Ruggers Bounce Back in Second Half, Overtake Boston Club 'B' Squad, 19-9

The Harvard men's rugby team came from behind Saturday morning to best the Boston Rugby Club's "B" side, 19-9, on a windy Soldiers Field.

Harvard--now 8-1--tallied three tries in the second half to rebound from a 9-3 deficit. A Boston try shortly after halftime jolted the Crimson into action, sparking the Harvard offense and setting off the display of speed and fitness that typifies Crimson rugby.

"We have to get down before we can really fire up," Crimson lock Al Halliday said. After the Boston try, the Harvard forwards packed tighter and got lower in the scrum, driving the Boston pack off the ball.

When Harvard's line began getting more ball, it made good use of its opportunities. Taking advantage of the strong winds, the Crimson backs continually kicked the ball into open field.

Retreating Boston backs could either kick the ball back into the wind or try to run the ball out. Both choices resulted in improved Harvard field position.

"We definitely used the kicking game to its best advantage," Crimson inside center Charlie Bott said later.

Harvard's line passed crisply and effectively when the ball was deep in Boston's end. In what fly half Keith Watling described as a "classic line movement," Harvard worked the ball along the line to wing Gus Spenos, who ran the ball 15 yards and dove in for the try. A Bott conversion knotted the score at nine.

A break in the center set up Harvard's go-ahead try. Outside center Keith O'Hanna tossed the ball to Mark Cooley, who dashed forward, dived to the three, and skidded across for the score to lift the Crimson to a 13-9 edge.

"The first two tries were among the best three quarter tries we've scored," Bott said.

Unlike most of Harvard's opponents, the Boston squad proved good competition for the Crimson, making the win especially satisfying for the Crimson ruggers.

"It was one of our better performances of the vear," Watling said. "The game was a very good yardstick for us."

Harvard closes out its fall season next week when the ruggers take on Yale. Earlier this year. Yale beat Princeton, a team that gave Harvard a challenging first half.

THE NOTEBOOK: Harvard was originally scheduled to play Canada's Queen's College, but the Ontario side suffered injuries in a tournament last weekend and decided against making the seven-hour trip...Crimson players hoped the win would help them in their bid to arrange a match with the Boston "A" side. New England's champion club team.