CONNECTICUT
GREY
RUGBY FOOTBALL CLUB
~ est. 1979 ~
Mountain Mist Outdoor Center
Meriden, Connecticut
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~ est. 1979 ~
Mountain Mist Outdoor Center
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The Hourglass May 14, 2000 A Publication of the Connecticut Grey Rugby Football Club If you hear a Southerner exclaim "Hey y'all, watch this," get
out of the way. GREYS TRIUMPH OVER BERKSHIRE On Saturday, April 29, the Grey played host to Berkshire RFC at the PNA field in Wallingford. This could have been dubbed "the game that almost wasn't" due to some unforeseen problems with the management of the PNA Club. Guess the men of the club were a little upset with the condition of the field after the Easter weekend and informed members of the setup crew that we were not allowed to play that day. Quick talking by Dean "Chamberlain" Jorgensen and the fact that the morning brews were finally kicking in on the old Polish gents saved the day and the game went off as planned. Good news for the Grey, bad news for Berkshire. Once again, a large assemblage of Grey would be thrown at the younger Berks with the intention of keeping fresh bodies on the field to wear down the opposition. Who would have guessed that Berkshire would ask to play three 30-minute periods? This was a mistake. In the opening period, the Grey had it in their mind to continue with the recent string of quick scoring to open the games placing the other team in a hole early. This was the game plan that day as the Grey pressured from the start and was successful in holding the ball in the Berkshire half. Good forward rucking resulted in the ball coming out to the Grey on many occasions. A penalty play 5 meters out to the Grey found the ball up into Seeger who dished back to Kerr who hit Ed Carr around the end giving the Grey the first try. The conversion was short and the Grey led 5 - 0. More pressure by the Grey resulted in a ruck close to the Berkshire try line that was apparently being won by Berkshire, only to have an agile Mike Fotos dive underneath, grab the ball and touch down in the try zone. The conversion was wide and the Grey now led 10 - 0. More of the same after the kickoff to the Grey and more pressure resulted in Don Brancard scooting through the gap, eluding three Berks players and tromping in untouched for the third try of the period. Again, the conversion was wide and the Grey now led 15 - 0. Shortly after, a penalty awarded to the Grey resulted in a penalty kick by Brancard who stretched the lead to 18 - 0. Before the break, a letdown by the Grey gave the Berks several opportunities in the Grey side of the field and finally, a misdirection resulted in a Berkshire try. Their conversion was missed and the period ended Grey 18, Berkshire 5. Substitutions made, the Grey seemed to give a little in the forwards and most of the opening minutes of the second period were played in the Grey end. Playing mostly defense and shagging down long runs by the Berkshire backfield the Grey had little chance to score and unfortunately gave up a score mid-way through the period. Once again, the kick was missed and the lead was cut 18 - 10. The period ended and more substitutions for the third. The length of play must have taken its toll on the Berks as the Grey seemed to pick up where they left off in the first period. Strong offense and good forward play resulted in mostly Grey possession. This was soon followed by a won scrum at mid-field with John Kerr popping a little kick to himself on the sideline, recovering the kick and moving the ball up field and dishing the ball back inside, eventually finding Tony Johnson who cut back upfield and passed out to Brancard in support for the score. The conversion was missed (from dead center in front of the posts) and the Grey now led 30 - 10. The Grey moved the ball back into the Berkshire half and a set scrum to Berkshire inside their 10 meter found the ball coming out the back untouched. The ball was scooped up by Ed Carr who hit John Kerr in support who passed out to Tony Johnson who dove in for the score. Later in the period, a won set scrum had the ball out to the backs, or should I say to Brancard, who took it by himself again through the Berkshire defense and was tackled at the goal with an illegal tackle. A penalty try was awarded for the infraction. The conversion was good and the score now sat at 37 - 10 in favor of the Grey. The period ended with one more score by Berkshire and a conversion to finish out the match at 37 - 17. Great team play and good pressure was noted in the discussion after the match. Due to the great efforts of so many players, there was no "man-of-the-match" award to any one individual – it was a team effort! Nice hat-trick for Brancard. GREYS DROP CLOSE GAME TO MYSTIC RIVER The Greys dropped their first match of the season with a loss on Saturday, May 6th, to the Mystic River Old Boys. Well, most of them were old. Contrary to the prediction of the outcome of the game made by Jeff Bouvier prior to kickoff, the Grey actually held their own and were in the lead through the closing minutes of the game until the heat and fatigue allowed Mystic to run one in giving them the 5-point victory. Jeff had us being dusted pretty handily. Problems were that the temperature kept going up and the body count (that's able body count) kept going down. Unlike past games, the Grey found themselves with less than 20 players (19 in all) and still had to provide three players for Mystic for the entire game. And, as if that wasn't enough, the Grey actually had to play a man down through most of the second period even with several of our boys playing for Mystic and giving them the full compliment of 15 players. What a way to lose! By game time the temperature must have been over 85 degrees and the humidity was also on the rise. The backfield for Mystic looked young and fit – a complete contradiction to their forwards. The game didn't start like the other Grey triumphs this year, in fact the Grey were down 12 - 0 very early in the period. Mental mistakes and bad ball handling gave Mystic the opportunities they needed to make long breaks and score at will. Luckily, the Grey were able to stop a lot of the long runs and recover to prevent several potential scores. With over half the period gone, the Grey finally got on the scoreboard as a set scrum close to the Mystic try zone was passed out to Don Brancard who hit Tony Johnson diving in for the try. The kick was not good and the Grey were down 12 - 5. Later that period the Grey were fortunate to have good forward play that moved the ball into the Mystic 5 meter area. The ball was presented to the weak-side by John Kerr who hit Don Brancard for the score. The conversion was good and the Grey found themselves in a 12 - 12 tie at the break. In the second period Mystic was able to replace some of their players with the younger Mystic B side players who were down to play Hartford's B side later that afternoon. With this influx of younger and fresher players, Mystic was able to take advantage of another Grey mistake and tally another try. The conversion was good and Mystic was up 19 - 12. It was absolutely amazing the will the Grey had to win. Usually the loss of a lead in the final periods would result in a runaway victory for the opposition. Not today. The Grey were able to muster good offense from the forwards and with some good loose play found Mark Collins by himself running into open field and dishing back inside to Chris Rose in support for the score. The conversion was good and the Grey had tied the score at 19 apiece. Later, more forward push finds the ball once again in the Mystic end and with good handling by the forwards a ruck forms close in. The ball is picked up by Ed Carr who cuts back inside for the score. The conversion was good by John Kerr and the Grey found themselves in the lead 26 - 19. But the day wasn't over for Mystic – it was for Brancard who had to leave the field due to a hamstring injury. This left the Grey down a man for the remainder of the game and it did have an impact on the final score. Although the Grey forwards were able to control the ball in the loose, the backfield was outclassed, outgunned and out-distanced by the Mystic onslaught. Mystic was able to make the breaks and score after long runs to notch another try but the missed conversion left the Grey with a slim 2 point lead 26 - 24. With less than 5 minutes remaining Mystic was able to run through the gap and with support score the winning try and conversion to seal the victory 31 - 26 Mystic. The Grey just couldn't get enough chances in the closing minutes to touch another down. Final score Grey 26, Mystic 31. Great play by the forwards and very good games from Ed Carr and Mark Collins in the forwards, and Steve Tenenbaum and Chris Rose in the backs. There was no Man-of-the-Match award presented but I did see the blank form in Kerr's car and no doubt it will be hanging on the wall of his new house with his name penciled in. EDITORIAL CORRECTIONS Some minor editorial corrections: In the last newsletter, Seeger was credited with touching down the scrum pushover score in the first period of the Lion Kings game. After much whining, the try can also be credited to John Kerr who actually dove into the scrum and did have some body part on the ball. Also, Mark Collins was incorrectly mentioned as winning the Man-of-the-Match award in the Toronto game. The award was presented to Don Brancard who was so upset with the mistake he went out and scored three tries against Berkshire. And, finally, the name Bud Harvey appeared in the last issue and was a gross error on the part of the Editor who promises that "This will never, ever happen again." LETTERS TO THE EDITOR There has been much discussion about the desire for others to present their views in a forum such as The Hourglass. Just to prove to you that this is not a monopolistic autocratic publication and that the opinions presented are not solely based on the perceptions and ideals of one all-knowing and powerful individual, we have decided to allow (when room is available) others to present opposing viewpoints or positions via a letter to the editor. Therefore, starting with the next issue of The Hourglass, those of you who feel a strong need to write some useless drivel that you really feel needs to be presented to the masses will have your opportunity to submit a letter for publication. Mind you that the editor reserves the right to present a counterpoint to your argument or position and anything you write can and will be used against you. So, with that said, please feel free to write anytime. We want to hear from you! BRUNO ON THE MEND Former (yes that means he used to play but still has the urge now and then) Grey back Jim "Bruno" Sullivan is recuperating after suffering a perforated intestine. After a near-fatal infection, Jim is at home now and doing much better. Let's see now, hole in the intestine – that can only mean that you're full of shit, right? Seriously, we wish Bruno well and hope to see him out soon, on the field or on the links. Cards and letters can be sent to 425 Percival Avenue, Berlin, CT 06037. AROUND THE FIELD Ah leadership! What better demonstration of keeping one's cool and focusing on the game than the display of our skipper against Berkshire. Sent off for mouthing off to an idiot that just couldn't let go of the fact that he got smacked but good. John not wanting to lose at anything got the better of the lad during the fight but just also had to win the on-going mouth-off that followed for several minutes after the infraction. Jeff the ref didn't want John to win the second part of the joust and sent John off for the rest of the game. So we'll call it a tie – win the fight, lose the shouting match. When inquiring as to how Ed Carr's Easter was, one of our more colorful Grey asked "Eddie, how was your Easter?" to which Ed replied, "Great, how about yours?" In true form he responded, "Great, I was so stoned I could hide my own eggs!" Geez, can you guess who this mystery man is???? As if you didn't know what the outcome would be. What do you think you get when you have a great after party, a couple of wives, a few drinks, a few more drinks and a feeble attempt at a two-person conga line? Answer: An upended table, several spilled beers and a couple of soused babes on the floor. Whom you ask, could have possibly been involved in this? Well, we won't mention any names here, but simply refer to the duo as "Monique" and "Don Brancard's wife." Yes, the Holy Grail herself! And, in the Lost-and-Found Department we have the following: Lost, 1 wedding ring in the vicinity of the sideline at the PNA field – Contact Mike Fotos. Found, 1 small bowl – clear glass that was left at the chili table on Easter Saturday – Contact Tony Johnson. Found, 1 blue notebook with Velcro cover left at The Old Dublin on Easter Saturday – Contact Tony Johnson. Lost, several eggs hidden for the Easter egg hunt at the PNA field, two of which contained the hash – Contact the Grey referenced above. Found, 1 samurai-sushi harmonica player last heard at the Ichiban Restaurant Saturday after the Mystic Game – Contact anyone with a Japanese sing-along songbook. It was noted by several Wanderers at the Mystic game of the uncanny resemblance our President has to a certain old-time TV sitcom character. You know, the one about a fateful trip that started from a tropic port aboard this tiny ship??? Need a hint? Can you say "Lovey, make us some drinks???" Funny part is, they're right on the mark! An American is having breakfast one morning; coffee, croissants, bread, butter and jam, when a Canadian man, chewing gum, sits down next to him. The American ignores the Canadian who, nevertheless, starts a conversation: Canadian: "You American folk eat the whole bread??" American (in a bad mood): "Of course." Canadian: (after blowing a huge bubble) "We don't. In Canada, we only eat what's inside. The crusts we collect in a container, recycle it, transform them into croissants and sell them to the states." The Canadian has a smirk on his face. The American listens in silence. The Canadian persists: "Do you eat jelly with the bread??" American: "Of Course." Canadian: (cracking his gum between his teeth and chuckling). "We don't. In Canada we eat fresh fruit for breakfast, then we put all the peels, seeds, and leftovers in containers, recycle them, transform them into jam and sell the jam to the states." The American then asks: "Do you have sex in Canada?" Canadian: "Why of course we do," the Canadian says with a big smirk. American: And what do you do with the condoms once you've used them?" Canadian: "We throw them away, of course." American: "We don't. In America, we put them in a container, recycle them, melt them down into chewing gum and sell them to Canada. LAWRENCEBURG, Ky. (AP) – Schools and some businesses were shut down today to mourn the loss when a warehouse with thousands of barrels of Wild Turkey bourbon caught fire, shooting flames 50 feet into the air and washing bourbon into the city's water source. A stream of burning bourbon poured down a gully into the Kentucky River, a few yards upstream from the city's water treatment plant intake Tuesday. Factories, restaurants and car washes closed shortly after the treatment plant shut down. They remain closed today along with three schools, police said. Residents lined up with straws along the river banks and flags were flown at half-mast in honor of the lost elixir. The mayor was quoted that "in spite of this tragedy, we have noticed a nice glow to all the residents and even the fish seemed to have a little smile on their faces - even though they were belly up at the time." "And the next time this happens, we will toss in a little sweet vermouth and add a couple of hundred pounds of cherries!" Finally a special thanks to all those who helped do a little gardening on Thursday, May 4th, at the PNA field. The nine-member crew of Sandy, Yanik, Thurston, Tony, Tenenbaum, Rose, Fotos, Bill Aman and Bob Casey did some much need raking of the rocks, general cleanup of the field, seeding and fertilizing. The crew actually resembled a state road crew as two people were generally seen working at one time while the rest stood around admiring their efforts and drinking beer.
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