Today the Barbarians (Midwest Power Ranking: 2) traveled to Cottage Grove to take on Wisconsin Rugby Club (Midwest Power Ranking: 1) under the lights at the Wisconsin Rugby Sports Complex.
The top sides from each club have not met for nearly 3 years, so anticipation among the players was already high. This was massively amplified when the Midwest RFU cited the contest as the Men’s Division 2 “Match of the Week” and the “Battle for Wisconsin”.
A cagey, close 1st half
The Barbarians opened the scoring early in the first half. Pinned in their own red zone, Wisconsin RC chose to run the ball through the centers after winning possession from a scrum. The referee cited the hosts for obstruction and Barbarians center Tim Grams slotted the penalty kick to go ahead 3-0.
A few minutes later, the Barbarians were the ones infringing with a late tackle inside their 22-meter line. Wisconsin RC notched over the penalty kick to draw the scores at 3-3.
With both sides now settled into their systems, it seemed like a war of attrition might arise. But on the restart from the penalty kick, the Barbarians were pinged for going off their feet in the ruck and Wisconsin RC looked like they might take hold of the match.
Kicking to the touch, the hosts won their line-out, and after just one phase scored a blistering try along the far touch-line. Although the conversion was unsuccessful, Wisconsin were now ahead 8-3.
Not to be outdone, the Barbarians exerted continued pressure on their opponents in the next 6-7 minutes, pushing the gain line further and further up field. This long period of possession forced errors and penalties, leading to numerous opportunities for the visitors.
Captain and 8-man Tom Fossell would be the eventual beneficiary of all this pressure as he picked from the base of a ruck just 2-meters from the goal line to burrow over for the try mid-way through the first half.
Following another successful conversion by Grams, Milwaukee had a narrow 10-8 lead.
The rest of the half was a grinding battle for possession in the middle of the park. Numerous penalties and knock-ons by both sides gave the match a stuttered feel, but neither team seemed able to convert their scoring opportunities.
But on the final play before the half-time whistle, Wisconsin RC went off their feet in a ruck about 30 meters from their own goal line. Grams stepped up and once again punished the hosts with another successful kick.
Heading into the sheds, the Barbarians were leading 13-8.
2nd half errors add up
At the start of the second half, it was Wisconsin RC pinning the Barbarians in their own half and applying pressure. After 5 minutes of this, Wisconsin finally got the ball over the whitewash, only to be held up in-goal.
Having weathered the offensive storm, the Barbarians were thrilled to have earned the goal-line drop-out to relieve the pressure. But an errant kick straight into touch gifted the ball back to Wisconsin on the 5-meter line.
A try near the uprights followed from the resulting scrum. After the conversion, Wisconsin were back in the lead: 15-13.
But errors were not limited to the Barbarians. Wisconsin was winning the set-piece battle by about 20% (see below), but then giving up that possession with handling errors (13 for Wisconsin vs. 8 for the Barbarians) and costly penalties inside their own half.
A high-tackle by Wisconsin at the 53-minute mark resulted in a line-out just 5 meters from the goal line, and an eventual try by hooker Collin DeOcampo. Grams converted for the second time and the final lead change: 20-15 Barbarians with 24 minutes remaining.
The grudge match continued into the final minutes with no change in score. But as full time approached, Wisconsin began to string together multiple phases in the Barbarians half, drawing penalties from the visitors.
In addition to an attacking 5-meter line-out, Wisconsin also earned an attacking scrum in the dying moments. But handling errors would continue to let down the home side. A knock-on in front of the posts was the final act to draw the full-time whistle from the referee.
With a final score of 20-15 in favor of the Barbarians, the contest easily met all the pre-match hype. It will go down in the history books as one of the great matches between the Milwaukee Barbarians and Wisconsin Rugby Club.
Man of the Match honors go to Luke Ellis who had an electric day with ball in hand, side-stepping defenders and capturing a tonne of territory.
“It’s a great day to be a Barbo!”, said Fossell after the match.
Looking ahead
The 1st XV have next week off, but have moved up to first place in the power rankings from the Midwest RFU.
On Sept. 21 they head to Des Moines to try and improve on their 2-0-0 record.
Match statistics
| KPI | Barbarians | Wisconsin RC |
|---|---|---|
| Penalties | 16 | 13 |
| Knock-ons | 8 | 13 |
| Turnovers | 6 | 5 |
| Line-out Success | 70% (7/10) | 82% (9/11) |
| Scrum Success | 78% (7/9) | 89% (8/9) |
| Cards | 0 | 1 (Yellow) |
| Tries | 2 | 2 |
| Conversions | 2 | 1 |
| Penalty Kicks | 2 | 1 |
| Points Scored | 20 | 15 |
Match Photos
Photo Credit: Badger Kings Rugby Company.
