Rugby programs take to the field after a long, cold winter

By Tyler Lowey, Times Reporter

Local rugby players saw their cabin fever subside after the snow finally left the fields of Strathmore, allowing them to run around and to slam into each other outdoors.
“Finally we are outside. We were practicing inside for a couple weeks and even tried going out in the snow once, but it wasn’t that much fun,” said Crowther Memorial Junior High School (CMJHS) rugby Head Coach Wayne Hvingelby. “It’s great to get our first taste of rugby in now.”
The CMJHS Cougars hosted the Snowbuster Tournament April 27 at the school field, as the girls and boy’s programs strapped on the cleats for the first time this season.
“We had a tournament cancelled last weekend in Vulcan and nearly had to cancel this one, too,” said Hvingelby. “The snow melted so quickly that it formed a lake in one of the end zones a couple days ago.”
Kids from Grade 7 to Grade 9 suited up, as CMJHS housed two teams in both gender divisions. They were joined by the Westmount Charter School Wild and the Foundations for the Future Charter Academy Phoenix rugby programs.
Each team played three games, each lasting roughly a half hour in duration and were under the close eye of the coaching staff.
“More or less this was the first time playing rugby for a lot of these kids, and that’s pretty common. We want to get them involved in the sport and a basic understanding of it before we play in more exhibition games later this spring,” said Hvingelby. “I thought our kids looked great today. There was some great speed and one of our girl’s teams scored on their first possession today. It was really great.”
Rugby players in the Cougars program are building a foundation of skills that will help them when they advance to the high school level.
The former Cougars now turned Spartans are also chomping at the bit to get some game action in.
“I’ve never seen a season like this before, where we have had to cancel games because of the weather and we aren’t sure if we will make them up in time,” said Spartans boy’s rugby coach Tim Popel.
The Spartans were supposed to take the lid off their Big Sky Rugby season April 26 against the Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School Spartans but were forced to cancel due to the field still being blanketed in snow.
It wasn’t until last week that the Spartans got outside for the first time.
“Practicing inside is fine,” said Popel. “We can work on passing and positioning of our players, but we can’t really do much with tackling. It was great to finally get outside and do some of that.”
Once outside, Popel and co-coach Brad Steele saw a group they have gotten familiar with over the season.
“It seems like every year we do this, we have the same type of team,” said Popel. “This year, we will have a good group of returning Grade 11 and 12s, and a group of athletes that are new to the sport with young, raw talent. It’s always an exciting time for us when we get to go outside for the first time.”
One of the key returning players is Martin Cheung, a scrum halfback who was influential in organizing the offence last year.
Cheung will be looking to lead the Spartans through an abbreviated schedule that started May 3, when they took on the Foothills Composite High School Falcons in Okotoks. The Spartans will only have two home games this season, beginning May 9 when they host the Oilfields High School Drillers. The short season wraps up the week of May 22, as teams will be competing in the South Central Zone tournament.
“All the other schools are in the same boat as us with cancelled games and practices because of the snow,” said Popel. “All we can do now is go out and compete. This is the fun part.”
The Spartan girls’ program got their rugby campaign underway April 27 with an exhibition game in Pincher Creek. The Spartans came out on the wrong side of things 26-10 at the hands of the Matthew Halton High School Hawks.
“I thought we did very well considering we haven’t practiced outdoors yet,” said Spartans Head Coach Jerry Flaws. “There were some things we have to work on; our special awareness was off a bit and we clumped together like Timbit soccer at times, but I think it will all come together.”
The Spartans will have a completely different look to this year’s rendition, after graduating 19 players last year, including game-breakers like Darcie Weir and Yulisa Solda.
“We have 15 returning players who are going to have to step up into bigger roles this season. The only way that is going to happen is by practicing and playing more, trying to make up ground from the lost time already,” said Flaws. “Inside, we couldn’t really work on scrumming or tackling. We’re glad to finally be outside now.”
The Spartans got their Big Sky Rugby season underway May 2 when they took on the Bow Valley High School Bobcats. Their first home game of the season is slated for May 9 when they host the Oilfields High School Drillers.