Youth Oaks write up for 2/9

There is little in the world of sports better than a WHOLE day of rugby played under beautiful blue skies! Except for NOT HAVING TO TRAVEL to play! For the last 4 weeks the Oaks Youth program has traveled to Roseville, Modesto, Sacramento (BEFORE 8:00AM) and finally Granite Bay last weekend! Yesterday was our first home match of the season and was the best weekend by far!
The Chico Oaks Youth RFC hosted the Carmichael Hawks in U-10 and U-12 matches and the Wolf Pack of Roseville in a middle school match! Also, the Wild Oaks hosted the women of the Humboldt High School area.
The day started with the White Oaks and Gray Oaks kicking off at 11:00am. Given I had to ref the U-12 match I was unable to watch much of the White Oaks, but I know the first half our guests were having a hard time with our size and physical nature of how we were playing. After discussing this with the Hawks manager we decided to change things up a little in our lineup to make it more of a “light” match opposed to an “open” match. In the TRUE meaning of sportsmanship which is so common in rugby, we decided to pull one of our better players to even things up a bit. White Oaks on the day were Riley and Zoey Miller, Dylan Terry, Manny Zepeda, Tyler Mays, Sean Saise, Angelina Berger, Sabrina Tuitele, Braden Hass, Kalin Montana and AJ. Try scorers on the day were Manny, Sean, Sabrina and Braden! (If I missed one I apologize, please let me know so I can send a corrected email!!) Players of the Match went to Manny Zepeda for the forwards and Sean Saise for the backs! Great job to the White Oaks for continuing to improve each week!!!!
Also, playing at the same time on this day were the Gray Oaks. I had a bird’s eye view of this match! Carmichael is a very organized, fundamental squad! They rucked well and passed the ball very well to space. This caught us off guard a bit and it took us to get organized in our defensive approach. The first half was a little long, but we hung in pretty well! The visitors jumped up on us pretty good but our ruggers never lost their cool! They battled back and brought their tackles down quite a bit and started to win ball and move the ball out on our own! It was a great day for these kids. I think they all learned a lot!!! Taking the pitch for the Gray Oaks yesterday were Trenton Topps, Carl Taylor, Tony Capucion, Zach Maxey, Eric Hartman, Francis Marc, Atticus Mikles, Joseph Huitt, Grayson Boots, Chase Junk and Issac Funderburk. Try scorers on the day were Francis, Carl, Aticus, Greyson and Eric. (if I missed one I apologize, please let me know so I can send a corrected email!!) Man of the Match honors for the Gray Oaks were forward Atticus Mikles, and back Francis Marc. These ruggers just get better each week and their desire to play this game is AWESOME! Keep it up guys! See you Tuesday!
Next up, the RED OAKS!!! Taking the field for the first time in two weeks, these guys showed a HUGE amount of improvement! Their rucks were more consistent; they looked to pass more and overall were in pretty good support all the way around. The Wolfpack from Roseville is a really well coached team but we aren’t too bad ourselves! Players on the day for the Red Oaks were Devin Berger, Cameron Boyer, Trevor Buckman, Flynn Davis, Damon Garrido, Owen Hill, Doug Hufford, Bryce Jagoe, Kaleb Jewett, Zach Lehor, Ty Miller, Patrick Ralston, Alex Saise, Michael Terry, Tanner Topp and Kaitlyn Woodcock. We had two players score tries today, Zach Lehor scored his first try of the season and Devin Berger scored 6 tries. YES, six. Man of the match honors presented by the Wolfpack captains went to Devin for the backs and Tanner Topps of the forwards!! My man of the match went to Doug Hufford for “taking on for the team” and playing with our opponent in TRUE rugby form to allow the game to be played with both teams having a full side! The Red Oaks need to take a more aggressive approach to the game on the pitch. It’s rugby. It is aggressive it is a hard hitting game. You either hit hard or get hit hard. I ALWAYS!!!!!!!!! HIT HARD! You gotta bring it! I have no doubt that as long as we continue to come out to practice and improve these ruggers will see a huge difference in the product we put out on the pitch!!!
After a full year, we were finally presented with the privilege to have MOST (minus the Black Oaks) play on the same pitch on the same day! The Wild Oaks played host to Humboldt as mentioned above and came out FAST scoring the first try in the first minute of the match by Sierra Tuitele taking ball from a Humboldt player and racing to the try zone and dotting it down for the try. Then, Humboldt started to get the ball to their FAST, and big outside center scoring the next 4 tries on her own. It took the Wild Oaks most of the match to realize they would NOT be able to tackle this lady until they got low in the tackle!!!!!! She ran wild on the Oaks scoring what I think may have been 5 of their 7 tries on the day or more! Once the Oaks women started making their tackles around the legs the game turned around a bit and the Lady Oaks made this a MUCH more enjoyable match to watch and ref. The final score of the day was 39-25, but as I mentioned, the first half was out of control and then our ladies turned it around and ended the day with their heads held high and they should be very proud of the match!!! Women of the match honors went to Sierra Tuitele for the backs and Elysha Clark for the forwards.
I must say a HUGE thank you to everyone who made the day possible. Given the fact that I had to ref 3 consecutive matches (U-12, Middle School and the girl’s high school). THIS MEANS WE NEED HELP FROM PARENTS WHO MAY WANT TO LEARN THE GAME AT A DIFFERENT LEVEL. WE NEED YOU TO HELP TOUCH JUDGE AND REF!!!! PLEASE SEE ME IF YOU ARE INTERESTED!! (Joe…?) Our coaching staff came up HUGE today taking control of each their respective teams! Those individuals are Eric Miller of the White Oaks, Billy Luden of the Gray Oaks and Tim Lehor of the Red Oaks. Also thanks, to an ex-player of mine from Chico State, Allen Stahler! Thanks to you all for your continued commitment to the program. The program will not be able to continue without people like you willing to give back! To Ashley Bocast, the head coach of the Wild Oaks and her assistant, Denita Arens; you ladies have put so much work in to making this program succeed, you not only need to be thanked, but congratulated as well!!! So, thanks and congratulations!!!!! More thanks to John Fox of the Mighty Oaks who helps coach the youth and lined the field and set up the goal posts on the day. Rich Hartman for bringing his BBQ out and helping BBQ on the day, (ask to see his new screen saver. It’s a beaut!!) Erick and Heather Ralston for putting together and organizing the social feed, BBQing, etc. Thanks to Tim and Lori Lehor for organizing all the apparel sales. Thank you to all the parents for making their different contributions. And most importantly, my wife for allowing me to spend countless hours on and off the pitch!
If I forgot someone it is only because I was not able to watch anything other than the product we put on the pitch, and for that I will forever be grateful that you have all allowed me to do so.

At the end of the day, “IT’S A GREAT DAY TO BE AN OAK!!!!”

Mitch

YOUTH REGISTRATION BEGINS TODAY

Registration for the up coming 2013 rugby season will begin today (11/14) at 20th Street during the Oaks Youth touch rugby training session. We will be registering players for the u-10, u-12, middle school, boys high school and girls high school club teams. There will be open registration days at the Holiday Classic rugby tournament at Wildwood Park this Saturday as well as on November 26th at the other touch rugby session. For more info or to download registration forms, please go to our youth page here. You may, as always, e-mail us at youthoaks@chicorugby.org if you have any additional questions.

 

FREE YOUTH RUGBY CLINIC OCTOBER 12, 2013

There will be a FREE youth rugby clinic on October 12, 2013. hosted by the Chico Rugby Foundation. The Chico Rugby Foundation, in conjunction with the Chico Police Officers Association, will be hosting a youth rugby clinic on October 12,2013, at Wildwood Park. This clinic is FREE and is open to boys and girls ages 7-18. The clinic will be non-contact and no experience is required or expected. The clinic will run from 9:00 a.m. -11:00 a.m. The instructors are coaches and players from the Chico Mighty Oaks Rugby Club, Chico State RFC, and Chico Oaks Youth Rugby Club. The clinic will include instruction on ball handling, catching, passing and offensive alignment.  You can register online by clicking here or you can download the registration form here and bring it with you on Saturday.

If you have any questions regarding the clinic, please e-mail us at youthoaks@chicorugby.org or call (530)308-1092.

Coach Jagoe Resigns as Head Coach of Chico State

Below is his open letter of resignation:

Alumni, friends and families, it is with mixed emotions that I am submitting my letter of resignation as the head coach of the Chico State Men’s rugby team.

As some of you may know, I was instrumental in starting the Chico Oaks Youth Rugby Club last year. With my oldest son being one of the newest members of the Alumni and my youngest son starting to get active in the sport, now is the time to change my area of focus! I actually had a suspicion Christmas Eve morning of 2011 that the 2012 season would be my last season as the head coach of the Chico State Men’s Rugby team. It wasn’t until late February, when I had only one day off since January 3, 2012, that I made my final decision to resign however. With the college playing on Saturdays and the youth teams playing on Sundays you can see how there wasn’t time for anything other than rugby! Running both programs takes way too much time away from my family and my “real job”! It is now that I must make the choice to step away from the college men’s program.

To those that I have had the pleasure of coaching, I thank you all for the great memories and life long friendships that we have formed in the past 8 years! Lord knows we have shared a lot: failures, successes, weddings, child births and other personal issues, etc. These times I will always cherish!

There is also a large group of alumni and parents/friends/room mates of players that I have had the pleasure of getting to know as they have attended alumni events or games watching their alma mater and kids or friends represent the Wildcats!! It is people like you that make a college “club” program successful! I look forward to seeing you all in the seasons to come, just on the “other side of the rope!”

At the end of each season the players are responsible to complete a coach evaluation. While the majority where positive (whether they were telling the truth or simply trying to get through it and didn’t read the questions accurately, we will never know), there was one comment over the years that I will never forget. One of the players wrote “Coach Jagoe cares as much about making us better MEN, as he does about making us good rugby players.” This is a statement that I am very proud of because it really is true. Life is MUCH bigger than the game.

I have met with the current player board members and they are aware of this situation and are making plans to move forward. They have taken some guidance from some “outsiders” to create a counseling board made up of 3 “community members” and 3 current players to seek out a coach to move the program forward. We have held off on my resignation to allow them time to get someone in place so hopefully there will be an announcement soon.

One thing we can ALL agree on is that rugby is a sport like no other!! The bond and trust that is created between players, coaches, alumni, fans etc. is one that does not come from any other sport that I am aware of. To be able to attain instant respect and honor for simply being associated with a sport is unheard of. To lose this respect or honor by breaking this bond or trust is truly sad!!

Always know that every choice you make either gives you power, or takes it away. So choose wisely!

I am looking forward to a new book on CSR rugby to begin! Also, I can’t wait to hear those words spoken in unison at the end of the day and what I hope to be MANY new victories,

“IT’S A GREAT DAY TO BE A WILDCAT!”

See you on the pitch!

Mitch Jagoe

Chico Youth Rugby Clinic

The Chico Rugby Foundation in conjunction with the Chico Police Officers Association will be hosting a youth rugby clinic on July 21,2012, at DeGarmo Park. Clinic fee is only $10 and includes a t-shirt. This clinic is open to boys and girls ages 7-18 and no experience is required (or expected).  There will be two sessions available, 9:00 a.m. -11:00 a.m. and noon – 2:00 p.m. The clinic will include instruction on ball handling, catching, passing and offensive  alignment.  Register either online here or download the registration form here and bring it with you on Saturday.

If you have any questions regarding the clinic, please e-mail us at youthoaks@chicorugby.org or call (530)308-1092.

Online Registration Form

    Camper Name

    Shirt Size

    Camper Age

    Parent/Guardian

    Address

    City

    State

    Zip

    Phone

    Your Email

    Emergency Contact

    Phone

    I hereby release Chico Rugby Foundation and any host organization from any and all claims and liability of any kind of personal injury or property damage due to participation in this camp. I understand that participation in sports camps include physical contact and certify that my child is in good health and able to participate in all activities. I agree to notify the coaching staff of any preexisting medical or psychological conditions. If attention is required for illness or injury, I give my permission to a staff member for such care. I give my consent for my child to be photographed or video taped while participating in camp activities and for me resulting images to be used by Chico rugby Foundation for promotional purposes. If returned unpaid I authorize my account to be electronically debited for both the check amount and returned check fee.

    By checking this box you agree to and abide by the terms stated above.

    Wheels, Wine & Ribs – III

    Wheels, Wine & Ribs III

    In keeping with this month’s Upgraded Living theme of patios, picnics and bike rides, Dr. Anderson and I decided to dedicate our article to an upcoming fundraiser Wheels, Wine & Ribs. This is the third year we have hosted this event and NEW this year we are turning the event into a fundraiser for Chico Youth Rugby and the Chico Rugby Foundation.

    Sports were a key part of my childhood. I believe that youth sports helped keep me out of trouble and I learned important lessons about teamwork and self-esteem. With budget cuts in our schools, Chico sports programs have been feeling the squeeze. Youth, middle school and high school rugby is filling that gap. Lately, thanks to the Chico Rugby Foundation and its members, the youth rugby movement has grown with great success. In addition to the Chico Mighty Oaks men’s team and the Chico State men’s and women’s teams, there are now Chico youth rugby teams for kids ages 8 to 18.

    To support the growth of youth rugby in Chico, Chico Spine & Wellness (CS&W) along with the Chico Rugby Foundation is putting on a great fundraiser this summer. Join us on June 16th for Wheels, Wine & Ribs III. This family friendly event starts with a leisurely half hour bike ride to 5 Mile recreational area where appetizers will be served. We’ll bike back to CS&W to meet any non-biking attendees at 6 pm and enjoy a fabulous rib & wine dinner with dessert. The ribs are so tender they fall right off the bone!!

    Adult tickets are $25 and can be purchased from any rugby player or at CS&W. Adult tickets are only available in advance. Kids meals can be purchased at the event for just $7 each. For more information go to www.WheelsWineRibs.com. Dr. Anderson and I will see you there!

    Mighty Oaks Recap 2012

    Mighty Oaks Recap of 2012

    The 2012 season for the “Mighty Oaks” Men’s Club began with uncertainty as a depleted squad tightened the laces on their boots and geared up for what would end up being a tumultuous season. The momentum of last season was halted by the loss of over a dozen players to relocation, occupational changes or injury. This is a perennial concern for all Men’s Clubs and something that the Oaks will undoubtedly overcome.

    Although there were many sparks of brilliance, the win/loss column tended to lean in the opposition’s favor. Some new talent emerged and veterans were tested as the guys battled through the season. There is much to look forward to for the upcoming season, however in order to be successful the men will need to focus on recruiting. As division II rugby continues to grow in solidarity and skill, the Mighty Oaks can ill afford to fall behind with “rebuilding seasons”.

    Much credit to the nucleus of the team who took their lumps and handed out their fair share as well. Captain Casey Helmick never took his foot off the gas pedal. Seasoned vet John Fox will never retire. Hooker Chris Dow imposed his will in every match. Backs Jason Maxwell, Jone Sokata, Rob Haley and Jake Velikonia were consistent scorers. Lead once again by Coach Buck Ernest, the guys completed the season earning the respect of all opponents and enjoying another year of the greatest sport on Earth.

     

    Chico State Men’s Recap 2012

    The 2011-2012 Chico State Men’s Rugby Team came together in mid-September like every year, but this year was different. This year’s team had more than its fair share of 5th year seniors with high hopes for this season. Also, this year, we accepted the best rookie class we have had in my tenure as coach.

    This year’s team came together quicker than usual. They worked harder, played harder and supported each other both on and off the field and that is something we haven’t had in the past. Although our record doesn’t show this, it was a year full of stepping stones in which we are in the process of building a strong foundation for the future of the program.

    As mentioned before, we had an unusually strong rookie class. There were 4 brand new rookies that all saw significant time in first XV matches. Jimmy Burrows, Charlie Brennan, JW Davis and Brandon Johnson all played a significant role this season and expect big things from them in the future.

    Also this year we were the fortunate benefactors of the Mighty Oaks efforts in a local talent by the name of Owen Bentz. As you all know, it’s easy to get the college guys who run out of eligibility to start playing for the Oaks, not so easy to get them coming back the other way. Owen played two years (I think) under Buck, John and Robbie and transferred to CSU to play for the Wildcats. As with the first year rookies mentioned above, Owen as a rookie to CSU got quite a bit of first XV time and made the most of it. We look forward to continue the player sharing as we build not just one program but Chico Rugby as a whole!!!

    This year we say good bye to 9 players from our team. They are Jake Wulf, Andre Leal, Bobbie Peterson, Zack Trap, Allen Stahler and Michael Deel. Our 5TH YEAR SENIORS were Mickey Canterbury, Robert Kjome, William Kendrick and Ben Fisher.

    This was the second year in a row with the same coaching staff which was made up of Beau McSwain, Dan Lacko, Jeff McCready and Mitch Jagoe. These guys deserve a great deal of credit as our program has evolved in to a 5-6 day a week commitment and for the most part, they were always there and very committed to the players and the team as a whole!

    Moving toward 2012-2013 we are looking at another strong freshman recruiting class which includes 4-5 kids coming to us from both SFGG as well as Piedmont High Schools. Also, there are 5-6 kids that we will be welcoming from the Sacramento area.

    With the addition of these kids and the returners from this past season’s teams we are looking forward to an even better season next year.

    Until then, see you all at the Chico Rugby Golf Tournament, which kicks off Alumni Weekend, Friday October 5th, 2012!!!

     

     

    Chico Oaks Youth Recap 2012

    The last thing on my mind twenty-five years ago when I first became active in rugby was that I would have been involved with this sport this long let alone have the passion I do, and more importantly the friendships and relationships this sport creates. THEN, to top that, to have been a founding member of the Chico Oaks Youth Rugby program….!? CRAZY!!!

    We had 40 kids registered with the Chico Oaks Youth Rugby program in year one. The kids were always enthusiastic and the parents as well.

    For those of you that may not know, the Chico Police Officer’s Association donated $5000.00 to this program and truly made this possible. Please make sure you support this group in their efforts in our community! They are truly a great group of people that have not only donated to the cause, they have also come out to games to show their support!

    As for the actual season, with everything new, there is an unusual amount of the unknown….! Lord knows that took us by surprise. There are a number of things that weren’t “perfect” but the way everyone rallied and supported the cause is truly a testament as to what is to come!

    The season started with our inaugural home game against Sierra Foothills Rugby Club from Sacramento! Which is ran by one of our own Chico Rugby Alumni, Glenn “Red” Worden! His support was VITAL to our existence! Thanks Red.

    We had many high lights which we’ve captured in the weekly write ups. The season came to a close in the driving wind and rain in Danville at the end of the season tournament. The kids and the players really dedicated themselves to this year and I look forward to how this will grow in to the following years!

    We were fortunate to have a great coaching staff for the youth team this year. It included Alex Triantafylou, John Fox, Tim Lehor, Aaron Lowe, Ragan Duelfer and Mitch Jagoe. They all put in numerous hours of practice time to help build and the hope is that they all come back next year!? A big thanks to you guys. It wouldn’t have been possible with out you!

    If you are reading this, you obviously have a love for the game! If you have children, or live in an area that has youth rugby, please get involved. They need us! The admin, coaches, players and parents need our support.

    Stay tuned in the next few months for upcoming clinics and events that will help build Chico Oaks Youth Rugby and the Chico Rugby Foundation as well!

    Women 2012 Season Recap

    The Chico State Women’s season came to end in the first round of the USA Rugby National Championship Competition. It was good to be back in the National Competition having missed out the last two years. We are still suffering the effects of not having a rookie class in 2010, but some of the effects were offset by the rookie class this season. While the season started out a little slow finishing 2-3 in the regular season, the team was able to bring it together to capture the Pacific Mountain Conference’s 6th and final seed to the National Competition. Having taken 4th in the newly formed Pacific Mountain North conference, we needed to compete against UC Davis (Pacific Mountain North #3), UCSB (Pacific Mountain South #2) and Colorado State (Pacific Mountain East #3) to win the 6th seed. After beating UCSB and narrowly edgingColoradoState, we booked our ticket back into the Sweet 16 Tournament. We did not get the results we were hoping for, but we had two fairly solid performances at the tournament. We started EIGHT rookies in the first round and only carried a reserve bench of 5. By day two we only had 3 on the bench going into the consolation match.

    This year we say goodbye to seniors Mackenzie McManus, Amanda Gardner, Katie Buzarellos, Ali King, and Genevieve Macaraeg. Mackenzie had a cracker of a season. She stepped up her leadership role and led the forwards from the front. Amanda’s season was plagued by injuries, but when healthy, she proved to have a stabilizing effect in the forwards. And as always, Amanda volunteered to take on an administrative role this season. Buzz juggled a pretty busy schedule but still made time to get to practice and was an invaluable part of the forward pack. She added much needed depth in the front row and finished the season strong. And Ali King, whose time with the Chico State WRFC was way too short. Senior rookie phenom, Ali King played a huge role this season. She brought much needed strength to the pack as a second row and led the team with turnovers at the tackle. She also spearheaded fundraising and did a magnificent job. Genevieve, another senior rookie, was finally granted her waiver and finished up the season strong. While typically reserved, out on the pitch Genevieve proved to be one of our scrappiest players. Why do they always wait so long to come out and play rugby.

    We are looking forward to the start of our next season. We are only graduating a handful of players and we get to tap a few more that were unable to play this season. We will also be looking to add a 7’s team in the fall and competing in a few tournaments. Chico State Alumni Carrie White, who has been working with the Serevi Rugby group up in Washington will be coming down in the fall to hold a 7’s camp to kick things off.