While some seven-a-side tournaments are held outside of the summer months, fifteen-a-side rugby has traditionally dominated the fall, winter, and spring rugby calendar in the United States.  With the fifteen-a-side seasons drawing to a close for most college and men’s clubs, though, the Druids are hoping to be able to pull a strong group of top college and club players to play sevens rugby for the team during their regular clubs’ offseasons.

As an independent invitational sevens team unaffiliated with any fifteen-a-side club, the Druids welcome players associated with all area college and club teams to attend training.   Players who are new to rugby but interested in participating are also welcome.

Sessions will be held near the center of the Drillfield in the center of the Virginia Tech Campus at 6:00 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays.  Participants should wear training gear suitable for contact play and bring a personal water supply.

(Parking at the Drillfield is NOT open to the public when training begins, so please park at an adjacent lot and walk the short distance to the Drillfield with your training gear to avoid being ticketed.)

The Druids are in the process of planning a tournament schedule that is expected to include challenging competitions across the Mid-Atlantic region, with multiple teams traveling to some tournaments to provide all Druids players the opportunity to compete.  The first tournament of the year for the Druids will be the “Blue Plum” Sevens Tournament in Johnson City, Tennessee on 2 June, with other events to be announced.

Please contact the Druids with any questions about training or the upcoming season.

For directions to the Virginia Tech Drillfield, see the map below:

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The Druids won their pool with three wins over Rappahannock (a late addition to the list tournament participants), a Longwood reserves side, and Warrenton, which earned then a place in the tournament’s semifinals againt Virginia Military Institute.  A semifinal win put the Druids in a championship showdown with hosts Longwood, who had been unbested on the day and were still no doubt feeling the momentum of a creditable performance in the consolation rounds of the USA Sevens Las Vegas Invitiational earlier in the month.

The Druids took an early 7-0 lead in the grand final with a converted try from Alan Rhodes, who has been playing his trade as a midfielder with invitational sides from Virginia to Dubai in recent months, but Longwood managed to draw level at 7-7 by the half and took a 14-7 lead in the second half.  The Druids brought the scores level again at 14-14 through a converted try from Mark Seiss, on loan from the Washington Irish.  Longwood pulled ahead once more with an unconverted try to bring the score to 19-14, but Rhodes crossed the whitewash once more at the death to give the Druids a chance at a last-second win.  A missed conversion left the scores drawn at 19-19, forcing extra time, but not for long.  Longwood pounced on the opening kick  of extra time to run in a try, a 24-19 grand final win, and the tournament cup.

The Druids thank Longwood for hosting an excellent memorial tournament and a massive grand final match, as well as the other participating teams and referees Chris Davis, Sean Kelly, and Stuart Willis.  With seven-a-side tournaments in short supply during the early months of the year, the immediate future will see the Druids disperse to their home clubs while awaiting their next chance to join up later in the year.

Druids Match Results at Todd Miller Memorial 7s:

Pool Matches:
Druids 45 Rappahannock 0
Druids 28 Longwood Reserves 7
Druids 10 Warrenton 0

Semifinal:
Druids 29 VMI 5

Grand Final:
Longwood 24 Druids 19 (XT)

Druids Roster for 2012 Todd Miller Sevens Tournament:

Craig Bucher (Druids) (3 Tries)
Max Erwin (Roanoke) (2 Tries)
Kurt Goddard (Roanoke) (4 Tries)
Jason Gordon (Roanoke) (1 Try)
Matt McCarthy (Blacksburg)
Bobby Middaugh (Roanoke) (2 Tries)
Joe Pallante (Blacksburg) (1 Try)
Alan Rhodes (Blacksburg) (5 Tries)
Mark Seiss (Washington Irish) (4 Tries)
Martin Sexton (Blacksburg) (2 Tries)

Coach: Perry Pence (Druids)

Longwood is coming off a strong performance in the consolation rounds of the USA Sevens Las Vegas Invitational, so the Druids will be challenged by a pool draw that includes two sides from the host club in addition to a team representing Warrenton Rugby.  The other four-team pool features the Virginia Military Institute, James Madison University, George Mason University, and a third Longwood side.  Two sides from each pool will advance to knockout play, with the rest relegated to consolation matches.  A women’s seven-a-side tournament will also be held concurrently with the men’s event.

Pool play begins at 10:00 a.m., with knockout rounds scheduled to begin at 1:40 p.m. and a grand final set for 3:00 p.m.

Druids Roster for 2012 Todd Miller Sevens Tournament:

Craig Bucher (Druids)
Max Erwin (Roanoke)
Kurt Goddard (Radford Staff)
Jason Gordon (Roanoke)
Matt McCarthy (Blacksburg)
Bobby Middaugh (Roanoke)
Joe Pallante (Blacksburg)
Alan Rhodes (Blacksburg)
Mark Seiss (Washington Irish)
Martin Sexton (Blacksburg)

Coach: Perry Pence (Druids)

The Druids Rugby team after making the semifinals of the 2011 Christmas 7s in Richmond, Virginia.

Playing in their first tournament ever, the new Druids invitational sevens rugby team overcame injury woes and player unavailability to reach the semifinals of their first ever tournament appearance at the James River Rugby Club’s Christmas 7s tournament in Richmond, Virginia.

The Druids are a new invitational sevens rugby team based in the Blue Ridge area of Southwest Virginia.  The Druids’ goal is to provide area players with the chance to join together and play quality sevens rugby when they are not busy playing for their primary rugby teams.  Founded by former Blacksburg Rugby standout Craig Bucher and coached by longtime veteran rugby player and coach Perry Pence, the Druids plan to draw players from area fifteen-a-side  college and club teams to train and play together in seven-a-side tournaments across the Mid-Atlantic region during breaks in the players’ fifteen-a-side commitments.  The Druids team in Richmond included representatives from Blacksburg, Roanoke, and Washington Irish. 

The Druids ventured to their first tournament with a lean staff due to some injuries and some last-minute scheduling conflicts for players.  Despite making the trip with only nine players, including one nursing a knee injury, the Druids managed to win their pool by winning two matches and drawing in a third.  In the knockout rounds,  the Druids saw a glimpse of what their invitational side might grow to become one day when they were trounced by the clinically  impressive Reaper Rugby invitational side from North Carolina.  The Reapers went on to win the tournament’s grand final, while the Druids’ thin ranks caught up with them in the bronze final as they faded late and lost to Roanoke as time expired.

The Druids are pleased with their promising start.  Look for more travel from the Druids during 2012 as they continue to develop their structure and player base.  If you are interested in being a part of the Druids, contact us!