News Blog
BARBOS SQUEAK BY PARK CITY; BIG TEST IN ASPEN AWAITS
The men in Green & White battled with the Park City Haggis last Saturday, treating the audience to an epic match of rugby union. The Barbos turned a sloppy 1st half into a high scoring, wild-west, shoot-out victory, the final score 41-40. But in the Rocky Mountain Rugby Union, the handshakes and Atta boys can only last for a few fleeting hours after a victory.
With Park City waking up the following Sunday to soundly defeat the Waterdogs, the pressure is back on the Barbos shoulders to defeat the reigning champion Aspen Gentlemen on the road to remain on the top half of the table (see below). Since Aspen rejoined the competitive XV’s RMR in 2024, they have defeated the Barbos six consecutive times. Four of the matches were in league play, and the other two came during the Ruggerfest Final in 2024 & 2026. The Aspen winning streak will continue if the Barbos don’t learn how to win on the road. Saturday’s match in Aspen will also come with some early fall chill, and the extra altitude will only ask more of the Barbo forward pack.
ON THE ROAD AGAIN
There’s something about a long road trip that brings out the best (and worst) of us. Let’s start with the challenges.
A long ride. A packed van. A seat with no leg room. A van member who won’t stop snoring or chewing so loud you want to smack him. These are many of the challenges we have all faced on our annual trip to Utah and back. But I’m not done … A late arrival (I-70 traffic). A queen bed too small for two full grown rugby players. A continental breakfast that doesn’t inspire confidence the eggs were freshly cooked (spoiler alert … they weren’t). Add another additional 1000 feet of elevation, and you’ve got a mountain of things to whine and whinge about.
When you list all of these things out in succession as I have, it may all just sound like a list of excuses.
“Here are the reasons we struggle on the road”
“This is why it’s tough to win in Utah"
BARBOS SWEEP 55TH ANNUAL DENVER 7’S
After posting a 4-0 record on a successful trip up to Aspen Colorado for an afternoon of 7’s matches, the men in Green & White turned their focus toward their home tournament. The 55th Annual Denver 7’s. An event that once stood at 30+ teams across the Men’s, Women’s, Social and High School brackets at the pristine Dick’s Sporting Goods Park fields, is now a more humble gathering of teams at Cook Park. After semi-final victories over Aspen and Park City, it was the Denver Barbarians who raised the hardware in the end, defeating the Barbo 2nd side in the final match of the day. The day featured great moments of 7’s excitement, a strong showing from the local rugby audience and pizza for all after the final from Guido’s Pizza in Genesee.
BARBOS FALL TO PARK CITY IN ROCKY MOUNTAIN FINAL
Your Denver Barbarians fell to Park City Haggis 63-26 in the 2023 Rocky Mountain Premiership Final. The match remained close at the 60 minute mark, but the Haggis closed out the game with 6 unanswered tries. This was the 6th time in two years that the teams have played.
BARBOS SQUEAK BY PARK CITY IN SNOWBOWL
Your Denver Barbarians defeated Park City Haggis 20-19 in a thrilling defensive snow game. While the Barbos opened up with three tries and a 15-0 lead, Park City came storming back and took the lead 19-15. But it was Luka Pavlakis who crossed over for what would be the game winning try in the 72nd minute (pictured below). The Barbos defense then held up at their own try line, holding up the ball on the final play.
BARBOS FALL SHORT TO PARK CITY HAGGIS
The Barbos fell short to Park City for the 2nd time in 3 weeks, collapsing in the 2nd half and blowing a 14 point halftime lead. Credit goes to Park City who continued to battle through multiple yellow cards and rode their momentum to complete the impressive comeback. After scoring 4 first half tries, the men in Green & White simply couldn’t turn the corner in the 2nd half. Park City rode their momentum until the final whistle where they scored in the corner to make the final score 31-28.
BARBOS FALL TO PARK CITY IN A TALE OF TWO HALVES
When the team travelling to Park City was named on Thursday night, we saw some new names looking for new opportunities on the rugby pitch. Luckily for them, there is no greater opportunity that travelling west to face our Utah based league rivals Park City Haggis.
BARBOS FACE BIG TEST AGAINST PARK CITY HAGGIS
Can the Barbos continue their 2022 winning ways out in Utah? Some new names and faces to the first team lineup have the BarboFam excited and aroused for some potential first team debuts. If you love this team as much as I do, you’ll allow the tingling sensation in your extremities to take over as you read the below lineup.
Steve Karas (c)
Solo Charboneau
Max Murphy
Mitchell Jarosinski
Kierian Langskov
Brian Rice
Eric Sykes
Luca Tani
Conor O’Brien
Noah Pflaum
Landon Banks
Liam Wynne
Dante Brown
Brett DeBoy
Harold Hernandez
Corey Jacobs
Jack Grisanti
Kaleb Boleyn
Glenn Hughes
Devarius “Beanie” Miller
Todd Oswald
Gus Sokol