The rugby powerhouse matchup between FSU and UCF last Saturday, March 23rd, was plagued with field changes, game time uncertainty and rain delays. Despite the numerous curveballs thrown at the two teams, UCF managed to handle the adversity and post a 10-6 victory over the Noles. The game was called at the 55 minute mark due to the palm bending storm that waltzed across Central Florida, effectively scratching 25 minutes from the clock. The shortened game saw no shortage of action however as the two teams scrapped with everything they had and displaying why they are arguably the two best rugby clubs in the state of Florida.
The last time these two teams met, UCF came away as the victor. FSU improved substantially since that last game in which they lacked starters for various reasons and had taken the Fall semester off from playing 15’s to play 7’s. It may have taken a few games to become a cohesive unit, but on Saturday the Noles were certainly ready.
FSU had taken time to play teams like LSU and Life University, some of the better teams in the Southeast region. UCF, however, has been restricted to playing only one other team, USF, as FAU has cancelled games and no other teams were on the schedule.
This lack of competition showed in Saturday’s match. The Knights took most of the first half to become effective in the scrums and a new style of play took some adjusting to.
There was a realization as the first half began with a well-placed kick from Max Roehm, that this would be the final regular season match for many of UCF’s A-side players. The strong kick and leave everything on the field mentality set the pace for a hard-hitting game of rugby…but Mother Nature has a knack for poor timing as she graced the match with a 30+ minute rain delay.
After a long fight to the 22, the Knights were able to walk away with a 3 point penalty kick. The Noles responded, tying the game at 3-3. Gerhard Veit, UCF Rugby Captain, had to come out in the first half due to injury and it electrified the Knights to attack harder.
The Noles managed to get within striking distance and snagged a 3-6 lead with a penalty kick.
The Knights rose to the challenge however and scored after a kick to the 22 by Sean Nicholl. A quick tackle and heads up poaching of the ball by Dan Irion scored the lone try of the match. Roehm converted for 2, bringing the game to it’s final score of 10-6 .
The truncated second half featured UCF’s ability to retain the ball and control the game, something the first half left to be desired. After 15 minutes of non-stop tackles, rucks, and scrums the game was called short, due to lightning storms in the area, with 25 minutes still on the clock.
While the game counts in the record books as a victory for UCF, the Knights will face FSU again in the SIRC Conference Championship at Georgia Southern University in 3 weeks, and that one is worth far more than a W.
