Comox Valley talent was solid gold at the 2014 Rugby Canada National Festival Championships, Aug. 5-10 in Calgary. Eight locals were part of a strong B.C. contingent that captured four national titles.
B.C.’s U18 men (with Foster deWitt and Braydon Williams) won the Tier 1 title in a three-game series over Ontario; Lauren Seargent, Madi Gold and Georgia Bellamy won gold over Ontario in the Girls U18 Tier 1; and Jimmy Brazier won gold in U18 Tier 2 over Quebec playing with a U17 B.C. team.
Dawson German was with the U16 women’s team that won silver and Ken Erikson was an assistant coach with the U17 men’s squad. All the players are G.P. Vanier students (some now graduated and attending UBC) while Erikson is a longtime Towhees’ coach.
The BC U18 women defeated defending champion Ontario 10-7 in a championship thriller on Sunday afternoon.
B.C. steamrolled their opponents, beating Alberta 19-7, Nova Scotia 38-0, Manitoba 45-0, Saskatchewan 24-0 and Quebec 38-0 before losing 17-0 to Ontario then winning the rematch in the final.
The BC U18 men defeated Ontario 38-24 on Saturday to close out their Tier 1 Elite series with a 3-0 record. DeWitt (Comox Valley Kickers) had one of the B.C. tries.
B.C. outscored their opponents 160-59 in the three-game series, beating Ontario 61-14 and 61-21 in their first two games.
BC Rugby’s HappyWater U17 men’s provincial team wrapped up the national championships with an emphatic 35-10 win over Quebec in the U18 Tier 2 final. B.C. also beat Ontario-3 19-10, Ontario-2 20-10, Newfoundland 25-12 and Ontario-2 19-12.
The BC U16 women closed out the 2014 championships with a 2-2 record after dropping their final match 31-7 to Ontario on Sunday. Sophie de Goede (Castaway Wanderers) provided all of B.C.’s points, converting her own try.
B.C. beat Alberta 37-10, lost 19-7 to Ontario and beat Alberta before falling to Ontario in the final.
LINE OUTS B.C.’s U16 men went undefeated and blanked hosts Alberta 26-0 to win their fourth straight national title … Rugby Canada hosted the event, with featured 31 provincial teams … the National Championship Festival is Canada’s highest level of youth rugby and features many of Canada’s up-and-coming athletes … the tourney serves as a feeder to Canada’s men’s and women’s national programs …
