Steeltoes Men's Team Steal the Win at Eastern Conference Championship
Photos courtesy of Tom Randall
By Layla Joseph
The men’s team tallied two victories for the Steeltoes, Premier Rugby Sevens’ newest Pittsburgh franchise, and won the Eastern Conference Finals in an exciting day of rugby at Highmark Stadium on July 23.
The men’s team now holds first place in the conference after facing off at the Eastern Conference Finals for a season record of 3-1, qualifying for the 2023 Premier Rugby Sevens Championship.
In the Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Steeltoes claimed the win over Texas Team 33-5, where the Steeltoes collectively tallied five tries and four conversions, allowing the team to advance to the finals.
Mikhail "Misha" Shorin, the team’s Pittsburgh recruit, contributed to the team’s first victory with a last-minute try to end the match.
Shorin has lived in Pittsburgh for two years and has played an active role in the Pittsburgh Forge’s club team.
Before moving to the United States, Shorin played rugby for seven years in Kazakhstan.
He said that playing for the Steeletoes has given him the opportunity to challenge himself like never before, and his teammates from the Pittsburgh Forge show overwhelming support.
“It’s a great experience,” he said. “Playing at a championship tournament with other professional players from places like New Zealand and Fiji is something I have dreamed about.”
In the men’s final game, the Steeltoes and the Southern Headliners went toe-to-toe to determine the champion of the Eastern Conference.
The Headliners came out hard in the final, scoring a try within the first 10 seconds of the match, and quickly adding another two points for the conversion kick.
A loss of possession by the Steeltoes two minutes into the half allowed the Headliners to seize control of the play, tallying on an additional seven points for the try and conversion.
Just after the five-minute mark, the Headliners tallied another try followed by an unsuccessful conversion, leading the match by 19 points on the scoreboard in the first six minutes of the 14-minute match.
The Headliners performance looked promising as the two teams continued to battle through the half.
Steeletoes’ Ethan Hager scored the first try for the team just before the end of the first half, boosting the morale of the players and the crowd at the home debut.
Hager’s score, assisted by Steeltoes’ Captain Ben Pinkleman, allowed the team to tally a conversion, avoiding a shut-out 19-7 and holding onto hope before returning to the field for the second half.
Campbell Johnstone followed Hager’s lead, scoring an additional try after an assist from Hager and allowing the team to grasp another conversion; further narrowing the gap of the scores to 14-19 with a little over four minutes remaining.
With three minutes left in the final, Hager decided to close the gap all together, receiving a pass from John LeFevre before kicking the ball down the field, retrieving it and scoring a try that would tie the game 19-19.
The Steeltoes earned a third conversion, carried the momentum and held the Headliners to finish the game 21-19.
The Steeltoes’ performance was strong enough to clinch a spot at the Premier Rugby Sevens 2023 Championship at Audi Field in Washington D.C. on Sunday.
The Pittsburgh team will face off with teams from the Eastern Conference to determine this season’s champion. The matches will be broadcasted on YouTube and the game schedule is to be determined.
