NEWS

Ryan Bower – ‘Building Back Up’ The Dallas Jackals

Written by Joe Harvey | Photo by Amparo Ayala

Following their 31-6 defeat to the Houston SaberCats last weekend, Dallas Jackals loosehead prop, Ryan Bower, spoke to majorleague.rugby.

Alongside Chris Pennell and Henry Trinder, Bower was another player that brought a wealth of experience to Texas, the 31-year-old coming to the Jackals with 11 years of professional rugby experience in England.

Making his pro debut in 2010 for Leicester Tigers, Bower went on to represent Worcester Warriors and London Irish before opting for a new challenge away from home.

Since arriving in North America, Bower has been offering his depth of knowledge to the young players at Choctaw Stadium and has even captained the side in the absence of other senior players. 

IN THE JACKALS DEN

As has been the case so often in 2022, the Dallas Jackals were unable to build on their early promise against Houston to pick up a win.

With a 0-9 record, the Jackals have had numerous close games this season, their clashes against San Diego Legion, their last-minute loss to the SaberCats in February and 26-32 defeat to the NOLA Gold in mid-March are testament to this.

Photo by Amparo Ayala

Last weekend some of these same symptoms could be seen, having trailed just 10-6 at the AVEVA Stadium on Sunday before being kept at bay for the entirety of the second-half against their State rivals. 

“We looked back and in the first 20 we attacked real well and we had some good opportunities,” Bower said.

“A few areas let us down, and I think that if we can just sort them out, we can put more pressure on teams and build a scoreline that really reflects how a team is going.

“We want to focus on the breakdown this week, if we keep a hold of the call and build the pressure instead of releasing it and letting them back into our half, it will really help us.”

BACK UP TO SPEED

It has by no means been plain sailing for Bower and his teammates this season. Just prior to the season getting underway, the team had to begin their search for a Head Coach all over again, and at the end of March an off-field incident led to nine players sustaining injuries that have kept them out for varying periods of time.

As a result of this, the team’s GM, Elaine Vassie, has had to recruit from around the league to fill the roster. Initially bringing in the likes of Charlie Hola, Carson Shoemaker, Augusto Bohme and Jack Webster on short-term loans, in the days that followed Dallas traded in order to bring in Campbell Robinson and Asa Carter from the Austin Gilgronis.

Introducing these new players to the group has taken time, but in the mind of Bower this will be a simple task having already got one group of players on the same page at the start of the year.

“The growth has been massive really,” Bower said. “At the start of the season, we had a lot of lads that were new to professional rugby, new to playing at this level, so it is really gaining momentum.

“Unfortunately, we have had a lot of injuries, so there is a lot of new lads again. We have had to sign new players, so we are having to learn the structure again, go back to basics and build on that.

“We are just building back up and hopefully in two games down the line, we will be back where we were. And, we are letting all these new lads have a chance.

“For a lot of them it is their first start in MLR, it is their first chance to play, so we are giving them that chance and it is great for them.”

A quick check of the MLR Trade Wire, and you learn that the Jackals have the second lowest International Player limit on their matchday roster, with seven. NOLA are the only team to have less, Kane Thompson’s side with a total of six.

This comes as no great surprise, with Elaine Vassie having emphasized that a key aim of the Jackals is to develop US-qualified players and develop rugby around Dallas-Fort Worth.

Through every Jackals roster, there is a strong bed of Eagles hopefuls, the likes of Carter, Shoemaker and Agenbag making their first MLR starts against Houston at the weekend.

While losses are dispiriting, in the long-term the experiences will be to their benefit, Bower being very much of this belief.

“You look at the lads coming in,” Bower said, “they are getting a great opportunity to play in the league, whereas you look at other teams and their international cap is higher [than Dallas’].

“We are blooding then in now, so that in the future they will have played in the league for four or five years and they are ready to go, so they are getting that experience now, which will fare them better than other Americans who aren’t playing at other teams and will hopefully allow them to play for their country.”

MOVING FORWARD

When everything has clicked at Dallas, the team has been a joy to watch. Capable of creating tries from nothing at all, it is that style which has at times been their downfall.

If a ball has gone loose, the opposition has been able to punish them. It is part of why we have seen so many healthy crowds at Choctaw, with fans full in the knowledge that they will see a thrilling game of rugby.

Photo by Davey Wilson

“We have always had that ‘play to play’ mentality,” Bower said. “We just make sure that we are playing the brand of rugby that we want to play, but we are trying to keep hold of the ball a little longer and put pressure on them.

“Every week we go out there, try and get some bums on seats in the stadium. It is trying to make sure we are doing that more often than defending. That is the key.”

Straight off the back of a game against local rivals, Dallas are going straight into another. This week it will be against Sam Harris’ Austin Gilgronis, the team that leads the West Conference.

After being punished at times against Houston, Bower says that he and his teammates will be learning from those experiences and will go toe-to-toe with the pace setters in their division in the nationally broadcast game.

“They have been a powerhouse this season, they have been really pushing it,” Bower said. “We have just got to be really physical, match their physicality, keep hold of the ball and put out game onto theirs and not let them do too much and try to control the set piece, then go after them and not be afraid to go after them.”