LA Crude Rugby Field – Vintage premier men’s St. Albert rugby was on display in Saturday’s 57-3 domination of the Calgary Irish.
The first 15 pounded the bewildered Irish for eight tries in a mighty show of force that brought back memories of previous Alberta Cup campaigns during St. Albert’s reign as a team to fear before its 6-8 season of futility in 2012.
“That’s exactly what we want to get back to – hard rugby,” declared captain Brett Kelly. “Our game plan was rough them up all the time and that’s exactly what we did. We kept it solid for the full 80 minutes. We kept the foot on the gas. It was nice to see.”
In a rare 10:30 a.m. kickoff, it was all downhill for the Irish after the firsts used up only 30 seconds on the clock to march the ball into the try zone, as Matt Jarvis finished off a breathless run by Paul Flynn.
Orrin Farries, a young lanky forward who has been compared favorably to standout Kyle Gilmour, turned a five-metre lineout ball into a try in the 11th minute that was made possible by a daring run by Brian Pendlebury deep into Irish territory.
British import Antony Fitch upped the ante to 17-0 with a chip shot on a penalty in the 17th minute.
Two minutes later Gilmour, making a rare start in the centres, capped off a fine effort by Adam Bontus and Fitch’s conversion left the Irish trailing by 24 points.
“We wanted to come out all guns blazing. We wanted to step up and prove that we can actually play rugby in this division,” said Fitch.
The 19-year-old fullback lit up the Irish for a team-high 22 points. He converted seven tries, was 1-for-2 kicking penalties and scored the last try of the match.
In the 34th minute, the Irish split the uprights from outside the 22-metre line for their only points. It was just the second time the Irish had even got a sniff of the 22 at that point in the match.
The first half ended with Bontus strolling across the try line after a five-metre scrum and another Fitch conversion for an insurmountable 31-3 advantage.
It took the firsts less than three minutes to score the first try of the second half as Bontus slashed his way through the Irish after a lineout inside the 22. It was the third try in two matches for Bontus, a bruising back and the team’s best player in the opening two matches of the fixtures.
“We kept it coming,” Kelly said. “On both kickoffs in the halfs we scored on basically the first play so we’re pleased with that.”
Matt Herod, the starting scrum-half in place of Jake Robinson, Australian import Troy Jeffs and Fitch rounded out the scoring.
Kelly, 24, described the victory as “a total team effort” after the firsts stumbled in their season debut 29-22 against the rival Clansmen, who led 22-0 at halftime.
“There are lots of new guys playing together and some are in new positions so it takes a while to gel but today a lot of guys stepped up and filled their roles and more. We couldn’t be happier,” Kelly said. “We’ve also got a new game plan this year and it takes some time getting used to it. Definitely there are some bugs to work out but we’ve been practicing hard and it really showed today. It paid off.
“We’ve always done quick ball but we’re trying to create gaps and then expose those gaps for sure. It seemed to be working for us, especially right from the start.”
It’s also the first victory for head coach Jo Hull at the controls.
“She is thrilled. It’s awesome to see,” said Kelly, an intimidating eight-man who missed the second half against the Clan with a knee injury. “We needed that win today. We’ve got to show that we are the top team in the province.”
Hull, a former player and coach for the Darlington Mowden Park Sharks premiership women’s team in England and head coach of Scotland’s national women’s team, is the first female head coach of a premier men’s rugby team in Alberta.
“I had a training session with her (after last season) before I went back to England. I also know her background so I’m comfortable listening to her and learning from her. She is a good coach,” Fitch said. “Obviously we’re trying to do some new stuff that Jo has implemented, a bit more of a game plan with a bit more of a structure, so there is still a learning curve but we know what we need to work on and what we can do well.”
This is the second season in St. Albert for Fitch, a Bournemouth product who played wing back home.
“Obviously it’s a different game of rugby here than it is in England so it’s nice to have that opportunity to play different rugby. Plus, it’s a great group of guys here too,” said Fitch, who made nine kicks and scored one try at standoff in the second division team’s 47-12 blowout of the lowly Lep/Tigers on May 16.
The firsts are back on the pitch Saturday against the Strathcona Druids at 4 p.m. at Lynn Davies Rugby Park in Sherwood Park.
