Seacoast Warm Up

On an unseasonably hot early-Spring day, April Fool's Day no less, Portland traveled to UNH for a warm up (no pun intended) against Seacoast, and a mixed Keene State/UNH side. With the thermometer pushing 70, there was almost as much exposed flesh on campus as at Spring Break in Daytona, and it was a wonder that any of the team made it to the ground without rear-ending someone (in their cars, I mean).

UNH had set aside a nice artificial turf field for the day's activities, which had been marked with lines for every conceivable sport, and had a few extra taped on for good measure. Regardless, the Portland boys took to the field hoping that their many months of Winter training would pay dividends. Indeed, there were many positive signs of the work that had been done, with the Portland pack chucking the ball around right from the whistle. This they continued to do, much to the frustration of the backs, only to find that they continued to make one pass too many, where anxious hands led to the inevitable knock on. Portland were however blessed with tons of possession in the first half, so despite their mistakes they were able to post the first points of the game with a penalty slotted over by Eric McClain (Spyder). Shortly afterwards another forward passing play was finally executed without error, with Jason Henry making the final moves to touch the ball down. 10-0 Portland, with the promise of more to come.

The first half however finished without further event, other than seeing Mike DeSalle cut down in mid stride by a Hamstring that gave up the ghost. A bitter reward for all Mike's hard work in the off season, but hopefully one that will heal quickly and not keep him out of the game too long.

The second half saw a major re-shuffle by Seacoast, and a reinvigorated pack, much more committed to running the ball at Portland. This being their first game of the season however, Seacoast were not without their own handling errors, and the Portland defense was able to smother any fledgling attacks. However, with possession now no longer a certainty, the inventiveness dried up, and the second half ended without a score for either side. 10-nil the final score, with still plenty of questions left unanswered before the all important Newport match.

The first half of the B game was literally a case of men against boys, with Portland lining up against the college select side. In this instance however it was the boys who came out on top, using their speed and fitness to run around and through the Portland lines on more than one occasion. While the competition up front was more in Portland's favor, there was enough ball supplied to the collegiate backline to make them a serious threat. I don't know the exact score, but it was not flattering to Portland.

The second half was played at a more sedentary pace however, with the Seacoast B side replacing those young college pups. This allowed room for our own young bucks, Ryan Facey and Hannes Bouwer, to link up several times and make themselves a real handful for Seacoast. With Portland reverting to some 10-man rugby, they were soon rumbling over the tryline despite the sudden monsoon conditions. Again, the score line is missing, but Portland put in at least two tries, and I think Seacoast may have managed just one.

All in all a good day out, but an expensive one, with two costly long term injuries. Mike DeSalle, who's hamstring I already mentioned, and Matt Burgess with some kind of groin deal.