Delmarva Rugby Suffers Loss to Hibernians 

By Doug Coil

Delmarva Rugby loses 19-15 to Hibernians in Philadelphia

Delmarva dominated possession during the entire first half. Handling errors and trying to gain more territory were a concern. Offloads often lead to big plays. Offloads should be tried when only one or two defenders are in the immediate area.

First Half

Delmarva Rugby scored the first try in the 30th minute as Eddie Boyer crashed over the line. Minutes later, Dante Jacquet caught a clearance kick, ran for 40 meters, and then passed the ball to Angelo Archibald for try in the 40th minute.  Both conversion kicks were unsuccessful and at the break the score was 10-0.

Time still remained for one last Delmarva Rugby attack. Casey Strohmeyer found a gap and it appeared that he would run for a try. However, a Hiberians winger made a try saving tackle 5 meters from the line.

The tackle appeared to be a high one, which would have resulted in a penalty try if acknowledged by the referee. It was not, or Delamarva Rugby may have had a commanding lead.

Second Half

Delmarva Rugby began the second half flat. The Hibernians dictated the pace and used two tries and three penalty kicks to take a 19-10 lead. A late try by Justin Lopez with three minutes remaining narrowed their loss to 19-15.

At the post match social, the teams agreed that it was a great and exciting game. The social ended early for many of the Delmarva players, as they left to view the Premiership Rugby match between Newcastle Falcons and the Saracens.

Delmarva Rugby will have a return match against the Hiberians at home on October 7. The team’s next match will be against Harrisburg on September 23 at Rehoboth Elementary.