A CLEAN OCTOBER SWEEP…
With the dust settled on a hard fought month of October, The Barbos have snatched their fall season back. It’s as simple as that …
After starting slow with an unexpected, lowly 1-2 record, the team has now caught a groove and have reeled in 4 straight wins. With the reintroduction of some key 7’s player who excelled this past summer, the Denver Barbarians have seen their attacking prowess surge during the win streak averaging a whopping 58 points per game over the last 4 hit outs.
Director of Rugby Danny Bell said it best “It took a while for the train to leave the station early on in the season, but now that it has, it’s full steam ahead.”
Let’s take a look back at the month of October and shower credit where it’s due.
Fierce competition breeds more ferocity … Aspen Ruggerfest always delivers.
In the last week of September, the Denver Barbarians competed in the 53rd annual Ruggerfest. After toppling their first two opponents Saturday morning, the men slipped up against a formidable Olympic Club who made the journey from San Francisco. The tournament was back on after being cancelled the previous year, and the turnout was spectacular. After big wins against the Dallas Harlequins and the Denver Waterdogs, Olympic Club capitalized at the right moments and won the quarterfinal battle 22-14.
As the team regathered the following Monday for training, the question loomed. What type of team did this group want to be?
The next test would tell as the Barbos packed down against the Denver Water Dogs (previously the Denver Misfits, previously the Glendale Merlins) on 10/2. It was sunny Saturday and the lads in Green & White answered the call with a lopsided 66-7 victory. Noah Pflaum and Liam Wynne proved valuable as the backline made mincemeat of the Waterdogs all day.
Carmine Hernandez, Eric Sykes & Conor O’Brien. Solid all-around facial hair
After a bye week (to rest the sore chassis), the men in Green & White rolled again, this time against the Denver Highlanders. The 74-12 score line didn’t do the Highlanders justice as they fought hard all day and were hungry to grab their first fall win. However, it was again the Denver Barbarian backline that proved lethal with Malik Bryant and Eric Sykes scoring multiple tries each.
The October 16th victory brought the Barbos league record to 3-2. With the team still in the middle of the table, the upcoming rematch against Park City (which was circled upon issuance of the fall schedule) would prove to be a pivotal point of the season.
Ryan Walker (pictured top left), held the clipboard on this momentous day. He called a hell of a game as he filled in to coach this Barbos team to a road win.
Park City and Barbos have participated in some epic games over the past few years. But on October 23rd, it was the away side that won a crucial game on the road in the cold and cloudy weather. The Denver Barbarians ran in 5 tries, but more importantly HELD THEIR GROUND defensively. As mentioned before, the potent October attack (58 point-per-game average) is all well and good … but when partnered with staunch defense, the Barbos left no doubt on this day defeating Park City by a score of 40-5.
That feeling when you’ve won 4 straight in October!
After the win at Park City, it was up to the Barbos to keep their heads down and continue their hot streak. Next up was a make up game against the Denver Waterdogs. The team was victorious 52-24, with much of the potent attack running through the hands of the old wizard himself, Gandalf’s kin, Noah “the Flaumingo” Pflaum. The sure handed veteran was able to spread the ball into the hands of Celester Asuega, Eric Sykes, and a new addition to the loose flankers Luca Tani.
This brings the Denver Barbarians to a 5-2 record as they lineup against Boulder RFC with a chance to grab the top spot in the Rocky Mountain Rugby Premiership. Be sure to make it out to the Infinity Park turf field, November 6th, 1pm Kickoff!
Adrian Martinez-Blaser
Jason Christensen
Leland Beatley
Max Murphy
Michael Lawrensen
Luca Tani
Alex Wormer
Steve Karas (C)
Carmine Hernandez
Noah Flaum
Brett DeBoy
Liam Wynne
Eric Sykes
Dante Brown
Celester Asuega
Kyle Hilliard
Cortland Castro
Dan Wagner
Sean Gorman
Conor O’Brien
Ryan Walker
Alex Schultz
Malik Bryant