Lions, Wolfhounds go big in Round Nine
Mon, 12 May 2008 10:27
The Chicago Lions and Boston Irish Wolfhounds had all to play for in the White Conference Rugby Super League, with only a make-up (rescheduled) match left to change their fate.
The Boston Irish Wolfhounds (BIW) needed a big win against the St. Louis Bombers to keep their hopes alive.
After picking up a win last weekend after Washington's forfeit, the Wolfhounds secured a 43-3 victory over St. Louis today, earning the bonus point and making the play-offs as the sixth-seeded team.
The BIW will play the third-seeded Belmont Shore squad in Long Beach, California next week for the hope of moving on to the semifinals.
Similarly, the Chicago Lions also needed a bonus point win in their rescheduled match this week to even have a chance at making the quarterfinals.
Fortunately, Washington didn't put up much of a fight, allowing Chicago 90 points in their final RSL round-robin match.
With the 90-0 victory, last year's RSL runners-up, the Chicago Lions, just squeaked into the eighth spot and will play the number two seed Boston Rugby squad next week in Boston.
"After a difficult regular season its exciting to squeak into the playoffs," Lions coach Marty Wiggins said.
"Boston have had a fantastic year, though, and they will prove every bit as difficult as the rest of the opponents we played this season."
In other Week Nine action, the Charlotte Rugby Team just narrowly defeated the Chicago Griffins, 21-19, in their make-up (rescheduled) match. Charlotte, a certainty for the play-offs, actually found itself trailing 19-3 just 15 minutes into the game, but stepped it up and were able to hold Chicago scoreless for the remainder of the match.
"The difference this season is that we have the confidence in knowing we can win close games like this," Charlotte coach David Hamilton said.
"Last year we finished on the wrong side of each close result, but this year we gained some momentum early on and have been able to win close games coming from behind. This post-season [play-off] action will be a new experience for us."
With this loss, the Griffins see their play-off hopes vanish, while Charlotte will go on to play the fourth-seeded Denver Barbarians at home in North Carolina as Charlotte carries the higher seed.
The fourth RSL quarterfinal match set for next week includes the top-ranked NYAC squad hosting seventh seed San Francisco Golden Gate in New York.
The winner of that match will face the winner of Charlotte versus Denver in the RSL semifinals, while the Chicago Lions/Boston victor will face the winner of the Boston Irish and Belmont Shore match in Week 11.
Rugby Super League Results:
Boston Irish Wolfhounds 43, St. Louis Bombers 3
Chicago Lions 90, Washington 0
Charlotte 21, Chicago Griffins 19
