Following a much-needed bye week after a grueling 15s tournament in Canada, the DRFC kicked off their first game in the new, more competitive, Liberty conference this past Saturday. It was a sunny, cloudless day in Hanover with a sizable crowd and some exciting rugby to welcome them.
Though Dartmouth began the game looking like the better team on the field, it became clear early on that the team would struggle with penalties, conceding three penalties within the first 6 minutes of play. Strict, yet impartial, reffing was partially to blame for the Green’s penalty trouble which would continue throughout the game. They were made to pay for one of these early on, with Nazareth successfully kicking one through the sticks 13 minutes into the match. Just a few faces after kickoff, Dartmouth would concede yet another penalty giving Nazareth the chance to score a try off an attacking lineout. 0-10 Nazareth.
Though Dartmouth struggled to catch its momentum early due to penalties, they would capitalize off not one, but TWO, penalties of their own INSIDE their own 50 in quick succession. The first came off a quick-tap by prop skipper, rugby genius, Matias Calvo ’23 as he sees space out wide, passed short to ice cold play maker Matty Anticev (grad) who throws a 20-meter bridge pass out-wide to the dangerous Abe ‘ate the ham’ Kamara ’25. Kamara still had the bulk of the work to do here with space on the wing but still around the 50, going on to burn defenders, break tackles and dot it down between the sticks with ease. As if that wasn’t electrifying enough, the Men in Green would go on to make a statement with their second, this one well inside their own 40. Junior captain Dani Locascio ’24 takes inspiration from his senior Calvo and quick-taps one himself, electing to run it in instead. Dani manages to crack through the Nazareth line and delivers a perfect offload to skipper Jaime Chuidian ’23 who runs it down to the 22-meter line before being brought down. From the grown, Jaime Manages to keep the fast ball alive by popping one up to Ulysses Brenzel ’25 who runs through one tackle before offloading to his classmate, Luca ‘Gasoline’ Strappolini ’25. Nazareth defenders were coming in hot to stop the try by any means, and the youngster knew to use this against them as he pulls a trick out of his Argentinian magic bag and delivers a perfect dummy allowing him to run untouched into the end-zone and scoring his first points for A-side. Both tries would go on to be converted and Dartmouth would walk into the locker room at the half with a 14-10 lead.
The second half would see penalty troubles continue, troubles that were compounded by emerging breaks in set-piece plays, both scrums and lineouts, with Nazareth kicking a second one through the sticks to make it a one point game. It would be the rising star, making the argument for removing ‘rising’ from that title, Abe Kamara ’25 who would put his team in a favorable position as he counters a Nazareth clearance from his own 22, partnering with his wing Jeikson Boyle ‘23 with a quick one-two pass, and runs it down to inside the Nazareth 22. From here the forwards will take control with skipper Dani Loscascio ’24 punching it in after a few phases of gritty work from the pack.
Nazareth would respond with a forward pack try of their own, and almost a second, after a succession of penalties against Dartmouth cutting their deficit to three with just over 20 minutes of play remaining. The next score would come off what should have been a Dartmouth exit inside their 22, but Matty ‘Ice’ Anticev (grad) sees space wide, likes it and swings it, with Jeikson Boyle bringing the ball to just about the 50. Here skippers would team up again as Calvo ’23 offloads to Dani ’24 as he was running a beautifully timed line that breaks through the Nazareth defense after shedding a tackle. Dani offloads to his winger Jameson Liljedhal ’24 as he gets tackled by the opposition’s fullback, with Jameson getting caught from behind by a Nazareth Defender. From inside the Nazareth 22 the forwards would once again mount their pack-attack with Quinn ‘The Crazy Man’ Heynemman ’23 delivering the final blow and dotting it down. 26-18 Dartmouth with 5 minutes left to play. Nazareth would go on to score a consolidation try, but with only seconds of play remaining the Big Green are able to ice the game and eventually kick it out for the W. Dartmouth 26-21 Nazareth would be the final score.
Just like their opening weekend in Canada, their league opener would give the DRFC an opportunity to learn about itself. What we learned is that this year’s DRFC has one big juxtaposition: this is a team rich in rugby experience that plays like a new team. It is a team that managed to win a game of rugby while conceding over 20 penalties. A team that scored a try from their own half with 13 men on the field. The fact that the DRFC managed to pull off a win despite conceding far too many penalties and performing poorly in set play speaks to the vast potential within the squad, but it is unlikely this or any team will be able to secure wins against some of the tougher sides in the new Liberty conference without cleaning up their discipline, lineouts, and scrums. With the team still getting accustomed to their new system, this is no cause of concern 3 weeks into the season, but it is certainly something the Men will be working on before they travel to AIC this Friday.