Rookie McCourt scores record four tries in 44-5 Boston win
BOSTON - Less than a day after one rookie - New York's number 8 Alex Donovan - surprised many in the NARC with his performance, another rookie did him one better. The Boston Beacons' rookie inside center Cooper McCourt set a NARC record by scoring four tries in one game (his first NARC game!) as the Beacons drilled the Capital City Dragons (0-1) into the ground 44-5. Boston (1-0) scored a team record seven tries altogether. Not a bad way for the Beacons to debut their 1997 season.
"What a performance," Boston coach Paddy Moriarty said of McCourt. "His runs were great, and he is a tough kid. He gives us a nice presence on the inside. Teams are going to have to keep an eye on him."
Code:
FINAL SCORE: Capital City 5, Boston 44
TOTAL TRIES: Capital City 1, Boston 7
CONVERSIONS: Capital City 0/1, Boston 3/7
PENALTIES: Capital City 0/0, Boston 1/1
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Boston #12 Cooper McCourt
PLAY-BY-PLAY
7' - Capital City - no try. 0-0 tie score
15' - Boston - no try. 0-0 tie score
16' - Boston - TRY [#12 Cooper McCourt] (conv no good). 5-0 Boston
21' - Boston - TRY [#4 Louw Spiering] (CONV GOOD). 12-0 Boston
29' - Boston - TRY [#7 Charlie Miah] (CONV GOOD). 19-0 Boston
33' - Boston - TRY [#12 Cooper McCourt] (conv no good). 24-0 Boston
45' - Boston - TRY [#10 Astolpho Beaulieu] (conv no good). 29-0 Boston
46' - Boston - PENALTY KICK GOOD. 32-0 Boston
58' - Capital City - TRY [#13 Stanislao Trevisani] (conv no good). 32-5 Boston
62' - Boston - OFFENSIVE PENALTY. 32-5 Boston
66' - Boston - TRY [#12 Cooper McCourt] (CONV GOOD). 39-5 Boston
70' - Boston - TRY [#12 Cooper McCourt] (conv no good). 44-5 Boston
*
The OFFENSIVE PENALTY in the 62nd minute was not the only offensive penalty for Boston nor for the game. Rather, it means that a team had a good try-scoring opportunity nullified by an offensive penalty. Teams with more aggressive coaches on offense will score at a higher percentage, but have a number of try opportunities killed by penalties.
Stars defeat Harlequins 25-10 with defense
NORFOLK, VA - The Virginia Stars held the Texas Harlequins (0-1) to just one try as they defeated the visitors 25-10. Virginia's inside center Corey Connor - who re-signed with Virginia (1-0) in the offseason instead of going elsewhere - was named player of the game for his performances. Connor played a huge role in setting up two of Virginia's three tries, plus he played some great defense.
Code:
FINAL SCORE: Texas 10, Virginia 25
TOTAL TRIES: Texas 1, Virginia 3
CONVERSIONS: Texas 1/1, Virginia 2/3
PENALTIES: Texas 1/1, Virginia 2/3
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Virginia #12 Corey Connor
PLAY-BY-PLAY
5' - Virginia - TRY [#7 Christiaan Crielaard] (conv no good). 5-0 Virginia
14' - Texas - TRY [#13 John Packman] (CONV GOOD). 7-5 Texas
26' - Virginia - TRY [#9 Nathan Sims] (CONV GOOD). 12-7 Virginia
32' - Virginia - Penalty Kick no good. 12-7 Virginia
43' - Virginia - TRY [#5 Julian Rabin] (CONV GOOD). 19-7 Virginia
44' - Virginia - PENALTY KICK GOOD. 22-7 Virginia
52' - Texas - OFFENSIVE PENALTY. 22-7 Virginia
61' - Texas - PENALTY KICK GOOD. 22-10 Virginia
71' - Virginia - PENALTY KICK GOOD. 25-10 Virginia
O'Peake-Nielsen tandem dominate, Legends win 24-17
CHICAGO - Chicago Legends fans are excited after seeing the Legends' first game of 1997, and with good reason. It looks like the pairing of left wing
Rob Nielsen - the 1996 MVP runner-up - and rookie fly half
Ches O'Peake will be an exciting one to watch for the next few years. The duo almost single-handedly (double-handedly?) defeated the visiting San Diego Mission (0-1) 24-17 on a cold day at Soldier Field. Nielsen and O'Peake complimented each other very well, setting up each other as they scored tries. Nielsen had one, while O'Peake had two. O'Peake also had a perfect kicking day for Chicago (1-0), earning him player of the game honors.
"I always said we had the best player in the league," Chicago coach Dave Waterman said of Nielsen. "Now I think I might have to change that and say we have the best two players in the league!"
Code:
FINAL SCORE: San Diego 17, Chicago 24
TOTAL TRIES: San Diego 2, Chicago 3
CONVERSIONS: San Diego 2/2, Chicago 3/3
PENALTIES: San Diego 1/1, Chicago 1/1
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Chicago #10 Ches O'Peake
PLAY-BY-PLAY
2' - Chicago - no try. 0-0 tie score
9' - Chicago - TRY [#11 Rob Nielsen (Coffee Warlord)] (CONV GOOD). 7-0 Chicago
10' - San Diego - PENALTY KICK GOOD. 7-3 Chicago
12' - Chicago - OFFENSIVE PENALTY. 7-3 Chicago
22' - Chicago - PENALTY KICK GOOD. 10-3 Chicago
27' - Chicago - TRY [#10 Ches O’Peake (chesapeake)] (CONV GOOD). 17-3 Chicago
31' - Chicago - TRY [#10 Ches O’Peake (chesapeake)] (CONV GOOD). 24-3 Chicago
36' - San Diego - OFFENSIVE PENALTY. 24-3 Chicago
41' - San Diego - TRY [#15 Reece Atkins] (CONV GOOD). 24-10 Chicago
52' - Chicago - no try. 24-10 Chicago
61' - San Diego - TRY [#14 Ben Winning] (CONV GOOD). 24-17 Chicago
73' - Chicago - no try. 24-17 Chicago
77' - Chicago - OFFENSIVE PENALTY. 24-17 Chicago
Mashers comeback falls short as Stormers win 17-16
PALO ALTO, CA - Golden Gate rookie flanker
Sam King was named player of the game for his defensive play, as the Stormers upset the Edmonton Mashers 17-16 in the Bay Area. The Stormers (1-0) took a 17-0 lead into the locker room at halftime, the focus being on Sam King's tackling. In the second half, however, the Stormers almost let the game get away from them, giving Edmonton (0-1) three penalty kicks, all converted by fly half
Jace Hunter. A try by Jordan Wallace in the 78th minute pulled Edmonton to within one, but they were not able to do anything else the rest of the game. Both kickers in the game - Hunter and Golden Gate's
Sandy Kemp - were perfect on their conversions and penalties.
Code:
FINAL SCORE: Edmonton 16, Golden Gate 17
TOTAL TRIES: Edmonton 1, Golden Gate 2
CONVERSIONS: Edmonton 1/1, Golden Gate 2/2
PENALTIES: Edmonton 3/3, Golden Gate 1/1
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Golden Gate #6 Sam King
PLAY-BY-PLAY
5' - Golden Gate - no try. 0-0 tie score
17' - Golden Gate - PENALTY KICK GOOD. 3-0 Golden Gate
27' - Golden Gate - TRY [#11 Nate Fereday] (CONV GOOD). 10-0 Golden Gate
33' - Golden Gate - TRY [#10 Sandy Kemp (CrimsonFox)] (CONV GOOD). 17-0 Golden Gate
37' - Edmonton - OFFENSIVE PENALTY. 17-0 Golden Gate
46' - Golden Gate - no try. 17-0 Golden Gate
57' - Edmonton - PENALTY KICK GOOD. 17-3 Golden Gate
60' - Edmonton - PENALTY KICK GOOD. 17-6 Golden Gate
71' - Edmonton - PENALTY KICK GOOD. 17-9 Golden Gate
74' - Golden Gate - no try. 17-9 Golden Gate
78' - Edmonton - TRY [#13 Jordan Wallace] (CONV GOOD). 17-16 Golden Gate
Blue Hawks score five tries, shock Knights
VANCOUVER - What is going on here? In Week 1 the two Rugby Bowl finalists from last year - Los Angeles and New Jersey - played the two expansion teams - New York and Vancouver, respectively - and both lost. In their franchise debut at B.C. Place in front of a 20,000-plus crowd, the Blue Hawks never trailed as they took an early lead, then withstood a Knights comeback attempt to win 31-23. Vancouver flanker Wilbert de Boom had two tries for the Blue Hawks, both within the first three minutes of the game.
"We've been working hard all winter for this day, this moment," said Vancouver head coach Mark James, who was known as a tough player with the Edmonton Mashers last year. "We might be new here in the league, but we have guys who know how to play."
Code:
FINAL SCORE: New Jersey 23, Vancouver 31
TOTAL TRIES: New Jersey 3, Vancouver 5
CONVERSIONS: New Jersey 1/3, Vancouver 3/5
PENALTIES: New Jersey 2/2, Vancouver 0/0
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Vancouver #5 Faizan Johnston
PLAY-BY-PLAY
2' - Vancouver - TRY [#7 Wilbert de Boom] (CONV GOOD). 7-0 Vancouver
3' - Vancouver - TRY [#7 Wilbert de Boom] (CONV GOOD). 14-0 Vancouver
5' - Vancouver - no try. 14-0 Vancouver
12' - New Jersey - PENALTY KICK GOOD. 14-3 Vancouver
24' - Vancouver - TRY [#10 Brayden Colechin] (CONV GOOD). 21-3 Vancouver
25' - Vancouver - no try. 21-3 Vancouver
37' - New Jersey - TRY [#10 Charles Munn (Dark Cloud)] (conv no good). 21-8 Vancouver
40' - Vancouver - no try. 21-8 Vancouver
44' - New Jersey - PENALTY KICK GOOD. 21-11 Vancouver
53' - New Jersey - TRY [#6 Dominic Stokes] (conv no good). 21-16 Vancouver
63' - Vancouver - TRY [#3 Jett Aplin] (conv no good). 26-16 Vancouver
67' - Vancouver - no try. 26-16 Vancouver
68' - Vancouver - TRY [#13 Thomas Massy-Greene] (conv no good). 31-16 Vancouver
78' - New Jersey - TRY [#9 Adrian Jones] (CONV GOOD). 31-23 Vancouver