Brown Dominate Princeton for a Solid Victory 36-5
Irish Cultural Center Canton, MA 12:00 P.M. - In wet windy conditions for most of this match, Brown dominated the Princeton forwards for a solid victory on Saturday. Due to the unavailability of the Brown Rugby Field on the day, Brown hosted Princeton at the Irish Cultural Center in Canton, Massachusetts. This facility with changing rooms and several fields, all meticulously maintained, was a terrific venue for the match. As Brown departed Providence for Canton in bright sunshine, the sky to the northeast was ominous and we were not disappointed as a deluge of rain for the next two hours resulted in very wet and slippery footing for the match. Although this weekend ended the 80 degree summer conditions we have been experiencing, the mid-50’s temperatures were ideal for the players.
Scoring Summary Brown First XV v. Princeton University First XV
First Half
3 min: Brown Try (Fran Rosenberg) 5
Conversion (Alec Coben) 2
38 min: Brown Try (Nick Hoynes) 5
Conversion (Alex Ogilvy) 2
40 min: Brown Try (Alex Ogilvy) 5
First Half: Brown 19 - Princeton 0
Second Half
47 min: Princeton Try 5
50 min: Brown Try (Fran Rosenberg) 5
62 min: Brown Try (Fran Rosenberg) 5
Conversion (Alec Coben) 2
78 min: Brown Try (Fran Rosenberg) 5
Second Half: Brown 17 - Princeton 5
Final Score: Brown 36 - Princeton 5
Brown attacked from the kick-off and was in control as the forwards notched a try in the third minute of play sending hooker Fran Rosenberg over the line. Although not his birthday, the forwards kept rewarding Fran as he scored four tries in the match and was clearly the man of the match. However, it was the collective of eight forwards that dominated the set pieces, not only for Brown but also stealing enough ball from Princeton to keep the Tigers on the defensive and in their end of the field for most of the match.
The Brown backs tried to play an open game in the first half, but field conditions and mishandling resulted in Princeton forays in the Brown half in the first 40 minutes. In spite of Brown’s forward superiority, the tenacious Princeton team gave Brown fits in the first half with excellent tackling and counter attacks and were close on several occasions but unable to score. With only a 7 point lead as the first half wound down, the Bears were able to run in two late tries for a 19-0 first half cushion. Brown adjusted at half-time, kept its attack simple, and, after conceding the Tigers a try at 47 minutes, ran away with 17 unanswered second half points.
The forward pack has made marked improvement so far this season with some new players making a big impact. Notable was the progress of prop Brayden Jasper, the scoring of Fran Rosenberg, the steady work of locks Max Loundes and Dakota Fenn as well as the return of Alec Coben. As well the experience and talent of the backrow: Luke Hayhoe, Jae Kim and Nkanyiso Nzimande (“Nzim”) has provided lineout success and backline linkage.
Referee: Antine Galou
Brown First XV Squad
1. Alec Coben’18, replaced at 70 minutes by Sanoj Allen
2. Francis Rosenberg’18
3. Brayden Jasper’GS
4. Max Loundes’GS, replaced at 70 minutes by Scott Brown’18
5. Dakota Fenn’19
6. Nkanyiso Nzimande’20
7. Luke Hayhoe’18, replaced at 70 minutes by Quinn Larkin
8. Jae Kim’20
9. Trevor Anesi’18
10. Alexander Ogilvy’20
11. James Bradley’21, replaced at 38 minutes by Alan Swierczynski,18
12. Connor McDermott’18, replaced at 38 minutes by Bradley
13. Mike Ball’19
14. Nick Hoynes’18
15. Christos Economos’21
Scoring Summary Brown University Second XV vs. Princeton University Second XV
First Half
2 min: Brown Try (Federico Torti) 5
4 min: Princeton Try 5
6 min: Brown Try (James White) 5
Conversion (Thomas Kim) 2
14 min: Brown Try (R.J. Oris) 5
Conversion (Thomas Kim) 2
15 min: Princeton Try (Quinn Larkin) 5
Conversion (Thomas Kim) 2
19 min: Brown Try (Federico Torti) 5
Conversion (Quinn Larkin) 2
20 min: Brown Try (Max Spurrell) 5
Conversion (Thomas Kim) 2
25 min: Brown Try (James White) 5
First Half: Brown 45 - Princeton 5
Second Half
46 min: Princeton Converted Try 7
49 min: Princeton Try _ 5
Second Half: Brown 0 - Princeton 12
Final Score: Brown 45 - Princeton 17
Princeton only had enough second XV players to play ten aside, but Brown had 28 available for the match. The teams agreed to play two 25 minute periods of 10-aside rugby and Brown substituted freely so that everyone could get some playing time. The Bears took up where the First XV left off and dominated the first 25 minutes with 7 tries. Fly half Thomas Kim directed the attack and was particularly accurate with four try conversions in a row, some from a wide angle. Forward Max Spurrell who scored three tries against Cornell, matched that total with three tries against Princeton. Scrum half James White and fullback Federico Torti both scored twice.
Enthusiasm was high as players on the touchline and a good number of Brown Rugby alums and parents cheered on the team. This group of Second XV players is the largest and most talented that this writer has seen in many years. It will be important to get them all playing time to bring their rugby IQs along quickly. Hopefully Columbia will bring along a full Second XV side next Saturday to provide more playing time for all.
Referee: Jeff Sperling
Brown 2nd XV Squad
Forwards
1. Sanoj Allen’18,
2. Max Spurrell’21
3. Elija Soto’21
4. Sam McGoldrick’20,
5. Rock Hoffman’20
6. Scott Brown’18,
7. Finn Freymann’18
8. Quinn Larkin’18,
9. Chris Lewis’21
10. Christopher Lewis’21
11. George Wilde’21
12. Sam Oaks-Leaf’21
13. Silas Monje’21
14. Max Sopher’21
15. Logan Casey’21
Backs
1. James White’21
2. Thomas Kim’18
3. Nathan Zaldivar’21
4. Justin Vandervelden’21
5. RJ Oris’20,
6. Alan Swierczynski’18
7. Federico Torti’18
8. John Pena’18
9. Danilo Jiminez’20
10. Oliver Herman’20
11. Jason Traum’21
12. Hersh Gupta’21
13. Lucas Mavromatis’21
Next Saturday, October 7, Brown hosts Columbia University for First and Second team matches. The First XV match will kick-off at 1:00 P.M. with the Second XV match immediately following.