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The Bozeman Cutthroats did what no other team had been able to do over the last 4 years; unseat the mighty All-Maggots of Missoula with a stunning one point win this past Sunday.  The back and forth match was a slug-fest throughout the game.  Missoula mounted massive pressure toward the end, only to see Bozeman hold on for the narrowest win in massive upset.

But before the final there was some other hardware given out Sunday.  The host side, Butte CRABS took the Consolation Plate for 5th place defeating the University of Montana Jesters 15-10.  The Crabs got Trys from Jon Pasque, Eddy Cummings, and Adam Hein in the win.  The Maggot B’s also secured the B-side Cup yet again as no one really could muster a B-side this season.  However, players from around the region banded together and did give Missoula B’s two social matches on the weekend both of which the Maggots won.

In the Grand Final for the A-Cup, the two Divisional regular season champs secured a place in the finals by besting their respective opponents on Saturday in the semi-finals.

Bozeman staved off a furious rally to beat Spokane Razorbacks 20-5 in first match.  Bozeman went out to a seemingly insurmountable lead, but Spokane had the better part of possession in the second half and came knocking a half-dozen times only to be turned away with a costly error.  It was a classic case of “too little to late”.  Bozeman had done most of the damage in the first half and was able to cruise to the win just by playing solid defense and clearing their line when the Razorbacks would make a mistake.  This set up the long-awaited final between the Fish and the Men in Black.

In the late game Saturday, the Maggots looked indeed like the world-beaters they’d been all season in demolishing the Billings Bulls 52-5.  The game was only in question until halftime, and then Missoula had far too much speed out wide and seemed to manage line breaks at will the last 40 minutes.   The only Billings score came on a nifty intercept-Try from Bulls winger Cody Deedee early in the first half.  The Maggots definitely had not looked past a dangerous foe and played very well despite the distraction that loomed as Bozeman had already booked their ticket to Sunday in the previous match and had the luxury of scouting the Maggots under the sun.

The Finals

Sunday saw a strong breeze from touch line to touch line.  It was cloudy and cold and conditions were anything but ideal for a grand final.  Typical of this time of year in Montana, but what was not typical was the small crowd that bravely hooted and hollered all afternoon on the side lines.  The two teams aptly rewarded the loyalty of the patrons from both clubs.  The other Ruggers and families that stuck around for the Sunday tilt saw a monumental duel with plenty of big hits and scoring highlights from both teams.

What ensued was a heavy-weight title fight with jabs back and forth and plenty of blood-letting on both sides. 

The Maggots struck first with a long Brent Meyers break on the near side lines at about five minutes in.  Missoula recycled a few times deep in Bozeman territory and Tight-Head Prop, Brice Schilling crashed over from short range for the first Try of the day.  Fullback Saul Steuer stuck the extras and Missoula was in business at 7-0.  Missoula again looked dangerous and pounded the Cutty end of the field but was turned away with some stiff defense and a knock-on.  Some sloppy passing from the Maggots saw Bozeman go the other way and parlay the indiscretions with a Try of their own by #8 Willy Bass.  The conversion missed in the ominous breeze and Missoula was up 7-5 at ten minutes.  Missoula came right back and struck with a Try from Flanker Curt Shields in the left corner after a fair bit of work.  Steuer converted, 14-5 Maggots. 

And a counter punch came in the form of Cutthroats Prop Damon Fox.  Fox’s score and an Ed McKenna conversion saw Missoula’s lead again shrink to 14-12 with 10 minutes to go until intermission

Then Brent Meyers was on the end of some quick passing off a turnover ball at a Bozeman breakdown, and this time he had no trouble finishing off the 40 meter movement under the posts.  Steuer again added two easy points and Missoula were out 21-12 and that was the half.

The fray became very interesting in the second stanza as it was Bozeman who came out recharged and with a sense of urgency.  Three quick Cutthroat Trys looked to make the pinnacle unreachable for the Maggots who had seemed in control for a half.  Now the wheels were falling off for the Missoula outfit.

Bozeman’s Robert Price picked up a quick Try and a conversion from McKenna cut the Maggot lead to 21-19.  Missoula looked frazzled and was on the hind foot for nearly twenty minutes and was never able to really mount any pressure.  The Maggots put in tackle after tackle and began to tire.  Marcus Stratler dotted caught a gap and dotted down again in short order for Bozeman moving the score to 24-21 in favor of the Fish.  Will Bass nabbed a brace on the day and scored his second Try for Bozeman only minutes later.  The Fish had breathing room at 29-21.  Things really went sideways for the Maggots as Robert Price secured his second Try of the day for the Cutty’s to add to the lead late.  Missoula looked all but dead and trailed 34-21 with only 20 minutes left to full time. 

Three unanswered Trys by Bozeman would have been insurmountable for most teams in a game of this magnitude against an organized, quality opponent.  But Missoula had been here before and all fear faded away and was erased with a determination that saw them rally with what life was left.  They put Bozeman will to the test to see how bad they wanted to be the Champion.

That rally began as the Maggots began to hammer the fringes and move the ball in five-meter bursts with a capable forward pack.  Bozeman made the choice to commit out wide and wanted to stifle a Maggot backline that had killed teams all year, and the strategy worked for the most part.  But the Missoula forwards worked the ball up the field in a smash-mouth foray of pick-and-drives and weak side crashes.  Bozeman’s forwards were getting noticeably tired as were the Maggots, but the scene stayed the same for nearly five minutes as Missoula put together phase after phase and Bozeman settled in to play defense as given no other choice.

Finally after seemingly endless pressure inside the Cutthroat half, Bill Merrill finished the final phase for the Maggots and went through under the post from five meters out.  It was only Missoula’s first Try of the second half as Bozeman had shocked everyone by shutting them out the first 25 minutes.  Saul Stueuer again was all too happy to easily convert a chip shot and Missoula closed the gap to 34 -28 with 15 minutes left. 

The Maggots took the restart and began hammering away in ugly fashion once again.  The “Sexy” fast-paced Rugby they’d played all year would not serve them here as Bozeman continued to commit to a one or two man advantage out wide.  This was “Mountain Rugby” as a last resort from the days of old. 

Ala 1982, the Maggots continual crashes, forward pick-ups and ferocious rucking had them pressuring the Bozeman line again.  But they’d used up what precious little time they had left working the ball into position.  A few untimely penalties kept pushing the Maggots back outside the Bozeman 22-meter line.  But finally with only two minutes left, Maggot Fly Half – Blake Meyers, caught a gap that hadn’t been there in Bozeman’s defense all day.  He scrambled 55 meters with only the Bozeman Full Back chasing.  It was do or die and the tired throngs of Maggots and Cutthroats could jog after them and watch as Meyers was cut off from centering the ball but scored a Missoula Try in the corner.  The teams came nearly level at 34-33.

Saul Steuer had completed all four conversions up to that point, but had the tricky task of the touch line conversion.  He just missed left in a ridiculous headwind, but did well to even be that close.  It was now or never as Missoula needed to get a penalty or in position for a highly unlikely drop goal in the ghastly wind.

The last two minutes saw Missoula sending the ball wide in hopes of a miracle or a gap a Maggot speedster could sprint through.  But they’d not earned a miracle on the day and Bozeman left no gaps nor conceded a penalty in their own half.

Bozeman, who in the end, poached a ball at the break down one last time, and then frantically sent it to touch to end the game were the winners.  That was full-time and the Maggot rally fell short at 34-33 with a superb Bozeman victory.

The teams shook hands and Bozeman showed great respect in the line after putting the perennial “King” to the sword.  The respect was mutually returned to Bozeman who was and is a very worthy Champion.  They thrashed the Maggots hopes of winning a 5th consecutive Cup with heart and determination that epitomizes a lot of the clubs in the MRU. 

Bozeman Captain, Curtis Ramsey commented,

“It starts with guys like Joey Stigler, Mike & Andy Petersohn, Luke Sooy, Eric Hjelvik and Stuart Baker.  These guys never missed a practice all year.”

That kind of commitment helped Bozeman to its first Cup win since 2004 and the sidelines did explode in adulation by the loyal following from Bozeman.

The Maggots, ever humble in victory were also gracious in defeat shaking hands and congratulating Bozeman players on one hell of a game, but were left to rue their mistakes in a tight match.

In the end, there were no dust-ups or chatter back and forth, no faulting the referee’s calls and no excuses of any sort for that matter.  Simply two very good teams and one that played just a little harder, a little longer, and a little better than the other.

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