The national title matchups are set for the USA Rugby men's club championships after six finalists emerged from the Division I, II, and III playoffs in Pittsburgh and Tucson, AZ, this past weekend.
New York Athletic Club and the Austin Huns rolled through the DI quarterfinals and semifinals to earn their right to play for the title on Saturday, June 3, at Infinity Park in Glendale, CO. On Sunday, the DII championship will feature the Life Running Eagles taking on the St. Louis Bombers, and the DII title game will showcase a matchup between the Bremer County Blacks and St. Louis Royals.
"It was a tough, physical match; we know it's always going to be that type of a match with the AC," Mystic River head coach Josh Smith said. "They really put it to us. I thought we started to play the way we can in the final 20, but it was a little bit too late and a little bit too far behind."
Smith called the loss a physical and emotional letdown. For AC, it was a big boost, and lock Nate Brakeley said Winged Foot played the type of game they wanted to play. The Chicago Lions had to really battle to beat Rocky Gorge, and that set up a matting with NYAC. In that game, the AC finished much the stronger, taking the semifinals 27-5.
In the West, Austin and San Francisco Golden Gate was a massive contest. SFGG led 21-20 at the halftime break, pulled further ahead, and then saw the Huns storm back to win it 48-38. Timothee Guillimin scored a try and contributed 10 points with the boot. In fact, it was Guillimin's try that put the Huns ahead to stay.
In the other quarterfinal, Belmont Shore defeated Life West 39-17. That set up the semifinal between the upstart Huns and the longtime powers Belmont Shore. Once again Guillimin was on point, as he use his kicking skills to put the Huns ahead 16-8 at halftime. Then Hanco Germishuys scored two tries to spark the Huns to a 54-14 victory.
"We're playing with a lot of confidence right now," Bremer County's Casey Hansen said. "We're executing our game plan every game. We want to wear them down with our heavy forwards and bring on fresh legs to finish off the game. We're pretty happy with where we are."
New York Athletic Club and the Austin Huns rolled through the DI quarterfinals and semifinals to earn their right to play for the title on Saturday, June 3, at Infinity Park in Glendale, CO. On Sunday, the DII championship will feature the Life Running Eagles taking on the St. Louis Bombers, and the DII title game will showcase a matchup between the Bremer County Blacks and St. Louis Royals.
DI Playoffs
The New York Athletic Club defeated defending men's national DI champs Mystic River 32-14 in the opening round."It was a tough, physical match; we know it's always going to be that type of a match with the AC," Mystic River head coach Josh Smith said. "They really put it to us. I thought we started to play the way we can in the final 20, but it was a little bit too late and a little bit too far behind."
Smith called the loss a physical and emotional letdown. For AC, it was a big boost, and lock Nate Brakeley said Winged Foot played the type of game they wanted to play. The Chicago Lions had to really battle to beat Rocky Gorge, and that set up a matting with NYAC. In that game, the AC finished much the stronger, taking the semifinals 27-5.
In the West, Austin and San Francisco Golden Gate was a massive contest. SFGG led 21-20 at the halftime break, pulled further ahead, and then saw the Huns storm back to win it 48-38. Timothee Guillimin scored a try and contributed 10 points with the boot. In fact, it was Guillimin's try that put the Huns ahead to stay.
In the other quarterfinal, Belmont Shore defeated Life West 39-17. That set up the semifinal between the upstart Huns and the longtime powers Belmont Shore. Once again Guillimin was on point, as he use his kicking skills to put the Huns ahead 16-8 at halftime. Then Hanco Germishuys scored two tries to spark the Huns to a 54-14 victory.
DII Playoffs
The St. Louis Bombers defeated Ventura County and the Sacramento Blackhawks to make the final. The Bombers will take on the Life Running Eagles. Life defeated Morris and the Detroit Tradesmen. Marcus Walsh has more to say on that:DIII Playoffs
Bremer County scored 120 points in two games to beat Lehigh Valley and Southern Pines. They will take on the St. Louis Royals in the final. The Royals beat the Orange County Ravens and San Marcos Greys by a combined score of 106-10. So for DIII, even at the top there's a gap between the very best and the next group."We're playing with a lot of confidence right now," Bremer County's Casey Hansen said. "We're executing our game plan every game. We want to wear them down with our heavy forwards and bring on fresh legs to finish off the game. We're pretty happy with where we are."