Old Gold Hall of Fame

From Dave Jacobs "Bob was inside center and Jimmy was outside center. No one was able to tackle Bobby one on one (he was big, fast, and actually enjoyed playing second row with Hall of Fame Member "Big Al" Depew) so the opposing outside center always got sucked in. Jimmy would get the pass, have a 2 on 1 with our wing against their remaining wing and when he dummied a pass to the wing (which he did as well as any one) had an open shot to the try line. Both Jimmy and Bobby played together on the New England select side with Hall of Fame Member Gerry Clarkson who was our scrum half. Gerry had been a full back in England (his brother who played with us one summer went on to play for the Eagles) and his foot kept us in many games.

This is your Team Member description. Use this space to write a brief description of this person’s role and responsibilities, or add a short bio.

Brian was one of Old Gold greatest players. As a back he was undersized but no one played better or harder. In 1994 Brian was inducted into the Old Gold Rugby Hall of Fame. Less than a year later  at age 39 Brian was taken from us by ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease)

This is your Team Member description. Use this space to write a brief description of this person’s role and responsibilities, or add a short bio.

Gerry Clarkson Old Gold's first Scrum Half. Was considered by Hall of Fame Members Jim Mattera and Bob Collier their best player in the first couple of years. Gerry's play help legitimize Old Gold in their first couple of years of play.

Peter "Squeek" Logan: Center, back, former Captain & Secretary, during the 80’s. Peter along with Hall of Fame Member Brian Cody formed one of England Rugby’s smallest but toughest backlines during the early 80’s.

Ned served as Captain or Selector several times. When Ned led practice, you could count on it being organized. You might not know when practice was going to end, however, but there is nothing like running sprints in darkness. Ned served as President in F79/S80 and F80/S81. Under Ned’s leadership and his core, the club continued to recruit numbers and talent, secured the Hammond, established the famous mailing address; P.O. Box 225, Waltham, MA 02454, and brought the first coaches to the Club. Although Old Gold was relegated to the newly created 2nd division in the late 70’s, with Ned and the core of players he helped bring on, the Club won division championships and played at the top of the division. In the late 70’s and early 80’s, Old Gold consistently had three sides and on many weekends fielded four sides. During these years the club hosted its first international side, Old Emmanuel of England, and traveled on its first international trip to England and Ireland. Later in the 80’s when Old Gold was looking for leadership in the right areas, Ned Stanton stepped forward in 1989, serving as President again.

It is because of people like Ned Stanton that Old Gold Rugby continues today.

Jim Daly began with Old Gold in the Fall of 1975. Yes, another BC grad (75). From the beginning, "Redball" was seen by the selectors as one that they needed to get on the field. At that time, however, the Club had someone else playing Hooker, the esteemed Henry Ward. After playing some B games, it did not take long for Redball to be placed at A-Side Hooker. Henry moved over to Wing Forward, from which his vicious tackling could be more frequently practiced.

Jim Daly became one of the best Hookers in New England. His loose play was even better than his Hooking. He was always there in support, picked up at the breakdown, and presented ball at the right time. I think it was Jim that must have been handing the ball to brother Dick, as Redball would get there first, and the next thing you know, Dick is throwing the ball out to a back.

Jim was another of those key members of Old Gold in its early years. He also could be consistently counted on at practice, the Hammond, and games. Living on the North Shore just made the rides to practice and games, and more so the rides back home, interesting. Jim served as Captain or Selector more than several times. He was Captain when Old Gold won its first B-Division Championship. Conditioning was key for Redball. With Jim at the helm, you can bet that the forwards were in shape. He presented the club with off-season conditioning routines, that if followed, might get you through his first few practices of a season without too much pain. When the club began the tradition of the annual awards in 1980, Jim Daly was voted Most Dedicated. The dedication exemplified by Jim Daly, Old Gold Rugby player, is dedication that made a big difference to the successes of the Club.

Joe Connors has been one of the longest active members of Old Gold Rugby. He started with Old Gold while still in college at BC during the Fall of 1980 and continued playing through Law School at Suffolk University. Joe served as Captain and President and most recently Trustee of Old Gold. Joe has served the most times as the club’s President for over 4 and 1/2 years during the 80’s and early 90’s. Joe played several positions for the club during his 24 years that he has been involved with Old Gold. Joe was an integral part of three major club tours: Ireland/Scotland 87, England Wales World Cup Tour 91 and Australia in 94. Joe has consistently been a top A side player over the 24 years. He started out in the back-line and then moved up to the pack to play flanker for several years. He was switched to Prop for a little while based on a suggestion from fellow Hall of Fame inductee Jim "Redball" Daly. Joe eventually moved back to the backs near the end of his active career. Joe has won every club award: Most Improved ’84, Most Dedicated ‘85, Most Valuable ’89, Presidents Award ‘93 (Presented by fellow HOF Mike Rooney), and Unsung Hero ‘94. The only award that Joe did not receive was Rookie of the Year and in 1980 the year Joe was eligible that award was presented to fellow Hall of Fame Member Brian Cody. Joe has been referred to as the "Patriarch of Old Gold" during the 80’s and 90’s and has been the bridge between the current club and the founders.

Michael Rooney continued the original tradition of the Old Gold RFC by stepping off the rugby pitch at Boston College and onto the pitch for the Old Gold Rugby Football Club in the Spring of 1988.  Upon his graduation from Boston College in 1987 and after having a successful collegiate rugby career playing for Boston College, Rooney took off the Fall rugby season of 1987.  Many Old Gold Recruiters suspected he was just another pretty boy collegiate rugby player. It was believed that maybe he just liked to wear the rugby jersey to keg parties to impress the young women in attendance.  In the Spring of 1988 Mike joined Old Gold R.F.C. and everyone quickly realized he was not just a guy that liked to wear the jersey. He liked to hit and hit hard, at full speed.  Mike started his career with Old Gold in 1988 and never stopped playing until the Fall of 2003.  Throughout his playing career he maintained a high level of fitness, intensity and desire to play the game at the highest level. Regardless of the score, he continued to play hard and aggressive to the end of each and every match, whether he was playing the Gloucester R.F.C. or the lowly Charles River R.F.C. Mike was elected Captain of the team in 1990 and 1991 and President in 1993 and 1994. He was selected to the New England Select Side in 1991. Mike participated in Old Gold tours to England and Wales, (the World Cup in 1991); Australia in 1994; and Cayman Islands Tour (if you call it that) in 1995.  Mike made the annual pilgrimage from Massachusetts to the Can-Am Rugby Tournament in Saranac Lake, New York from 1989 to 1998. He has participated in numerous other tournaments on behalf of Old Gold including but not limited to the West Hartford – Yahoo’s - 7-a-Side Tournament, Portland Tournament, Savannah, GA St. Patrick’;s Day Tournament, Washington Irish St. Patrick’s Day Tournament, Worcester 7-a-Side Tournament, Harvard B School 7’s Tournament, the NERFU Tournament in Newport, RI, and the Actors Tens Tournament, as he says, forever.  Mike Rooney was voted Most Valuable Player at least six times by the Club officers.  In his last season with the Club, due to an injury the elected Captain was unavailable to play. Mike Rooney was selected to serve as Field Captain for the A-Side.  He has played flanker, hooker, inside center, outside center, and anywhere else they may have needed him. He wasn’t afraid to play.  No other player has played as hard and as long as Mike Rooney. He was in his prime from the time he joined in 1988 until he retired in the Fall of 2003.  That’s 15 ½ years of A-side rugby. That’s a record unmatched by any other Old Gold Player.  Congratulations to Mike Rooney in being elected to the Old Gold R.F.C. Hall of Fame.

It is with great pleasure that the Old Gold RFC Hall of Fame announces the induction of Doug DeMeritt into the hall. Doug’s contributions to the club both as a player and an administrator have been inspirational over the past 15 years.

Doug played as an undergraduate at Norwich University and played his first match at fullback with Old Gold in April of 1989. It was a C-side win versus the now defunct Beacon Hill team in which Doug made 2 penalty kicks to clinch the win. From that moment forward, Doug has been working to enrich Old Gold with his on-field and off-field contributions.

The positions played are as numerous as the memories. Doug has played fullback, flyhalf, and scrumhalf for the A-side; as well as stints with the B-side at almost every position on the field; including wing, center, flanker, and 8-man. Doug even hooked for one B-side match against Hartford, although he admits it was only for a few minutes. In most of these matches Doug not only contributed with his sure hands and adept passing skills, but also with his accurate foot; as kicking for points has been one of Doug’s strengths for many years. He has also lived the life of a touring Old Gold player with trips to tournaments in DC (1990-92) as well as Saranac Lake (1989-91, 93-97).

Just as Doug led the team as a flyhalf on the pitch, he has also led the club with his off-field contributions. He has held in numerous Old Gold executive positions, including serving as Field Committee in 1990, as Club Secretary in ‘96 and ‘97, and as Club President in ‘98, ‘99, and 2000. Some of Doug’s contributions as secretary were truly ground breaking at the time. He organized and managed the c’s first database of contact information via email, which doesn’t sound like a lot now, but in 1995 it was revolutionary to be able to send one message to 45 players instead of making 45 phone calls. Doug also designed, developed, and launched the first Old Gold website in 1996. As with the email, in today’s world this may not seem ground breaking, but in 1996 Old Gold had one of the first rugby club websites in New England, and it was certainly the best. The website not only brought everyone on the club together and put information at their fingertips, but it also helped generate interest from corporate sponsors and new players.

Given all of this, Doug certainly was worthy of the Hall of Fame induction, but his greatest achievements were still to come as Club President. As President, Doug helped in getting the club to generate a positive year-to-year cash flow, and almost single-handedly re-launched the mid-summer New England 10’s Tournament in Acton as an Old Gold branded event. It was 1997 when Doug first got involved with the New England 10’s tournament (formerly Acton 10’s) as an organizer. That year he helped the tournament’s founder (John Logan) run the event, as Dr. Logan literally had only months left in his life. The tournament itself was facing significant problems, as only a handful of local clubs were attending. With Doug’s efforts and dedication the 10’s tournament was moved to a new field location in Acton and it became one of the best run tournaments in New England. To date the 10’s tournament is still the largest revenue generating event that the club runs, and with 30+ teams and over 500 attendees it is one of the premier events of the New England rugby summer.

Fill in info

Fill in infor

Fill in text

Fill in info

Fill in info

Fill in info

fill in the blanks

fill in the blanks

fill in the blanks

fill in the blanks

fill in the blanks

fill in the blanks