The Cowichan Timbermen mounted a strong comeback against the Victoria Spartans last Sunday, but couldn’t quite close the gap as they lost 21-12 to their Island rivals.
The Spartans held a 13-0 lead at halftime and added a rouge and another touchdown early in the second half to go ahead 21-0 before Cowichan got going.
“We finally capitalized on our ability to move the ball,” head coach Opie Williams said.
Quarterback Braemon Conville went on a run to get to the one-yard line, where Kain Melchior was able to punch the ball in as the fourth quarter opened. Melchior went on a run of his own, taking a punt return 80 yards to the red zone, and this time Conville ran it in untouched.
Garion Ferguson had a pair of interceptions on defence, and Trevor Wright stepped in at cornerback. The offensive and defensive lines both played well, with Cameron Vanderleek, Justin Young, James Dennis-Orr, Ryan Haywood and Logan Swanson stepping up on offence, and Young, Dennis-Orr, Tyler Campiou, Wyatt Faickney and Jonas Joseph matching the effort on defence, with some assistance from Vanderleek.
“We were short a lot of players due to Halloween festivities,” Williams noted. “We only had 20 to start and 19 quickly after that. We are looking to have everyone out to the game this weekend.”
The T-Men will head to Comox this Sunday for a rematch against the Comox Raiders. The bantam Cowichan Bulldogs, who had to forfeit their game last weekend, will visit the Cloverdale Leopards.
