After traveling to Kansas City, MO and Cincinnati, OH, the Milwaukee Barbarians completed a grueling 3-match series on the road on Saturday in Columbus, OH.
The match got off to a rocky start for Milwaukee as Columbus strung together some barreling charges and elusive running to score three tries in the first 22 minutes to take a 17-0 lead.
Shaking off the early attacks, Milwaukee stepped up the defense and began to respond in kind. At half-time, tries by Drzweicki and Cebe and conversions from the faithful boot of Vigder had narrowed the contest to just three points: 17-14 for Columbus.
The second half was more even throughout with each team trading one or two tries at a time and Milwaukee taking a 28-24 lead at the 62-minute mark though tries by Albert (shown above) and Vigder.
The final quarter of the match would see Columbus regain the advantage and extended their lead to 36-28 following a pair of tries.
Milwaukee continued to press in the final minutes however and a try for Vigder at full time — his second for the day — concluded the match and secured the extra bonus point.
Long road series yields 8 points
Despite dropping 2 of three matches, the Barbarians have some positive takeaways from the 3-match series on the road. Not only are the longest road trips complete for the season, but their high-scoring offense has netted a 5-point win in Kansas City and 3-bonus points from two losses.
The Barbarians are in 5th place with 15 points and a 2-3 record. They are only 1 point behind Kansas City who have a slightly better 3-2 record highlighting the importance of the bonus-point losses.
Roster
Match Stream
MIN
EVENT
SIDE
SCORE
DETAILS
5′
TR score
CLB
5 – 0
#13 – Patick, Derek
9′
TR score
CLB
10 – 0
#8 – Schroeder, Joseph
22′
TR score
CLB
15 – 0
#10 – Howden, Taylor
22′
CV score
CLB
17 – 0
#9 – Hickey, Luke
28′
TR score
MIL
17 – 5
#13 – Drzewiecki, Matt
28′
CV score
MIL
17 – 7
#9 – Vigder, Nick
35′
TR score
MIL
17 – 12
#8 – Cebe, Jeffrey
35′
CV score
MIL
17 – 14
#9 – Vigder, Nick
50′
TC sub
MIL
17 – 14
Off: #12 – #12 – Smith, Eddie On: #22 – #22 – Patterson, Justin
51′
TR score
CLB
22 – 14
#18 – Stevens, Justin
51′
CV score
CLB
24 – 14
#9 – Hickey, Luke
54′
TR score
MIL
24 – 19
#15 – Albert, Michael
54′
CV score
MIL
24 – 21
#9 – Vigder, Nick
57′
TC sub
MIL
24 – 21
Off: #4 – #4 – loots, johannes On: #18 – #18 – Ratzburg, Patrick
Off: #6 – #6 – Gray, David On: #16 – #16 – Bell, Conor
73′
TC sub
MIL
31 – 28
Off: #15 – #15 – Albert, Michael On: #20 – #20 – Mross, Alex
75′
TR score
CLB
36 – 28
#15 – Maitavuki, Tevita
75′
CV score
CLB
38 – 28
#9 – Hickey, Luke
80′
TR score
MIL
38 – 33
#9 – Vigder, Nick
80′
CV score
MIL
38 – 35
#9 – Vigder, Nick
Vic Drover
Vic has a long history in and around the sport of rugby both in Canada and the US. He has played for and started numerous clubs (Vandal's RFC, Strathcona Druids, Suffolk Bull Moose, Westside Harlequins, Milwaukee Barbarians, Hamilton Girls Rugby), and served many roles over the years at all administrative levels. Vic joined the Harlequins in 2007 and remained an active club member through the transition to the Barbarians. These days, he spends his rugby time playing tag rugby and touring with the Old Boys, keeping the club website updated, helping organize the Lakefront 7s, and fundraising.