The Water Dogs drew with Park City Haggis at 31 points apiece in a physical brawl on Sunday that reinforced how tight the competition among RMR’s D2 teams remains. The Dogs hold onto second place, three points behind Aspen and one point ahead of both Park City and the Barbos. Though the bruises and aches will leave the Water Dogs keenly aware of the challenge that remains ahead of them this season, the steely resolve the Dogs displayed throughout the match proves that they’re up for it.
The Water Dogs struck quickly after the opening whistle, with inside center Daytwon Sheridan making an early break down the left side and running in for a try in the second minute. The forwards soon followed up with one of their own, working deep into Haggis territory again and mauling from a 5m lineout to get flanker George Bristow over the line. The Water Dogs’ forwards retained the edge up front throughout the first half, winning counterruck turnovers and lineout steals and putting the Haggis scrum under severe pressure. But the Haggis backs had a say as well, working from one edge of the pitch to the other to create an overlap wide and send their fullback in for a try in the 11th minute, with the conversion sailing through to leave the scoreline 10-7 in the Dogs’ favor.
After the whirlwind opening, play settled into a brutal slugfest with each side trying to batter through the other, but neither giving way. The Water Dogs managed to reach within inches of the Park City try line several times, but struggled to retain the ball through contact in the final phases of each attack. When the action would swing back into the Water Dogs’ half, however, staunch defense and the forwards’ disruption of Park City likewise hampered the visiting side. Eventually, as fatigue took its toll on the Dogs toward the end of the half, Park City’s blindside flanker was able to score twice. Pressure from left wing Sam Patterson on the restart from the latter of these forced a knock-on by Park City, killing their momentum and returning possession to the men in purple, who were able to hold onto it until the half expired. The Water Dogs went into the break trailing for the first time this season, with a score of 19-10 to the visitors.
Guest coach Johnny Gallo, filling in for Scotty Smith and Kevin Mann this weekend, sent in a number of reserves at the half to give the pack some fresh legs after their efforts in the first half. The first few minutes after the break retained the feeling of a stalemate that had characterized much of the first half, until Dogs winger Casey “Stickers” Miller found room down the right edge to dash in for a try from 50m out. Fly-half Trevor Wilder launched the conversion from the farthest edge of the pitch and yet it sailed dead center through the posts, putting the Dogs right back in the game. A wicked bounce of the ball on the restart had the Water Dogs scrambling for a moment before a cool-headed Liam Peck at 13 sent a kick deep into Park City’s half. Peck put on a burst of speed as he chased and regathered his own kick; a pair of cynical penalties from the Haggis number 22 killed Peck’s chance to score but got the offender sent off with a yellow card, leaving the Dogs a man up for 10 minutes. The Dogs went to touch from the penalty and set a strong maul that came a hair’s breadth from the line before coughing up the ball once again. Nevertheless, continued defensive pressure from the Dogs forced a handling error from Haggis, and with a break off the ensuing lineout, Peck got his try in the end; Wilder duly added the conversion.
The Dogs were ahead once more, 24-19, but only briefly. Another fumbled kickoff turned the ball back over to Park City, and their loosehead prop made what this narrator will grudgingly admit is every front rower’s dream line break and run in from 50m out. When the conversion sailed wide, the teams were left at 24 points each with some 18 minutes left. As the Dogs battled through what felt like an endless defensive set from the restart, the many fans on the sideline held their breath through the tension. The patient defense paid off, forcing a Haggis knock-on. From the ensuing scrum the ball went out to back-row-turned-center Alex Fitch who punched through the line and dished it out to fullback Jacob Goeppner, who ran in under the sticks, setting up an easy conversion for fly-half Wilder. But once again Park City punched back, winning a turnover after the restart and working their way back into Dogs territory, where a series of pick-and-goes eventually got them over the line, and the conversion just squeaked through to draw the teams level again. The Water Dogs claimed the restart and ran phase after relentless phase; both teams looked utterly exhausted, but neither one would yield. Eventually the ball came loose and a Haggis player booted it quickly into touch, ending the match.
While a couple shortcomings in clinicality could have been the difference for a Water Dogs victory, the improvement in mental fortitude from last week’s shaky second half against Boulder was clear. Head coach Scotty Smith’s exhortation after that match to finish games as strongly as the Dogs started them had evidently been taken to heart; as tired Dogs hurled themselves into hit after hit through the 80th minute, no one could question their resolve.
The Water Dogs thank Johnny Gallo for stepping in as coach to lead from the touchline while Scotty Smith and Kevin Mann are away. We thank as well the many fans who turned out to Cook Park to support the Dogs, and we thank Park City for making the long journey out for such an intense match. The Dogs face a short turnaround this week ahead of hosting Boulder on Saturday, where they’ll set the tone for the final stretch of the regular season.
Water Dogs XXIII
Zack Jessell
Rodney Cordova
Duncan Frost
Chris Wiessing (c)
Colton Schilling
George Bristow
Heath Ross
Alex Fitch
Tyler Ingram
Trevor Wilder
Sam Patterson
Daytwon Sheridan
Liam Peck
Casey Miller
Jacob Goeppner
Jace Jackson
Austin Dozier
James Fuller
Apisolome Rokobaro
Andrew Scroczynski
Liam Bruno
Chiavari Alonso
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