The Barbos Travel to Grand Junction on February 27 to take on the defending Collegiate Champs.

Denver Barbarians, Rugby Super League semi-finalists in 2008 and 2009, will meet reigning Collegiate National Champion Brigham Young University to renew their annual fixture by meeting halfway between Denver and Provo in Grand Junction, Colorado.  The Grand Junction Rugby Club will again host the event at expansive Canyon View Park, where the matches the last two years were attended by excellent crowd on Colorado’s western slope. Denver’s Super League side will kick off at 12:00 pm against BYU’s top squad.  The Barbarians D1 side will clash with BYU’s reserves at 2:00 pm. The Barbarians defeated a mixed BYU side in the 2008 match 68 - 12, but BYU gained revenge against a rusty Barbarian side in 2009, 32-20.  BYU heads into this encounter undefeated at 7-0.

Saturday’s match will be Denver’s opening encounter and sole pre-season match before it opens at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park on March 14 against defending Rugby Super League Champion San Francisco Golden Gate Rugby Club.  So, the table is set much as it was a year ago.  Can Denver shake off the cobwebs and overcome their pre-season form to defeat a BYU team that is hitting its mid-season stride?

Denver Barbarians Rugby Club is the only Colorado member of the 14-team Rugby Super League, the top rugby club competition in the United States.  Steven Hazel has replaced David Hodges after Hodges’ 3 campaigns as the Barbarians’ Head Coach.   Hodges is now the forward’s coach for the USA National Men’s Team (Eagles).  Hazel coached the Barbarians to their only Rugby Super League Championshiop in 1999.

The Barbarians had highly successful Rugby Super League (RSL) campaigns in 2008 and 2009, losing .  The Barbarians advanced to the RSL semi-finals in both years, dropping those encounters against the New York Athletic Club (2008) in NYC and against San Francisco Golden Gate Rugby Club (2009), both in close away matches.  Both of the semi-final winners in 2008 and 2009 became the RSL Champions.  The Barbarians were National Club Champions in 1990 and the Rugby Super League Champions in 1999.  The Barbarians will be trying to improve on their 2009 RSL semi-final appearance and will be aided by USA National players eight man Nic Johnson, former US lock Mike Mangan, and former University of Colorado All-American Maximo de Acheval, who will slot in at either flyhalf or fullback.  The Barbarians will be looking to replace current Eagle locks John Vander Giessen, and Hayden Smith, who are playing on professional contracts in France and England respectively.  Other select-side players aiding the Barbarians’ 2010 will be back row players Justin Stencil and Garrett Peterson.  

BYU, national collegiate runners up in 2008, finally broke through against collegiate nemesis University of California and won the 2009 Collegiate National Championship.  BYU are marching through their opposition in 2010, with 7 wins and no losses.  The Cougars have been impressive, smashing opponents by an average score of 44-5.  BYU’s head coach is David Smyth.  Smyth grew up playing Rugby in his native Ireland. Came to BYU in 1983 to 1986 to attend BYU and play rugby.  Coach Smyth was head coach from 1992 to 2003 after which his involvement in BYU Rugby was decreased due to business commitments. During those 12 seasons Smyth amassed a 186-12 record. Smyth returned to BYU full time in January 2006.

The Barbarians Rugby Super League season kicks off March 14 against San Francisco Golden Gate Rugby Club in Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, a state of the art 18,000 seat stadium in Commerce City, CO.  The Barbarians inaugurated rugby to Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in 2009, and this venue becomes home for the Barbarians’ 2010 Rugby Super League matches.  This venue provides the Barbarians the top rugby venue in the United States.