Sunday, October 25, 2009

Match Report: All Blues vs. ORSU

By: Phoebe Boone

It was prefect rugby weather on Treasure Island as the All Blues went into their last league match, looking to finish the season as the only undefeated team in the Women’s Premier League. They were able to do just that after a physical match against ORSU that saw 16 tries between the two teams.

The All Blues thought they’d scored 2 minutes after the kick off when the ref announced a try from All Blues flyhalf Ruth Bryson after chasing down her own kick, but ORSU outside center San Juanita Moreno had gotten her hands on it first and a 5m scrum was awarded. The All Blues walked the 5m scrum to just outside the try line, a ruck formed and All Blues prop Katie Chou dove the ball in to score first. The other All Blues prop, Naima Reddick, crossed the line next at the 10 minute mark after a series of forward picks drove the ball close to the line. Around the 20 minute mark, All Blues fullback Ashley English scooped up a blocked drop goal attempt (kicked by flyhalf Ruth Bryson, blocked by ORSU flyhalf Ramey Marshall) and ran it in to score. A long hard fought period followed with lots of tactical kicking and both sides battling for the ball, with excellent defensive pressure from All Blues lock Hillary ‘Rookie’ Hegener, Katie Chou and inside center Kelly Griffin. But All Blues outside center Nathalie Marchino would touch down the ball in the 37^th and 39^th minutes after the All Blues turned over ORSU ball and attacked to make the half-time score 25-0.

The All Blues kicked it into high gear in the second half with a try off the restart kick that saw wing Victoria ‘Vix’ Folayan running up the weak side and dishing to Bryson to score. Just six and a half minutes later Marchino completed her hat trick with a third try, promptly followed by ORSU’s first score of the game, a try from 8-man Krista Gust on the weak side. All Blues backs answered back with tries from Folayan and Bryson before ORSU put up their second try after a superb attack from fullback Ashley Kmiecik. All Blues inside center Kelly Griffin then made her presence known with back to back tries less than 2 minutes apart, first finding a gap straight through the middle and then zig zaging her way through ORSU’s backline into the try zone. All Blues flanker Phoebe Boone scored next after finding space out wide and All Blues lock Rania Burns completed the forward scoring for the game with a try right under the posts. Folayan finished off the game with her second try in the 77^th minute, bringing the final score to 82-10.

Scoring Report

All Blues 82 – ORSU 10 (25-0 at half)

ORSU

Tries (2): Gust, Kmiecik.

All Blues

Tries (14): Marchino (3), Griffin (2), Folayan (2), Bryson (2), Boone, English, Chou, Reddick, Burns.

Conversions: Bryson (6).

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Match Report: All Blues vs. MN Valkyries

By: Phoebe Boone

The All Blues played their toughest match of the season on Sunday against a revamped Valkyries side. With flyhalf Steph Bruce out and wing Nathalie Marchino moving to outside center, they were a bit curious to see if the success they've had so far this season would continue. But the changes in their back line did little to slow the All Blues attack. Ruth Bryson did a superb job at flyhalf and her defensive pressure was crucial to the All Blues success. The first 23 minutes of the match were nail biting as both teams attacked and defended incredibly well, both pushing for tries. But Bryson found space out wide in the 23rd and 25th minutes and tries were scored by outside center Nat Marchino and wing Vix Folayan after recovering Bryson's kicks over the Valkyrie wings.

But the Valkyries weren't going to let the All Blues have the the match. Valkyrie flyhalf Hannah Stolba crossed the line in the 31st minute and converted her own try, making the score 10-7. Two more tries were traded before half: one from All Blues inside center Kelly Griffin who found a hole in the center and sped her way into the try zone, and one by Valkyries winger Tracy Call out wide. Score at half was 17-12 (the closest half time score the All Blues have seen all season).

But the All Blues found their rhythm after the restart and the entire team was rejuvenated when the forward pack walked a scrum into the try zone for 8-man Blair Groefsema to touch the ball down. Stolba found her way across the line again in the 49th minute, making the score 24-17. But the All Blues didn't give up and posted two more tries before the game was through. Marchino saw her second try in the 58th minute and Folayan completed her set after fullbacvk Ashley English broke through the line, offloaded to Griffin and Folayan picked the ball and ran up the sideline to score.

Final score: 34-17.

Sunday, September 12, 2009

Match Report: All Blues vs. Twin City Amazons

By: Phoebe Boone

It was perfect rugby weather on Treasure Island, San Francisco as the Berkeley All Blues stormed to victory over the Twin City Amazons. The game kicked off rather sloppily as both sides fought ferociously for the ball in every breakdown, both turning over the ball after just a few phases of play. But the All Blues soon found their way to the scoreboard in the 10^th minute when fly half and Captain Steph Bruce burst through the middle off a scrum for a try under the posts. Two minutes later wing Nathalie Marchino found space up the weak side off a kick-off return. But the Amazons weren’t going to let the All Blues run rampant. Just after the 15 minute mark inside center Sylvia Braaten cut through the All Blues line and juked her way into the try zone. But the All Blues found their rhythm and scored 3 more tries before the end of the half (one from 8-man Blair Groefsema, one from outside center Kelly Griffin, and another from Steph Bruce), bringing the score to 35-7.

The All Blues exploded in the second half, starting off with a pair of forward tries from flanker Phoebe Boone and hooker Lisa ‘Cheeks’ Butts followed by a pair of tries each from wings Nathalie Marchino and Elaine Gardner. Within a minute of getting into the game wing Victoria ‘Vix’ Folayan put 5 on the board, followed by fullback Ashley English. Elaine Gardner completed her hat trick at the 75 minute mark, followed by inside center Ruth Bryson. Phoebe Boone touched down her second try as the last play of the game, making the final score 100-7.

Scoring Report

All Blues 100 – Amazons 7 (35-7 at half)

Amazons

Tries (1): Braaten

Conversions: Braaten

All Blues

Tries (16): Marchino (3), Gardner (3), Bruce (2), Boone (2), Groefsema, Griffin, Butts, Folayan, English, Bryson.

Conversions: Bruce (6), Bryson (4).

August 15-16, 2009

National 7s – Match Report

The All Blues finished second in the inaugural Women’s Rugby 7s National Invitational Tournament hosted by the SF Fog on August 15-16, 2009.

We finished the tournament with a record of 6 wins and 1 loss and we outscored our opponents 167-40. A detailed match report follows…

Players

Kirsten Ahrendt

Phoebe Boone

Alex Boskovich

Ruth Bryson

Katie Chou

Courtney Ellis (Georgi)

Elaine Gardner

Kelly Griffin

Erica Hanson

Hillary Hegener (Rookie)

Naima Reddick

Laura Robinson

The first match saw us playing the local hosts – the SF Barbarians, comprised of mostly SF Fog players with a few others thrown in. Kelly Griffin scored first for the All Blues after touching down a penalty kick that Ruth Bryson just narrowly missed. Kirsten Ahrendt scored next after the ball went wide through the hands off a scrum. Griff had another try that half after touching down a Barbarian dropped ball that she had kicked through their line. Ruth converted all 3 tries. The second half saw the Barbarians adjusting to our style of play and doing well to keep us out of their half, but a superbly fielded kick by Kirsten saw Griff scoring off the counter attack to bring the final score to 26-0.

The second match was our highest scoring of the tournament against NOVA 2. First to score was Griff after cutting through the middle of their line hard. Then Rookie (Hillary Hegener) devastated NOVA 2 with a stiff arm that leveled one of their backs to score easily in the center. Rookie touched down a second try before the half being in wide support of Naima’s break through the middle. Elaine started the second half scoring early after picking the ball at the back of a scrum and running for the weak side corner. Ruth scored out wide next after a few phases and then Rookie completed her hat trick by touching down a ball Ruth handed off to her in support after a gorgeous line break. Phoebe finished the game with a try after Naima sucked their wing in and dished it out wide. Final score was 39-0.

We played Kansas City third and scored 4 tries against them. Griff touched down first after Naima committed the defense and created a nice hole for her to slip through. Elaine scored next off of a line-out in support of Kirsten running up the sideline. Kirsten had a pair of tries in the second half starting with a 1-3 switch that saw the ball through 4 pairs of hands before it found the try zone. Her second try came after recovering her own downfield kick to score. Highlights of this game included Naima touching a ball down 1 meter short of the try line, thinking she was running out the back of the try zone when she actually hadn’t entered it yet, and Ruth getting to jump in a line-out (a dream fulfilled). Final score was 20-0.

Our last game of the day saw us against Albany. We came out hard early and Griff broke their line after fielding the kick-off and dished it to Ruth in support who touched it down. Griff scored for herself just before the half after shooting up wide while being ridden into the try zone like a pony. Elaine had a pair of tries in the second half (one after jetting for the weak corner off a scrum again and another after Rookie intercepted an Albany lineout and dished it Phoebe in support, to Naima with some spin moves to Elaine. Griff finished her scoring for the day with an easy try right through the middle, bringing the final score to 31-0.

After the first day of the tournament the seeding was:

1. Berkeley All Blues
2. NOVA 1
3. Glendale Raptors
4. Kansas City
5. San Diego Surfers
6. Albany Knicks
7. Emerald City Mudhens
8. SF Barbarians
9. NOVA 2
10. Maryland Exiles

The next morning we faced the 8^th seed in the quarterfinals, the SF Barbarians. Griff saw her first try out wide immediately after kick off and Kirsten followed shortly after with a wide touchdown after a scrum. Ruth also scored out wide after a few phases of play and Elaine sucked their wing in. Griff saw her second try immediately after the break as we turned over their ball on the kickoff and she touched it down out wide. Griff completed her second hat trick of the tournament when she scored out wide after a scrum. Kirsten got her second and final try of the day after we spread the defense and took the ball from one side of the field to the other a few times until a hole opened and she slipped through.

In the semi-finals we came up against the San Diego Surfers and gave up our first points of the tournament. Elaine scored first after Griff stripped the ball from a Surfer in a tackle and dished it off. Griff then scored herself after switching and attacked the weak side after a scrum. After the break, Griff touched the ball down again and Ruth converted. In the final moments of the game SD Surfer Marea Blue touched the ball down out wide brining the final score to 17-5.

The final was less than pretty and saw us being defeated quite soundly by NOVA (35-0). They were a terrific side that was clearly a lot more experienced at 7s than we were and they found gaps in our defense and were able to capitalize on any mistakes we made. We remained positive throughout though and were able to hold our heads up high afterwards, knowing that if we practice more and committee ourselves to attending more 7s tournaments next summer, the outcome will be very different.

Needless to say, our player of the weekend was Kelly Griffin after leading us with an incredibly positive attitude and 13 tries, scoring in every game leading up to the final. Ruth was our second highest scorer with 37 points (3 tries and 11 conversions). Kirsten and Elaine tie for third place with 5 tries each.

All in all, it was a great weekend of rugby. Thanks to all the fans who came and supported and everyone who contributed toward the entry fee. The SF Fog hosted a fantastic event that was incredibly well organized and we can’t wait for next summer to go after that Cup!!!

Saturday

All Blues v. SF Barbarians: 26-0 tries by Kelly Griffin (3) and Kirsten Ahrendt (1).

All Blues v. NOVA 2: 39-0 tries by Hilary Hegenger (3), Kelly Griffin (1), Elaine Gardner (1), Ruth Bryson (1) and Phoebe Boone (1).

All Blues v. Kansas City: 20-0 tries by Kirsten Ahrendt (2), Kelly Griffin (1) and Elaine Gardner (1).

All Blues v. Albany: 31-0 tries by Kelly Griffin (2), Elaine Gardner (2) and Ruth Bryson (1).

Sunday

All Blues v. SF Barbarians: 34-0 (tries by Kelly Griffin (3), Kirsten Ahrendt (2) and Ruth Bryson (1).

All Blues v. SD Surfers: 17-5 (tries by Elaine Gardner (1) and Kelly Griffin (2). Marea Blue scored for Surfers)

FINAL: All Blues v. NOVA 1: 0-35. Ouch.

Territorial Playoffs This Weekend!

The top six women's clubs in the Pacific Coast face off this weekend to determine which three teams will represent the territory at USA Rugby's National Women's Club Playoffs.

The schedule for the weekend is:

Saturday, October 6
11AM: Game B: Seattle Breakers v. Sacramento Amazons (PNRFU #2 v. NCRFU #3)
1PM: Game C: Emerald City Mudhens v. San Francisco Fog (PNRFU #3 v. NCRFU #2)
3PM: Game A: ORSU v. Berkeley All Blues (PNRFU #1 v. NCRFU #1) (this match determines the Pac Coast #1 and #2 seeds)

Sunday, October 7:
10AM: Game E: Loser Game B v. Loser Game C (consolation match)
12Noon: Game D: Winner Game B v. Winner Game C (match for the Pac Coast #3 seed)

Directions
All matches will be held at the San Francisco Golden Gate field on Treasure Island. Here are directions to the field:

- from either direction on the Bay Bridge, take the Treasure Island exit (on the left)
- follow this road around the island and down the hill
- go straight through the guard gate (there is a stop sign there)
- after a couple hundred feet, make a right turn onto California Ave (it's the first major street after the gate, and it's at a large intersection (with no traffic lights) where the crosswalks are brick.
- follow this road and just before the road makes a 90 degree left turn, the field will be on your right. (you will definitely see it from the road).
- there is a parking lot just before the fields (turn left onto Avenue H).

To print a map or customized directions, visit Google Maps

Warning: as part of Fleet Week, there will be air shows over San Francisco on Saturday and Sunday at 1PM, featuring the Blue Angels at 3PM each day. Please be aware that traffic on the Bay Bridge and getting on and off the island will be heavier than usual.

All Blues Head To Boston! (*updated*)

This weekend, we're heading to Boston to take on Beantown and Boston.

Saturday, 9/29: All Blues vs Beantown at 3pm. The match is at Moakley Park. Directions and a map are here (pdf)

Sunday, 9/30: All Blues vs Boston at 10:30am. The match will be held at the Tufts rugby field. To get there:

From the southwest, west, or northwest via Routes 2, 3, 9 Interstate 95, or the Massachusetts Turnpike (Interstate 90), the easiest approach to the campus is to turn from any of these routes onto the circumferential Route 128 (Interstate 95) and proceed to its intersection with Route 2 (exit 29A). Proceed east on Route 2 to the junction of Routes 2 and 16 and turn onto Route 16 east ( Alewife Brook Parkway). Follow Route 16 through two full traffic lights. Take the next right, a sharp turn, onto Powderhouse Boulevard. Proceed to Curtis Street , your second left, which is your second set of lights. Follow Curtis Street up and over the hill, through a set of lights on the other side, and take a right at the variety store, onto George Street. Follow George Street to the first stop sign and take a right onto College Avenue. Cousens Gym will be 100 yards on your right. The field is across the street from Cousens Gym, beyond the parking lot.

From Boston, the south, & the South Shore follow the Southeast Expressway (Route 3 North) to Interstate 93 north to exit 32, Medford Square. Follow the exit ramp to Medford Square. At the blinker at the end of the ramp, turn left onto Main Street. Follow Main Street for approximately 3/10 of a mile, keeping to the right of the Mobil gas station. Turn right onto George Street, then left onto College Avenue . Cousens Gym will be 100 yards on your right. The field is across the street from Cousens Gym, beyond the parking lot.

From the north via Routes 1, 3, 128, Interstates 95 or 93, the recommended approach is via the circumferential Route 128 (Interstate 95) to its intersection with Interstate 93. Go south on Interstate 93 to exit 32, Medford Square. Proceed to the center of the square, turn left onto Main Street , and refer to the directions in the preceding paragraph. Follow Main Street for approximately 3/10 of a mile, keeping to the right of the Mobil gas station. Turn right onto George Street, then left onto College Avenue . Cousens Gym will be 100 yards on your right. The field is across the street from Cousens Gym, beyond the parking lot.

Please park in the parking lot across from Cousens Gym and follow the footpath to the far left hand corner of the fields.

Last League Match This Saturday

Our last league match of the season is this Saturday against the Sacramento Amazons. Kick-off is at 11am.

Pitch location is changed to: Center Pkwy & Jacinto Ave, Sacramento, CA 95823

See map and print directions here