Harlequins U23s Undefeated in Cowtown

Match report from Coach Mark McCloy

Glencoe Park, Dallas
13 Nov 2004

The first game of the season for the Dallas Harlequins was against cross-town rivals the Dallas R.F.C. in a non-Texas Cup match. The day was overcast and cool but the rain stayed away and there were some good tries scored throughout both games.

The first game started fast with some new and young faces in the lineup, including Mike Harvey and Al Christian who have joined the club this year from Ft. Worth.  Both had solid games with Mike Harvey scoring four tries on his debut. Young Jason Engelbrecht (17yrs) started on the flank and will give the experienced flankers on the team a run for their spots. Paul Calce, long time stalwart at lock, played prop and handled the change well. Centers Vaughn Crowe and Johan Van Rensburg had their usual strong performances and their numerous breaks in the midfield led to tries.

First Half tries by Harvey, flanker Dave Care and Rensburg and three conversions by Crowe gave Dallas a 21-0 lead. Second Half tries by Crowe, Cowan and Harvey (3) with three more conversions by Crowe (17 point day) saw the final score 52-7.

The second side was also filled with new and young faces as Quins U 23 players Keegan Engelbrecht, Taylor Mokate, Cale Marshall, and Eric Wilkins made the side along with new comers Justin Warlich, Adam Zelanzy, Dan O’Regan and Mike Ashmead. All played very well and with the wise heads of Brett Pedersen and Manny Garcia to lead, they were never in any doubt of losing this game.

First half tries by Pedersen, O’Regan, Warlich, Engelbrecht and Ashmead with 3 conversions by Keegan Engelbrecht gave the 2nd XV a comfortable 31-0 lead. Second half tries by Engelbrecht, Garcia (2) and Wilkins and 3 more conversions for Keegan Engelbrecht (22 point day) saw the 2nd XV run out 57-0 winners.