If Justin Bieber was a rugby player, he'd clearly be a wing, right?
Anyway, there are a lot more important things than an idiot celebrity to worry about here, and that includes the six men's games on tap for this Saturday afternoon.
Posted on 1/23/2014 7:54:25 PM
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I had a great week last Saturday, going 5-1, and only missing the correct Orlando/Boca score by a couple of points. Proud of myself for that start to 2014, as early-season matchups aren't always easy to predict. While I would love to be in Vegas this weekend watching the USA 7s, I'll have to make do with watching it on NBC. To those of you out there in the desert, enjoy it! Oh, and don't forget that the Six Nations is only one weekend away, while Super Rugby starts on February 15, for those of you who like to watch that sort of thing. Division II (Click to view Championship Page) Naples (2-1) at Tridents (3-1) - The Tridents easily
handled Daytona as expected last weekend to remain in first place atop the D2
standings. Meanwhile, Naples make their 2014 matrix debut here after
sandwiching fall wins over Krewe and Daytona around a heavy defeat to Miami.
This game should tell us a lot about the Hammerheads, and whether they're still
a team to contend with or if they're going to be also-rans this season. I think
the Tridents take this one, narrowly. Tridents 28, Naples 25 Miami RFC (3-0) at Daytona (4-0) - This is a long trip for
Miami, who took care of Fort Lauderdale last week despite missing three players
who attended the South tryouts. They shouldn't have too much trouble with the
Coconuts, however, as Daytona have yet to win a game this season. They haven't
lost by more than 17 points, yet, but they have also probably played the
weakest schedule of any team. Bumblebees roll here. Miami RFC 45, Daytona 7 Orlando (1-2) at Fort Lauderdale (1-2) - Lauderdale opened their
season back in November with a great win over rivals Boca, but that was
followed by losses to Krewe and Miami, leaving the Knights on the outside of
the playoff spots looking in. Another loss here would be catastrophic,
especially to Orlando, who gave up 40-plus points in both of their losses and
appear to be having a down year. Home team pulls this one out handily. Fort
Lauderdale 38, Orlando 12 Division III (Click to view Championship Page) Gainesville (0-0) at Indian River (0-1) - When these two teams met
last year, the Hogs ran out 64-0 winners. As they forfeited to Sarasota last
week, I'm not sure how improved second-year team Indian River will be this
season, if at all, but I have a feeling Gainesville will be competing for the
state D3 title as usual and should take care of business without too much
trouble. Gainesville 55, Indian River 5 Palm Beach (1-0) at Pelicans (0-1) - Well, the Panthers
certainly made a statement last week with a crushing win over Brevard. The boys
in black still want to claim their spot as the elite Florida D3 side, and while
their schedule gets tougher next month with games against Boca and Sarasota,
who impressed at All-Florida Weekend, this game likely won't be much more than
a walk in the park. The Pelicans didn't exactly excel in a 20-point loss to
Boca last week, and they clearly made the right decision to drop down a level. Palm
Beach 42, Pelicans 20 Boca Raton (1-0) at Brevard (0-1) - This is an interesting
matchup, as Boca are going on the road for the first time in D3 action. Helping
their cause is the fact their D2 side is off this weekend, so they could
certainly put a stronger side out in this game than they would if both of their
sides were in action. Brevard, meanwhile, got hammered by Palm Beach last week
and will want to win this one to prove they are still a side to be reckoned
with. I think the Buccaneers take this one. Boca Raton 28, Brevard 22 Last Week (1/18/13): 5-1 Season: 12-5 (70.1%)
All-Time: 61-23 (72.6%) Picture by Facundo Manuel Fabbri.
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