The sun began to melt away the morning dew before the Denver Barbarians and family descended upon Cook Park to face off against their old foes from the south, the Colorado Springs Grizzlies. As the sun reached its peak around noon, the fans began to trickle in and enjoy the wonderful atmosphere. There were families supporting players, old boys supporting the club, and even a younger generation of future Denver Barbarians stopped by the pitch to watch the day's clash.

As the burgers were flipped and served, the teams warmed up and prepared for an inter-division game that would play a factor in the final game of 2019, the “Eastern Rockies Cup”. The Grizzlies have moved in and out of divisions over the past decade, as their club’s unique connection with the Air Force and military presence in the area often sees players coming and going, often following their deployment assignments. After losing a tight match to the Denver Highlanders weeks earlier, the Grizzlies brought their entire strength into this weekend. The results paid off, as the Colorado Springs Grizzlies defeated the Denver Barbarians in a tight match that came down to a single point, 29-28.

It was all Colorado Springs to open the game. The Grizzlies used their large forward pack to earn yards right through the heart of the Barbarians defense. After multiple line breaks from the CO Springs man of the match Matt Woerner, simple pick and go tries were scored by winger Devon McIntosh and prop Cody Varnell within 10 minutes. The Barbos would hit back with tries from team leader, veteran Danny “Try Me” Bell and Jason “Tubbs” Christiansen. After two Devin Martling conversions (yes, that’s Lenny’s kid), the score was knotted at 14 apiece.

Before the half, Colorado Springs answered back through Matt Woerner and the fullback Mike Williams slotted his third conversion. The Barbos unfortunately lost a few players to injury at the end of the half, and faced an uphill battle with a halftime score trailing 21-14. With a different half back pairing moving Ryan Walker to flyhalf and Jojo Star to scrumhalf, the Barbos saw some decent momentum in the early minutes of the second half. A try through the scrappy loose forward Walter Savaria was converted by Walker, bringing the score to 24-21 (Co Springs converted an earlier penalty).

Right when it seemed as though the Barbarians would take their momentum to a leading score, it was Colorado Springs who hit back. In what seemed like the theme of the day, the grizzlies dotted down through their pack, with the loose flanker Mauiitiitiatalaga Yandall getting the honors as he bruised through the goal line in the 62nd minute. The Grizzlies would then empty their bench in an effort to hold out a 29-21 lead. A 70th minute converted try by Dante Brown gave the hometown fans hope as the score was pushed to just a one point game. But even a 78th minute yellow card against the Springs was not enough to help the Barbos get back down in scoring territory. Final Score: Colorado Springs – 29 Denver Barbarians – 28

The second side game saw tries a plenty, as the Denver Barbarians called on their old boy network to turn the day around with a win. Tries came from Dante Brown, Pt Smith, and Andy Amburg (who had a one handed intercept try!), and notable efforts were put forth from Uncle Johnny Warner, Juan "Chili" Bialy, Adam Fisher, and Matt Lancaster. Hats off to all the players that closed out the second game and secured a Barbarian come from behind victory!

Final Score: Barbos (2nd) – 35 Colorado Springs (2nd) – 34