A Second Half Comeback Almost!
It was a tale of two halves.
The first half was all Detroit Tradesmen, leading at halftime, 21-0. The second half was all Griffins, scoring 21 points but falling short of claiming victory over the Tradesmen.
“We made some mistakes in the second half, but we outscored them 21-7,” noted Brendan “BB” Brown, Griffin president.
That was one positive note for the Griffins season opener, played at Red Lobster Stadium under sunny, windy skies as a handful of loyal Old Boys and spouses watched. Head coach Drew Suniula mentioned another positive note.
“It was a tough start to the season and we had a lot of players unavailable, but the boys rallied and scrapped to a close loss,” Drew said. “I thought we created enough opportunities to win the game or at least draw. We did come away with a bonus point which is a positive.”
The bonus point will help in the Midwest Rugby Union overall rankings. And if to highlight the player shortage, Drew subbed in the second half for Nate Lyon at flyhalf. Several players made their Griffin debut. That included Mason Campbell at fullback, Nate Purcell at inside center and Calvin Liulanaga at outside center.
Scoring for the Griffins were scrumhalf Christian Arturo, prop Michael Alamo and flanker Ethan Wilson. Campbell kicked all three conversions.
The Midwest referee was Dan Frankenfeld. Assistant referees were Conn Ciaccio and Lucinda Williamson. Barney Johnson, Midwest referee coach, also attended.
Many thanks to those on the sidelines: John Smyth; Walt and Ruthmarie Eisin; Angelo Manlapaz and kids; Bob "Big Bob" and Julia Kuras; Al Lainez (in from Texas); Ed Michals and Griffin photography chief Sheryl Michals; and Haley and Winnie Penrod.
The Griffins travel to Cincinnati this Saturday, Aug. 29, to play the Wolfhounds. Kickoff is 1 p.m. Central time.
Additions to the Family
Several recent additions to the Chicago Griffins RFC family have been announced.
Dustin and Haley Penrod are the proud parents of nine week old Winry “Winnie” Margaret.
Haley and Winnie watched Saturday’s match against Detroit as Dustin played flanker.
Erik and Meghan Jacobson are the proud parents of daughter Maren, born July 23. Congratulations to the Penrods and Jacobsons on their newborns!
Left Right Out
Apologies to Old Boy Porter Wiley, who attended the life celebration for Russell Sage, but was left out of the list of attendees in last week’s newsletter. The editors regret the omission.
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