Men’s rugby is off to one of its most successful starts in recent years, with a record of 2–0–1 and an optimistic outlook for the remainder of the season. Combining skill and strategy, the team has reinvented itself through veteran leadership and a youthful nucleus of new and returning players that emphasizes speed, teamwork, and a never-quit attitude.
This approach could not have been more evident last weekend, when the team, called “The Exiles,” defeated Paul Smith’s College 36–24 at home. Despite going down by 12 points early into the game, they held their ground against the Bobcats — who were ranked 16th in the National Small College Rugby Association (NSCRA) at the time.
The comeback was led by some of the Exiles’ youngest members. According to the team’s Facebook page, Ethan Daves ’22, Nat Spicer ’21, Will Richardson ’21, Luke Bernard ’21, and Ryan Wall ’21 all had tries in the second half, while the “crack squad of backs spun the ball to the outside.”
Scrum half Kyle Canelli ’20 said the victory over the Bobcats was “a huge win.” Paul Smith’s team, in addition to being nationally-ranked this year, won the NSCRA league title last season, including defeating Hamilton’s squad 44–29.
“In my Hamilton rugby career, the game [against Paul Smith’s] was the largest deficit we’ve overcome,” said Canelli. “It was nice to see everyone play the whole game and give their heart the whole time. Frequently, we haven’t been a second half team, but our motivation didn’t drop even in the face of being down 12 points to the second-place team in the league.” Canelli added that this year’s Exiles team is “for sure the best we’ve been in my three years here.”
Daves, the aforementioned first-year second-row, did not even see the field against Paul Smith’s until the second half. When he did, though, he made an immediate impact. “His power- ful leg drive and discipline under fire earned him a quick pick-and-go try off the right side,” reads the team Face- book page. Following the win, Daves was named the “Man of the Match.”
The Exiles began the season with a 17–17 tie against St. Lawrence University on their field in Canton, N.Y. The team had just two tries but capitalized on both, with winger Andrew Char- man ’21 scoring one on a flick to the outside, and Henry Golden ’20 also scoring. Battling both the late August humidity and a slew of injuries, the Exiles were down late in the match, but pulled out a tie thanks to another clutch first-year performance, this time from Zach Jones ’22, who booted a drop goal through the posts from the right side of the field. Jones, who the team says was “poached” from the club soccer team, was named Man of the Match.
The most dominant win of the season came a week later — a 48–7 “mercy-rule” victory over the Clarkson University Golden Knights. Clarkson, which had previously been atop the league standings, was unable to handle the offensive assault brought on by Richardson, Charman, Golden, Max Kohn ’19, Drew Castronovo ’19, Justin Bower ’19, and Harry Dubke ’19.
Under NSCRA rules, once a team is winning by 40 points or more in a game, the mercy-rule takes effect, wherein both teams are allowed to make unlimited substitutions so as to get all team members playing time.
“We put everyone into the game and it was a bit hectic, but it was fun,” said Golden. “It was amazing because no one wants to practice and not play.”
The team was no doubt motivated by both their 24–10 loss to Clarkson last season and the presence of an array of former players on hand for the program’s Alumni Weekend celebration. The weekend’s events included an alumni practice, a reception at the Babbitt Pavilion, and a dinner in the Bristol Hub. Both the men’s and women’s teams pulled out victories in front of their alumni fans. For Golden, it was an ideal weekend. “It was fun to win, especially at home,” he said. “We got to win in front of some alumni which was a cool experience as well.”
Against Clarkson, second-row Geoff Schweller ’19, the Man of the Match, says he thought the dominant win was a product of “what we’ve been building for the last couple of seasons, when we had mostly newer players and not as much experience.”
Canelli added: “We have changed our philosophy from last year be- cause a lot of the teams we play are bigger than us. We really focused on our back line. It was the first game that the back line was running all of their plays efficiently, and one of the tries was a play that we had practiced the week before. The forwards played an amazing defense. Clarkson is just a big team and our forwards were always in there and not afraid to make tackles.”
Although the undefeated start is cause for confidence, the team acknowledges that they have bigger goals in sight — and more they need to do to get there. “Clarkson is interestingly still ahead of us in the league so as of now we are not in playoff contention,” says Golden. “Only the top two teams go to the playoffs.”
Still, the Exiles are able to appreciate their success thus far. More than just winning, the team has grown closer by bringing in members from all class years and areas of campus that might not have otherwise come together. “I think that rugby, especially here [at Hamilton], is really cool because it brings together a lot of eclectic people,” says Golden. “We really do have teammates from different parts of Hamilton and we represent a lot of men from around campus.”
Next week’s game against SUNY Plattsburgh is an important one for senior captain Harry Dubke ’19, who said “During my [first-year] fall, we went undefeated in the regular season and lost our only match against SUNY Plattsburgh in the league championship, cementing a pretty bitter rivalry.” Furthermore, Dubke emphasized the team spirit of the Exiles that Golden had described, saying “Rugby was my first family on campus. When I arrived at Hamilton, I had no clue what I wanted to do or what kind of person I wanted to be here, but that didn’t matter to the team… As captain, I have done my best to bring that feeling of belonging to every player who I share the jersey with. As soon as you hit the pitch, you become part of our family.”
Rugby’s next game will be this Saturday, Oct. 6 against SUNY Plattsburgh in Plattsburgh, N.Y. They play another home game during Fall Break on Sunday, Oct. 13.
