BARBOS HEAD TO NATIONALS, SQUARE UP WITH BUFFALO
5/13/22 after practice team photo!
BACK ROW: Jone Naqica, Gabe Bram, Christian Rubio, Max Murphy, Luka Pavlakis, Matt Frater, Alex Wormer, Joe Goldbloom, Noah Pflaum, Jack Grisanti, Adrian Martinez, Tyler Grant, Brian Erichsen, Danny Bell. MIDDLE ROW: Todd Oswald, Tim Hutchins, Nate Paladino, Ryan Walker, Rob Valle, Corey Jacobs, Liam Wynne, Rob Moreno, Steve Karas. FRONT ROW: Donovan Reed, Malik Bryant, Daniel Wagner, Dante Brown, Luca Tani, Conor O’Brien, Jason Christensen, Eric Sykes, Ben Ferrazza, Brett DeBoy
When you score a combined 143 points in a playoff weekend, it’s easy to gain confidence. After all, that much scoring is a statement. A statement of intent. The team wants to raise another trophy, and deliver a national championship to the club’s legacy. But two remaining games stand in the way of that goal. The hard part of success is leveling off your emotions and expectations. Last weekend’s playoff wins mean next to nothing in the following round. It will be hotter down in the heart of the American south, and the competition will be fiercer.
Enter Buffalo RFC. A truly home grown squad (roster below). Nine players have played high school rugby in Buffalo. 27 of their squad is from upper New York. It will be a tight knit group that can score in a flash (they blitzed Doylestown in over time to win 43-26). The Denver Barbarians know that they must go through a club that wants it just as bad as the men in Green & White. Every point will be earned Saturday afternoon, and to the victor, the spoils … a chance to run it back on Sunday and have a crack at the title and right to call themselves national champs!
Semi-Final games are always exciting. Back when I was a pup in 2013, the Barbos lost a shoot out with Life University Men’s club by a score of 40-37. We had a 12 point lead and a home crowd behind us at the 60 minute mark, but it wasn’t our day. That’s what great about knock-out rugby. The pressure and focus is raised as each second ticks down. If you take your eye off the ball for even a minute, it can lead to heartbreak.
Maximo DeAchaval was brilliant on the day. Rob Moreno (left) and Logan Collins (right) in support. 9 years later, Rob Moreno is on the team roster for another shot at a title.
So as the days tick down to Saturday, May 21st, the players will enter their routines. Final training, pack a bag, hop on a plane to partake a sport that they LOVE to play. The saying “it’s takes a village” couldn’t be truer than for a weekend like this. The Barbos will be bringing 28 players, 3 coaches, and 1 trainer to Atlanta. There’s also a wave of Green & White non-rostered players, old boys, fans, wives, girlfriends, and family members making the trip.
Can’t make the trip, don’t worry— the matches this weekend will be streamed LIVE online. To catch the action this weekend, head on over to The Rugby Network. It’s free! Download the app, or stream on your computer using their website. The Barbos will kick off on Saturday 5/21 against Buffalo at 2pm EST, Noon MDT. If the Barbos win, the final will be held on Sunday 5/22 at 12:30pm EST, 10:30am MDT.
It’s always an honor donning the Green & White, especially for a historic occasion like this! The support can be felt by all of the squad members, and boy have we had a lot of it so far this month! Don’t believe me, just look at our GoFundMe fundraiser which has raised nearly $18,000 in just a few weeks (and a huge THANK YOU to everyone who has donated thus far)!
The team would love nothing more than to thank all of our supporters by coming home with some hardware this weekend. But for now, the sole focus will be on Saturday’s semi-final against Buffalo. It’s Barbarians vs. Buffaloes as these two clubs clash (for the first time in history? … someone fact check that one for me).
You can catch up on everything Denver Barbarians related right here on our website, on our Instagram, or on our Facebook page! More content to come!
As always, Bleed Green.
Denver Barbarians
1 Gabe Bram
2 Dante Brown
3 Malik Bryant
4 Cortland Castro
5 Jason Christensen
6 Brett DeBoy
7 Ben Ferrazza
8 Joe Goldbloom
9 Tyler Grant
10 Carmine Hernandez
11 Corey Jacobs
12 Steve Karas (C)
13 Michael Lawrenson
14 Adrian Martinez-Blaser
15 Rob Moreno
16 Max Murphy
17 Conor O’Brien
18 Luka Pavlakis
19 Noah Pflaum
20 Donovan Ronan
21 Christian Rubio
22 Alex Schultz
23 Eric Sykes Jr.
24 Luca Tani
25 Robert Valle
26 Daniel Wagner
27 Alex Wormer
28 Liam Wynne
Buffalo RFC
1 Kadeem Beckford
2 Josh Bennett
3 Evan Castellani
4 Scott Chown
5 Thadeus Courtney
6 Richard Cowans
7 Nicholas DAmato
8 Michael Dean
9 William Eagan
10 Francesco Ferrara
11 Dylan Grant
12 Anthony Gray
13 Simon Honig
14 Gregory Howell
15 Michael Lang
16 Jjamil Luciano
17 Nathan Moore
18 Casey Morgan
19 Dionell Peart
20 Daniel Pollino
21 Cody Ratka
22 Salvador Saez
23 Peter Sanders
24 Matthew Schuster
25 Maninderjit Singh
26 James Stewart
27 Matthew Webber
28 Christopher Wier
29 Victor Zarate