It might have been windy and raining but the Bellerose men’s rugby team found a way to win against Fort Saskatchewan, posting a 56-0 victory in the premier quarter-final.
Though the Bulldogs were able to shut out their opponents in a one-sided affair, Bellerose assistant coach Chad Hill believes his team didn’t quite play a perfect game.
“It was pretty sloppy. The first half was very sloppy. It was wet, windy and we did not play our best rugby in the first half for sure. I thought we got better as the game progressed,” said Hill.
The Bulldogs, who posted a perfect 3-0 record in the regular season, also achieved the highest point total with 100. When compared to Fort Saskatchewan’s total of seven points and a 0-3 record, it might have been hard to stay focused when going up against a weaker team on paper. However, after last year’s season, Hill is confident simply being in the premier playoffs is enough of a reason to keep the team focused on the goal ahead.
“It’s the premier playoffs, so it’s pretty important to our guys. Last year we fell short of the premier playoffs, so we just wanted to make sure the intensity level stayed up even though we faced off against a team that didn’t took as strong on paper,’ said Hill. “ But it’s the premier playoffs so that should be enough to stay excited.”
The Bulldogs will take on St. Francis Xavier in the premier semifinal on Monday with a kickoff time of 4:45 p.m. at SARFC. With St. Francis finishing the year at 2-1, they could be a formidable opponent for the Bulldogs. The key to victory will be using the team’s strengths to their advantage, said Hill.
“Taylor Sedgewick has seen St. Francis Xavier play and they have some talented backs. Coach Sedgewick has some strategies in mind to try and combat the fast backs that they have. We have some very athletic forwards who are going to have to dominate against St. Francis if we want to be successful,’ said Hill.
The Sturgeon Spirits (2-1) also won their quarter-final match against Beaumont in a decisive manner, posting a 53-5 tally. The Spirits will hit the pitch next against Bev Facey with a 4:45 p.m. start at Outlaw field on Monday in the other semifinal.
HARD TACKLES: Paul Kane defeated Archbishop Jordan 43-0 and St. Albert Catholic High School pounded Salisbury 20-5 in the city conference semifinals. The wins set up a St. Albert bowl in the city conference championship between Paul Kane and St. Albert at 4:45 p.m. at SARFC on Wednesday.
