Finally, after five months of road games, snow outs, and conceded games due to lack of front row players, the Crows took the pitch at Parkinson Rec. field for a Saturday home game - hosting the 4th place Surrey Beavers.
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A surge in memberships over the past couple of weeks has pushed CORE past the halfway point in its drive for 100 Voting Members. 63 rugby enthusiasts have paid the fees to become Voting Members in 2019. CORE's goal is to have 100 Voting Members in this year. 470 non-voting CORE members receive its newsletter during the active playing season.
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After a long winter break, the Vicars travelled to Burnaby to take on the Twits. It had been quite some time since most players had worn the boots anywhere near a pitch. The Vicars were looking for a better showing than their last game against their hosts.
The game kicked of with Kelowna fielding 18 travellers and the home side choosing from at least two-teams-worth of players. It was a great day for rugby, cool and overcast with only a few raindrops here and there.
The Vicars shook off their travel weary legs and started with a bang. The Twits were on their heels early as the Vicars pressed the attack, and with strong running from Randy and Jamie the visitors were soon up two tries to none. The scrums and lineouts were well contested with both teams securing their ball and stealing a few as well.
As is usual with Old Boys rugby, the defence was furious. The skilled play - not so much. Dropped balls and missed kicks by both sides opened up the game and led to the surging Twits scoring a chased ball in the corner. The Twits had the Vicars on their heels while Cash, Adam, and the rest of the Vicar backs tacked fiercely. No Twits would break their line again in that first quarter of play.
The second quarter was more even, with the Twits on their toes but matched by the Vicars at every turn. Strong pack work off a won lineout led to Captain Blair and Adam combining for another score for the visitors. Halftime score: 3 - 1 Vicars.
The third quarter started with both teams putting all on the line. With excellent phase play the Twits drove to the Vicars line and a blocked kick in the end zone led to a 5-meter Burnaby scrum. The men in blue secured their own ball and pushed over the line for a try. The Vicars responded with energy. Good back field passing left Randy with all the room he needed to put the Vicars back up by two.
The fourth quarter was a battle. The Twits were not keen to lose.. The Vicars were to play defence for the rest of the game. Three minutes into the last quarter, Burnaby was rewarded with their third try. After a stretch of excellent phase play and ball retention by Burnaby, too many Vicars found themselves stuck in a ruck. Big overlap for the Twits and now it was a one-point match.
In the end it was Cash who closed out the day. He stepped through a Burnaby ruck, stole the ball, fed it back to Mike, who found touch to end the game. Final score 4 - 3 Vicars for a hard fought win in their first match of the 2019 season.
The hosting was a friendly affair with players from both sides getting together over a pint to discuss the game. Man of the Match was Captain Blair Williams for the Vicars and Geddes (sorry to the fellow for most likely getting his name wrong) for the Twilighters. The bus ride home was a fun affair. It is always better to ride home winners!!
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The Okanagan Rugby Referees Society (ORRS) will not provide referee services to games being played in the spring of 2019. They have virtually no one left to referee. If a solution is not found, coaches will have to find their own referees this season.
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There's a lot more to local rugby than most people are aware of. It is the tapestry of these many programs and services that is increasing the quantity and quality of rugby players from the Central Okanagan.
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CORE Board Meeting Minutes
February 13, 2019
In Attendance: Chris Bayne, Marshall Corbett, George Curran, Barry Ebl, John Good, Doug Manning, Leana Marton, Derek Worrall
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2019 is an important year for the Central Okanagan Rugby Enthusiasts (CORE) non-profit rugby development society. It seeks to achieve its five-year goal of 1,000 touch rugby players in the Central Okanagan. It intends to increase rugby services to 13 - 18 year old players. It will launch a new five-year plan to expand girl's/women's rugby in the Central Okanagan. Most importantly, it will initiate its quest to establish a home for rugby in the Central Okanagan.
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The last couple of years have seen incredible success for both men and women’s youth rugby athletes from the Thompson Okanagan. Teams from the Thompson Okanagan Rugby Alliance (TORA) have won a variety of medals at the extremely competitive Provincial Regional Championships (PRCs), including a U-16 Men's Silver Medal in 2018, a 2017 U-18 Women's Gold Medal, and a 2017 U-14 Men's Bronze Medal. In addition, 2018 saw 43 players from the TORA contingent invited to Team BC try-outs with 17 players selected to Team BC!
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This past weekend the Vicars travelled to Vancouver and the historic Brockton Oval at Stanley Park to take on the Evergreens. It was a beautiful day with a soft pitch, lots of sunshine, a little bit of cloud, and one full moon.
The Vicars did a great job filling the bus with players and a few fans as well. There were near 30 Vicars on the bus and everyone that wanted on the field got there. They were joined by their regular valley player Aaron Zimmer as well as a familiar face to many, Mike Roberts. The younger guys on the club will remember Mike from his days in Kelowna organizing many different rugby events for the high schools. Many commented that it was an honour to take the pitch at the same time as this fine gentleman.
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CORE Annual General Meeting is November 24, 2018 @ 6 PM at the Capri Hotel
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It's going to be an interesting AGM.
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