BY LAUREN WALKER

In print | Published April 17, 2008

The Swarthmore men’s rugby club team is in the midst of one of their best seasons yet. Despite their loss to LaSalle University on Saturday, they have already tallied more wins this season than their entire previous season, and they still have a couple games left to play. In addition to LaSalle, this spring has featured battles against Villanova University, Ursinus College, Haverford College and Lock Haven University. The Garnet men were able to defeat rival Haverford. They also took down Ursinus in a decisive victory and tallied what was perhaps their most exciting win against Villanova.

The game on Saturday was an exciting match up. Swarthmore came back from a 17 point deficit, cutting the lead to only two points. One of the highlights came when Paul Apollo ’09 scored his first career try, pushing through a crowd about five meters out to score.

The team’s overall record of 3-2 may not at first seem like something to write home about, but it is quite impressive when you consider their size. They have suffered several injuries and they often play with few or no substitutes available. While most of their opponents have plenty of guys standing on the sidelines, the most support the Swarthmore men ever see in uniform on their sideline is two. And even these two are purely backline subs. “If one of our big guys goes down, there’s not much we can do,” said Luke Rampersad ’10.

The team depends on their technical skills to help them overcome the usual size difference between themselves and their opponents. “We are frequently up against teams that are considerably larger than us in terms of membership as well as the mass of individual members. We make up for it with what I would call pretty exceptional tackling skills and technical skills,” Apollo said. Due to intense training with a piece of equipment known as the Predator, described by Apollo as “a cross between a football tackling sled and a steam-roller,” they have become very skilled and adept at moving masses of people, even when they are far outweighed by their opponents. This gives them the edge in scrums, rucks and mauls.

They also rely on their speed and perseverance to bring them through and beat the odds. “We’re faster than most of our opponents, and we’re really scrappy,” Rampersad said. He also commented on how positive and united the team is. They are a tough group of guys who leave everything they have on the field at each opportunity. “We give it all until the very end,” he said.

Mike Bonesteel ‘08 also commented on the team’s determination, saying “we overcome our small bodies with our big hearts.”

Bonesteel is one of four seniors from the men’s varsity soccer team to join the rugby squad this spring. The other new additions are Brandon Washington, J.P. Faunes and Brendan Grady. These new players have provided the team with some extra athleticism and strength. They came in with a good attitude, they’ve learned a lot and they have been able to greatly contribute to the team.

Not only has the team acquired these new players for the spring, but they also have two new coaches, Coach Cohn and Assistant Coach Zamunda. According to Rampersad, there’s a lot happening this spring that is “turning the team around,” and these new coaches are a huge factor. “[Coach Cohn] has done a great job of both teaching us the necessary skills and keeping us motivated to work on them,” Apollo said.

The win against Villanova was one of the highlights of the season thus far, as the Garnet men were able to clench a sweet victory against their former coach. “Coach Larry,” affectionately known as “Meats” left Swarthmore after the fall season to coach the squad at Villanova, only to be defeated by his former players in a hard fought game earlier this spring.

The team is happy with its overall performance thus far, and they look forward to their remaining games, including the alumni game in a few weeks. They have had what Rampersad called a “new and good feeling about this season,” and they are excited to finish out the season together.

“It is a great group of guys with a genuine love for the sport, and every single one of them impresses me immensely,” Apollo said.

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