I am not sure what ingredients go into the making of a rivalry. Maybe it starts with an amalgam of contempt and respect, a blend of history, present and future plus a large dash of intangibles. Whatever the recipe is, the product can be seen in the contests between the ladies of Burnaby Lake and the Capilano Rugby Club.
The rainy, grey North Shore kind of day started with an exhibition game between the reserve squads. Players were switched, numbers were matched and both groups jumped at the opportunity to gain game time and hopefully prove some selectors wrong. Burnaby Lake started with territory and possession but surrendered two long tries against the flow to the fleeter Caps outside backs. Score at the half 10-0 for Caps. In the second half Burnaby capitalized on their possession with the pride of Fort St. John, Lauren Tagg scoring two tries and newcomer Nina Boundy adding another. Final was 22-15 for BLRC.
The crowd then shuffled from the upper field into the stadium for the Premier tilt. Capilanos clearly wanted to announce their re-emergence as one of the elite Premier teams as they were all over Burnaby from the opening kick-off. Burnaby scrambled to adjust their game to the increased level of competition but not before Caps had gone up 5-0. Burnaby increasingly found whatever little space the Capilano defence gave them and then seconds before the half, Emily Young burst through the mid-field the same way she drives the Coquihalla and scored between the sticks. Cat Ohler made the chip shot convert and the extra two points would be critical. The Caps stormed out to start the 2nd half and attacked in the forwards and through the backline. Burnaby, by now, was acclimatized to the heat of the battle and began turning back the Caps and applying some pressure of their own. The Cap’s well organized and disciplined defence did not yield until a series of pick and drives left the ball within a short dive to the try line for Julia Sugawara. Cat Ohler again was money on the convert. Capilanos now had to battle both the Ladies of the Lake and the clock. With less than 5 minutes left the Caps worked the ball in close and scored through the forwards leaving them 4 points down. Rather than face a hectic end to the game, Burnaby tightened up the game and held possession in the Caps end until Julia recognized full time and punted through the Caps end-zone to put the game to bed. The Burnaby win brings them into a first place tie with Velox and leaves Caps a mere 2 points back. The Burnaby Lake ladies will rest this weekend and return to action against United at Hume Park on March 29.
