After falling behind by over two tries early, men's rugby tried to claw back into the match but fell just short in a 28-24 loss to long-time rival Life University Saturday afternoon at Hunter Stadium in St. Charles, Missouri. It was a contest that featured high-intensity offense and rock-solid defense from both sides and was a hard-fought thriller to the end.
How it Happened:
Lindenwood controlled the midfield and brought heat in the scrums during the opening minutes and moved the ball with precision, especially out wide.
Duncan Krige bulldozed his way up the field with a powerful carry, earning the Lions a crucial penalty, but just as momentum appeared to be swinging their way, Lindenwood was called for a penalty deep inside the Running Eagles 22-meter line. A booming kick flipped the field, putting Life back in Lions territory with a lineout. The Running Eagles then put together a few sharp phases and slipped through the Lindenwood defense for a try in the eighth minute. A successful conversion made it 7-0 in favor of the Life.
The Lions roared back with an immediate response, winning a crucial penalty on the 30-meter line of Life territory. Opting for a maul, Lindenwood put the opposing defense to the test and worked through multiple phases, but the Running Eagles stiffened and drove the Lions back five meters. Lindenwood continued to pressure and that forced a Life penalty. The Lions quickly set up another maul off the lineout and this time, some patience paid off.
Mark Barbour spotted a gap, peeled off the maul, and charged toward and over the line. Lindenwood was on the board, now trailing just 7-5 after 18-minutes.
The match turned into an intense back-and-forth kicking battle over the next dozen minutes, with the Running Eagles applying relentless pressure. A lucky bounce of the ball gave them the edge. That allowed them to string together some quick phases, pin Lindenwood deep, and win a crucial scrum. The Lions defense stood tall under pressure, but a missed tackle set up a series of powerful pick-and-go attempts just three meters from the try line. After four grueling phases, the Running Eagles finally broke through. Another successful conversion gave Life a 14-5 advantage in the 33
rd minute.
As the first half neared its end, the Running Eagles had momentum on their side, but after winning a penalty deep in Lindenwood territory, a massive defensive effort in the maul kept Life from scoring. The excitement over that stop was short-lived, though. The Lions conceded a penalty just five meters out and to make matters worse, lost a player to a yellow card. Sensing the opportunity, the Running Eagles took a quick tap and dove over for a crucial try. With another conversion, Life had built a commanding 21-5 lead just before the break.
With the first half success, the Running Eagles stuck to their game plan, but Lindenwood made some strategic substitutions to inject fresh legs and energy into the game in the first 10-minutes of the second half. After resisting wave after wave of pressure on defense, momentum finally shifted. The Lions found themselves with a lineout just five meters from the line. A brilliantly executed trick play caught Life off guard and Barbour powered over for his second try of the match! While it was unconverted, it closed the gap to 21-10 with 24 minutes remaining.
The score gave Lindenwood some confidence and rhythm and led to a series of powerful phases that moved the ball up the field with big carries. The Lions back line then delivered a moment of pure magic.
Declan Ries sparked the attack, putting
Brendan Mason into open space. A penalty soon followed and Ries made a quick tap and chip kick over the defensive line. With a perfect bounce,
Jack McAllister snatched up the ball and dashed over for a try.
Byron Forword slotted the conversion and suddenly, Lindenwood had closed to within four points at 21-17 in the 60
th minute.
Life launched a deep kickoff that pinned the Lions deep. Under pressure, Lindenwood cleared but the ball stayed in play. The Running Eagles pounced on the opportunity, quickly shifting the ball wide through their scrumhalf who fired a massive pass to the outside. With an overlap advantage, Life found space and sprinted into the zone for a try that proved to be massive. With a conversion, the Running Eagles pushed their lead back to 11 points at 28-17 with 17 minutes remaining.
Needing another injection of energy for a final push, the Lions made some more substitutions. The fresh legs were key to keeping Life from adding any more points. After 10 minutes of relentless play, Lindenwood won a crucial penalty. Forword launched a pinpoint kick, setting up a lineout just five meters out. The Lions maul powered forward and with sheer determination,
Ivan Ingram crashed over. Forword booted another conversion and Lindenwood only trailed 28-24, but with only three minutes left, the clock ran out before the Lions could complete any possible rally.
Other Action:
Prior to the main match, the Lindenwood and Life second XV's battled at the Track Complex with the Running Eagles outlasting the Lions 32-26.
The Lions fought well, but lack of discipline led to several penalties that slowed their attack. Life developed momentum and was able to put points on the board early and carry a 10-0 lead into the break.
The second half started slowly for the Lindenwood, but the Running Eagles carried confidence from the first 40 minutes and quickly added to their lead. The Lions finally found some rhythm and strung together some exciting plays. Some fresh legs subbing into the match also helped and Lindenwood made a late push. Despite a valiant effort, the comeback fell just short.
Coach Quote:
Assistant Coach
Wayden Mosinkie: "Both teams were impressive. The game was always going to be close, so we needed to do more of what we are good at earlier in the game and make better decisions overall, but I am very proud of the boys and the way they fought back for each other. We will be back to the drawing board as we rest up and prepare for our next few games to come."
Player Quote:
Captain
Duncan Krige: "It's always a tough competition against Life. Even though the weather wasn't great, there were moments of brilliance from both teams which lead to a nail biting ending. Sadly, we came up on the short side this weekend, but we will learn from those mistakes and make sure to be better in the games to come."
What's Next:
Men's rugby returns to play in the Midwest Rugby Conference (MRC) on the road against Arkansas State February 22. The Lions dispatched the Red Wolves 36-7 at home back in November, so they will be looking for a season sweep. The opening kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday afternoon at Curt Huckaby Field in Jonesboro, Arkansas.
Scoring Summary:
8' Life try 0-5
9' Life conversion 0-7
18' Lindenwood try
Mark Barbour 5-7
32' Life try 5-12
33' Life conversion 5-14
40' Life try 5-19
40' Life conversion 5-21
56' Lindenwood
Mark Barbour 10-21
59' Lindenwood
Jack McAllister 15-21
60' Lindenwood conversion
Byron Forword 17-21
62' Life try 17-26
63' Life conversion 17-28
76' Lindenwood try
Ivan Ingram 22-28
77' Lindenwood conversion 24-28
