Orlando rebounded from their first loss of the Florida Youth Rugby season to defeat previously-unbeaten Riviera Beach Maritime Academy 26-19 this past weekend.

The victory was important as it vaulted Orlando back up to 3-1, now essentially tied with RBMA. Meanwhile, Jupiter edged Okapi 19-10 and Tampa beat winless West Pines 32-10 to remain undefeated at 4-0.

For Orlando, the win was a testament to the players' heart, as they came back from 19-0 down.

"The boys showed a lot of grit and fought hard," said Orlando Coach Chris Quigley. "We have improved greatly. The game structure and pattern has improved. We were able to spread the ball wide. My backs are really starting to come from steep."

With solid work in the set pieces and in first-phase attack, the Orlando players are starting to make better decisions as the game flows.

"The forwards did a tremendous job in the set piece areas and ball retention," added Quigley.

RBMA devoted lots of resources to the rucks, with some success, but Orlando began to read that and cleaned up their rucking, which helped them attack out wide.

"I and our boys really enjoy playing RBMA," said Quigley. "They are a wonderful group of players and coaches. They are going to be a really tough team to beat. They are very disciplined, and Their style of rugby is unique and difficult to plan for.  They have a wonderful ability to play loose and off-the-cuff."

RBMA is a team to watch, but so, too, might be the Cape Pirates, which started the season 0-2 but is now 2-0 after beating Naples 46-0.

With a backline of almost all freshmen, the Pirates have switched to more of a ten-man offense, and with prop Antonio Pizatella a force in tight, and Brennen "The Albatross" George using his height and big reach to dominate the lineouts, they have perfected the maul, and scored five tries that way over the weekend.

"If you do it right, you can't really defend the maul," said Pirates Coach Steve Roper, who added that the loss of some all-star players has forced his team to take a more team-oriented approach, and it's starting to take hold.

"We are definitely improving," he said. 

On defense, Steven Parsons has been a tackling machine.

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