The Saint Louis University men’s club rugby team is back. Physically fit, mentally sound-they’re ready to conquer. The SLU ruggers begin their spring season this Saturday, taking on UM-Rolla at the Jewel Box in Forest Park at 1 p.m. SLU defeated Rolla 40-0 last fall, and intends to continue that dominance on Saturday.

“Rolla always comes to play hard,” said Peter Kowalski. “While we have gotten the best of them in the past, we’re still not taking anything for granted this weekend.”

If only beating Missouri was so easy. Last fall, SLU suffered two heart-breaking defeats at the hands of Mizzou. Even worse, the losses were by five points, combined; SLU lost by a two-point conversion in one contest and by a three-point penalty kick in the other. Mizzou also had its way against SLU in last spring’s Langenburg Cup. With the loss, the Billikens failed to qualify for Westerns, the regional tournament.

The Bills are in peak form, however, having hit the weights hard in the off-season. Junior John Eggers said their conditioning has also improved heading into the Rolla match. Experience will be the key to this year’s success, as the veteran squad returns 13 of its 15 A-side contributors.

Coached by Bill Brandt, this year’s team is led by co-captains Kowalski and Isaac Beal. Chris Thacker will provide leadership in the forward position and fullback Doug Meyrose is SLU’s best player. Ben Capoccia and Nick Miofsky are the centers in the back and are the “two key elements of why our attack will be more successful than it has been,” Kowalski said. Eric Munninghoff anchors the scrum from his eight man position, and Josh Brewster leads the incoming rookie class.

All these rugby terms confusing? In rugby, the forwards from the two teams fight for the ball in the scrum, which is the pile that controls which team receives the ball. The ball gets rolled out underneath the eight-man at the back of the scrum. The scrum-half picks the ball up and dishes to the fly-half, who runs with the ball up field.

After defenders converge, the fly-half, which is like the quarterback, drops the ball off to the inside and outside centers, who play like running backs. The centers have the option to keep it or dish off to the fullback, who spreads it out wide to the wings. The wings try to get the ball over the line for the try.

There are 15 players on the field for SLU at one time, with eight in the forward position and seven in defense. After bringing the ball over the line, the offensive team is awarded five points for the try. A two point conversion, which is like a field goal, follows from the spot where the try was scored.

Thanks to the return of a key element for the Bills, scoring tries will be much easier this spring. John Townsend left the Bills last semester to study abroad in Ireland. He comes back to solidify SLU’s second row. The junior, who pushes in the scrum, also jumps in line-outs. When the ball goes out of bounds, his teammates hoist him in the air in an attempt to regain possession.

“He left a huge hole last fall, ” Kowalski said. “But we’re looking for him to step up this spring.”

SLU ruggers have a busy spring ahead, including trips to Marquette University and Southern Indiana in the next six weeks. It may be a new season but their goal remains the same: win the Langenburg Cup, which is a tournament consisting of SLU, Wash U., Rolla and Mizzou. Placing in the top five at Westerns is an additional aspiration.

This year, Westerns occurs in March at Rice University in Houston. Three of the 12 teams at Westerns go on to the national tournament.

Right now, SLU’s goal is to get there, which means a Langenburg Cup title is necessary and a rematch with Mizzou imminent.