BC Premier Week 8 Results: Pride Top UVic, Ravens Shock Undefeated Lomas, UBC Blast Westshore, Caps Fall to Burnaby, CW Overpower Bays
It was Week 8 of the BC Premier with 6 more weeks of regular season to go after the 2 week break for Family Day Weekend and the Vancouver 7s, season restarts March 2nd. The Lomas were looking to defend their unbeaten record on the road against the 6-1 Ravens. .
Rosters are in the format last week/this week.
Pacific Pride 23 v University Of Victoria 14
Referee: Derek Horton AR1: John J De Goede AR2: Al Humphries
Venue: U Of Victoria- Wallace Field
A +9 win for the Pride with four unconverted tries and a penalty vs two converted tries for the Vikes. The result puts the Pride top of the table with the Lomas loss today. The match video is on the Vikes YouTube channel, link below. The Vikes drop to 8th place with UBC overtaking them with a bonus point win. It’s two weeks off now for Family Day and the Vancouver 7s.
PREGAME
#7 hosting #2. Vikes coming off a big loss to the Ravens, the Pride coming off a win over the Bays.
UVic still struggling to replace their two starting centres who moved to CW after the break. Josh McIndoe gets the start at inside centre this week. It’s a similar roster to last week with some positional changes. There are a couple of new names on the bench with Tanner Milligan and Lucas Okano getting called into the squad.
The Pride have a number of changes, Griffin Phillipson, from the Toronto Arrows starts at loosehead prop. It’s the first look at him in a Pride jersey. He’s from Loughborough University in the UK and is Canada eligible. Jamie Armstrong gets the start at #10, from the University of Ottawa, 2021 RSEQ Player of the Year. He’s listed on the university site as back three but getting a start at #10 in this match. The Pride have 12 u20 players in the roster this weekend.
The Pride are testing out some new players, but have some experience in the reserves. Vikes still struggling to find their form after the break. Check out the Vikes Rugby YouTube channel for possible live stream: https://www.youtube.com/@VikesMensRugby
Prediction: Pride by 8.
Pride
1 Sam Miller / Griffin Phillipson
2 Austin Creighton
3 Tyler Matchem / Theo Espagnol
4 Alastair Bruce / Jaiden John
5 James Stockwood
6 Ben James (C)
7 Von Richardson / Matt Klimchuk
8 Matt Klimchuk / Braden Bruce
9 Jesse Kilgour / Brady White
10 Ty Driscoll / Jamie Armstrong
11 Ian Jones
12 Mark Balaski / Tyler Buchanan
13 Kyle Tremblay
14 James Thiel / Liam Poulton
15 Rhys James / James Thiel
16 Neil Trainor
17 Theo Espagnol / Sam Miller
18 Spencer Cooper / Conor Williams
19 Jaiden John / Alastair Bruce
20 Braden Bruce / Von Richardson
21 Brady White / Charles Taimani
22 Jamie Armstrong / Jesse Kilgour
23 Ben Russell / Justin Taylor
UVic
1 Owen Kokan
2 Jordy Auger / Phoenix Moller
3 Nic Willey
4 Merlin M’Cloud
5 Brendan Kim
6 Muiredach Casey / Jordy Auger
7 Jaxson Jones
8 Ryder Heaney-Corns / Muiredach Casey
9 Chris Gamage
10 Alex Gamage
11 Morgan Di Nardo / Marcus Lott
12 Dylan Cleaver / Josh McIndoe
13 Lockart MacGregor
14 Angus Boyd-Porter / Dylan Cleaver
15 Ethan Smith / Morgan Di Nardo
16 Phoenix Moller / Brent Hamberg
17 Brent Hamberg / Brighton Feldman
18 Brighton Feldman / Alex Gordon
19 Alex Gordon / Henry Down
20 Henry Down / Lucas Okano
21 Jackson Graf
22 Josh McIndoe / Tanner Milligan
23 Marcus Lott / Angus Boyd-Porter
UBCOB Ravens 36 v Meraloma 10
Referee: Shanda Assmus AR1: Joel Van Meer AR2: Phil Webster
Venue: Jericho Beach Park
The Ravens claiming a +26 win and making an emphatic statement before the two week break. The result puts the Ravens in 2nd place and drops the Lomas into 3rd, both tied at 35 points with the Pride at 36 points.
PREGAME
#3 hosting #1. The game of the week with the Ravens looking strong last weekend with a big win over UVic while the Lomas struggled to maintain their unbeaten record against a visiting CW side.
The Lomas have made only one change to the forwards with Corne Ludick coming in at #8. Doug Fraser gets the start at inside centre this week.
The Ravens see the return of Trevor Helgason and Cole Keffer. A change at scrum half with Billy Wickham moving to the bench and Sam Walton-Sexton getting the start.
These are the top two teams in the league that are playoff eligible (Pacific Pride not eligible), they’re both likely to get the first round bye in the playoffs. There’s still a lot of rugby to play, 7 rounds, but this could be a preview of the final. The Lomas narrow win last weekend starts to cast doubts, did the Lomas stumble or were CW that improved? The Ravens dominated the Vikes last weekend so come into this weekend as favourites.
Prediction: Ravens by 1.
Ravens
1 Josh Tweed
2 Riku Konrad / Viaan Wolmarans
3 Tom Kaijaks
4 Frank Carson / Donald Carson
5 James Carson
6 Matthew Chan / Trevor Helgason
7 David O’Donoghue
8 Joe Locke
9 Billy Wickham / Sam Walton-Sexton
10 Aaron McLelland
11 Tsugunosuke Hirai / Augustine Lugoonzo
12 Harjun Gill
13 Hamish Janes
14 Nico Leonard / Cole Keffer
15 Josh Perrett / Jake Holmes
16 Viaan Wolmarans / Taiyo Minami
17 Lachie Gunson / Harrison Burgees
18 Kaleb Whitelaw / Lachie Gunson
19 Nathan Gittoes / Frank Carson
20 Grant Crowell / Nathan Gittoes
21 Sam Walton-Sexton / Robert Crowell
22 Jake Holmes / Billy Wickham
23 David Thompson / Nicholas Blain
Meraloma
1 Mark Rickard
2 Gil Cann-Vaana
3 Conor Turley
4 Finton O’Sullivan
5 John Willis
6 Brian Hayden
7 Evan Galvin
8 Giovanni Guizzetti / Corne Ludick
9 Pete Hurst
10 Joe Thomas
11 Keith Graham / Dewi Williams
12 Conrad Kutia / Doug Fraser
13 Jad Hamade / Conrad Kutia
14 Dewi Williams / Keith Graham
15 Louis Whelan
16 Geoff Brooks / Scott Bowers
17 Scott Bowers / Tom Webb
18 Tom Webb / Craig Trimble
19 Craig Trimble / Ethan Jaques
20 Corne Ludick / Thomas Williams
21 Ethan Jaques / James Frankenberger
22 Luc Thompson / Jad Hamade
23 Doug Fraser / Manuel Bustinduy
UBC RFC 43 v Westshore 14
Referee: Saro Turner AR1: Kristine Lovatt AR2: Lance Davison
Venue: UBC- Gerald McGavin Centre
A dominant +29 win for UBC who lead throughout the match, Westshore scored the first and last try of the second half. The McMullin brothers teamed up just 3 minutes into the match for the first try, the score was 17-0 at the half. Jeff Oluoch scored for Westshore to put the score at 17-7 with 30 minutes left. UBC scored four straight tries to put the match out of reach before Westshore scored one at the 77′ mark. The result puts UBC (16) ahead of UVic (13) now in 7th place. The match was professionally streamed on The Rugby Network and the archive is up for viewing.
PREGAME
#8 hosting #5. UBC with an important win last weekend over Capilano while Westshore dropped a decision to Burnaby at home.
Westshore were overpowered in the forwards last week but made an exciting comeback, that just fell short, through their electric backline. In an interesting tactical move they’ve put most of that backline in the reserves to start the match, perhaps anticipating a strong UBC second half. There’s a change at scrum half with Grayson Perry getting the start.
UBC have only made a few changes to the team that defeated Caps last week. Izzak Kelly gets the start at second row and Thor Noble starts at loosehead prop. The rest of the starting lineup remains unchanged.
It will be interesting to see how the backlines match up, especially when the reserves come on. UBC usually get stronger as the season progresses, they seem to have found a stable starting XV. UBC will likely have too much pace for the full 80 but we’ll see on Saturday. The match will be streamed on The Rugby Network, link is here: https://www.therugbynetwork.com/scheduled-livestream/ca4d43eb-49a1-425b-b4b0-08dc1c82d423
Prediction: UBC by 7.
UBC
1 Koen Buckingham / Thor Noble
2 Emmett Allen
3 Payton Teneycke
4 Hillyard Carson
5 Joe McNulty / Izzak Kelly
6 Sol Jacques
7 Callum Arnesen
8 Relmu Wilson-Valdes
9 Stephen Webb
10 James Biss
11 Alastair Marshall / Jared Andrews-Almack
12 Talon McMullin
13 Takoda McMullin
14 Jared Andrews-Almack / Alastair Marshall
15 Lenny Bondau
16 Tate Hartley
17 Thor Noble / Koen Buckingham
18 Graeme Francolini / Ethan Lee
19 Izzak Kelly / Joe McNulty
20 Sandon Gupta / Liam Kinghorn
21 Ben Martin
22 Kieran Martin
23 Niko Andrianos
Westshore
1 Justin Tasse
2 Brian Waraba / Matt Evans
3 Kane Perrett
4 Matt Weir / Brayden Gray
5 Brian Ndirangu
6 Jade Billington
7 Tom Heuser
8 Taine Clague
9 Malcolm Klaver / Grayson Perry
10 Josh Nordstrom
11 Alvin Otieno / Liam Clark
12 Darian Morrison
13 Braeden Bespalko
14 Nelson Oyoo / Alex Mentiply
15 Johnstone Olindi / Shane Dagg
16 Brian Waraba
17 Nathan Groenewold
18 Simeon John
19 Jeff Oluoch
20 Mark Discombe
21 Alvin Otieno
22 Nelson Oyoo
23 Johnstone Olindi
Burnaby Lake 41 v Capilano 24
Referee: Benjamin Lambrick AR1: Nathaniel Hight AR2: Robert Brown
Venue: Burnaby Lake Rugby Club
A +17 win for Burnaby which maintains their 4th place standing, the Caps still looking for their first win remain in 9th place. The score was 26-12 at the half for Burnaby. The teams exchanged tries early in the second half to move the scoreboard to 31-17, Caps scored next for a 31-24 scoreline and it was game on. Burnaby closed it out with two more tries to claim the bonus point win and Caps get a bonus point in the loss. The match was live streamed and is archived on the Burnaby Lake YouTube channel, link below.
PREGAME
#4 hosting #9. Burnaby looking strong in the forwards with a win on the road at Westshore last weekend, Caps dropped a decision at home to UBC last weekend.
Burnaby missing David Dinbandhu this week but have Kimi Vunituraga, Taitusi Vikilani, Jeke Gotegote back in the roster. Bryce Worden and Reid Watkins were outstanding last week against Westshore and the forwards overall played a physical match. Siaki Vikilani moves to the #8 position this week.
The Caps are missing Glenn McKinnon at #8 but move Reid Brookes to that role and bring in loose forwards Ollie Winspear and Flynn Heyes. Only one change to the backline with Chuck Huntingford getting the start at wing.
Burnaby are live streaming the game and Mike Devlin and Curry Hitchborn will do the commentary. The live stream link is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVxkmWa6jOY
Burnaby looked strong last week with a dominant forward pack, the Caps have some firepower in the backline with Johnny Franklin and Melani Nanai. It should be an entertaining match but we’ll give the nod to the home team.
Prediction: Burnaby by 5.
Burnaby
1 Luka Bradley
2 Evan Mackey
3 Bryce Worden (c)
4 Cooper Johnston
5 Jack Bolton / Leo Chen
6 Siaki Vikilani / Jamie Kelly
7 James Catterson / Jack Bolton
8 James Kelly / Siaki Vikilani
9 Reid Watkins
10 Ethan Turner
11 Hayden Mulgrew / Jack Brady
12 David Dinbandhu / Kimi Vunituraga
13 Scott Barr / Hayden Mulgrew
14 Brian Murphy / Stu Jamieson
15 Sam Williams / Brian Murphy
16 Chase McCrum
17 Lalit Bharadwaj
18 Iain Kennell-Webb / Juan Videla
19 Lucas Albornoz
20 Colton Lee / Taitusi Vikilani
21 Mohi Parata / Jeke Gotegote
22 Nolan Shelley / Dan Josok
23 Eoin Reddington / Mohi Parata
Capilano
1 James Ritzema
2 Ethan McCarthy / Jason De Freitas
3 Ed Wallin
4 Nick Pearce
5 Joe Britt
6 Reid Brookes / Ollie Winspear
7 Jason De Freitas / Flynn Heyes
8 Glen McKinnon / Reid Brookes
9 Chris Robinson
10 Mike Moloney
11 Cam Waddell
12 Johnny Franklin (C)
13 Melani Nanai
14 Ethan Whiting / Chuck Huntingford
15 George Wallin
16 Pete Ingoldsby / Ethan McCarthy
17 McKenzie Mills / Jesse Ryan
18 Jesse Ryan / McKenzie Mills
19 Jack Rainer / Pete Ingoldsby
20 Ryan Scott / Cori Hamill
21 Brandon Power
22 Chuck Huntingford / Sam Franklin
23 Sam Franklin / TBA
James Bay AA 21 v Castaway Wanderers 54
Referee: Julianne Zussman AR1: Darren Munro AR2: David Hale
Venue: James Bay AA- MacDonald Park
A dominant display by CW with a +33 victory. The result raises CW (22) up to 5th place in the standings which would represent a home field in the quarter-finals. The Bays remain in the cellar with one point.
PREGAME
#10 hosting #6. A cross town rivalry with lots of history. The Bays, still winless, lost to the Pride last weekend at home while CW put in a strong performance in a close loss to the undefeated Lomas on the road.
CW are without Ollie Nott this week but have Mike Fuailefau, Brandon Schellenberger, Mike Finnemore back in the roster. Their backline remains unchanged after a strong match against the top of the table Lomas. Denver Fatt and Jacob Bossi get the start in the front row.
The big change for the Bays is Josh Thiel at #10 which puts Mike Nieuwenhuysen back to his original position at inside centre. There’s no reserve positions at the time of writing [updated with reserves].
It’s a big step up to have Josh Thiel at #10 for the Bays but CW have been putting in the results and pushing Lomas last weekend indicates they’re getting their game together.
Prediction: CW by 6.
CW
1 Jace Peters / Gavin Kratz
2 Jack Wallace / Jacob Bossi
3 Gavin Kratz / Denver Fatt
4 John Humphries
5 Tom Davidson
6 Gord Kehoe / Mike Finnemore
7 Ollie Nott / Steve Pyke
8 Nick Carson
9 Zech Pilgrim
10 Andrew Easson
11 James Mitchell
12 Sion Griffiths
13 Shane Rikley-Krindle
14 Jordan Ng
15 Gareth Sandner
16 Jacob Bossi / Jace Peters
17 Denver Fatt / Jack Wallace
18 Antonio Corbin / Chris Carson
19 Steve Pyke / Conor McKenzie
20 Ayo Ogunlabe
21 Matt Sutherland / Mike Fuailefau
22 Gabriel Smith / Brandon Schellenberger
23 Keegan Hall / Rio Apt
JBAA
1) Dakota Lachance
2) Wyatt Pilz
3) Aiden Vachon
4) Jack MacIntosh
5) Asfi Saeed
6) Andrew Montgrand
7) Jeremiah Gonevou / Tom Richardson
8) Tom Richardson / Jeremiah Gonevou
9) Crosby Stewart
10) Mike Nieuwenhuysen / Josh Thiel
11) Malik James
12) Tom Burton / Mike Nieuwenhuysen
13) Liam McGuckian / Tom Burton
14) Craig Mitchell-Hermann
15) Keegan Neary
16) Luke Feraco
17) Toby Ng
18) Tyler Grom / Moe Steves
19) Teigan White / Tyler Grom
20) Dave O’Connor
21) Mark Yuen / Joeli Gonevou
22) Joeli Gonevou / Nicky Mouret
23) D’Shawn Bowen / Kai Khan