Back on Track

The STH Eagles traveled to Stony Point for a key early season match on Saturday and won by the narrowest of margins -29-26. St. Thomas was trying to recover from last week's 23-8 loss to Austin Westlake and needed a win to regain momentum. The Tigers proved to be physically tough and skilled opponents and gave the Eagles everything they could handle.

The Eagles dominated the Tigers the last two seasons, winning 65-0, and 57-0, but the Tigers were much improved and under the guidance of head coach Jesse Adams were 2-0 going into their rematch with St. Thomas. Despite admonishments not to take Stony Point lightly, the Eagles seemed to play much of the match in a mental haze, believing that this year's game would be an automatic replay of the previous two.

The Eagles started the match in style with Dixon Garnett scoring a try in the first minute and a half of the game. They scored again off a long run by Will Gutkowski (4:33) and appeared to be on their way to another lopsided victory, but the Tigers were not willing to lay down nor give up the fight. They scored two tries of their own and led at halftime 14-12.

Stony Point pushed their lead to 21-12 early in the second half, before Conor O'Brien scored(53:44), bringing the Eagles to within two points -21-19. The Tigers answered with another try three minutes later and St. Thomas appeared to be in real danger with the score 26-19. The last 15 minutes of the game were all Eagles though, as John Boudreaux scored a brilliant try (61:00) when he stole the ball from the opposition scrumhalf near the goaline - diving over for the score. The conversion kick was critical and Sebastian Gracia hit a difficult 25 meter kick from the sideline to even the score at 26-26.

The Eagles pushed into Tiger territory with three minutes remaining. After as series of line-breaks, Stony Point was penalized for diving over the top. Gracia calmly slotted the penalty kick (67:32) giving the Eagles a 29-26 lead. They then played stifling defense for the last minute and a half to secure the comeback win.

This was a critical win for the Eagles, who did not seem fully recovered from the loss to Westlake. It was also an indication of the how tough the road to the state championship will be for St. Thomas. The competitive level of the league has risen dramatically and there are no easy wins for any team. St. Thomas travels to Dallas Jesuit next weekend to defend its Bishop Cup title against the Rangers. The season is off to an interesting and exciting start!

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Eagles Hit Hurdle

The Eagles Varsity XV fell to a powerful Austin Westlake side 23-8, on Friday night. This was the first regular season loss for STH in over two years. The Eagles beat Westlake in two hard-fought wins last season on their way to a second state title, but the Chaparrals were not to be denied this time. Westlake has a veteran team which returned all but two starters from last season's semi-final squad and going into the season had to be considered favorites for post-season honors.

St. Thomas led at halftime 8-6 on the back of a Sebastian Gracia penalty kick and a Logan Stryk try, but were unable to mount any offense in the second half. Westlake managed two tries and another penalty in the second stanza.

The game was an extremely physical affair with both sides going toe to toe at the breakdowns and in the tackle zone. Westlake played very well, but the Eagles took themselves out of the game with numerous penalties throughout the second half. St. Thomas had a difficult time mounting any offense as the backs played flat and did not get any momentum when the hit the tackle zone. The aggressive Chaparral backs took full advantage of these factors and delivered some punishing blows which brought the Eagle offense to a standstill.

While the loss was a bitter pill for the Eagles and their fans to swallow, solace was taken in the fact that they had a number of opportunities to gain a victory. The final scoreline flattered the Chaparrals as they put the last score on the board with less than 2 minutes remaining in the match. Part of the growth process for the young and relatively inexperienced Eagle squad will be finding the ability to recovery quickly from mistakes and minimize the penalty count. While the loss was painful it is clear that the Eagles will grow from the lessons learned from their encounter with a tough and skilled Westlake side. The Eagles face the Stony Point Tigers this Saturday in an intriguing matchup. Stony Point is currently 2-0 and looks to give the Eagles another physical contest.

Eagles Rugby Victorious Against Jesuit

The St. Thomas Eagles Varsity XV opened up their 2010 season with a 33-12 victory over New Orleans Jesuit on Saturday afternoon (01-30-10). The Eagles were coming off a 17-2 season in which they placed 7th at the National Championships. While they had eight returning starters, many of those were in new positions to start the new campaign.

Will Gutkowski earned the starting role at flyhalf, replacing the Eagles all-time leading scorer and All-American Conor Mills, and demonstrated his skills on Saturday. Will did an excellent job of running the offensive and made a number of spectacular runs through the defense which set-up tries. Joining Gutkowski in the havoc caused by the back division was the dangerous Josh Ibarra. Ibarra's blazing speed and quick feet allowed him to repeatedly penetrate the Blue Jay's defense. Ibarra scored a fantastic try through the heart of New Orlean's defense and his defensive play was hard and aggressive throughout the game.

The forwards, led by Captain Ryan Sullivan, did a magnificent job of winning the loose-play throughout the match. Their ability to get to the breakdown and secure or poach ball was instrumental in the Eagles' victory. Logan Stryk, playing in his first rugby match, looked like a veteran and played with a controlled aggressiveness that put the Blue Jay backs on their heels throughout the match.

Perhaps the biggest surprise of the day was the play of junior wing Rob Mabry. Mabry making his first start and appearance with the Varsity XV, had a brilliant game. He scored two tries and his second was a highlight reel affair. After intercepting a Blue Jay pass, Mabry ran the 45 meters and slipped a tackle, spinning off a defender to score under the posts. A fantastic effort and one of the most exciting tries one can hope to see! Rob is a great example of hard-work and determination in play.

All of the Eagles played well and this was a classic team-effort on the part of the First XV. There was a great crowd for the match and a wonderful post-match affair put on by the parent volunteers, led by the Price family. Saturday's affair was a great way to start out the season and although there is much the team needs to work on, we hope a harbinger for another great season!

Coaching a Son

I recently completed an incredible four-year journey with my oldest son Conor. I was privledged to coach him during our program's most successful run. Although I have heard horror stories from coaching colleagues about their experiences with their own sons, mine was exceptional and I head into the 2010 season saddened by his graduation.

Conor was exposed to rugby at a very young age, but did not get actively involved as a player until elementary school when he began playing touch-rugby for the Woodlands RFC. As is often the case, the Woodlands was short on coaches, so I joined the staff on the youth team. An interesting thing happened while we worked together in the Woodlands. I spent a great deal of time working with Conor on his skills, but I developed a player-centered approach with him. At the time I had a very coach-centric approach, and by watching and working with Conor I developed a new and infinitely more valuable way in which to work with players. By giving him and later all my players a major stake-hold in decisions, I saw major growth in their ability to make the correct decisions. Even at a young age I trusted Conor's instinct and as he grew as a player the trust became implicit. It was during this period that we also developed what I call the Dad/Coach - Son/Player relationship. Whenever discussing matches we would always determine whether or not we were discussing as family or as members of the team. We were able to maintain a loving relationship on one side and a business relationship on the other.

I moved to St. Thomas in 2002 (perhaps the greatest professional decision I ever made). Conor entered school as a freshman in 2006, but immediately gained the trust and respect of the coaching staff (under the leadership of my best friend Jim Wolfinger), and proceeded to start and play every minute of every match for the next four years - 74 consecutive matches in which the Eagles won an extraordinary 61. He served as captain of the squad at the National Championships in 2007 as a sophomore and then as full captain during the 2008 and 2009 seasons. While a STH Conor broke every record in the school's record book except for one. What an incredible experience to be able to work and coach any player with this type of skill, but to have him be your son was an unbelievable experience. I have so many brilliant memories from our time together and could not be more proud. One memory which stands out was the 2007 Western Championship in which Conor hit a massive drop-goal at the end of the match for the win. As the post-match chaos broke on to the field, Conor and I found each other and embraced and all time stopped for me. Sharing the excitment, love, glory, and thrill with him was a priceless treasure.

The pride comes not from all his accomplishments, but because of the character, poise, and grace which Conor showed throughout his career. Despite his individual achievements, he maintained a deep sense of humility and his only desire was to see his team win. He gave everything he had toward that end. His opponents feared him, but had a massive amount of respect for him. When he won the Texas Player of the Year award in 2008, he got a standing ovation from his peers which is the ultimate sign of respect.

I would not have traded the opportunity to coach my son for all the money in the world. I like to think I may have helped him develop, but perhaps it was his influence on me that helped me grow more as a coach and person. I got to do something that few dads get to do anymore - spend time with their child. All the conversations, matches, and comraderie are an indelible part of me. Although I am sad I will not longer have the opportunity to be his coach, I watch him leave with a huge amount of pride and the knowledge that he will be a huge success wherever he goes. I can recommend without reservation that Dad/Coach is the best thing that you will ever do. My greatest thrill is that I have two more sons are their way up which will give me an opportunity to experience it all over again!

The Big Step

The Texas Youth Rugby Association and high school rugby took another big step toward maturation as a accepted sport in the Lone Star state this past July. The Texas High School Rugby Conference was officially formed at a general meeting held in Houston. Although the THSRC operated under a semi-official status last season, the coaches put their seal of approval on the new structure - a foundation for the future growth of the high school game in Texas. The new THSRC will be under the overall authority of TYRA, which is a state-based organization (SBO), but will handle all single-school rugby operations.

Why another structure and layer of administration? There was a growing concern among single-school coaches that TYRA was having a difficult time meeting the "administrative" needs of their teams. Single-school teams have a far different framework in which they work than clubs. They must answer to athletic directors, face UIL and TAPPS athletic and academic rules, and individual school rules. In addition, their field times are usually shared with other varsity sports and are scheduled through the athletic directors office. The THSRC will be able to plan, respond to, and organize the single-schools in a manner that is sensitive to the needs of its constituency.

This is the best possible organization for single-schools as they move into a new era of high school rugby. The new THSRC is modeled after the highly successful soccer and lacrosse leagues that came before it. The new organization provides a sense of stability and legitimacy which will foster more growth for the high school game. The organization is divided into easily recognizable districts with a playoff format very similar to football. The hope of THSRC administrators is the new structure will help them gain traction with recalcitrant ADs who in the past have written off rugby because of its haphazard structure.

Perhaps the most important success of the meeting was the spirit of cooperation and common purpose which manifested itself for the first time. Despite a number of spirited disagreements, the different organizations came together in common cause, providing the groundwork for a solid foundation for the future. Much of the credit goes to TYRA President Rick Marshall who fully supported the new setup. Let us hope that for the sake of the game that this cooperation grows and flourishes. First steps are often the hardest, but once made, walking comes easy - kudos to all of the coaches and administrators for their hard-work and commitment to the stability and growth of the high school game.