Category: slideshow

2014 Begins

Hoping everyone had a great New Year and enjoying the break, but it’s about time to get the cleats back out and get ready for the spring season.

A short recap of the fall season; The Bombers DII side gave up two division losses, one to KCRFC and Omaha but are still in first place with 20 points. The Bombers will face Omaha again in the spring at home in what will be one of the biggest games of the year and a must win.

DII Standings

The DIII side, off to one of their best starts in years, only giving up one game to the Royals in a very tough down to the wire game. The Bombers are second in the standings, just 1 point behind the Royals who have 30.

DIII Standings

During the break some of the Bombers, along with players from other teams, have created the MRFU select side team. The idea is to bring the talent from many St. Louis squads into one team in an effort to improve St. Louis rugby as a whole. They will face teams such as the KC Blues, Lindenwood University, and the Chicago Griffins. This is year one of the program and hopes to continue to grow and play many teams from around the country.

The Vegas 7s tournament is January 24th and for the first time the Bombers are sending a team to participate in the tournament. The Bombers are in the Aces class and will face teams such as Army & Navy starting on Thursday 23rd. There are two days of guarantee play and proceeding to Saturday if they win both days. Of course the main event will be the international teams that are playing in the Elite class, but should be a fun trip and great exposure for the club. Make sure to check our Facebook for updates from the tournament.

This year marks the 30th year for the annual Bombers survival weekend! It takes place February 1st-2nd at Alvin’s Mountain. You are welcome to go down on Friday and make it a three day adventure. Survival weekend consist of a bonfire, cooking, drinking games, being outdoors, sharing rugby stories, but most of all being with your fellow Bomber, past or present. It is highly recommended that everyone attend survival weekend.

Finally practice for the spring season starts Tuesday, February 4th at Franz Park in Dogtown. Practice will be every Tuesday and Thursday starting at 6:30pm promptly. You may arrive early to play touch from 6pm to the start of practice. Everyone is expected to have done some training or workout during the break to keep in shape. If you’re new to the sport or want to join the Bombers team, either email Mike McMillion or just come out to a practice season.

Practice

The Spring schedule is up and there are more games being added so keep checking back. The Bombers first game is March 1st with the DIII facing the Hornets at the Lindell Fields in Forest Park at 1pm.

2014 Schedule

Keep checking back to the website and the Bombers Facebook and Twitter page for games, practice, and upcoming events!

Bombers vs Rowdies

After their best start of the season and only suffering their first lost a couple weeks ago the Bombers DIII side was looking to finish off the fall season on a high note against the Rowdies.

The Bombers and Rowdies were to face off earlier in the season, but due to weather the game has been postponed until spring.

Shaun (Kingpin) Gunnell

With overcast, potential storms, and high winds it was another rugby game day in St. Louis, but there was something in the air that day.

The first half of the match would turn into scoring frenzy for the Bombers as Colin Fitzgerald started off with the first try only a few minutes into the match. Conversion was made by Jim Morrison giving the Bombers a 7-0 lead. Four more tries would be scored before the end of the half by Mike McMillion, Chris (Vinny) Wroughton(2), and Jim Morrison who kicked for conversion only missing one giving the Bombers a 33-0 lead at half.

Photos

Both Jim Morrison and Vinny are two gentlemen who don’t understand the word “retirement” all too well and it maybe because to many blows to the head, but either way they love the game. Morrison had major shoulder surgery during the summer and had his arm in a sling for weeks and was expected to call it quits. Vinny, like Jim, has been with the club for many years and has played multiple positions such as flanker, hooker, but mostly prop. On this day he was part of the back line and seemed to be having too much fun.

Gus Kempa

In the second half the Rowdies were able to keep the ball in the Bombers half and scored their first try of the match, making it 33-5. The Bombers would answer back with a big run from Jeff Rehder to Jim Morrison for the try. Support running was very impressive in this match along with tough individual running. The Rowdies would score another try before the end of the match, but the Bombers would win 58-10. Man of the match went to Mike (Damage) McGowan for the forwards and Mike McMillion for the backs.

The DIII side finished the fall season 6-1 and is currently in first place. The spring season will be tough, but the Bombers are heading in the right directions to make the playoffs.

Even though the fall season is over there will still be touch played during the week to keep people somewhat in shape, but everyone is encouraged to get some sort of fitness during the break. We’re hoping to have Bomber basketball as well. Keep checking back for information about Kangaroo Court and other events.

Royals – Bombers – Ramblers

Saturday was another big weekend for the Bombers as both sides had league matches against the Royals and the Ramblers.

The undefeated DIII side faced the Royals in the first game of the day. Both teams were playing tough with the Royals taking the lead at half.

In the second half the Bombers were playing against a strong wind but continued to move the ball down the pitch. The Bombers were down by three with only a few minutes left and were deep in the Royals end. After a strong scrum and good rucking the Bombers were called on a penalty to which the Royals kicked the ball out to end the game.

The Bombers lost 14-17 to the Royals and suffered the first loss of the season. The DIII side is now 5-1 and has one more league match of the season against the Rowdies on November 16th at Lucier Park.

The second match was another rematch for the Bombers as the DII side took on the Ramblers for the last game of the fall season.

The Bombers were first on the board with a penalty kick and a try shortly afterwards.

Kick chase played a big role in the game for both teams but the Ramblers were able to take advantage and scored a try just before half.

The forward pack played exceptional rugby and came up big on defense shutting down the pick and jams. Line-outs were very strong and the Bombers scrum was able to steal the ball away multiple times especially deep in the Bombers zone.

The Bombers were able to score two more tries in the second half and shut down the Ramblers offense. The Bombers won 23-7 and finish 4-2 in league play for the fall season. With the DII standings the Bombers were looking for a much needed bonus point but fell short.

The DII side finished strong and despite the loss the DIII side is off to its best start in years with only one loss. Congrats Gents! The Bombers would like to thank the Royals for hosting afterwards.

Schedule

There are no games scheduled this weekend, but the Bombers are sending a team down to Little Rock for the Ozark Tournament. Last year the Bombers had three teams enter the tournament with the Old Boys & Men’s side taking first place & the Academy side finishing third.

The following weekend, November 16th, will be the last home game of the fall season at Lucier Park. The DIII side will face the Rowdies and we look forward to everyone coming out to cheer the Bombers onto victory!

Don’t forget to LIKE our Facebook page and keep checking back for updates on the Spring schedule!

Two Week Recap

Bombers Scrum

Back on October 19th the Bombers DII side traveled to Kansas to take on KCRFC. After our first meeting and close win over KCRFC earlier in the season this match was going to be a tough one.

The Bombers were first to strike with a penalty kick from Tyler Masters and a quick try by forward John Pearson. KCRFC, with their tough scrums, fought back and lead 8-12 over the Bombers at half time.

In the second half both teams had big break a ways early, but the game focused around rucks and scrums. In the last 20 minutes of the match the Bombers offense started to play with better ball movement and support running and changed the speed of the game.

Photos

Despite playing very tough rugby the last minutes of the game and two tries called back in the final seconds the Bombers fell 20-22 to KCRFC. Man of the match was Alex Ochoa and KCRFC full-back. This marks the second league loss for the Bombers, but we did get a point out of it.

Brett Swann

The DIII side had their first match against Franklin County last weekend. Franklin County was first to score and looked to have control with their big forwards running the ball. The Bombers were quick to score with a try by Gus Kempa, but would give up another try and were down 11-15 at half.

Something must have clicked because the second half was a whole different game as the Bombers just took over.

Photos

Conditioning and a strong defense lead the Bombers to a 38-27 victory over Franklin County. The DIII side is STILL undefeated and well on their way to the playoffs.

This weekend both sides have tough league matches. The DIII side takes on the Royals at 1PM and the DII side will face the Ramblers at 3PM. Both matches are at the Cricket Field in Forest Park. The Ramblers match is the last game for the DII side this year and the DIII has one more match against the Rowdies, November 16th.

The Little Rock Tournament is November 9th and as last year Champion the Bombers look to repeat.

A Bombers Weekend

The Bombers were once faced again with a double header weekend with both sides having big league matches.

Scrum

The DII traveled down to Columbia, MO on Saturday to take on the Ramblers in our fourth league match of the season.

The game started with the Bombers kicking off and a big hit by forward Adam Pyke to set the tone. The Bombers were first to score and take the lead, but the Ramblers were quick to score and cut the lead the lead down. The Bomber’s offence was able to put a few more tries in before half and the defense only let up the one try.

Photos

Scrums struggled early in the game, but after a few adjustments the Bombers controlled the scrums for the rest of the game. There were many big runs by Mark Menne, Bryan Hebron, and spectacular ball movement across the field from Hebron to Skarin to Menne, and a quick pass from Klug to Tyler Masters for a try.

The Bombers would only give up one try to the Ramblers in the second half, winning 36-10 and now 3-1 in league matches. Man the match for the forwards was Adam Pyke and Sean McDonald for the Backs.

On Sunday the DIII faced SMRFC for the second time this season. After beating SMRFC 45-15 earlier in the season the Bombers were looking for another league victory.

“YOU SHALL NOT PASS!”

Both sides struggled to get their offenses going and had many opportunities but would fault to knock-ons or penalties. SMRFC was able to take control of the scrums through the majority of the game and the Bombers had to adjust.

The Bombers were first to score with a field goal by Chris Bellavia and a try by Christ Shlerith to take the lead 10-0 at half.

Photos

Second half was much of the same and line-outs seemed to be a struggle but the Bombers offense kept moving forward as Chris Shlerith put in another try in the second half. Kick chasing was much improved as Luke (Toad) Anthony would twice disrupt SMRFC and forcing line-outs.

SMRFC would score 17 points in the second half but wasn’t enough to defeat the Bombers as the DIII side won 28-17. The Bomber’s DIII is now 4-0 for the season and in league play!

Next week both sides travel to Kansas City as the DII side takes on KCRFC in a league match and the DIII side faces KC Rogues in a friendly. Kickoff is at 1PM at Shawnee Mission North High School.

Current Schedule