In a close match where the score flip-flopped several times, the San Diego Armada finally pulled ahead to beat the L.A. Rebellion 26-24 for their first win of the season during a Southern California Rugby Football Union (SCRFU) Division III match on April 8 at the Chula Vista High School. The Armada avenged a 22-8 season-opening loss to the Rebellion, a game that took place on Jan. 7.

From the first kick, the Armada was pushing hard on defense, coming forward as a unit and forcing the Rebellion to change direction and double back on the pitch. The Armada knew that if they could neutralize the Rebellion offense, they could win the game.

The Armada controlled their rucks and made sure the Rebellion didn’t find any holes in their defense. A couple of plays into the game and the Armada had forced a bad pass by the Rebellion, which resulted in a knock-on. The Armada kept control of the ball in the scrum and quickly pushed the ball out to the back line, where a fullback insertion caught the Rebellion off guard and allowed the fullback to run it in for the first try of the game. A successful conversion kick put the Armada on the board 7-0.

The Rebellion wasn’t about to let the Armada get ahead so easily. They charged hard into the Armada defense and were effectively controlling their rucks and retaining possession. A couple of efficient breakdowns and they had the Armada on their heels. The Rebellion made some small gains in their crashing game, but when they were finally able to get the ball out to their wing, they managed to punch a hole in the Armada defense and score on good passes between a well-matched combination of the fly half and wing. A missed conversion attempt cut the Armada’s lead to 7-6.

Returning the kick, the Armada pushed forward, but lost the ball and knocked it forward. The forward pack set up the scrum and the Rebellion maintained possession. The Rebellion were concentrating on their passing game, trying to suck the Armada defense into creating gaps, but the Armada was having none of it, steadily increasing pressure on the Rebellion and forcing them to change direction several times before the Armada gained possession of the ball.

A couple of quick crashes set up a charge by the forwards, who drove a maul almost to the line before the Rebellion could stop them and bring the ball to the ground. A quick pop pass to the weak side and Armada scored a second try. A successful conversion kick put the Armada in the lead 14-6.

The Rebellion came back hard on the kick return and managed to gain some ground up the middle, weaving past Armada defenders until they were stopped short of the 50-meter line. A quick regroup saw them trying to take the ball out to the strong side wing, but too many defenders stood in the way. A quick fake and switch brought the ball back around to the weak side, where the Rebellion found some breathing room. As the Rebellion found a small hole in the Armada defense, they burst through and ran it in for a second try of their own. A missed conversion kick cut the Armada’s lead to 14-12.

After the half, the teams traded goals. The Rebellion seemed to want to take advantage of their speed, and a couple of quick passes allowed the fly half to run the ball, passing down the back line while making up some ground by running cross pitch toward the weak side. The Armada defense surged forward to stop the momentum and forced another switch, followed by a fake, which allowed the Rebellion to slip in between two Armada defenders who had just missed the fake. The Rebellion pushed through and managed to score, taking their first lead of the game at 18-14.

The Armada returned the kick off the bounce and proceeded to run it up the field. The Rebellion managed to stop the Armada from gaining too much ground, but a series of quick passes across the back line allowed the Armada to round the corner on the Rebellion defense and push it into their third try of the match for a 20-18 lead after a missed conversion attempt.

The Rebellion returned the kick and made up some ground, steadily advancing toward the goal, but were stopped short of any breakaway plays by the Armada defense. Forced to regroup and attempt a run on the outside, the Rebellion seemed to be making some progress and capitalized on an Armada shift in the defense to the outside. Cutting back inside, the Rebellion ball carrier was able to break a tackle and push through almost to the goal, where he was held up by the Armada. He ripped the ball out from the maul and dove into the end zone for their fourth try of the game, reclaiming the lead 24-20 after a missed conversion kick.

A short kick off of a penalty was run down at the weak sideline by the Armada scrumhalf and translated into the decisive fourth score of the game for the Armada. The Rebellion could not get their offense going to try to reclaim the lead as the clock ran out.

The Armada will play Eagle Rock in their final game of the season on Saturday, April 15, in Los Angeles. For more information, visit www.sdarmada.org.

In San Diego American Flag Football League action, the Knights beat the Eagles 33-24 in the first game of the day. The Gladiators beat the Longhorns 20-6 in game two. Finishing up the day, the Gators beat the Hurricanes 38-7.

Currently, the Gladiators, Knights, Eagles and Gators are in a four-way tie for first place, with 2-1 records. The Longhorns post a 1-2 record while the Hurricanes stand at 0-3.

There are no games scheduled this weekend due to the Easter holiday. Games will resume on Saturday, April 22, at the Cherokee Point Elementary School, located at 3735 38th Ave. The Gladiators will take on the Hurricanes at 11:30 a.m., the Knights will defend against the Longhorns at 1:00 p.m. and the Gators face the Eagles at 2:00 p.m.

No games will take place this weekend due to the Easter holiday. Games will resume on Sunday, April 22, at 8:00 a.m. at the Poway Sportsplex, located at 12349 McIvers Court in Poway, and at 9:00 a.m. at Hourglass Community Park, located at 10440 Black Mountain Rd. in Mira Mesa.