Blue skies overhead and the shining sun set the stage for two semi final games at Kamloops Rugby Club this weekend.
The Senior women were first to kick off to the visiting Bayside Sharks. The first half saw the Raiders controlling much of the play. Riley Halvorson opened the scoring for the hosts early on in the first half and Jess Oldenburger added the conversion, 7-0 KRC.
There’s a full schedule of quality rugby coming up in May starting with the club finals at Bayside next weekend. There are seven division to be contested Ravens v UVic in Men’s Premier, Thunderbirds v Westshore in Women’s Premier, Capilano v Rowers in Men’s Div 1, Kamloops v Capilano in Women’s Div 1, Kamloops v Kelowna in Men’s Div 2, Chilliwack v Kelowna in Women’s Div 2, Burnaby v Rowers in Men’s Div 3.
It was a big day this past Saturday at Exhibition Park in Kamloops, with both KRC senior squads hosting their respective quarter finals.
The men’s game was first on the line up with the Raiders hosting Richmond. The men kicked off to the visitors and through tight pressure eventually gained control of the ball and put the Richmond defense under instant pressure, with Raider second row Max Heppner finding a gap and scoring for the Raiders, try went unconverted, 5-0 KRC.
There are 14 semi-final matches this coming weekend in 7 divisions at 8 venues with 21 clubs represented. There are 7 clubs with two teams in the semis UVic (2), Burnaby (2), Capilano (2), Rowers (2), Bayside (2), Kamloops (2), Kelowna (2). There are 14 clubs with one team in the semis Ravens, JBAA, UBC, Meraloma, Westshore, Thunderbirds, Nanaimo, Comox, United, Kats, Chilliwack, Ridge Meadows, SFU, Langley.
There are 20 quarter-final matches this weekend at 15 locations, there was one default in men’s Div 2. There are double headers at Juan de Fuca, Klahanie, Brockton Oval, South Surrey Athletic Park and Kamloops. The match locations, times and referee assignments are listed below. We’ll do our BC Premier predictions and rosters article on Friday, we’ll also list rosters for other divisions if they’re sent to us, text format preferred, email editor@bcrugbynews.com
A longer than planned bus trip from United to Kamloops resulted in a delayed kickoff to the BC Women’s Division 1 action this past Saturday.
Thankfully it was a sunny day at Exhibition Park, and after the delay, the KRC Senior Women kicked off to the visiting United Rugby Club.
While the coastal leagues in BC wrap up their season in May, the interior leagues just get started. About 32 clubs in the Greater Vancouver/Lower Mainland area and Vancouver Island compete in seven leagues from September to May. Kamloops and Kelowna from the Thompson/Okanagan region are the outliers in those competitions. There are 10 teams that compete from May to August in what has been known as the Saratoga Cup. Those teams are from the Okanagan, Kootenays and Central Interior regions. Such is the reality of climate in BC where southern coastal regions get a winter climate similar to NZ/UK while the interior gets a traditional Canadian winter.
The KRC Senior Women versus Bayside was the lone fixture at Exhibition Park this weekend after the Ridge Meadows Men forfeited to the KRC Men in Division 2 action.
Under a sunny blue sky, Aliyah Rodominski kicked off to the awaiting Sharks, who faced immediate Raider pressure. Both squads swapped possession in the early minutes with the Raiders making territory gains through the strong carries of Thea Flundra and Milena Chambers. The Raiders continued to attack on both sides of the field with wingers Rhayna Silversides and Lily Watkinson both getting carries and testing their opposition early in the game. Small errors by the Raiders allowed the visiting Sharks moments to clear their lines and move the play back towards the halfway line.
The BCRU have announced their Provincial coaches for the U17 and U19 teams heading to Ontario this summer. All four teams will head to Ontario from July 18-26. The U19 Men and Women will compete in the Canadian Rugby Championships. The U17 Boys and Girls will compete the O’Neill’s Challenge Cup which was started last year as a Ontario v BC competition at the U17 level. Also the regional PRCs will take place July 4th and 5th in Abbotsford for U15, U17, U19 regional teams.
The last early morning of the regular season, saw the KRC Senior Ladies leaving Exhibition Park at 5:30am this morning for Capilanos. After weeks of rain and water logged pitches, it was sunny skies and a relatively dry playing surface at Kahlanie Park.