in yet another converted try with a minute to go, to go up 1 point...
Great game, and good luck to both teams for the rest of the season. Great thanks the guys that picked me up and dropped me off at the station.
DIABLO GAELS 48 – Vallejo 27 Referee: Paul Bretz
Preseason friendly. The game was divided into 4-25 minute periods.
New Pelican Craig Smith did two of the four periods. Pay attention: you will be seeing his name again.
Marin Reds 0 – SANTA ROSA 40 Referee: James Hinkin
ARs: Pete Smith, Jackson Petty
With much of the country under snow and not playing any rugby at all, it was a struggle to get up to Sausalito to referee a preseason match. Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge on a perfectly clear day in the mid to high 60s, sailboats dotting the bay below, was a truly difficult experience. I don’t think people know what we have to put up with here in Northern California.
The match featured 4 20 minute periods, with an additional 20 minute ‘B’ game handled by Pete Smith. Both teams were warmed up and ready to go at 1:00 so the Team Of Three (a luxury!) ran out for some fun. Debuting as an AR was 10 year old Jackson Petty who, as pointed out by Pete Smith, has one of the greatest rock and roll names ever. The assistance provided was trained ARs is invaluable and they have my thanks.
The game was relatively even with one exception – Santa Rosa kept breaking key tackles as the Marin defense put people in the correct place but didn’t execute. Once the gain line was broken Santa Rosa was able to have enough support to finish off the tries. Mixed in with this were a couple short range crashes that powered over the line for a grand total of 8 tries. Marin, however, did exceptionally well in their goal kicking defense as Santa Rosa went 0 for 8 on conversions.
Final Score: Marin Reds 0 – Santa Rosa 40
SIERRA FOOTHILLS 41 - 12 Berkeley RFC (100 minutes over 4 quarters) Referee: Chris Tucker
Pre-season rugby 15s at its finest -- lots of rookies, mistakes, curious happenings and (generally) friendly rugby going on. My first match of any kind for, er, quite a while. And the rust was on display for all to see.
Penalties? Scrum resets? Lineout issues? Many of all the above. Worst problem was with my footwork and movement, so much so that in spite of being in the right spot to award Berkeley's second try, I was losing my balance as my arm went up. End result: try awarded while lying flat on my back.
And with that, it was time for a beer at the Valencia Club...
Kennedy 22 – ELK GROVE 61 Referee: Bryant Byrnes
ARs: Rod Chance, Ron DeCausemaker
This pre-season match was played in windy, dry Sacramento. For a first match of the season for new(ish) programs with lots of rookies, this was splendid stuff -although I could have lived without the shooting the boot of what I think was chicken soup.
Played in 20 minute quarters, the first was all Elk Grove, with a comeback by host Kennedy; the visitors were up by only 24 to 17. The third period was real thing-of-beauty rugby. Thanks to my ARs Rod and Ron.
PRESTON GORDON FLIES THE PELICAN FLAG IN SUISSE
HERMANCE 11 – GC Zürich Rugby 5 (Swiss National League A)
Chens-le-Pont, France
2011-12-03
This was the only rugby game on the calendar for this particular day, a fixture that would have been played several weeks beforehand if not for bad weather. As I do whenever I go to Switzerland, I got in touch with the Federation's referee committee and let them know I would be available. Happily they obliged me with this assignment, for which I am grateful.
The night before, I carpooled down to Geneva with the rest of the Zurich guys. Once at the hotel they headed out for a few but I decided it would be wise to hit the sack directly. This was a wise decision.
In the morning I changed into Number 1's and we all headed to the pitch, which is just over the French border on the south side of the Lake of Geneva. It's got a great view of the Jura and Haute-Savoie mountains, and a clubhouse with proper changing rooms for everyone to boot.
These two teams were equal in league points, and were generally evenly matched. I was hoping for a really good game of rugby, and it began pretty well. Hermance kicked a penalty goal in the 7th minute and it seemed that things would continue to roll along nicely. Unfortunately, however, there's some history between these two sides, and more often than not players were engaging in extra-curricular activities behind my back. As we all know, one referee can't watch 30 players and the ball at the same time, and unfortunately no AR's were available to help. There weren't too many penalties, but continuity was lacking since both teams complained of foul play regularly and I had to have a couple of chats with the captains. The Hermance #13 went to the bin in the 30th minute for being offside (team repeat infringement), followed by their #10 in the 36th minute for punching. Zürich gave it a good shot but was unable to capitalize on the difference in numbers while these two guys were off the field, and no further scoring happened in the first half.
The second half continued in much the same vein as the first. The Zürich #10 missed a drop goal early on but Hermance were the first to score, with an unconverted try 9 minutes into the period. 4 minutes later I found the Zürich captain deliberately interfering with the ball while off his feet at a ruck, despite being told not to, and he went to the bin as well. Hermance kicked another penalty goal at 23', just before he returned.
There was some decent rugby happening, but it was more the exception than the norm. This was disappointing because I have seen both of these teams play much better, and the weather and pitch were not at all a constraint, especially given the date.
Finally, in the 74th minute, I caught the Hermance openside choking and then stamping on an opponent on the ground. The immediate red card put a stop to the nonsense at once. Had I seen something like that happening early in the game, it might have been a different afternoon, but as mentioned, the players knew when I was looking elsewhere and took advantage of that. Disappointing, really. This is the reason we ask our AR's to "lead and trail" - especially trail - and at this level there's no citing commissioner looking at video.
Zürich finally got the try they had been threatening to score all game at 78', but it was unconverted, and ultimately too little, too late. To be fair though, they were missing a few of their internationals. When these two teams play their return fixture in the spring it will be either a cracking game or a street brawl - it's hard to say. There is certainly a lot more potential than a total of 16 points/2 tries in this matchup.
Even considering the unfortunate incidents, an afternoon of rugby is always a good thing. I did enjoy the 3.6 miles of running, and it's always a pleasure to referee in Switzerland again.
THIS WEEK’S PHOTO
The Old Year found some Pelicans in Hawaii, and those Pelicans found something they’d never seen before.
See if you agree...
HAIL, PELICUS!
NEED REFS THIS WEDNESDAY...
...at the first NCRRS meeting of the 2012 season.
We’ll be meeting from 7 until 9 on Wednesday, January 11, at the SFGG clubhouse on Treasure Island, for referee training. Food will be provided beginning at 6, so plan to arrive early and talk rugby with your peers.
That way, if you get stuck in traffic, you’ll still be in time for the meeting and you’ll still get something to eat.
The Referee Development Committee will meet from 6 to 7. If you coach or evaluate referees, or plan to do so this season, you are welcome.
NEED REFS THIS SATURDAY
We could use several refs this Saturday in the Sacramento area, and probably one or more in the Bay Area.
GAMES PAST WEEK
Monday, January 9
Sheeran Field, 10 AM
USA U20 Red – USA U20 Blue Referee: Pete Smith
AR: James Hinkin
I didn’t keep score, but there was only one conversion missed and a ton of tries in a dead even game. My guess was that it was 49-47 final. USA U20 Blue versus USA U20 Red. James Hinkin and I carpooled up. The weather was PERFECT at 60 degrees and not a cloud in the sky.
Not an ounce of funny stuff from either team, they both came to show why they deserve to represent the US of A. I can’t believe the quality of athletes that are playing at that level now. These are kids that would otherwise be getting scholarships in other sports, just top flight athletes with size and speed.
If you had never seen a game of rugby before in your life, this would have been the game to see to make you fall in love with the sport. Just sucks that the best game I will get all year is on Jan 9th; now I get 356 days of really good rugby but not the crazy-amazing game I had today.
It was an honor and a treat!
PRE-SEASON ROUND-ROBIN IN SACRAMENTO
Other games were refereed by Lee Salgado and Jeff Richmond, but no reports were received from them.
SAN MATEO 24 – Bay Barbarians 0 Referee: Phil Akroyd
Referee Coach: Kat Todd-Schwartz
Match three of the Sac Lions pre-season round robin got under way some time after 1:30pm in the same sunny but windy conditions as the previous two games. San Mateo played into the wind in the first half and dominated play in the loose. The Barbos didn’t catch on to letting the wind help them out of their own territory with the boot, but no player through the entire day seemed to. San Mateo went into the (25 minute half up 12-0.
Much the same happened in the second half but as players got more tired, their laziness increased and so did the penalty count. San Mateo added the same number of second half points as first half, resulting in a 24-0 full time score.
The Sac Lions seemed to have secured themselves a good field for the season ahead – full size and relatively flat, so unsurprisingly, they are working on their fitness.
Fresno 20 - KERN COUNTY 21 Referee: JV Van Staden
One more perfect day for rugby, around 70F, dry, and the leaves barely moving... After a 2:30hour train ride, I got picked up by Pastor John at the train station. In my 12 years of refereeing, this was the most I have been relaxed arriving at a pitch EVER (I can so recommend this)
Fresno went up first with 2 unanswered tries in the left corner, but Kern pulled it together, and after a yellow on Fresno, Kern scored their first converted try. Fresno 10 - Kern 7
Second half, Fresno started out fast again, and ran in one more, but with an un-experience wing, scored it on the side line again, without any defense within 30 yards from him. Kern work hard for their tries, and scored another converted try, which put them within 1 point. With, yet another man down, Fresno scored one more unconverted try after about 15 rucks within 5m from Kern's goal line. Fresno suffered a few injuries, which cost them in the center field. Kern ran in yet another converted try with a minute to go, to go up 1 point...
Great game, and good luck to both teams for the rest of the season. Great thanks the guys that picked me up and dropped me off at the station.
DIABLO GAELS 48 – Vallejo 27 Referee: Paul Bretz
Preseason friendly. The game was divided into 4-25 minute periods.
New Pelican Craig Smith did two of the four periods. Pay attention: you will be seeing his name again.
Marin Reds 0 – SANTA ROSA 40 Referee: James Hinkin
ARs: Pete Smith, Jackson Petty
With much of the country under snow and not playing any rugby at all, it was a struggle to get up to Sausalito to referee a preseason match. Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge on a perfectly clear day in the mid to high 60s, sailboats dotting the bay below, was a truly difficult experience. I don’t think people know what we have to put up with here in Northern California.
The match featured 4 20 minute periods, with an additional 20 minute ‘B’ game handled by Pete Smith. Both teams were warmed up and ready to go at 1:00 so the Team Of Three (a luxury!) ran out for some fun. Debuting as an AR was 10 year old Jackson Petty who, as pointed out by Pete Smith, has one of the greatest rock and roll names ever. The assistance provided was trained ARs is invaluable and they have my thanks.
The game was relatively even with one exception – Santa Rosa kept breaking key tackles as the Marin defense put people in the correct place but didn’t execute. Once the gain line was broken Santa Rosa was able to have enough support to finish off the tries. Mixed in with this were a couple short range crashes that powered over the line for a grand total of 8 tries. Marin, however, did exceptionally well in their goal kicking defense as Santa Rosa went 0 for 8 on conversions.
Final Score: Marin Reds 0 – Santa Rosa 40
SIERRA FOOTHILLS 41 - 12 Berkeley RFC (100 minutes over 4 quarters) Referee: Chris Tucker
Pre-season rugby 15s at its finest -- lots of rookies, mistakes, curious happenings and (generally) friendly rugby going on. My first match of any kind for, er, quite a while. And the rust was on display for all to see.
Penalties? Scrum resets? Lineout issues? Many of all the above. Worst problem was with my footwork and movement, so much so that in spite of being in the right spot to award Berkeley's second try, I was losing my balance as my arm went up. End result: try awarded while lying flat on my back.
And with that, it was time for a beer at the Valencia Club...
Kennedy 22 – ELK GROVE 61 Referee: Bryant Byrnes
ARs: Rod Chance, Ron DeCausemaker
This pre-season match was played in windy, dry Sacramento. For a first match of the season for new(ish) programs with lots of rookies, this was splendid stuff -although I could have lived without the shooting the boot of what I think was chicken soup.
Played in 20 minute quarters, the first was all Elk Grove, with a comeback by host Kennedy; the visitors were up by only 24 to 17. The third period was real thing-of-beauty rugby. Thanks to my ARs Rod and Ron.
PRESTON GORDON FLIES THE PELICAN FLAG IN SUISSE
HERMANCE 11 – GC Zürich Rugby 5 (Swiss National League A)
Chens-le-Pont, France
2011-12-03
This was the only rugby game on the calendar for this particular day, a fixture that would have been played several weeks beforehand if not for bad weather. As I do whenever I go to Switzerland, I got in touch with the Federation's referee committee and let them know I would be available. Happily they obliged me with this assignment, for which I am grateful.
The night before, I carpooled down to Geneva with the rest of the Zurich guys. Once at the hotel they headed out for a few but I decided it would be wise to hit the sack directly. This was a wise decision.
In the morning I changed into Number 1's and we all headed to the pitch, which is just over the French border on the south side of the Lake of Geneva. It's got a great view of the Jura and Haute-Savoie mountains, and a clubhouse with proper changing rooms for everyone to boot.
These two teams were equal in league points, and were generally evenly matched. I was hoping for a really good game of rugby, and it began pretty well. Hermance kicked a penalty goal in the 7th minute and it seemed that things would continue to roll along nicely. Unfortunately, however, there's some history between these two sides, and more often than not players were engaging in extra-curricular activities behind my back. As we all know, one referee can't watch 30 players and the ball at the same time, and unfortunately no AR's were available to help. There weren't too many penalties, but continuity was lacking since both teams complained of foul play regularly and I had to have a couple of chats with the captains. The Hermance #13 went to the bin in the 30th minute for being offside (team repeat infringement), followed by their #10 in the 36th minute for punching. Zürich gave it a good shot but was unable to capitalize on the difference in numbers while these two guys were off the field, and no further scoring happened in the first half.
The second half continued in much the same vein as the first. The Zürich #10 missed a drop goal early on but Hermance were the first to score, with an unconverted try 9 minutes into the period. 4 minutes later I found the Zürich captain deliberately interfering with the ball while off his feet at a ruck, despite being told not to, and he went to the bin as well. Hermance kicked another penalty goal at 23', just before he returned.
There was some decent rugby happening, but it was more the exception than the norm. This was disappointing because I have seen both of these teams play much better, and the weather and pitch were not at all a constraint, especially given the date.
Finally, in the 74th minute, I caught the Hermance openside choking and then stamping on an opponent on the ground. The immediate red card put a stop to the nonsense at once. Had I seen something like that happening early in the game, it might have been a different afternoon, but as mentioned, the players knew when I was looking elsewhere and took advantage of that. Disappointing, really. This is the reason we ask our AR's to "lead and trail" - especially trail - and at this level there's no citing commissioner looking at video.
Zürich finally got the try they had been threatening to score all game at 78', but it was unconverted, and ultimately too little, too late. To be fair though, they were missing a few of their internationals. When these two teams play their return fixture in the spring it will be either a cracking game or a street brawl - it's hard to say. There is certainly a lot more potential than a total of 16 points/2 tries in this matchup.
Even considering the unfortunate incidents, an afternoon of rugby is always a good thing. I did enjoy the 3.6 miles of running, and it's always a pleasure to referee in Switzerland again.
THIS WEEK’S PHOTO
The Old Year found some Pelicans in Hawaii, and those Pelicans found something they’d never seen before.
See if you agree...
HAIL, PELICUS!
Tuesday, January 03, 2012
LET'S GET STARTED
HAIL, PELICUS!
HAPPY NEW YEAR
As the song has it, Saturday is a Rugby Day. It looks like 2012 is going to be a Rugby Year.
There are more teams in the NCRFU than ever before. Youth rugby has exploded. Lots of folks have been taking referee courses in Pelicanland.
Let’s hope these stars align and more course-takers means more referees.
If you have taken a course recently and would like to referee, the person writing these words is the one who needs to know of your interest.
AVAILABILITY REQUESTED
If you are a referee and you’d like to run around and blow your whistle, you need to reply to this e-mail with a list of your availability for the next few Saturdays. Some Sundays, too, for that matter.
We also need to know whether you can travel. That means more than ninety minutes or so each way by car.
If you are new to this, jump right in. There are more teams than the NCRFU has ever had before. Once the league seasons start at the end of January, every Saturday will find a number of games without an assigned referee. We dread to think that there will be refs at home who didn’t have a game and could have done one.
Your scribe is also your scheduler. We don’t have time to write to nearly a hundred folks and say, can you help out this weekend? IF YOU WANT TO REF, LET US KNOW.
January 7: Need half a dozen refs. Tournament in Sac, games elsewhere including Fresno.
January 14: Two games on Friday the 13th, at the Maritime Academy. Can you do a Friday game? On the Saturday, there are a number of games including in Chico and Fresno.
January 21-22: Friday night game at the Maritime Academy.
On Saturday and Sunday, the Stanford Invitational will be played. Need four-six refs for this. Ideal for one or two beginning referees.
January 28-29: Two Friday afternoon games at St. Mary’s.
This weekend is a good example: twenty-four club and college games with six refs available so far. And this does not include the Kick-Off Tournament for youth and high school in Sacramento, which needs about thirty refs.
You can do a club or college game on Saturday and do high school games in Sacramento on Sunday – but not unless you reply and say you are available.
THIS WEEK’S PHOTO
Perfect year-end weather found four Pelicans mountain-biking the sweet single-track trails of Fort Ord.
This photo finds them at the end of their two-hour jaunt: John Coppinger, Bruce Carter, Bryant Byrnes, and Bruce Bernstein.
HAIL, PELICUS!
For the Senate
Pelicus Scriptoris
HAPPY NEW YEAR
As the song has it, Saturday is a Rugby Day. It looks like 2012 is going to be a Rugby Year.
There are more teams in the NCRFU than ever before. Youth rugby has exploded. Lots of folks have been taking referee courses in Pelicanland.
Let’s hope these stars align and more course-takers means more referees.
If you have taken a course recently and would like to referee, the person writing these words is the one who needs to know of your interest.
AVAILABILITY REQUESTED
If you are a referee and you’d like to run around and blow your whistle, you need to reply to this e-mail with a list of your availability for the next few Saturdays. Some Sundays, too, for that matter.
We also need to know whether you can travel. That means more than ninety minutes or so each way by car.
If you are new to this, jump right in. There are more teams than the NCRFU has ever had before. Once the league seasons start at the end of January, every Saturday will find a number of games without an assigned referee. We dread to think that there will be refs at home who didn’t have a game and could have done one.
Your scribe is also your scheduler. We don’t have time to write to nearly a hundred folks and say, can you help out this weekend? IF YOU WANT TO REF, LET US KNOW.
January 7: Need half a dozen refs. Tournament in Sac, games elsewhere including Fresno.
January 14: Two games on Friday the 13th, at the Maritime Academy. Can you do a Friday game? On the Saturday, there are a number of games including in Chico and Fresno.
January 21-22: Friday night game at the Maritime Academy.
On Saturday and Sunday, the Stanford Invitational will be played. Need four-six refs for this. Ideal for one or two beginning referees.
January 28-29: Two Friday afternoon games at St. Mary’s.
This weekend is a good example: twenty-four club and college games with six refs available so far. And this does not include the Kick-Off Tournament for youth and high school in Sacramento, which needs about thirty refs.
You can do a club or college game on Saturday and do high school games in Sacramento on Sunday – but not unless you reply and say you are available.
THIS WEEK’S PHOTO
Perfect year-end weather found four Pelicans mountain-biking the sweet single-track trails of Fort Ord.
This photo finds them at the end of their two-hour jaunt: John Coppinger, Bruce Carter, Bryant Byrnes, and Bruce Bernstein.
HAIL, PELICUS!
For the Senate
Pelicus Scriptoris
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