On a stifling fall day in Illinois, the Menagerie arrived at a park in Chicago to play the Chicago Sirens. Some background on the Sirens: they are a new team to our "segment" of the Midwest Division - they played in the Scioto Valley/Indianapolis/etc...section last year. Due to high turnover in the Western portion of the Midwest Union, they were moved over to play in our section.
Anyway, back to the match...
It was hot. Hotter than Iowa the previous weekend, hotter than Hojo in a cast or even Tina in heels; in fact the only true breeze of the day might have been when Sonya farted in one of the scrums (true story - this might come up in KC later!!!) However, the weather wasn't the only thing hot about the day - the Menagerie were ON FIRE!!!
Not even 3 minutes into the match, the Menagerie were already on the scoreboard with Kasie scoring. Not to be out done, Sonya followed it up with a try of her own, and then Summer put 2 more tries on the board with a little "help from her friends" Michelle and Cath.
Cath decided it was time to put on her "big girl panties" and score one of her own tries; shortly thereafter Haras had a brilliant sideline tackle (and yes Haras, you do need to wrap!!) which put the forwards in excellent scoring position with a line-out about 15 meters off the try line. Haras grabbed the line-out and the forwards took a "walk in the park;" driving over the line with April completing another score for Menagerie.
During this time, team mates were all over the field supporting mates, running up the field, as well as the score. There were only defensive scrums during the first 40 minutes, but we won all off them (which was really only 1 scrum, but no complaints from the forwards due to the heat.) Eileen gained excellent field position with her kick-off returns to which she had complete support from the rest of the pack, especially tight-fivers Abby, Gayle, & Jess. Rucks and tackles were low - backs were fast, flankers hungry, & tight 5 was, well...tight. In an attempt to cool us off, their bystanders performed a rain-dance on the sidelines causing a brief rain shower - which was pure awesome - but did nothing to stop our scoring.
Before half-time, Sonya, Haras, & Debbie completed additional tries to leave the score Menagerie 53 - Chicago 0.
During the second half some changes were made to the line-up which is difficult to do with only 15 players!! Michelle came out to rest her "breast" (also a true story - ask her about it!!) and the Menagerie marched on with 14.
By this time we finally got our first offensive scrum, though we didn't really need it as Abby was stealing all of their scrums with her fancy footwork!! The heat affected April a little bit and during a moment of brilliance she thought she was a wing, looping outside of Mary and running in a try. Cath stepped up again with an assist from Fish (who managed to draw in 3 defenders all by herself) and then Cath gave Debbie some scoring love with another assisted try. Gayle was running so fast she tore her calf muscle and had to come off the field; this moved Fish into the front row. The Menagerie continued to play hard with 13.
During a convoluted moment when everyone might have been off-sides and waiting for a whistle, Kool picked up the ball near the line and dove in for a score; still not quite certain that all rugby laws were abided by, but playing the Sir and it was good. To finish off the game, Cath & Mary both took in tries; the match ended with a final score of Menagerie 91 - Chicago Sirens 0.
Post-match, the Chicago Sirens hung out and socialized with us (providing much needed sustenance and cold beverage); recognized from their team was the #8 for her outstanding play in the match.
Recognized from the Menagerie are:
- Player with Heart (for Pippi) - Eileen
- Player of the Match - Haras
- Player with the "Golden Touch" - Mary
Note to players receiving awards: Please "personalize" your award with something and bring it back to the following week's match. Personalizing the item should be in good taste and not deface any of the other additions to the award. It is also your duty to wear the object during the social and after match activities. Questions? Talk to Cath or Sarah.
Overall it was an excellent match - with everyone learning and improving their skills & even learning new skills that they didn't know were possible!!! (Summer with some kicking action...April wanting to be a wing...Gayle was supporting Debbie/Fullback during kicking action...Mary and her golden touch throughout the game...Fish with some excellent footwork & front row skills...sorry if I missed anyone - too much greatness!!)
A special thanks to ALL of our fans for their support with cheering, water, & cowbell (though more cowbell will be needed for the next match!!) Without their help, we would have melted into puddles out on the pitch.
The Menagerie are now undefeated in League play; the final match for League competition is October 13th at Columbia Pitch with the kickoff at 11am against the Milwaukee Scylla.
No embellishments were used in the creation of this match report because (as Tracy says) "You can't make this stuff up!"
From the Desk of Sarah "Kool/Mountain Momma" Kuehl