Friday, January 17, 1997
CLUB:
Returning players hope to instigate team’s return to
prominenceBy Rocky Salmon
Daily Bruin Contributor
Through the 1960s and into the 1980s UCLA’s men’s rugby team was
known as a national powerhouse. The team mostly consisted of
experienced players who knew every physical and mental aspect of
the game. Yet in the 1990s, the rugby team has declined to a club
struggling to become one of the elite once again.
This year the team is full of returning players who are ready to
resurrect the program.
"All of the team is back from last year," third-year junior Ben
Fendel said, "so this is the year to turn the program around."
Last year the team lost many close games due to minor mistakes
and lapses caused by the team’s inexperience. The season became a
learning process for the new members. But this season everyone
understands their roles.
"Last year people had to learn their particular position and the
skills were not finely tuned," head coach Darren Maloney said.
"This year the positions are now ingrained and things are becoming
second nature to people."
With a limited preseason due to several rainouts, Maloney does
not know exactly how his team will perform. Yet due to a strong
returning class there is a feeling among the rugby team that if the
right chemistry is found in the first few games then the team will
once again join the elite.
Forming the veteran backbone for the Bruins are Dave Schmaltz,
Rich Gould, Jason Kong, Fendel, and Scott Collins, the captain. If
the team expects an immediate revival, this nucleus will have to
help tie the team together through their experience and
leadership.
"We have a lot of potential and the bond is there between the
guys," Collins, a third-year senior, said. "The team has gotten to
the point where guys know what each other are going to do."
Saturday the club team will test their chemistry against UC
Santa Barbara. The Gauchos have won the league the past two seasons
and should be the measuring stick of UCLA’s improvement.
This year the team, according to Fendel, "Needs a few wins early
on in the season to see where we’re headed."
A win at Santa Barbara might serve as a wake-up call to the
nation announcing that the UCLA men’s rugby team may be on its way
back to powerhouse status once again.