Last weekend, Wilkes Barre fought past visiting Lansdowne in a competitive battle. Early in the match, Lansdowne demonstrated some good control. The pack carried the ball with passion, and Mark Giordano's kicking was quite intelligent. Tom Murray, John McGuinness and James Powell all carried well early on.

A dropped ball resulted in a Wilkes Barre player gaining control of the oval, and he kicked ahead. The ball evaded Joe Giordano with a cruel bounce, thereby allowing a Wilkes Barre player an easy run in. Lansdowne rallied  from there. A great break from the scrum and a perfectly timed pass from Paul Antezzo allowed John Giordano to touch down in the corner, tying the score. Birthday boy Greg Alexander was unlucky not to record a try when intelligent play from halfbacks Paul Antezzo and Mark Giordano sent him down the wing. Danny Devlin marked his introduction to the field with a monster tackle causing the ball to shoot into the with arms of Scott Crofton. "Mister" Crofton touched down unopposed.

In the 2nd half, Wilkes Barre started to utilize the wind and their stronger pack more. Only great tackling from James "Borriss" McNorriss, Chris O'Connor, Ometo James and "Rampaging" Steve Murphy kept the homeside at bay. Some indiscipline from Lansdowne gave the Pennsylvanians a penalty which they converted to close within 12-8.

The Wilkes Barre penalty seemed to knock the confidence from the visitors, causing them to start playing defensive rugby in their own half. The homeside took control from a charged down clearance, managing to recover the ball and spread it wide to score. Lansdowne rallied to try and get the game winning score, but despite the wonderful efforts of Blake Mannion, Shane Raftery and Joe Giordano, they were unable to make the breakthrough. There were a number of candidates for Man of the Match, as Matt Murray, James "Borriss" McNorriss and Chris O'Connor all put in great shifts. But in the end, it was Greg Alexander who deservedly got the accolades.

Lansdowne practices are held every Monday and Wednesday at 8:00 PM in Tibbetts Brook Park in Yonkers. All interested players should come on down or contact the Club at any of the following: website lansdownerugbyclub.com, phone hotline (914)584-4541 or email lansdowne@hotmail.com.