RWC
Friday Smorgasbord
"Cosmo XV", winners of Williams Lake Rustlers Tournament. Last weekend, a CW initiated, Cosmopolitan XV, coached by a robust recovering, Riley Ilnicki and captained by 'returning' native, Nate Stewart, won the Williams Lake Stampeders' Tournament. The composite group also included Tournament...
Monday's Musings
Nicholas bags a hat trick! CW U18 Boys have once again made their way to the B.C. Championship Finals. CW is defending Champ and this year’s version will seek to follow last year’s feat when they play Cowichan RFC in the Final next Sunday at Windsor Park. Yesterday, the lads defeated...
Monday's Musings
M.M’s kicks off with a “hats off” to Doug Woolridge. This erstwhile member of the FRF has inked an interim agreement with Clermont Auvergne in the Top XIV League and the Euro Champions Cup. Dougie was one of Canada’s forwards who had a sterling RWC performance in this writer’s eyes,...
Monday's Musings
Do you believe in magic? ..... in a young boy's eyes?? Classic, first class action by N.Z.’s Sonny Bill Williams…maybe this is why the All Blacks are World Champs.Took in some boys U18 action yesterday to check out just how good they might have become following their Tour to the U.K. ...
VIRU WOMEN'S FALL FINAL
The early play ebbed with positional advantage to Velox as their big pack ground out the yards. It was about fifteen minutes in when they forced their advantage and following three or four sequences, the fullback burst some twenty meters for opening blood, 7 – 0. The hosts were buoyed and...
Monday's Musings
U14 Boys: CW welcomed JBAA to the VIRU Junior league yesterday in their first (ever?) age grade U14 match. This is the Bays first attempt at this age level as far back as can be remembered and no doubt, in traditional James Bay fashion, will grow into a force to be reckoned with. It is great...
Monday's Musings
Gutted! RUGBY WORLD CUP REFLECTIONS Much of the sheen was rubbed off The Show this past weekend when Scotland was denied a heroic victory of epic proportions over the Wallabies. The issue of officiating, once again reared its ugly head but more of that later. Japan was the real highlight...
You Be The Judge
Has rugby become “over-officiated”? In days of yore it could be said that if a player “made as few errors as the ref”, he was doing okay. Then came the AR, miked to the ref; then the TMO and now, the Citing Commissioners, to reduce officiating errors to virtually nil, so much so, that even the...
RWC and 'The Minnows'
Well, after looking at point differentials in the RWC, one notes that over 13 games there was an average of 40.6 in differential spread. Announcers were regularly heard to applaud the IRB with the "narrowing of the gap" but really? Rumour of quality salaries for coaches in Tier 2 countries...
A Painful Canadian Implosion
No doubt, all readers of this blog would have watched the Canada/Romania match and have their own opinion regarding the outcome, maybe even being able to propose reasons for it. The writer will leave it at that as the clichés and comments will be many. It is only fair to mention noted efforts....
Canada Vs Romania
Well, the campaign comes to a close tomorrow for Canada and despite some excellent play against Italy, with a rather unlucky result and long stretches of what might arguably be deemed, best ever Canadian rugby, against France, the campaign will be judged solely on the outcome of this match. We...
Dream Team Week Two
Congratulations to DTH (aka 'TAG') Van de Merwe announced today on the Week #2 RWC Dream Team. DTH's tally, initiated by a sparkling, lengthy run and a combo with Hearn, thence getting the pass returned Vs Italy was debatably, the try of the tourney to date....
Les Rouges Allez-ed Pretty Good
Although it probably was a foregone conclusion, the French victory was a mere touch of icing for this pundit after two weeks of meandering in Belgium and Normandy where I experienced the genuine honesty and respect of the French people for Canadians who fought in the two wars. The French...
Thus Endeth the Drought
Glasgow’s, Fraser Lyle, circa 2012/13 Well, it will be a happy group of bandits wending their way across the Atlantic today, nursing bumps and bruises but travelling first class, compliments RWC! Although this writer did not get a download, with the original plan by RC going awry when the...
Cudmore Duly Honored
This pundit likes the looks of the squad selected to do battle against Glasgow Warriors tomorrow. It is the first time the coach has had an opportunity to look at some possible combinations for upcoming RWC matches. Highlights are DTH playing against his "old" club; Cudmore deservedly as...
The Wait's All Over
The RWC team was posted yesterday with a stats breakdown by Province, we’ll take a look at posting by positions. 17 forwards, 14 backs, a pretty well-balanced collection. CW commiserates with a most unlucky, Tay Paris, injured last weekend, probably opening the door for an, arguably lucky,...
Monday's Musings: Memories from World Cups Past.
Memories from World Cups Past. (Cardinal’s – First ever RWC, Canadian Try) ……and so another four years have passed and the boys are in camp again, a select group will earn the honour of representing Canada with the plethora of nations at the acme of our game. Canada has played in every RWC...
Game Day
REES BOOT Did a little delving after the fact and reckon this postscript blog is a credit to players who have learned how to play together as a club team but wear their loyalty to their schools in their hearts – the epitome that is the very essence of this great game of ours. SMUS fielded –...
Wednesday's, "Ruck & Maul" on Thursday!
Castaway Wanderers – Women’s Program Positions Castaway Wanderers is seeking key positions as it moves forward with the creation of a Senior Women’s program for the upcoming 2015/2016 season. CW currently has a well-established Girls Youth program that has seen growth year over year since...
Monday's Musings
NSWT SEVENS Heartiest congratulations from the Castaway Wanderers to our women on yet another stellar performance on the IRB World Circuit. The Atlanta Series saw Canada drop their final pool game to England as well as losing their equivalent of Philly Mack, Jen Kish, to injury. What an...
Monday's Musings
Hubert Hugs Coach After Victory What could have taken place at Windsor, a battle between loose and tight head props from CW and Caps – Buydens and Marshall, actually took place in the Land of the Long White Cloud when Byden’s Manawatu Turbos edged Hawkes Bay for the ITM title, 32 – 24 this...
Wednesday's Ruck & Maul
Three Steps to RWC The ARCs return to Westhills this Saturday. Coach Crowley describes the ARCs; the November tests selections and a March camp; as being the end of much in-depth observation of players who will be selected to represent Canada in next year’s RWC. From a CW p.o.v., one...
Not Enough Superlatives!
Well, Canada's dream run is over. Fair go for the English - runners-up three times and today their defence was simply impregnable and Scarrat showed her class, as it should have been. This pundit cannot offer sufficient superlatives for the effort throughout this campaign and especially,...
Go, Ladies, Go!
JOIN LIKE-MINDED RED NATION FANS AT THE TEMPLE. VIEW A CANADIAN VICTORY - 9:30 a.m. 714 DISCOVERY...
Oh, Canada!
By now, any readers of this site would have seen/ heard about the Women's monumental, semi-final victory yesterday over France, 18 - 16. One cannot offer enough superlatives for this monumental milestone for Canadian Rugby, specifically, for Canadian Women’s Rugby. Their self-belief,...