St. Mary's Impressive Over Utah
St. Mary's Impressive Over Utah
Michael Gieb photos
St. Mary’s culminated a four-game Saturday with an impressive 81-15 defeat of Utah in an early-season non-conference game.
The Gaels had to work for it somewhat in the first half, and entered the break up 38-15. Then Utah started to fall away somewhat. It was obvious that St. Mary’s had enjoyed some previous games, and that Utah, a little rustier and a little bit more mistake-prone, had not.
“We’ve had our heads handed to us twice, and a bunch of tough games,” said St. Mary’s Head Coach Tim O’Brien. “We played mens clubs and found ourselves down on our backs looking up due to lack of continuity and errors. But we learned from that, and I think today those errors - that’s what happened to Utah.”
Utah battled through to score a couple of tries, but it was tiring work for them, while St. Mary’s was, as they always are, able to score very quickly when the opportunity arose.
“We played a little bit more error-free rugby,” said O’Brien. “It was fun to watch. We learned against good teams that when you make an error the other team scores. Also, we played better with the ball. With more 7s being played in college you’re seeing better footwork, and guys pick up the ball and move it quickly.”
“Our forwards were really physical,” added St. Mary’s captain Cooper Maloney. “We got a lot of experience for guys in earlier games and I think it really helped us. As a grip we’re starting to mesh.”
Maloney played well and so did Holden Yungert at scrumhalf, as he seemed to be taking charge of the offense. Up front, assistant coach Johnny Everett once again has his pack playing hard, physical rugby.
The front row of Dino Waldren, Mike O’Neill, and Ryan Pratt took control. O’Neill, said O’Brien, “is an extraordinary talent.”
Mike McCarthy had some good moments in a midfield that still needs to play better, while everyone seemed to be happy to see freshman flanker Marcus Viscardi step on the field as a sub and set up a try with a thundering tackle.
The game was part of a four-game day that saw the Gaels also play Utah’s B side, Cal Maritime, and the Diablo Gaels men’s club. The games were played in the St. Mary’s Stadium, which underwent a refurbishment in 2014, including new sod and an expansion of the playing surface. Normally home to soccer and lacrosse, it will host some rugby games this year, something of a venue promotion for St. Mary’s.
“The field was beautiful,” said O’Brien. “The Utah guys and our guys loved it.”
Photos by Michael Gieb. Click on images to enlarge.
