The Santa Monica Rugby Club hosted the Oxford University first XV on Tuesday night in an enjoyable, albeit slightly one-sided game played at the grounds of Santa Monica High School, with the match ultimately ending 7-47 to the visitors.
The Santa Monica Dolphins drew first blood with a try from number 14, Right Winger Zak Wall in the 14th minute, which was successfully converted by number 15, Full Back Jaime Chuidian. However, the Oxford Blues replied just five minutes later with a try from number 13, Outside Center Wolfe Morn, which was then converted by number 11, Left Winger Vasco Faria.
Oxford were coming to the end of their four-game Southern California tour, having played games over the weekend against the San Diego Legion on Saturday and the Chicago Hounds also in San Diego on Sunday. The tour began last Thursday with a thrilling match against the UCLA Bruins, in an incredibly close contest that saw the score level for most of the game. However, the Bruins inched ahead in the closing stages of the match to finish the game 20-12.
The Blues also lost against both the Legion and the Hounds, so they were looking to end the tour with a win. While Oxford might still have been struggling with jet lag, the Dolphins were fielding a team with many new players that were hungry for on-field experience, especially against an international side.
“I don’t even know half the guys on our team tonight and that means all these young, new guys that are new to the team, new to playing at a higher level and therefore can get a game. And you know, if Oxford gets a win, that’s good for them of course, but this is worth so much more to our depth and breadth as a team going forward,” Steven Johnson, President of Santa Monica Rugby Club, said.
Despite the Dolphins retaining possession for much of the first 40 minutes, they couldn’t quite manage to turn that advantage into points and their score remained at one converted try. But the home side remained resilient and did not give up a single inch without a fight, right up to the final whistle. Santa Monica’s scrum was solid throughout the whole 80-minute match, which was an achievement since the Blues dominated that set piece in their match against the Bruins.
Both teams maintained their discipline, mostly, and while there were a number of unforced handling errors from each side, there were also some thoroughly enjoyable moments of individual effort and throughout the game, the tackling was fierce. Interestingly, the game is refereed slightly differently in the US than it is in the UK, with less strict rules on the height of tackles on this side of the Pond and that was something that certainly took Oxford by surprise in their first game against UCLA as the Blues were hit hard — and high — on more than one occasion.
“This was a good game and a great tour for Oxford and I can see the transition in their style of play, from the UCLA game to this one,” said Marquise Goodwin, the Major League Rugby referee who oversaw both this game and the match against UCLA. “They adjusted their style of play to a more American style, which is much more physical. And also Oxford did a great job tactically of cutting off Santa Monica’s options, especially at the scrum, so I think they’ll have lots to take home with them.”
“It was a tough game against the seasoned side that’s traveled all the way from England, but given how early in the preseason this is for the Santa Monica Rugby Club, that was an extraordinary outing. There is a lot to build on,” said Michael Ware, Dolphins Assistant Coach.
Once Oxford gathered momentum, they were difficult to stop, putting 26 unanswered points past the host team in the second half, but the Dolphins fought valiantly to the very end.
“This has been an amazing experience for all our boys, they’ve been able to benefit from going up against really good teams with very different styles of play,” Ian Kench, General Manager at Oxford University RFC, said. “They’ve been able to use this trip to bond as a team and the hospitality and generosity of everyone involved here in Santa Monica has made this a once in a lifetime experience.”
For the Oxford Blues, number 2, Hooker Will Roddy scored three tries; number 13, Outside Center Wolfe Morn also scored three tries; number 7, Open Side Flanker George Fowler scored one try and number 11, Left Winger Vasco Faria missed just one conversion.
scott.snowden@smdp.com
