Women's Rugby: Emerald City Mudhens-Oregon Sports Union Match Report:

Welcome to our newest YSC Intern! Angelique will be reporting on the upcoming ORSU games for the Women's Premiership League. Check out the article below for a pre-season look at ORSU as they played the Mudhens on Aug. 29, 2009.

By: Angelique "JACK" Jackson, Seattle, Emerald City Mudhens

The efficiency of the Oregon Sports Union is something to be admired. It is no mystery why ORSU is part of the USA Women's Premier League (WPL), comprised of the top 8 women's rugby teams in the nation.

Included in the Red Conference along with them are the Berkeley All-Blues, Minnesota Valkyries, and the Twin City Amazons. Despite their elite ranking, they annually extend an offer to host a "friendly" match with the Seattle based Emerald City Mudhens.

In an effort to create a learning environment for new players on both sides, ORSU, on a muggy Saturday, exchanged players to fill in gaps in the Mudhen lineup and broke the standard 40-minute halves into 20-minute sets.

Throughout the match, coaches, referees, and veteran players worked with those that are less experienced for the sake learning what rugby is all about: honor through hard work.

Erica Horne of the Emerald City Mudhens was heard explaining to her team the importance of working beyond your aerobic complex to further your capabilities.

Emerald City scored in the first twenty; one to ORSU's three tries. The Oregon Sports Union, despite the ball being controlled by the Hens for more than 60 percent of the game, continually divided the Hens defense.

Each time, ORSU's players made an clean break through the Mudhens' forwards for a try only to then further their prowess with each conversion kick.

Once, in the ultimate show of superiority, San Juanita ran, untouched, down the try-zone to touch the ball down between the posts. In a word: ouch.

Though the Emerald City Mudhens are not part of the WPL, they have been doing much to earn their stripes in the women's rugby community, recently earning fifth place at the inaugural USA Women's Sevens Tournament in San Francisco.

The dedication committed to that title reared its beautiful face in the final 20 when the Hens' Kammi Lopez tore through ORSU's defense for a final try.

This match seemed to be a great beginning to 15s. Rookies were "bitten by the rugby-bug" as Becky Garland of the Mudhens said, boots were put back in their bags, congratulations were exchanged, and once again two rugby teams walked off of the pitch looking forward to a social, despite anything that may have happened on the pitch.

Here is to the rest of the season!

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