Rebels Hold Off Phoenix Alpharetta in Thriller
Rebels Hold Off Phoenix Alpharetta in Thriller
As the evening sun was setting, casting a crimson hue across the sky, the shrill of the whistle signaled the start of the final game for the Rebels Rugby season.
It was a tightly contested game from the outset, with both teams dotting over the try line and taking the extra conversion points to bring the score to 7-7. The excitement continued as consecutive unconverted tries quickly came for both teams, taking the score to 12-12.
The match was a bruising encounter, characterized by multiple carries by the forwards up the central channel of the pitch. Seniors Jacob Siler, Merrick Edmondson, Henry Troutman, and Jamie Reinhardt, along with Maddox Tinker and Landon Lockhart-Keener, made notable contributions in this regard. Ayden Muse stood out for his fearless and immense tackling throughout the game.
The contest at the breakdown was fiercely fought by both teams. The majority of the time, the team in possession effectively recycled and retained the ball to get over the gain line with second and third phase ball. Both teams were also quick to the breakdown, with players showcasing their jackling skills to rip and turnover the ball. Jacob Siler and Santi Rivera often emerged from the melee with ball in hand.
Late in the first half, Phoenix took the greatest lead in the game, breaking through traffic to score under the posts for the full 7 points, bringing the score to 19-12 in their favor.
After an inspiring halftime team talk, the Rebels returned to the field with intent to take the game to Phoenix. The Rebels' set-pieces were dominant, with the scrum being a showcase of front row stability, second row power, and back row prowess. Phoenix struggled to match the Rebels' scrummaging, and multiple put-ins were turned over against the head. The line-out, which faltered a little in the first half, was rock solid in the second and established an attacking platform with clean quality ball each time.
Both teams effectively utilized tactical kicking, but it was the purposeful and precise penalty kicking to touch from the Rebels' Full-Back, Harry Thompson, that gained the team the greatest advantage.
Rebels scrumhalf Lockhart-Keener and flyhalf Rivera combined smoothly, consistently distributing the ball down the line to the centers. Nile Smith, Daron Pigram, and Dylan Riley made powerful runs, pushing the boundaries and stretching the opposition's defensive lines.
The second half was tense throughout, with Rebels Rugby down 14 points with 14 minutes to go. But Rebels started to gain ground by running their powerful forwards up the middle. Phoenix's defense, which had been very good, started to fall away a little after making tackle after tackle.
The dam broke and Rebels scored four consecutive tries and take the lead to 32-26. Phoenix rallied, pulling back to with a point 32-31 as time expired. But the conversion attempt from the touchline just missed and that left the final score 32-31 in Rebels' favor.
