Nostalgia will be in the air this Saturday when Denver Barbarians return to Cook Park at 5 pm for their RSL quarter-final clash with Boston Rugby Club. 

When Dick’s Sporting Goods Park was unavailable due to a national lacrosse championship the Barbarians went to Cook Park, site of the Barbarians thrilling 1999 RSL Championship victory over Belmont Shore.  Kick-off is set for 5 pm.  The match will be preceded by a food and beverage tent gala to raise funds for the Barbarians that begins at 3:30 pm.  

Many of the club’s former players will undoubtedly come out to see the current crop of Barbarians, who have stormed into the quarter-finals on the momentum of a 5-match winning streak.  Their only loss of the season was to defending Rugby Super League champion San Francisco Golden Gate Rugby Club (SFGG) on opening day at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.  This season Denver has also claimed the scalp of 2009 National Collegiate Champion and 2010 National Collegiate Runner-up.  BYU lost to California in the finals of the Collegiate Championships last weekend 19-7.

The Barbarians have been one of the most consistent RSL clubs in the last 3 years and by winning on Saturday can book their 3^rd straight trip to the semi-finals.  In 2008 Denver lost to eventual RSL champion NYAC in New York City.  In  2009, Denver avenged their 2008 loss to NYAC by downing them at their Winged Foot facility in the quarter-finals.  The Barbarians then lost in the semi-finals in San Francisco when SFGG scored on the final play of the match to snatch a heart-breaking victory over the Barbos.  

Denver has what many pundits believe is its best balance between power and speed in many years.  Denver is a club historically known for its power and toughness in the forward pack and have continued that reputation this season.  The Barbos’ forwards, who have been solid all year and have provided a great attacking platform, include:  props Chris Moreno, Josh Masek, and Adam Ullrich; hookers Andrew Post and Rob Moreno; locks Adam Drury, Travis Meidinger, Ben Schnake, Tom Hewitt, and Mike Mangan; flankers Garrett Peterson, Dan O’Kane; and captain and #8 Nic Johnson.  Open-side flanker standout Justin Stencil has been forced to retire for the season due to repetitive concussions and will be missed.

The 2010 Barbarians boast a backline reconstructed from returning players and 1^st year recruits.  The Denver backline has been a fluid group, with a number of players interchangeable.  Scrumhalf has been manned by newcomer Matt Trenary.  Both Maximo De Achaval and Taylor Howden have been slotted in at flyhalf and fullback, with De Achaval also pulling duty at inside center and scrumhalf.  The centers have been patrolled primarily by Mike Graham and Jake Humphrey.  Jodie Kramer, Ben Haapapuro, Phil Bolton, Mark Bokhoven, and Ross Kantor have provided good play at wing and fullback.

Denver’s scoring has been led by Graham with 46 points (3 tries, 8 conversions, and 5 penalty goals), good for 7^th in the league. Graham slotted a long penalty goal two weeks ago in Seattle at “full time” to down Old Puget Sound Beach 27-24. The Barbos’ leading try scorers are Bolton and Howden with 5 each, good for 5^th in the RSL.

Denver’s RSL results for 2010 are:  

SFGG 31 @ Barbarians 17

Barbarians 47 @ Old Mission Beach Athletic Club 0

Barbarians 27, Dallas Harlequins 5

Barbarians 34 @ Chicago Lions 22

Barbarians 26, Chicago Griffins 23

Barbarians 27 @ Old Puget Sound Beach 24

Boston Rugby Club is celebrating its 50^th year in existence and until 1996 had not been a consistently top club.  In 1996 Boston merged with Beacon Hill RFC, a club that had split off earlier from Boston.  Boston’s on field results and club organization earned them and invitation in 1998 when RSL’s first expansion brought Boston into this elite competition.  Boston did not fare well in the RSL until 2007 when the club began resurgence.  That 2007 resurgence was kick-started by upset of the heavily-favored Barbarians on muddy Franklin Park in Dorchester.  This was the last match between these two clubs.  

The Fall of 2007 saw Boston win the Northeast RFU league title with a 7-0 record for both the 1st and 2nd sides. This momentum carried into the 2008 RSL season where Boston finished atop the Blue Conference with a record of 5-0-2 and advanced to the quarter-finals of the league. From the Fall of 2007 to the Fall of 2008, Boston was undefeated in 18 straight regular season games. Despite initially struggling in the Super League competition, BRFC has remained one of the better clubs in regional competitions and tournaments since entering the Super League. They have won six New England Rugby Football Union Division I Championships since becoming a member of the Super League. The club fields three sides, which compete at various regional and national levels. The third XV has met with some success at the national level, having won the USA Rugby National Third Division Competition in 2000.

Boston enters the quarter-final match on a two-match winning streak in which they have pounded those two opponents 88-15.  Boston (4-2) played East Coast powers New York Athletic Club and Life close matches the spring.  Reports are that Boston plays a game of possession and field position, opting for kicks to space with emphasis on pursuit defense, and timely goal kicking.  Boston flyhalf David Delacourt is the league’s leading scorer with 67 points (14 conversions and 13 penalty goals).  Boston seems primed to punish Denver with Delacourt’s foot whenever the Barbarians commit penalties.  No Boston player ranks in the top ten in scoring tries, however, their last two lopsided results show that they can put the ball in the try zone.

Boston RSL results for 2010:

Boston 20 @ Old Blue (NYC) 0

NYAC 32 @ Boston 16

Boston 25 @ Boston Irish Wolfhounds 20

Life 25, Boston 20

Boston 38, Charlotte 0

Boston 50, Potomac Athletic Club 15

Post-match festivities will be at Katie Mullen’s at 1550 Court Place beside the Sheraton Hotel on the 16^th Street Mall.  Players, their families, alumni club members, and supporters are all welcome at both the pre-match gala and at the Katie Mullen’s celebration.