Unbeatens Stay that way-Week 6 wrap up by American Rugby News
Philadelphia Fight Rugby News and Press
July 18, 2010
Dave Wilmore, Sal Ranniello and Brendan Harrigan take down an Axemen runner.
(Photos Courtesy of Allene Rachal Photography)
www.allenerachalphotography.com/Rugby-League
The (2-2) PBR Philadelphia Fight traveled to Florida to take on the league leading (5-0) Jacksonville Axemen and put up a good Fight, but the Axemen were to strong in the end and came out winners 30-10.
Photos Courtesy of Allene Rachal Photography, www.allenerachalphotography.com/Rugby-League, and Nikko Myers Photography, www.nikkomyers.com
Double try-scorer Matt Thornton (Allene Rachal photo)
Front runners New Haven and Jacksonville continued on a path to a possible championship showdown by posting their fifth straight victories respectively in Round 6 of the American National Rugby League.
Other winners included Washington and Boston.
In the Game of the Week, the Axemen scored first and were never headed as they stayed unbeaten by downing the Philadelphia Fight 30-10 Saturday in Jacksonville, FL.
In their last regular season home game for 2010 and in front of 2300 cheering fans, Jacksonville scored in just the fourth minute when halfback Luke Gray put in a perfectly judged 40/20 kick that put his team in a great attacking position.
Gray kicked the ball from inside his own 40m and bounced the ball into touch inside Philly’s 20m and from the ensuing play; Jeremy Garnaro barged over for the opening try.
The Axemen were in again minutes later when Matt Thornton got the first of his two tries, before Philadelphia hit back with a good try of their own by Pat Kelly, which had been set up by a barnstorming run along the touchline by captain Brad Kielinski.
Other than that one early blemish, the Fight defended well in the first quarter and trailed 8-4 at the end of 20 minutes.
The second quarter was all Jacksonville with two more scores by flyhalf Brent Shorten, the second being a 90m intercept try for a 16-4 halftime lead.
The match was punctuated by a high turnover rate, dropped balls and knock-ons by both teams although it didn’t stop Thornton from getting his second try in the third quarter.
Philly scored early in the fourth to make it 20-10, but the Fight couldn’t peg back the difference any further and after Gray, who was named the Outback Steakhouse Axemen MVP, and Marc Hanke scored tries it was all over in Jacksonville.
Further north along the eastern seaboard, the New Haven Warriors kept their unbeaten record intact with an 84-6 hammering of the Northern Raiders.
Several Warriors got multiple scores including Roy Leoni (3), Tony Sunia (2), Brian Schact (2) and co-captain Siose Muliumu (2).
With the mercury rising above 90 degrees, the Warriors completed sets and were able to score off the second and third tackles.
“We just had guys hitting the gaps and running into holes,” Muliumu told ARN. “That was pretty much how we scored most of our points.”
For the Raiders, Australian import Mathew Bailey scored their lone try, set up by fellow countryman Dan Sansone, while Tim Cohen of the White Plains rugby club turned in a solid performance.
In Fairfax, VA, the hometown Eagles hosted the Washington DC Slayers in a rivalry game that saw the visitors score 10 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to post a tight 38-28 win.
Too many mistakes such as dropped balls and knock-ons proved costly for the Eagles, who played well enough on defense, but gave away a slew of penalties. Despite the loss, the Eagles earned a bonus point for tries.
“Our performance was unacceptable,” said Fairfax coach Steve Grant.
And in the late game, the Boston 13s trumped the Connecticut Wildcats 50-30 in a high-scoring affair in beantown.
Boston’s George Aroyan was named MVP for his three-try effort. Other scorers included Jamie Green, Michael Bozza, Henry, Pell, Perkins and Carson. The latter also went 7-from-8 on conversions, while Aroyan was 1-for-1 with his only conversion.
The other scheduled game between the New York Knights and Pittsburgh Vipers was forfeited by Pittsburgh giving New York a bonus point win.
Standings (unofficial):
New Haven Warriors (5-0) 25pts
Jacksonville Axemen (5-0) 25pts
New York Knights (3-2) 16pts
Aston DSC Bulls (3-1) 15pts
Connecticut Wildcats (2-3) 13pts
Washington DC Slayers (2-3) 12pts
Fairfax Eagles (2-3) 12pts Philadelphia Fight (2-2) 11pts
Boston 13s (2-3) 10pts
Pittsburgh Vipers (1-5) 5pts
Northern Raiders (0-5) 0pts
To stay in touch with all the news from the world of rugby league we recommend visiting www.rleague.com
AMNRL Competition Points
4 pts for a Win
2 pts for a Draw or Tie
0 pts for a Loss
1 pt for losing team with a difference in score of 6 or less
1 pt for each team that scores 4 tries in a game
