*BLRC Women 66 – Kamloops Raiders 18 (By Walt Brandl)*
If the BLRC Women’s team’s victory over United in the last game of the regular season was a righting of the ship then perhaps this week’s Bowl semi-final game over Kamloops was the ship steaming full speed ahead towards relevance and respectability. The Burnaby Lake women got the jump on these Couriers de Coquihalla early and often, running in tries off good rugby and also off some not so good rugby to the tune of 66-18. The 10 try explosion probably equaled or bested the offensive output of (almost) the entire first half combined.
The onslaught began and ended with tries from the Pride of Abbotsford, Annie Arnott, who played a strong game on both attack and defense from the fullback position. In between, Julia Sugawara found time to score a hat trick and add 8 converts for effect, Deb Capps added a brace and Taylor Kapaiwai, Ciara Malone and Kyra Groll each chipped in singles.
Although the score line was lopsided, Kamloops was always a threat against an aggressive but sometimes disorganized Burnaby Lake defense. The familiar Kamloops fullback, Emily Young, scored 2 and could have added a third were it not for the fleet feet and sound tackling of Annie A. Burnaby Lake newcomer Alexia Bosco saw her first game time in blue and white and quietly went about her business in the engine room (the operative word being quietly), making tackles and driving the play forward at the breakdown. Strong contributions to the cause were also made by Angel Santos, Nina Boundy and the ever forceful Iona “the dog whisperer’ Schamberger.
Next week sees the Ladies of the Lake play the resurgent Caps women in the Bowl final at John Oliver Park in Delta with a 10:30 am kick-off. Your support is welcomed.
*BLRC 1st Division 70 – Meralomas 3*
The 1st division had a handful of new faces in the lineup as some key injuries/call ups/ suspensions saw 3rd division regulars Scott Macartney and Walter Homewood get the nod in the starting lineup and veteran Brent Molesworth along with “new to rugby U-19” Ruben Cito (amongst others) get plenty of 1st div game time. All played admirably. There were stories of the Lomas being under manned, but the BLRC took the threat of an upset very seriously and came out of the changing room ready for battle. The Blue + White had the upper hand all game, save for a 3 minute period where the Lomas slotted a 3 pointer.
As good as our backfield looked on Saturday, the forwards were even more impressive. Macartney was a beast on defense in the #6 jersey, and Homewood wearing #4, made a case for Man of the Match with his play in the open field. Homewoods try off the kickoff was one of the games highlights! The 1sts were led on Saturday by Preston Petrovich who stepped up and played one of his finer games of the season, scoring 2 tries. Sergeev, McHugh + McLaughlin were constant thorns in the Lomas sides as they enter contact (on attack + D) at 100% and turned balls over regularly in the rucks. Kaevon Khoozani + Liem Jung made life difficult for the opposing front row with some strong scrummaging,
In the backfield, every starter crossed the goal line with Fullback Anare Tuidraki going over twice. 3rd div standout Casey Evans touched down once as well. The referee on the day, Jay MacDonald, was outstanding; keeping control of the game and not bogging it down with frivolous whistles. BLRC tries: Petrovich (2), Tuidraki (2), Sergeev, Homewood, Bonell, Gotegote, Fisher, Stacey, Murphy, Evans. Conversions: Shelley (5)
*BLRC Premier Men 73 – Meralomas 5*
A good day for the BLRC stats as the tries came fast + furious. The forwards started the scoring with a maul that saw Kyle Wisniewski the beneficiary of a good team push. Douglas made the 1st of his 8 conversions on the day. Cody Rockson was the next Blue + White stalwart to cross into scoring territory, unfortunately he was checking out his biceps + ran untouched out of the back of the end zone. A moment later he atoned for the miscue as he dove over the line for his try. Giuseppe Laudisio scored next with a long run that saw him just get the ball down before being hit out of bounds. Joe Dolesau was next, reading a rainbow pass and taking it back for a try. Ryan Akerman was outstanding all day, and he got his name on the scoreboard, breaking a tackle at the 22 and scoring. Douglas converted 4 of the five 1st half tries to finish the half up 33 to 0.
The 2nd half began with another Laudisio try that closely resembled the 1st. Ryan Ackerman was the player of the half. Lining up some big hits, and sucking in 3 defenders at a time when he had the ball. 10 minutes into the 2 nd half he created the play of the game, breaking a tackle and then kicking a high up + under that bounced into the Loma goal. Cole McQueen was the 1stman on the scene and he applied appropriate downward pressure on the ball for a try. On the next play, Giuseppe Laudisio completed the hat trick, followed by Cole McQueen who scored his 2nd of the day. Brian Murphy kept pace with his brother in the Good Murph Challenge, taking an offload from the VP Angus Fisher for his try before the Lomas answered back with a try courtesy of Alex Boyd. Boyd is a high quality player with an unlimited gas tank. While known primarily for his Williams Lake slip & slide prowess, he’s also a dangerous runner on attack and has some deceptive speed. The speed was on display as the Loma flyhalf chipped a cheeky ball over the BLRC defense; Boyd gathered it in and touched down for the Loma points. The game would end minutes later with the VP Angus Fisher taking the ball in for his 1st Premier try. Alec Douglas would finish the day with 8 conversions and Nolan Shelley would add one.
Post game, all retired to the Loma dome for the man of the match festivities and some Birthday cake for Coach De Scossa. Big thanks to the Lomas who were handsome hosts and will see better days in the near future I’m sure. Also, big thanks to the refs on the day, David Thomas, Jay MacDonald and Harry Mason who were as close to perfect as one can be without being George Clooney.
Please be aware of the following off season club events: BLRC Bowling Night – Nov 30th at 7pm, BLRC Mickey Draw – Dec 5th at 8pm, BLRC Boxing Day John Latham Memorial Over/Under Game – Dev 26th at 12pm
Many Teams~One Club
