The first college rugby match of the 2012-2013 season will NOT be a 7s match. It will be a developmental 15s match with the Rice Owls hosting Texas A&M. This friendly match will be held at 2pm on September 8 at Rice's Rugby Pitch and will be whistled by Mr. Scott Green.
While this is a developmental match and the results may not accurately reflect the teams' abilities, both teams are the favorites in their respective conferences. So, new season jitters and coaches trying to find out if this player will work at that position aside, both teams should still bring their "A" game.
A stumbling, bumbling trip down memory lane
When I coached A&M, the Rice matches in Houston provided great memories. Old Maroon (TAMU RFC former students) enjoy some numbers in Houston and loved to exploit the vast parking lot next to the Rice rugby pitch for cooking up some nice meals for the teams after the match.
Rice was extremely well-coached and consistently out-scored A&M back then (1996-1998). Rice used the Argentinian "Bajada" method of scrummaging in the mid-90s and I did not know to coach the "wheel and shoe" to counter it. We just used sheer size, strength, and will to hold fast against Rice's Bajada.
Once Alec Klinghoffer came aboard TAMU RFC to coach the forwards, that all changed. Alec is a former US Maccabiah Prop and a damn fine scrum specialist. I don't remember exactly what he coached to change things in the scrum, but I do remember the second scrum of the Rice at A&M match when we got that owlish-looking monkey off of our backs.
The first scrum was shaky for both teams. But the second scrum occurred about 10 minutes into the match. The Aggie scrumhalf opted for a quick put-in right at the hit, Mike Davila hooked the ball back quickly, and the Rice scrum crumbled like old toast! A&M won that day by 7 points, but it felt like we had won by a shut-out. After that, I never doubted the sheer luck we had in finding Alec and convincing him to coach.
While this is a developmental match and the results may not accurately reflect the teams' abilities, both teams are the favorites in their respective conferences. So, new season jitters and coaches trying to find out if this player will work at that position aside, both teams should still bring their "A" game.
A stumbling, bumbling trip down memory lane
When I coached A&M, the Rice matches in Houston provided great memories. Old Maroon (TAMU RFC former students) enjoy some numbers in Houston and loved to exploit the vast parking lot next to the Rice rugby pitch for cooking up some nice meals for the teams after the match.
Rice was extremely well-coached and consistently out-scored A&M back then (1996-1998). Rice used the Argentinian "Bajada" method of scrummaging in the mid-90s and I did not know to coach the "wheel and shoe" to counter it. We just used sheer size, strength, and will to hold fast against Rice's Bajada.
Once Alec Klinghoffer came aboard TAMU RFC to coach the forwards, that all changed. Alec is a former US Maccabiah Prop and a damn fine scrum specialist. I don't remember exactly what he coached to change things in the scrum, but I do remember the second scrum of the Rice at A&M match when we got that owlish-looking monkey off of our backs.
The first scrum was shaky for both teams. But the second scrum occurred about 10 minutes into the match. The Aggie scrumhalf opted for a quick put-in right at the hit, Mike Davila hooked the ball back quickly, and the Rice scrum crumbled like old toast! A&M won that day by 7 points, but it felt like we had won by a shut-out. After that, I never doubted the sheer luck we had in finding Alec and convincing him to coach.