Scottish Scrum Report Vol.8

 

Another busy week for the Barrhaven Scottish has come and gone, with club fixtures and a great representation in the National Capital Youth Rugby Festival, let’s scrum down.

BSRFC U16 Boys Represented Well at Eastern Canada Rugby Championships

 

Seven lads from Barrhaven Scottish U16 squad had a rewarding experience competing in the Eastern Canadian Rugby Championships (ECRCs).

Held during a hot and muggy weekend in Springfield, New Brunswick, teams from Eastern Ontario Rugby Union (EORU), Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and two teams from Newfoundland rucked and ran for the win. Toff Patel, Will Hutchings, Matt Van Noten, Tristan Leger and Isaac Brown played their part on the EORU U16 team, while Jojo Thaggard and Gabriel Casey were selected for The Rock’s squad.

 

“The atmosphere is great and the friendships you make are amazing,” said Thaggard, who competed in his first Easterns last year with The Rock. “The level of rugby is so high and competitive. It’s a great opportunity to get noticed.”

 

All seven boys ended up facing each other in two games, but playing against one’s club teammates didn’t deter any of them from enjoying the tournament.

 

“It was the most fun I’ve ever had on a trip,” said Patel. “The high level of competition made for some very exciting games,” he added.

 

Casey joined Thaggard in a return appearance for Newfoundland. “Thanks to connections through the Scottish and playing for The Rock, I’ve been fortunate enough to see all four Atlantic provinces,” Casey said. “The travel is great, and pushing myself by playing higher level rugby is even better. It’s been a great course of rugby development.”

 

At the end of the tournament, Eastern Ontario came home champions, with Newfoundland taking silver and bronze. That translates into a lot of new hardware being added to seven young rugby players’ cases at BSRFC.

The Senior Men’s team travelled down the 401 to challenge Kingston. For the second week in a row there was a shortage in players which meant numerous players took the pitch for both the 1st and 2nd games and the effort put forth was admirable.

In the initial match the 2nd put up a valiant effort but ultimately fell short 39-19. Brandon Marshall should be commended for his effort in his debut as captain. He scored two tries, made some strong tackles and earned the teams hard hat award for the hardest working player amongst both teams.

The 1st team had some solid sequences of plays and were knocking on the doorstep a couple of times but ultimately came up short by a score of 44-7. Eric Reid scored the lone try for the Scottish and as usual, played a strong game on both offence and defence.

Despite the two losses, the team spirit and chemistry continue to rise and the team is showing signs of getting back on the winning side. This weeks upcoming away match versus the Montreal Wanderers is sure to be a tightly contested match.

The National Capital Youth Rugby Festival currently in it’s 13th year saw teams of Mini’s to U18’s from all over Ontario, Quebec, England and Wales descend on Twin Elm Rugby Park for a full weekend of fixtures. The Pitches were full the sun was shining and the game is in good hands for the future.

The Barrhaven Scottish Junior Women’s 2015 season is well underway. This year’s edition of your Scottish U18 team features a core of returning players and a group of eager, skilled new recruits.The EORU schedule kicked off with the first two games of the year on July 4^th and July 15^th both against the Ottawa Indians RFC.

From the opening plays of the very first game at South Nepean Park, Barrhaven’s skill and intensity was on display. The experienced forward pack, led by prop Bailey Jackson and hooker Krista Bastien, were able to maintain possession of the ball though multiple phases. Deft offloads and great support running exposed an overworked and shell-shocked Indians defense. Tries by Krista and flanker Maureen Foran highlighted the complete domination by the Scottish forwards.

 

Not to be outdone, the Barrhaven back field made a huge statement, getting the ball wide and into the hands of fullback Deleshia Dixon. Her blinding speed resulted in 3 tries on the day. And not to be outdone, scrumhalf Kelsey Welsh contributed with 3 tries of her own with sniping runs from the back of the scrum. And marshalling the side from the flyhalf position, converted flanker Jade Desnoyers had the team running like a well-oiled machine from start to finish. In their first game of the year, the Scottish were triumphant over the Indians 61 – 0.

The second outing against the Indians on their home pitch at Twin Elm on July 15^th was almost a carbon copy of the first encounter. The question was how could the Scottish improve on their first game. The answer was soon apparent, as fullback Deleshia Dixon ran circles around the Indians, scoring the first 3 tries of the game on route to an incredible 6 try effort on the day.

Barrhaven’s newest goal kicker, Kianna Laurin chipped in with a try and 7 conversions. And one of the youngest players on the field, Calla Brown, scored her first U18 team try. In all, nine different Scottish players made it onto the game sheet, leading to a 94 – 0 drubbing of the Ottawa Indians.

Going forward, the competition gets a little tougher for the Scottish junior Women, with two games in four days versus Hull on Wednesday July 22^nd and the always dangerous Ottawa Irish on Saturday July 25^th. Check out the Scottish website next week for our Junior Women’s match reports