By Emily Mulcahey
Staff Writer
The St. Bonaventure men’s rugby club has, thus far, faced one of their most trying seasons in years. This season, the team has moved into the highest division in the country, and so far, they are feeling the results. As opposed to beating teams by large margins, the team has had to max out their physical ability in every game this season.
The Bonnies face their Big Four rivals, the University of Buffalo, this Saturday and hope to be well-prepared for the match.
“UB is our biggest rival,” senior winger Greg Johnson said. “We need to continually remind people that we are the premier rugby team in western New York. At this point, we cannot make any huge changes, but we will be focusing on having a great week of practice and being mentally prepared for this weekend.”
The Bonnies believe they have the talent to compete with their new competition, and stressed that in order to turn close losses into win, more preparation is needed.
“We need to continue getting fitter and mentally tough,”manager Shea Raff said. “We know who we are. We might not have the most skilled or most experienced players, but we know we can stand toe-to-toe with good teams. It’s simply a matter of putting the work in.”
The Bonnies will kick off against the Bulls at home this Saturday at 5:00 p.m. following the women’s first state playoff game, at 3:00 p.m.
This past Saturday, the team faced off against Iona, who is fourth in the conference and dealt the Bonnies their first loss at the start of the season.
“The rough start coupled with the amount of injuries is disappointing, especially with the success we’ve had the last four years,” Raff said. “But, I’m proud to be a part of this club and so is the rest of this team. Our coaches, players and alumni look forward to the challenges Division 1A rugby presents. There comes a point where beating teams by 60 points every week isn’t satisfying anymore. We are competitors and want to play the best teams in the nation.”
Controlling the field and scoring the first try, the Bonnies started out strong. However, they could not hold the field, and fell to Iona 43-13.
“The guys competed very well in the first half. The second half just got away from us,” Raff said. “We are confident we can hang with any team in this conference for 35 minutes. The next step is competing nonstop for 80 minutes. We’ll get there.”
This new division has handed out debilitating injuries to the Bonnies, and this game was no different. Much of the starting lineup was forced to watch from the bench as younger players stepped into their positions.
“The loss of key players will always have an effect on the game,” Johnson said. “Unfortunately, this year, we have had an injury streak unlike any team I’ve played on, but we’ve had some young guys step up and begin to develop as players.”
After a shaky start to the new division, the Bonnies keep a humble, yet hopeful head on their shoulders about what is to come.
“We are still very optimistic about this division,” Johnson said. “We have shown this year that we can compete with any team in the league for the first 35 minutes. We knew this would be a tough year, but we are building towards the future.”
