NorthWest Rugby News
by Allen Seals

The 1996-97 season is finally here. After a long hot summer the teams in the Northwest are gearing up for the new year. Although most of the teams took the summer off, several of the teams continued to practice. We look forward to another competitive year in the Northwest. Last year the west coast finished with 7 of its 8 teams in the top 20 from sectionals. This year we hope to place all 8 in the top 20. The Northwest has 3 of their teams in the top 20. And, with some changes they may be able to place 4 in the top 20. Below is the teams and some of their changes.

Quadzilla

The biggest changes in the Northwest comes from Quadzilla. They have made a coaching change. Reggie will now be coaching Shadow and Tim Murphy will be taking over the reigns. Also, Steve Pate is supposed to be back. But, is he? Only Steve knows. If he is back, Zilla could once again be the big dog on the block in the Northwest.

Oregon

After an exciting season that finished in disappointment, the Oregon team is looking to the future. Yes, they finished 12th at nationals. Four of their losses at nationals were lost by a total of six points. Not bad considering that they played without the Westcoast MVP (Fred Williams). They hope to redeem themselves this year by defending their regional championship.

Washington

Once just a few guys playing around. Now, they are serious and hope to show the Northwest that they can become contenders. They are one of those crazy teams that practice all year long. They have been working out over the summer and they hope that the extra work will show on the court. With some new guys on their roster they may be tough to beat.

San Jose

They have had some signs of being a contender in the Northwest. But, have lost players for one reason or another. This year, instead of losing players they have a new player that might really help them get back into the hunt. Don Moresie is supposed to be playing with them. With his experience, San Jose could surprise a few people.

Spokane

Their not rookies any more. And, they are supposed to be playing with a full deck this year. With the addition of some new players, they will be playing with 8 points instead of the 6 1/2 that they played with last year. If the summers practices helped they could move up in the Northwest standings this year.

Reno

They are the team that is mostly unknown. They have the potential to win games in the Northwest with one of the tallest players in the game they could be hard to score against. But, for now we will have to wait and see what kind of shape they show up in.

Portland

They have been practicing all summer long and look to be improved. They could be one player away from winning some games this year. They did some recruiting this year and have a few more players. But, until they are tested even they do not know what they have.

Sacramento

To be or not to be a team? They could be back if they can just get some players that are willing to play. The players that they have are dedicated to the sport but everyone knows that you have to have the numbers before you can be a team. If they do not get some warm bodies they will roster with Reno again.

So, this is a run down from the Northwest News. This is the first issue, so I thought that I would give a brief summary from each team. In the future I hope to have stories that include scores, highlights and interviews with the players. We will try to get an issue out monthly during the season and bimonthly in the off-season. Hope you enjoy. Allen Seals - (2.5) Portland Trail

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NorthWest Rugby News by Allen Seals

NorthWest Rugby News
by Allen Seals