Meet atCentral Avenueparking lot at 9:30.  We are leaving at10:00 for ASU

Kick-off at 1:00

Be there at 11:30

Referee:  Tim Enos

Instructions to the field: 

1)      You’ll want to get on to I-55N (towards Blytheville/Jonesboro)

2)      Take exit 23 toward US-63/Marked Tree/Jonesboro

3)      Stay on US-63 till you hit exit 42

4)      Take the right turn off the exit for Carraway (Do not take first right off exit for Stadium.

5)      Make a right on to Carraway and follow it all the way down to the bottom.

6)      Make a left on to Matthews where it intersects Carraway

7)      Make a right on to the bridge about ½ a mile after you turn on Matthews (the street is calledMarion Berry Pkwy)

8)      On the bridge you will see a turnoff on your left about halfway across the bridge

9)      Take the turnoff that will loop around and take you past the track and some softball fields and at the end you will see our fields.

Play for the weekend:  The coaches and captain decided to play two 40 minute games.  Plan to play for 40 minutes unless there are technical adjustments that we need to make or injuries that we need to tend to.

First Half:  1. Dylan Carter 2. Ian Curry 3. Brandon Worley 4. Will Fitts 5. Jonathan Bauer 6. Josiah Shipley 7. Adam Hairston 8. Kian Koleini 9. Jonathan Brewi 10. Phil Elliott 11. Tezman Mosley 12. Jay MacDonnchadh 13. Nolan Wilson 14. Anthony Smith 15. Scott Smith

Second Half: 1. Eric Ofinowicz 2. Jamie Perry 3. Steven Smith 4. Tyler Mann 5. Chris Lemons 6. August Myers 7. Chris Cobb 8. Kasra Koleini 9. Trey Copeland 10. Justin Hale 11. Cameron Walton 12. J.C. Russell 13. Eric Cale 14. Thomas Strickland 15. John Elmore

Post Match Party:  After the match we will visit with the ASU students at the field.  They are planning to cook burgers for us.

We are canceling the dinner at Hibachi Grill.

Nothing gets Memphis fans excited more than a match-up with Old Miss.  It doesn’t really matter what the sport is, we want Memphis to come out on top.  The Tiger rugby team did not disappoint this past weekend as they rolled over the Ole Miss Rebels 43-7 under the lights last Saturday night.

Memphis suited up 32 players and Ole Miss came up with 20.  Several Ole Miss players were new to rugby and this showed early in the game with the Rebels (Sorry, I’m stuck in the past.) offside around the ruck and not releasing the ball.

Their experienced players were a threat, as we had expected.  We knew that we needed to bring our “A” game if we were to prevail.

Senior and club president, Jay MacDonnchadh, started off the scoring  in the 10^th minute with a nice try from the fullback spot as he filled into the line.  Jay had a great day with some dazzling grabs and towering kicks.  Nolan showed that he could place the ball with the boot in the 13^th minute when he laid a kick in-goal for Thomas to recover.  The speed of our wings continue to give teams problems.  Scott Smith stepped in for Jay and dotted his try in the 34^th minute.  Scott fills in the line from the fullback spot with deceptive speed and power.   Halftime score 19-0.

The Tigers tend to relax after they have a few points in the bank, but they just play better when they are relaxed… and the back line runs get faster and more creative.  Two minutes into the second period, Nolan Wilson, standing 13, set up Jay with a beautiful pass following a break and Jay downed the ball.  At 14 minutes Jay picked up another try following a nice flow of passes and forward work at the goal line.  Joshua picked up two tries at the 19^th and 29^th minute.  Josh, a world class water polo player did a swim move after catching the lineout ball and swam his way to the try line.  Ole Miss finally scored in the 32^nd minute to finish the game.

We traded honors with Ole Miss at the social.  They chose to honor Joshua Campbell as our best forward and Jay MacDonnchadh as our best back.  After watching the tape, I concur.

The lads were definitely try hungry.  The rucks and mauls were powerful, low and organized.  Tigers took all of our scrums and many of theirs.  Technical errors are still an issue, but we are developing an attack with some flow and ball control.

Our team is deep in talent and desire.  The lads have worked very hard over the past several months and the work is paying off.  We go into our toughest match in the history of the Tiger program when we meet Arkansas State this next weekend.  Arkansas State was the 4^th best collegiate program in the US in 2011 and remains a D1A team.  We go into the match with confidence in our abilities and our heads held high.

In a double header with WKU, the Tigers took on the Storm Old Boys at Memorial Field, October 13th.  Storm consists of players associated with the high school Storm program and several Tiger Old Boys are on the team.  We knew that this would be a test for the Tigers due to the experience of the Old Boys.  We were banking on our fitness carrying the day.

Well, we guessed correctly.  Storm scored 12 points in the first 5 minutes to wake up the Tigers. Once awakened, the Tigers shut down the Storm, preventing another score for the entirety of the match.

Jay MacDonnchadh, club president and the biggest player on the field, used his size, speed and agility to take the first points.  Kasra Koleini kicked the conversion and the Tigers were off.

Kas was able to get a try of his own in the corner.  Chris Cobb finished the day with a try close to center.  Kas took the conversion and the Tigers won the day.

Fitness was key to this win.  The more experienced and more talented Storm were not prepared for the speed and agility of the Tiger attack.  We need to continue to improve.  The Storm will be ready next time.

The Memphis Tigers hosted Western Kentucky University (WKU) October 13 at Memorial Field on a beautiful fall afternoon.

The day got off to a late start due to travel problems by WKU.  The 1:30 match was finally kicked off at 3:00, which caused an early problem for the Tigers.

Tezman Mosley took the first points, scoring a try from the wing from a nice outlet pass that worked from a lineout.  WKU collected a penalty kick and knotched a try, powering over from an 8 pickup on a 5 meter scrum.

Jonathan Brewi took another try on a nice off load by Captain Kian Koleini.  Phil kicked a ball in-goal that was covered by Thomas Strickland.  A conversion by Phil brought the halftime score to 22-8.

Though we scored some points, the Tigers came out tentative, sluggish and definitely off our game.  The lads were ready to play at 1:30 and the delay evidently effected them negatively.  We out scored WKU in the first half, but it was ugly rugby.  Scrums were uncontested during the first half of the game since the front row were not trained.  This also tended to throw the Tigers off their game.

The second half, however, was a totally different story.  We finally got our act together and the lads scored multiple tries  in rapid succession.  In the 4th minute, Nolan Wilson set up Scott Smith for a try.  Josiah Shipley broke through a ruck, picked up the ball and headed for the try line.  This is identical to the try he scored at UNA and may be his signature move…  power straight through the middle of a ruck.

At 10 minutes Nolan scored his try.  Following a push over maul, Kian scored his first points as a Tiger.  Brewi took a try at the 18th minute.

WKU picked up a try and conversion at the 20th minute due to a breakdown of our defense.  However, this would be their final points of the match.

Phil took a try for himself and Josiah downed one more.  Phil kicked all conversions totaling 12 points. Final score 67-12

This time last year the Tigers were looking for an offense.  They have worked very hard in practice and the work is paying off.   Nine different players scored a try in this match with both backs and forwards participating… proving  that the Tigers have found a dynamic attack.

We need to tighten the defense and must stop kicking away good possession.  We need to tighten up our play and stop dropping the ball.  The remainder of our season is stacked with D-1AA teams.  These teams will capitalize on any mistakes we make.

WKU chose Phil as man of the match.  An honor he earned with his excellent play and his boot.

Ole Miss comes to our house this weekend for one match.  Here are the logistics.

Kick-off:  6:30pm

Pitch: Memorial Field

Players should be on the pitch at 5:00pm

Referee: Eric Flemming

Starting side:  1.  Dylan Carter 2. Ian Curry 3. Brandon Worley 4. Jonathan Bauer 5. Will Fitts 6. Josiah Shipley 7. Adam Hairston 8. Kian Koleini 9. Jonathan Brewi 10. Phil Elliott 11. Tezman Mosley 12. J. C. Russell 13. Nolan Wilson 14. Thomas Strickland 15. Jay MacDonnchadh

All players who have paid dues will play.  Coaches have developed a rotation that allows everyone some playing time.

This is a must win match.  Get your “A” game on.

Party at 8:00 at Ubee’s.

The Memphis Tigers are registered for the collegiate bracket at the Ozark Rugby Festival scheduled for November 10-11, 2012.  We have requested a late game on Saturday so we can drive over Saturday AM.  We will stay in a hotel overnight Saturday and finalize play on Sunday.

Sponsored by the Little Rock Rugby Football Club, The Ozark Rugby Festival is one of the largest rugby events in the area and will incolude senior men’s and women’s brackets, along with a collegiate bracket.  The Tigers may face Arkansas and Oklahoma State, two other early registrants for the event.

Players need to clear their schedules for this important event.  We’ll need all players to attend.  Team dinner on Saturday night. Family members  who wish to travel with the team should contact Coach Cole.

This weekend we are hosting two tough matches at home.  First, the Western Kentucky University (WKU) match will kick-off at 1:30.  The second match will be Storm Old Boys kicking off at 3:00.

Referee:  John Sullivan

Trainer:  Christian Dingledein

Team physicians:  Dr. Dale and Dr. Carol Smith

Field Location:  Memorial Field at 451 Zach Curlin Street  Memphis, TN

Social:  Ubee’s at 4:30 – Burgers, fries and drinks free to players  – 521 south Highland   Memphis, TN

Side for WKU: 1. Dylan Carter 2. Ian Curry 3. Brandon Worley 4. Jonathan Bauer 5. Will Fitts 6. Josiah Shipley 7. Adam Hairston 8. Kian Koleini (Captain)  9. Jonathan Brewi 10. Phil Elliott (Co-Captain) 11. Tesman Mosley 12. J.C. Russell 13. Anthony Smith 14. Thomas Strickland 15. Scott Smith 16. Stephen Smith 17. Tyler Mann 18. Segen Maris 19. Jay MacDonnchadh 20. Nolan Wilson 21. John Elmore

Side for Storm: 1. Eric Ofinowicz 2. Jamie Perry 3. Stephen Smith 4. Tyler Mann 5. Ryan Phillips 6. August Myers 7. Chris Cobb (Co-Captain) 8. Kazra Koleini 9. Tre Copeland 10. Justin Hale (Captain) 11. Nolan Wilson 12. Jay Mac Donnchadh 13. Justin Cole 14. Freddy Hodge 15. John Elmore 16. Daniel Exley 17. Chris Lemmons 18. Segen Maris 19. Scott Smith 20. Thomas Strickland 21. Tezman Mosley

Note* Everyone gets to play. Players selected as starters and backups should prepare to play as backups but will probably only enter the match if needed.

We need players there early to prepare the field.  If you can help, be there at 11:00am.

If you can drive Kingsbury players to the match, call Brandon or J.C.

All players should be at the pitch dressed and taped by 12:30.  Wear black shorts, grey T-shirt for warm-up.  First match players will wear the blue and white jerseys and the second match players will wear the blue jerseys.

Second match players gather at the west end zone for warm-up after half-time of the first match.

Get your heads right for this match.

Two young Tigers are taking time out of their busy schedule to help the new Inner City Rugby programs by serving as assistant coaches for the Kingsbury High School Rugby team.  Brandon Worley and J.C. Russell are investing in the lives of young high school men as they volunteer with Memphis Inner City Rugby, which is “dedicated to reaching under-privileged kids through the power of rugby.” Their love for the sport and the values that rugby holds could not be expressed in a better setting than the inner city.

Brandon, a starting freshman player at the University of Memphis, described his role with these kids as an “uplifting experience… seeing how they bond with each other and the coaches” through the sport.  “As they practice, work hard, and encourage one another they become one tight unit,” stated Brandon.

Rugby is a unique as a sport, allowing many bonding opportunities not only with your teammates but with the opposition.  As Coach Cole often says at Memphis, “The other team is not your enemy, the other team is your opponent… and when the game is over, they can be your friends.

J.C., also a starting freshman Tiger, brings experience as a backline player while Brandon has skills as a forward. J.C. loves to see the players “work together to learn the basic concepts of rugby”. “These kids really learn fast,” said Brandon.  “They bring lots of energy and enthusiasm at practice.”  J.C. and Brandon work with the Kingsbury High School squad which is currently in its first year in existence.

The team is growing and learning fast and it is only a matter of time before they become a powerhouse team. It is something the community needs: a sport that focuses so much on supporting and trusting other people in order to affect the culture in the surrounding area. The kids have great hearts and are willing to learn and dedicate themselves to the sport.

Several players for the Kingsbury Rugby team will have an opportunity to watch their first rugby game at the University of Memphis this weekend as Memphis takes on the University of Western Kentucky and Brighton Storm Alumni. Please support this team and the coaches as they continue to impact their surrounding area through the development of Inner City Rugby.

The University of Memphis is proud of its rugby tradition and the other Memphis teams that continue to develop.  Memphis rugby is very proud of Brandon and JC and their commitment to help develop young men in the inner city through the game of rugby.