Perhaps motivated by the chance to end the season with a win on their home pitch, the Cowichan Rugby Football Club’s U16 girls team dominated Sunday’s provincial third-place match.
Cowichan crushed a combined United/Ridge Meadows side 76-5 to win the bronze medal, bouncing back in fine form from a heartbreaking loss to James Bay/Westshore in the Island final a week earlier.
“After a disappointing loss in the Island finals, the girls took some time to reflect on game preparation,” Cowichan coach Sherry Spence said. “I don’t know what happened but this was a team ready to win. Best game I’ve seen this group of girls play ever; every single person did their job.”
The Cowichan players battled hard for 60 minutes despite having just one healthy sub on hand.
The few occasions when their opponents got their hands on the ball didn’t last long.
“The United-Ridge team didn’t have much time on offence,” Spence noted. “But the Cowichan players also worked hard to get that ball back. The United Ridge team was dominant in the forwards more so than in the backs, which was a huge asset for us — we have a very fast back line.”
Jaxon Baker scored six tries, Macy Wiebe added four and kicked eight converts, and Matisse Ward and Paige Clarke had one try apiece. All the Cowichan backs ran for more than 60 metres on the afternoon.
