Monday's Musings

Photo - Rugby Canada

A fifty-point second half performance by a visiting second/third string Scottish team provokes today’s point of conjecture, that being, just how are Canada’s fixtures scheduled?  Nothing is learned from a sixty-point shellacking.  We can be as supportive all we like, however, for a patron to have to shell out as much as $110 to witness this match was expecting a lot.  Never-the-less, to the 11,500 supporters who turned up, I dipped my lid.  Captain Lucas Rumball sounded very dejected, almost helpless, in his post-game interview.  Details of the match and other opinions can be read elsewhere.  Rugby fans can look forward to the next appearance of the NSMT when they play Rumania this Friday, a game which will also be televised.  This may be a more accurate test of compatibility.

For sure, we must play higher ranked teams.  This often gives those teams the rub of the green on fifty/fifty calls, with the assumption that it must be the lesser team that has transgressed – a very personal opinion. We need to play closely ranked opposition to have a chance of success in execution and game plans.  The Scottish defensive line did not allow execution and the game was played at such a pace, which this critic saw as being very disparate between the teams.  Enough from this writer who is, to the doubts of some, a strong Canadian supporter.  Like Captain Rumball, I want to see the boys do well.

If the reader has not heard yet, we report the sad news that NSWT’s Captain Sophie de Goede has incurred a serious ACL tear, taking away her appearance in the Olympics, and her Captaincy of Canada in the upcoming WXV matches hosted in Canada.  As with her CW mini and youth peer, Lockie Kratz, healing from a similar injury, our sympathy is deep, and we wish her well with her hopes of achieving the probability of leading Canada in the 2025 Women’s RWC.  Just to indicate the likelihood of this and this lady’s character and perseverance we quote her reply to recent best wishes sent by our club, “Tough timing and a long road ahead but I’ll make a plan and come back as Sophie 2.0 better than ever.”  ‘onya, Soph, we know you will, all of Canada’s rugby community supports you.