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Men's rugby look to get back on track
by Haley Weston, Staff reporter

At first glance, Central Washington University’s men’s rugby team seems to be going downhill from its past winning seasons.

"The fall half was our chance to really work with our new guys and get inexperienced players experience," Coach Bob Ford said.

The team also had a tough line up of teams to play during the fall half. Out of the five teams Central played, four were in the top eight in the Pacific Northwest Rugby league.

"The last half was really a building period to get everyone on the same page," Joel Anderson, senior and rugby team captain, said. "Now it’s a team and we are all aware of our responsibilities and positions on the field."

Although the team was 0-5 fall quarter they have high hopes for the winter season. They have a lot of new talent on the team and a good, consistent turn out at practices. The team has 30 men ready to play a game with only 15 positions.

"We have a couple of guys who have never played a game before but are athletic and come to practices regularly," Anderson said.

The team is hard at work preparing for the winter half which kicks off Feb. 14 against the University of Oregon. Oregon State University (OSU) beat Central in their last meeting; the team is focusing on the rematch on Saturday, Feb. 28 here at Central.

"We went into the Oregon State game blind with a lot of new players," Anderson said. "Now that we are all on the same page we are much more confident."

The lineup for the winter half is set up well for Central. It builds up in difficulty as the season progresses, and the team expects their experience in the first half of the season to benefit them in the second half.

"We expect to win out the winter half," Ford said.

The men’s rugby team will be playing both OSU and University of Washington at home. The games are held right behind Nicholson Pavilion; students are encouraged to come watch.

"Students should come out and support the team because even if they don’t understand the game it can still be a lot of fun," Jeremy Johnson, freshman biology major, said.

The team is fairly spread out as far as class standing goes, and few players are expected to leave at the end of this year, but the team is always looking for new players and new talent. All students are welcome to check it out.