RSRC gets first win of the season against RC Octopus

Coming into the second game of the season by playing against the RC Octopus from Uden on home turf, there were high hopes for the RSRC 1XV to take the win. The first minutes were initiated rapidly, with the smart thinking of the team allowing an early penalty kick to be converted by loosehead prop Daniël Rodenburg. This set the tone early on for the Octupus players, indicating a tough game ahead and an opponent ready to fight for the victory. Following the early penalty, Boris Venema would continue the momentum by scoring a phenomenal try through using his raw power and speed on the wing, making any opponent double guess themselves about stopping him later on. The try would be converted by Rodenburg once again.

With a try on the scoreboard and a crowd following with unmatched energy from the sideline, a kickoff would commence. However, instead of going in for the hit like a second row would, Roel Ruizeveld de Winter, utilized his years of agility from his natural wing position to swiftly run past and over the entire opposing team to score a try in the corner. Unfortunately, this would result in an unsuccessful conversion. These moments of delight would be short lived as a player from the Octupus team would score the following try after a gap in the RSRC team’s defense opened up. After countless minutes of rush defense by the RSRC backline and continuous effort to turn over the ball, the Octupus team replied with another try that would quickly see the 1XV team on the backfoot. This back and forth battle would persist for the remainder of the first half, with the other winger Philip Jonker making a crucial try saving tackle. This reinvigorated the team and brought back the winning mindset, ultimately resulting in both the fly half and inside center, Marc Kranendonk and Iñaki Murua respectively, cutting through Octopus’ defense with finesse to score under the posts. Both tries would be successfully converted to further RSRC’s lead at the end of the first half.

Starting the second half with new energy, both teams were ready to give their all once again for the final 40 minutes. After a continuous push by the RSRC players to put the Octupus players under pressure in their twenty-two-meter line, a missed placed kick by the opposing fly-half promptly landed in Boris’ hands again to ultimately result in another try and conversion. However, Octopus quickly found new inspiration that was unmatched by the RSRC team after the whistle blew. Consequently, 1XV would concede two tries after RSRC began indicating signs of exhaustion after maintaining a well-formed defense line. Furthermore, handling errors and multiple penalties by RSRC throughout this period would prove advantageous for Octupus by allowing them to gain easy territory and multiple chances to score. Nonetheless, only one try would be scored and converted as Philip and Walt Knuppel, the outside center, rushed to force a mistake by the kicker.

With the final minutes closing in fast, RSRC substituted in fresh players to make a last-minute impact on an already decided game. For the penultimate try of the game, quick hands by the backline allowed the new winger Aron van Woerkom to make easy work of the tired fullback of Octuput by making a perfectly weighted grubber right next to the posts. Rodenburg would convert the try with ease, resulting in only one kick out of six being unsuccessful for the prop. In the final play, a mistake by the opposite forward pack would result in a turnover ball for RSRC, ultimately ending the game with a kick into touch by winger Van Woerkom. This finished the game with a 43-22 win for RSRC 1XV and their first one of the season.

Final score
43-22

Tries
Boris Venema 2, Roel Ruizeveld de Winter, Marc Kranendonk, Iñaki Murua, Aron van Woerkom

Conversions
Daniël Rodenburg 5

Penalty kicks
Daniël Rodenburg

Line-up
15. Floris Smits
14. Philip Jonker
13. Walt Knuppel
12. Iñaki Murua
11. Boris Venema
10. Marc Kranendonk
9. Eduard Jansen (c)
1. Daniël Rodenburg
2. Wouter Nommensen
3. Tom Benn-Wooleu
4. Sam de Bode
5. Roel Ruizeveld de Winter
6. Beer Astro
7. Sam Dobbelaar
8. Gianni Croes

16. Pieter Rexwinkel
17. Joost de Rooij
18. Levi den Hoed
19. Aron van Woerkom
20. Yeslin Beljaars