VICTORIA STOCKS BC BEARS

(ISN) — Victoria will provide nine of the 22 Canadian Direct Insurance British Columbia Bears players in the final match of the 2010 Canadian Rugby Championship season Saturday in Burlington, Ont.

They include captain Pat Riordan who is also from the Burnaby Lake Rugby Club, Cam Pierce, Sean Duke and Ryan Hamilton, UVIC Vikes RFC; Seamus Gay, Castaway Wanderers; Connor Braid, Mitch Gudgeon, Hugo Belanger and Sean White, James Bay Athletic Association.

After two losses the Bears will not have the opportunity to play for the National Championship.

However, a great deal of provincial pride will be on the line as British Columbia versus Ontario is a historic rivalry.

The young Cam Pierce of Vernon has showed well for the Bears this season and will start at the number 8 position. Seamus Gay will represent the Bears for the first time this CRC season and has been named as a starting flanker.

Another youngster and recent U20 international Adam Zaruba (Capilano RFC) is promoted from the reserves to claim the #4 jersey.

The 9 – 10 “Loma Connection” of Colin Brown and Eric Wilson will be at their creative best and provide sound leadership on the pitch along with Riordan.

Kick-off for the BC Bears versus Ontario Blues game  Saturday is set for 4:30 p.m. at Burlington Centaurs RFC in Ontario.

EIGHT ISLANDERS IN BEARS VS KIWI MATCH

Eight Vancouver Islanders will be among the 23 BC Bears to take on the Royal New Zealand Navy side at 6 p.m. Friday at Klahanie Park in West Vancouver.  

Playing for the Bars will be Liam Murray, Cam Pierce, Casey Cavers and Jamie McKenzie, University of Victoria Vikes; Ben Johnson, Hugo Belanger and Dave Cameron, James Bay Athletic Association; and Seamus Gay, Castaway Wanderers RFC.    

Coach Mike James says this presents an excellent opportunity for individuals to earn their spot on the Bears team, which will take part in the 2010 Canadian Rugby Championship in August and September.

A representative side of the Royal New Zealand Navy (HMNZS Te Kaha) has sailed to Vancouver as part of the Canadian Navy’s Centennial.

HMNZS Te Kaha is one of two frigates serving in the Royal New Zealand Navy.
The name Te Kaha is Maori, meaning ‘fighting prowess’ or ‘strength’.

The Bears will look to counter the tourists’ prowess and strength when they kick off for an evening match.

8 ISLANDERS WITH BC Bears VS ENGLAND COUNTIES

(ISN)– Five players and three replacements from Vancouver Island will be on the BC Bears team for the game against RFU England Counties on Saturday in Vancouver.

BC Bears -  Starting XV versus RFU England Counties include:  Rob Down and Eric Lopatinsky, Velox RFC, Cam Pierce of the University of Victoria Vikes, Seamus Gay of the Castaway Wanderers RFC and  Callum Morrison, JBAA.

Replacements include Dave Cameron and Hugo Belanger, JBAA; and Jamie McKenzie, University of Victoria.

With the Churchill Cup and Sevens programs eliminating many players from selection, and with many Under 20 players involved in the National U20 Competition, the squad is a mixture of both youth and experience with Coach Mike James opting to give a number of players an opportunity to vie for places on the squad when it gets together in August for the CRC competition.

UBCOB Ravens lock Mike Burak will serve captain and is the lone International.

He is supported by five players who played for the Bears against Russia last season: Rhodri Hamner, Gay, Jake Hirst, Brock Nicholson and Taylor Dalziel are all named in the starting line-up.  

Dalziel, the UBC center, is one of five current or former Canada Under 20 players on the squad.

He is joined by McKenzie, Sevens returnee Connor Trainor and recent performers at the World Trophy in Russia – Kurtis Appeldorn and Adam Zaruba.

The Bears last game against Russia seems a distant memory but few will forget the impact of Vancouver Rowing Club’s Brock Nicholoson on the wing.

Nicholson will again be hoping to impress along with Pierce who made a big impression with the Provincial U18s in 2009 and had a great impact this season with the Canadian Direct Insurance League Provincial Champions, University of Victoria Vikes.

The North Shore will be represented well by both Zaruba and Brady Carpenter from Capilano, as well as Nicholson andBelanger, the James Bay flanker who learnt his trade at Windsor Secondary School.

Other players to watch will be former Blues scrum half Colin Brown and up-and-coming Velox lock Loatinski.

The team will practise together today at Klahanie and take on the Counties team that has won its opening two games of the Tour against the Rock and Blues on Saturday Afternoon.

At 1 p.m. there will be an U20 Men’s Vancouver Wave versus Vancouver Island Rising Tide fixture as a curtain raiser to the Bears game.

VIRU MINI RUGBY DRAWS 250 FOR FINAL EVENT

 

(ISN) — The Vancouver Island Rugby Union Mini Rugby program recently wrapped up another successful season enjoying a brilliant day of rugby at the University of Victoria fields.

Taking part in the day’s events were more than 250 young rugby players from North and South Island clubs including the  Castaway Wanderers, Cowichan RFC, Nanaimo RFC and the Velox Valhallians. – BC Rugby News

RUGBY PLAYOFF ACTION RETURNS TO WALLACE FIELD

By Andrew Smith

(ISN) – The Premier League postseason returns to Wallace Field for the first time since 2004 this weekend, when the no. 4 ranked UVic Vikes men’s rugby team squares off against the no. 5 UBCOB Ravens.

A win on Saturday could see the Vikes advance past the opening round for the first time since their 2003 championship run.

GAME INFORMATION
Sat. May 1st vs. UBCOB Ravens (Wallace Field) – 2:45p.m.

SCOUTING THE VIKES (8-3)
After lengthy layoffs from injury, Canadian internationals and Vikes leading scorers David Spicer and Nathan Hirayama will be back in the lineup.

The potential 9-through-12 combination of Phil Mack, Hirayama, Spicer and Ben Grant boast a combined total of 221 points. Spicer notched a team-high 90 points in eight games before he sustained an injury against the UBC Thunderbirds on April 1st.

For the forwards it’s been business as usual with Andrew Tiedemann (20 points), Ryan Hamilton (15 points) and Toby Peyton (10 points) filling out the front row.

The Vikes last qualified for the postseason in 2008 but were knocked out in the opening round by Oak Bay’s Castaway Wanderers 18-9 at Windsor Park.

SCOUTING THE RAVENS (7-4)
It’s been a long wait for the Old Boys who enter to the playoffs for the first time since 2005.

With their season hanging by a thread and facing a 10-point deficit in last weekend’s regular season finale, the Ravens staged a crucial comeback to edge the Vikes 24-20.

Boasting international experience and a ruthless forward pack, the Old Boys handed the students their first loss at home since Oct, 3, 2009. UVic alumnus and lineout specialist Tom McKeen caused a number of problems in the air but it was the late tries by Kol Henrikson and Warren De Bruin that produced the comeback.  

HEAD TO HEAD
The Ravens upset the Vikes last weekend in a narrow 24-20 victory, defeating the students at home for the first time since 2007.

The Vikes won their two previous matchups downing the Ravens 29-15 in 2008 before escaping Connaught Park last season with a narrow 22-15 victory.

VALLHALLIANS WIN ISLAND CHAMPIONSHIP

By Aaron Frisby

 

Thirds

The Velox Valhallians won the Island Thirds championship Sunday, defeating the Castaway Wanderers 23-12 at Oak Bay High. The win secures Velox the first place seed in the BCRU provincial playoffs, starting next Saturday, May 1st at home.  

Velox and Oak Bay have battled in three games this half, Oak Bay the winners in the opening two, Velox triumphing Sunday with the hardware. Velox jumped out to an early 17-0 lead through three tries, two by Jamie Dark, one through Garret Posehn.

Oak Bay battled hard to close the score through a try and a halftime Velox lead 17-5. The

second half saw Velox net two penalties through Ken Slater to a converted try by Oak Bay.

The whole game was marked by intensity in the tackle, the rucks and set piece. Both clubs should be proud of their fine efforts and displaying some high quality third division play.

Kudos for Velox include captain Todd Cunningham who tackled like a demon and controlled the play throughout the game well. Coach Paul Eby also had an influential game from the second row position.

Next weekend, the 3rds have BC playoffs at home Saturday vs Abbotsford at noon.

Valkyries

The women finished off their season with a very impressive win over Cowichan 33-0.

Beavers

A very heavy looking Beavers squad took the field against the Vancouver Rowing Club Rowers. It was 10-10 for about 70 minutes of the game before Rowers notched two quick tries to secure a playoff spot.

The Div 1 side hopes to continue building on some great development achieved this year, next season.

Premier

An attacking masterpiece would grace the field of Velox on Saturday. 92 points would be scored in the game, both sides scoring some impressive tries. The Vancouver Rowing Club Rowers would battle back from a 20 point deficit in the first half to win 47-45.

Rugby League

Ever wonder what the difference between Union and League was? Although union dominates in Canada, league is very popular around the world.

http://www.canadarugbyleague.com/ is a site put together by league enthusiasts in Canada looking to form BC, Ontario, and Canada squads for competitions.

VIKES LOSE BUT MAKE QUARTERFINALS

By Andrew Smith

(ISN) — With their playoff hopes on the line, the UBCOB Ravens rallied late in the final match of the 2010 Premier League season to down the no. 4 UVic Vikes men’s rugby team 24-20.

Across town, the Castaway Wanderers fell 17-16 to the no. 3 Capilanos and failed to secure enough points for a playoff appearance.

With CW out of the picture, the Vikes will have another shot at the Ravens in next week’s quarterfinal matchup to be hosted at Wallace Field.

Saturday’s contest opened with Vikes’ centre Ben Grant kicking a penalty for the early 3-0 lead. The Ravens pack responded through a series of powerful rucks to see the visitors dot down first when no. 8 David Payne put his side up 5-3.

In total, the lead changed hands five times and it was Vikes’ winger Willem Du Plessis who went over next to give the home side the advantage.

Former UVic lineout specialist Tom McKeen responded for the Ravens and after grinding out several phases gave his side the 10-8 lead heading into half time.

The scoring resumed after the break with Vikes’ scrum half Phil Mack chipping the defence to dive down for a try. With less than ten minutes to play, Du Plessis bolted down the wing shrugging off multiple tacklers to record the brace.

Ben Grant’s conversion gave the Vikes a 20-10 lead and with the clock wearing out, the Vikes were en route to posting an undefeated record at home this season.

But as they watched their playoff hopes vanish before them, a flame was lit under the Ravens offence who banded together for the most crucial comeback of their 2010 campaign.

Kol Henrikson led the charge barreling through for the visitors’ third try and combined with Ed Fairhurst’s conversion to cut the lead to three points.

With victory in sight, the Ravens recovered possession and drove the Vikes back towards their own try line allowing for Warren De Bruin to notch the final try.

A series of tough breaks, including Mack being held up on the try line, saw the Vikes final surge come up short.

“They hit us on the side of the rucks and beat us through our mistakes,” Du Plessis said after the match. “We’ve got to work on that for next week and come back and give it our all.”

The quarterfinal matchup between the no. 4 Vikes and no. 5 Ravens is scheduled for 2:45pm on Saturday, May 1 at Wallace Field.

Scoring Summary:
Half time: UBCOB Ravens 10, UVic Vikes 8
Final: UBCOB Ravens 24, UVic Vikes 20

JB Scoring
Tries: David Payne, Tom McKeen, Kol Henrikson, Warren De Bruin
Conversions: Ed Fairhurst x2

UVic Vikes Scoring
Tries: Willem Du Plessis x2, Phil Mack
Conversions: Ben Grant
Penalties: Ben Grant

VICTORIA RUGBY GREAT CLOSER TO RETIREMENT (Part 2)

 

Part 2 of the interview by ISN reporter Scott Harrigan with Victoria rugby great John Graf

 

S: Today when I was walking around, I heard people wondering if you are retiring “Is this his last?” “We’ve heard it before.” Do you have any comments on this, are you done?

J: Well you know what, no one has heard before from me.

I have never said I am going to retire.

Going into the end of the season every year, especially the last eight or nine years it has been, “I am not sure about next year, you know…you are going to have to ask me in August or September and then the weather is warm.”

Everyone is excited. We have this guy coming, that guy coming, the next thing you know you are practising and there is your year you are committed, right?

But this year, it was like my 26th – 27th premier league season, and you know what, this is going to be it for me, and I said that right at the start of the year in September and I said I am retiring at the end of this year…

S: The reason I ask that is Wayne Gretzky said that when you retire and get into coaching you have to take a year off, it is imperative you take a year off to see if you love the game, see if you miss the game.

You take a year to let the players evolve and the players may not listen to you if you get right back in…Is that something you might consider? Taking a year off and get back into coaching?

J: I think I will take more than a year. Yeah, I am really a competitive guy, I need to distance myself from the game…because I know that if I come out and coach and only take a year off I will come out and think I could do it better than the next guy

S: Fair enough.

J: That’s just me, that’s how I have competed. I am confident in my abilities. I know what I can do and I need to step away enough to where I don’t think that I am any better than the guy on the field, and that will just frustrate the hell out of me

S: So do you agree with Wayne Gretzky’s assessment of stepping away and having a look at it for at least a year?

J: I think that it is going to be more than that for me, the thing with coaching is, coaching takes more time than playing. You can’t just show up to practice at 6:30 a.m. to practise.
You have your practice plan in place, you have had to analyze the video from the weekend so you know what to practise and work on and what the team needs and, I want some time off.

S: Are you a different coach than a player? Would you coach how you played? How would you describe yourself coaching to playing, what do you think?

J: For me, I don’t think there is enough emphasis placed on the mental part of the game.

I have never been the fastest. I have never been the strongest, or the biggest anything. But I have excelled and that’s because I am strong mentally.

 

S: Heart.

J: I played with a lot of heart, hard work beats talent, talent doesn’t work hard
I think it’s the best saying around, it epitomizes everything

S: you can always write for Hallmark.

J:…there you go and if you’re the guy that works hard and you’re talented those are the ones who excel… I think to get better physically week to week it’s hard, it takes months to develop physically to work on your speed and to work on your strength.

But week to week, mentally you can completely change your game. You can get 15-20% better every weekend by being mentally better than last week.

S: How is rugby different in any respect to other sports for kids? It is violent, it can be aggressive, you have hockey, football.

What separates rugby from those, for the people out there who’s kids are growing up and they’re saying, you know what rugby is not a bad sport to get their kids into how would you emphasize that or put into perspective?

J: I think Rugby should do a better job of informing the parents that rugby is actually graduated.

You don’t have an eight-year-old kid stepping out on the field and starting to scrimmage, you know, getting tackled.

New rules are introduced every year so the contact aspect of the game are introduced and on a very gradual basis. So a skillset needs to be developed first before you get into a scrimmage.

At the start, there are different rules for young kids, they don’t hit, they don’t engage like the men do. It’s gentle, there is no push. So for kids it’s not about the scrimmage, it’is just about restarting the game and getting them running around and throwing the ball around.

S: Rugby to me is an aggressive game, but it’s so much a gentleman’s game, would you agree with that?

J: On the fan side of it, you don’t get rugby rumbles like you do in soccer. You don’t get that, you don’t get any violence. You get supporters from both teams sitting side by side, you know, high-fiving each other.

That’s the kind of stuff you get in rugby, and on the field it’s the same thing. You can definitely get a hate on for certain guys, but it stays on the field.

When you run into the guy out for a beer in the pub or whatever, you are not a dick right, you know that hatred does not come across, it’s just a competitive rugby thing. What goes on the field stays on the field, like Vegas.

S: There are some instances where some people work in the same field, but play for different teams. When they go to work it is all forgotten and they can chuckle about it to me.

I have always respected that part of rugby. I have always respected the comraderie if you are looking for a job or you’re laid off, that rugby family is there. Is it something you would encourage your own kids to do?

J: oh, yeah

S: Definitely, without a doubt?

J: It’s missing in the professional area now. When I was playing on the national team, when the game was done, you would have a banquet. You would sit — Canada, England, Canada, Wales — you would sit with the opposite members and eat a meal, get to know each other.

They would take you out on the town. They would introduce you to their people and show you the places they go to.

Now, there is a quick cocktail do, the “all-to-dos” all speak and the teams go their own way…I have developed some great friendship from some of the teams we have played over the years

S: Is that part of the tradition?

J: Totally tradition

S: Like back in the 1800s

J: It has been amateur tradition, professional tradition.

Say you play England. Well those guys just played a rugby game if they don’t get the starting jersey next weekend that costs them 10,000 bucks or whatever they get for playing the weekend.

So yeah they don’t go out drinking and carousing and stuff which is how we get rewarded.

You get out and have some fun. That is what rugby is about.

We are professional, and we aren’t, and I think that part of it gets forgotten. It still exists in the club level.

S: You have said before rugby has afforded you travel, you have said the piece de resistance was South Africa Apartheid and you going over there…can you tell me a bit more about your experience there?

J: South Africa was amazing place because it was a nation that was changing.It was going from a very racist background where the reigning political party was all about white supremacy, something you associate with the Nazis.

Apartheid was the political policy by the Dutch Afrikaners, the whites and rugby was supported by the whites. The Blacks did not cheer for the Springbok, they cheered for the team they were playing against.

Nelson Mandela had so much vision to see that the World Cup, this worldwide event,  would bring his country together.

He (Mandela) got everyone together — white leaders and the white people and the black people. He was the guy that, when South Africa started doing well,  brought everyone together…

S: So 20 years later could you reflect on it and think holy shit I was a part of that?

J: You could see it, but I did not realize the extent of what was happening.

 

 

VICTORIA RUGBY GREAT CLOSER TO RETIREMENT

 

John Graf of the Castaway Wanderers RFC, one of Canada’s finest players and a household name to BC rugby fans, is retiring.

Island Sports News has been chronicling his exploits as he winds down a career that has spanned nearly 30 years on the field.

Graf, who played professionally in Wales, played for Canada 54 times (15 as captain), and was a member of the 1991, 1995 and 1999 World Cup teams. He was elected to the BC Rugby Hall of Fame last year.

He has the unique distinction of being capped at four positions: wing, center, standoff or scrum-half, though he was mostly capped at the latter two positions.

Today Graf is in Vancouver with the C-W playing against the University of BC Thunderbirds.

Below is an interview with ISN reporter Scott Harrigan after the C-W defeated Burnaby Lake 54-5.

By Scott Harrigan

S: First of all, you had a bit of a blowout today. You got your bonus point, what does that mean for C-W in the standings?

J: We are seventh. The top six make the playoffs so we needed a bonus point today and we need one next week against UBC.

You’ve got to take advantage of teams that are a little lower in the standings. So you know we are fighting for the sixth spot. Yeah we are looking pretty good. We are at UBC next week, I think they are 10th and then Capilanos is our last home game, we finish here, we are looking pretty good.

S: The train has to go through James Bay (James Bay Athletic Association Bays), so ultimately you really only have to beat James Bay once a year. . .

J: For sure. It’s hard to beat a team three or four times a year, so if you play them three times going into the finals and you are 0-3, I like that. There is nothing wrong with that position.

S: And of course you have had success over the years with James Bay, right? You did beat them before.

J: A couple of times. They are a team you love to hate because they win, they are winners.  They are a good club and they are hard to beat.

 

 

Continued . . .

CROW TO LEAD U20s TO MOSCOW

Andrew Crow of Victoria has been selected to captain Canada’s National U20 team at the World Championships in Russia in May.

Crow currently leads his McGill University club but has his club rugby roots in Victoria at Cadtaway Wanderers.

In all, 11 players from Vancouver Island will be flying to Moscow in May to represent Canada at rugby’s Junior World Trophy.

Selected to the Canadian U20 men’s rugby team were:

Forwards:
Brett Beukeboom (Lindsay RFC/UVic Vikes/Lindsay, ON)
Andrew Crow – Captain (Castaway Wanderers/Victoria, BC)
Casey Cavers (Cowichan RFC/Ladysmith, BC)
Scott McLeod (Duncan,BC)
Liam Murray (Capilanos RFC/UVic Vikes)

Backs:
Conor Braid (James Bay AA/Victoria, BC)
Pat Fraser (Cowichan RFC/Cowichan, BC)
Tye Hamblin (Cowichan RFC/Cowichan, BC)
Beau Parker (UVic Vikes/Victoria, BC)
Keaton Styles (UVic Vikes, Surrey, BC)

Also joining them are Kyle Armstrong of the Ajax Wanderers/Whitby, ON, the youngest player to be carded by Rugby Canada, and one of the quickest guys playing rugby in Canada.

The decisions came following a final weekend camp on Vancouver Island, that saw intense workouts, physical testing and unit work that culminated the four previous camps.

For Coach Tim Murdy, the 2010 edition of the team has seen a progression since the new age category was created in 2008 to replace the U21 and U19 age grade world championships.

“I have been seeing progression with the program and the athletes and what we are trying to achieve,” said Murdy – who is at the helm of his third U20 team. “We have a very balanced team with good forwards, our tight five and back row are very good, and we have play makers in the 9 through 12 area – plus some great speed on the outside.”

While the team experienced relegation after a tough 2009 Junior World Championships in Japan, Murdy says the JWT is probably a better place for his team to participate in terms of competition structure.

“There is no question the Junior World Cup is a higher competition, but even at the Junior World Trophy has a fine line between success and failure. Our ultimate goal is to win the tournament,” he said.

There will be one more preparation camp on Vancouver Island prior to the team’s departure in May – so Murdy says there will be a lot of pressure on the players to really bear down and get the hard work done in terms of conditioning and extra skill work.

“Players definitely need to get stuck in now in the next month,” says Murdy. “working on their own in the weight room, at the track and on the field.

“There is no question rugby in Canada is held hostage by our vast geography,” he continued. “Our specialist positions will have to do extra work as well, from kicking to fielding and all those extra things players need to pay attention to in order to succeed.

Canada opens the tournament on May 18th against Moscow. Then Canada will play the hosts Russia on May 22nd, followed by Japan on May 26th. From there play-off games for final placement take place.

Junior World Trophy – May 18th – 30th, 2010

Pool A
Italy
Papua New Guinea
Romania
Uruguay

Pool B
Canada
Japan
Russia
Zimbabwe

 

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