I stood on the freshly marked Guilford rugby pitch before my first game as a Quaker, taking in all the sights and sounds of rugby. “Quit being (wussies) and hit the pad!” junior captain Andrew Slater yelled as he stood holding a pad. Slater was urging our team to get more aggressive.

Slater was not just blowing hot air. We were about to play Triad, a men’s side known for their physicality, and Slater was doing his job to get the team mentally prepared.

“These guys are gonna be physical, they’re gonna be dirty, and they are gonna try to hurt you,” said senior Max George in the pre-game huddle.

Our game plan was simple: Try to get the older and slower Triad team to chase us around the field early on, in an attempt to tire them out. We wanted to capitalize on our biggest advantage, which is our youth and vitality.

Triad kicked off to start the game. We responded quickly with a lively attack. I passed the ball out wide, making the opposing team chase down an elusive Davey McKindley-Ward, an experienced junior.

McKindley-Ward advanced the ball deep into Triad territory, where a shaken Triad team tried to recover. McKindley-Ward kicked a quick field goal to give Guilford an early 3-0 lead.

The Triad team, however, did not roll over. Playing like the seasoned ruggers they were, they held us to only three points in the first half.

Our team was upset that we ended the first half with no trys.

“Boys, there were at least two easy trys out there that we robbed ourselves of because we keep dropping the ball!” McKindley-Ward preached in a powerful halftime speech. He emphasized that we needed to focus and do the little things right.

Triad came out playing rough in the second half. I found myself at the bottom of a dog pile trying to catch my breath after having the wind knocked out of me. The guy who hit me turned and said, “Thanks man. I was almost worried that in the first game of the season I wasn’t going to get kneed in the face.” I laughed, quickly rolled out of the pile, and said, “Welcome back.”

Finally, George broke our scoring drought by recovering his own kick and using his speed and youthful enthusiasm to find the try zone. McKindley-Ward made the conversion kick, making the score 10-7 Guilford. On the sideline, the voice of Guilford rugby alumnus and stand-in coach, Nick Hunter could be heard above the cheering of the crowd, “Way to stay patient Guilford! Way to stay patient!”

Triad wasted no time in answering. They proved to have at least a few spry gentlemen in the pack as Guilford rugby alumnus Drew Gottlieb bowled his way into the try zone. With 10 minutes left in the match, the score was 10-14 Triad.

Again, our Guilford squad showed wisdom beyond our years as we patiently waited for Max George to penetrate the defense and make his way into the try zone in the last two minutes of the game.

The score was left at 15-14 Guilford. Even though most of us limped off the field, our confidence was not bruised. I felt proud to step on the field with a college team that could hand defeat to a top ranked D2 men’s side.