The Barbarians travelled to Fond du Lac, WI on the weekend to play the Wolfpac in the week 2 of the Division 3 season. Under perfect conditions, the match was an aggressive affair with both sides stingy on defense.
Thomas Kloiber opened the scoring at the 12-minute mark and a conversion by Zach Price put the Barbarians ahead 7-0.
The Wolfpac — gaining territory through their powerful centers — responded about 10 minutes later with a converted try of their own to level the scores.
The match remained deadlocked until just before halftime when the hosts crossed the try-line again to get the go-ahead try. At the whistle, Fond du Lac were leading 14-7.
Set-piece shines in the second half
Battling from behind, the Barbarians began to exert themselves in the scrum in the second half and were rewarded with an unconverted try by prop Dary Bagely just 7 minutes into the half. Yet the Wolfpac still held a 2-point margin.
The lead swung the Barbarians way with about 20 minutes remaining when fly-half Steve Drobot crossed the chaulk to bring the score 17-14 for the visitors. But an errant tackle just moments after play resumed saw the try-scorer leave the close match with a fractured orbital.
Clearing the bench, Coach Joe Birdsall bolstered the ranks. But the determined Wolfpac kept pressing and at 75-minutes drew the match 19-all with a well-worked try.
The final five minutes were intense on both sides of the ball as the players dug deep to finish an exhausting match and come away with the victory.
A try at full-time by the Barbarians starting lock Paul Carter provided a fitting end to an exciting match that was up for grabs the entire match.
"I'm really excited that so many of our rookies got to play today." said Coach Birdsall. "Gritty matches like this one tests our abilty to perform when tired and stressed. Scoring three second-half tries under all that pressure is a good sign for this young roster."
On deck
The Barbarians have a bye week this weekend from league play, but are hosting the Bremer County Bucks — the 2016 regional Midwest Champions — in an exhibition match in Milwaukee.
Roster
- # 1 Bagley, Daryl
- # 2 Abt, Jared
- # 3 Kloiber, Joseph
- # 4 Van Wey, John
- # 5 Carter, Paul
- # 6 Price, Zach
- # 7 Chini, Todd
- # 8 Nirschl, Benjamin
- # 9 Kloiber, Thomas
- # 10 Drobot, Steve
- # 11 Melnick, Brendan
- # 12 Esteve, Vincent
- # 13 Setum, Zachary
- # 14 Carter, Jack
- # 15 Wheeler, Quon
- # 16 Borkhus, Adam
- # 17 Birdsall, Joseph
- # 18 Young, Taylor
- # 19 Tobin, Mark
Match Stream
| MIN | EVENT | SIDE | SCORE | DETAILS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12' | TR score | MIL3 | 0 - 5 | #9 - Kloiber, Thomas |
| 13' | CV score | MIL3 | 0 - 7 | #6 - Price, Zach |
| 21' | TR score | FOND | 5 - 7 | Team score |
| 22' | CV score | FOND | 7 - 7 | Team score |
| 38' | TR score | FOND | 12 - 7 | Team score |
| 39' | CV score | FOND | 14 - 7 | Team score |
| 40' | TC sub | MIL3 | 14 - 7 | Off: #11 - #11 - Melnick, Brendan On: #19 - #19 - Tobin, Mark |
| 47' | TR score | MIL3 | 14 - 12 | #1 - Bagley, Daryl |
| 58' | TR score | MIL3 | 14 - 17 | #10 - Drobot, Steve |
| 59' | CV score | MIL3 | 14 - 19 | #6 - Price, Zach |
| 59' | IJ sub | MIL3 | 14 - 19 | Off: #10 - #10 - Drobot, Steve On: #18 - #18 - Young, Taylor |
| 65' | TC sub | MIL3 | 14 - 19 | Off: #3 - #3 - Kloiber, Joseph On: #16 - #16 - Borkhus, Adam |
| 75' | TR score | FOND | 19 - 19 | Team score |
| 80' | TR score | MIL3 | 19 - 24 | #5 - Carter, Paul |
The complete and official match report can be found on the USA Rugby website.
