The players of the HBS rugby team had only been practicing for a week before their first match but that didn’t stop them from starting the 2007-08 season off right by handing Monadnock a lopsided defeat on Saturday, September the 8th. The team was mentally prepared for a tough contest but in the end the opposition was no match for the returning veterans and some notable first year players from all across the Harvard Graduate School community. The team’s biggest foe for the 80 minute endeavor turned out to be the weather and the field conditions. The dry heat and the fact that there wasn’t a single blade of grass on the entire pitch combined to create clouds of dust at every play which choked the players and coated everyone with a layer of grime.
The first half ended with Harvard up 22-0. Chris Trimble (KSG ’09) brought the skills learned playing as an undergraduate at Cambridge to the pitch by scoring one try in the first half in addition to having several other big runs against the opposition. Team Co-Captain Liam Patrick (OC) kept up his scoring ways from last season by running in three trys in the first half and one in the second. Patrick’s sure foot also converted three trys giving him a total of 26 points for the match. Monadnock never gave up and did score two trys in the second half but converted only one. Harvard rugger Marc Wayshak answered with three trys of his own in the second half. Seth Ross (NB) showed what the Canadians can do by delivering several crushing hits during the match. Randy Goldstein (ND) proved that he would be able to fill a hole left by departing members of the Class of 2007 by showing his experience at lock and rucking hard all day. Team Co-Captain Jeff Todd (HLS ’08) delivered his reliably gritty performance in the front row. Gade Doleac (ND) showed promise early in the match but was lost to an ankle injury after only a few minutes of play. The final score of 48-12 validated the class of 2008’s hard work over the summer and showed the promise of a successful season.
The HBS Rugby Team is looking for new players. The club practices and plays matches in both semesters and has annual tours to the Wharton School of Finance, Montreal, London and the MBA Rugby World Cup at Duke University. If you want to be a member of the most competitive sports team in the Harvard Graduate Community contact team Co-Captains Jeff Todd (jtodd@law.harvard.edu) or Liam Patrick (spatrick@mba2008.hbs.edu). No previous rugby experience is required. First and second year students welcome.
The Harvard Business School Rugby Football Club would like to wish Marc Wayshak fair winds and following seas in his journeys across the Atlantic. We know you’ll do great, just remember where you got your start kid. The team would also like to thank our sponsors: Anglo Irish Bank, McKesson, RR Donnelly Private Equity Services, Tommy Doyle’s Irish Pub and Newcastle Brown Ale.
