Dartmouth Wins Spring Season Opener
Newark, DE – Dartmouth kicked off the spring 2011 season with their first College Premier Division (CPD) game against the University of Delaware Blue Hens on the brand new turf of Frasier Field. The game was a pitched battle in which both teams appeared to be working out the kinks from a long winter season. In the end, the Big Green closed out the match 15 to 5 winners.
“Sure, it’s nice to start the new season with a win,” Captain Tommy Brothers ’11 noted. ”Delaware provided a physical, competitive match, and showed us a lot we need to work on to find our success.”
Dartmouth started the game by receiving the ball amid overcast and windy conditions. Co-Captain Chris Downer ’11 scored early with a try in the corner on one of the Big Green’s first possessions. Brothers was unable to convert the difficult kick, and Dartmouth was up 5-0 early in the half. Delaware responded quickly with a try of their own following a penalty off the restart kick. The score remained tied at 5-5 with possession going back and forth at the midfield, with several penalties causing changes of possession. Delaware was able to drive into Dartmouth territory on a few occasions but were unable to convert into points. Midway through the half, Chris Downer was able to spin the ball wide to his brother and fellow Co-Captain Nick Downer ’11 on the wing for a try, giving Dartmouth a 10-5 lead into halftime.
In the second half, Dartmouth capitalized on an early Delaware yellow-card delivered for a dangerous tackle. The Downers connecting again for a Big Green try, and another difficult conversion for Brothers near the touchline went wide. Another yellow card to Delaware with a few minutes to go put Dartmouth up a man once again. However, Delaware came dangerously close to scoring on a late drive. A great tackle by Derek Fish ‘12 prevented the ball from being touched down, and Dartmouth walked away victorious.
After the match, Ivy Rugby president Stephen Siano, who had come down for the match, was very pleased with the Dartmouth victory. “It was great to see an Ivy victory early on in the CPD season”, he said. “Coming from Cornell myself, I know [Dartmouth] has been training hard all winter in the ice and snow, so it’s nice to see they were able to transfer that to a win down here.” Siano congratulated the team on their victory and wished them all the best for the next few weeks of training.
Brothers summed it up, “it’s a work-in-progress, and we have a tough road ahead to hit our ceiling. We are looking forward to another competitive Premier match in the coming weeks.”
The Big Green have a few weeks before their next game, which will take place after on March 26th at Penn State. In the meantime a select group will travel to Barbados on spring training tour, where the team will play the Barbados national team and prepare for the remainder of the Premier season.
If you would like more information about this topic, or to schedule an interview, please call Charlie Grant at (978) 857-2851 or e‐mail at charlie [dot] grant
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