Victory finally belongs to the Bow Valley Grizzlies - and it couldn't be any sweeter for the scrappy senior men's rugby squad, who are bringing home the hardware for the first time in the club's history.
Victory finally belongs to the Bow Valley Grizzlies - and it couldn't be any sweeter for the scrappy senior men's rugby squad, who are bringing home the hardware for the first time in the club's history.
“The best part of coaching is for these moments. This doesn't come around every day, ” said a thrilled Tyler Hawes, head coach of the Grizz, after the team's 43-28 win on Saturday. “It's awesome for the boys. They put in a lot of hard work … and this is the result. ”
The bleachers were full, the beer was flowing and the sun blazed in the sky as the Grizzlies ripped apart the Calgary Saracens at the Calgary Rugby Union to clinch the Southern Alberta Division Two City Championship.
“Fill that thing up! ” Hawes told the team in the after-game scrum, pointing to the coveted golden cup. “Let's have a couple of drinks. ”
Although the team soaked up the win, it hasn't been an easy ride. The Grizzlies have been to the end of the line three times in the last five years. Hawes said last season's crushing Division 2 semi-final loss to the Calgary Hornets - coupled with Division 3 losses in both 2013 and 2014 - meant the guys could not bear to be on the wrong side of the win again.
“I think it gave the boys a bit of fires in their bellies, ” said Hawes.
That fire burned brightly all season. The Grizz finished with a winning record of 11-2 and a scoring average of 50 points a game.
Saturday's final started out strong, too, with the Saracens first over the line but the Grizz regaining control of the scoreboard just seven minutes later. As the clock ran down on the first half, the Grizzlies showed off even more aggressive play to increase their lead to a comfortable 26-15.
The second half of the match saw the Grizzlies lose some of that fire they demonstrated in the first 40 minutes. The most stressful moments came at 29 minutes into the second half, when the Saracens pushed to within five points of a tie.
“We didn't come out firing as fast as we'd hoped, ” recalled player Mac Tivendale. “(But you need to) just keep playing. That's all you can do is give it all you've got. ”
After grinding it out to keep the Saracens at bay, the turning point came when Anthony Battistone literally flew over the line to widen the spread to 40-28. Even though it looked like the team had finished the job, Tivendale said it was no time to slow down or get cocky.
“You never relax, ” he said. “You can't. Not until the win. ”
As the final minutes of the clock ran down, the Grizzlies kicked a conversion and nailed the Saracens' coffin shut at 43-28. The team hugged each other on the pitch and let loose on their long-awaited triumph.
In the stands, the loudest cheers came from the WAGs: the proud group of wives and girlfriends who have been along for the ride since the beginning.
“It's finally here. They deserve it, ” said Erin Callaghan, girlfriend to fly-half Hamish Wrafter. “This is a huge achievement. ”
“They just worked so hard this year, ” echoed Hannah Lennon, whose fianc
é Connor Gilbert captains the team.
The women - who sported matching fingernails and colourful pom-poms in Grizzlies' colours - said the team maintains a strong relationship off the pitch, which Lennon credited as giving them an edge when they play.
“I think they're more of a family, ” she said. “There's communication and trust ... They have your back. ”
Tivendale agreed, saying the guys are “as close as anyone can be. ”
“They know my deepest, darkest secrets, ” he laughed.
Tivendale has been with the team since day one, and could barely describe what the win meant to him.
“It's everything. I'm almost speechless, ” he said. “I think we just worked harder. We wanted it more. ”
While the team celebrated hard over the weekend, it was back to work at practice on Tuesday in hopes they can do it all again. The win propelled the Grizz into the Division 2 Provincial Finals for the first time, so they have a chance to make history one more time when they face off against Northern Alberta champs the Edmonton Leprechaun Tigers at 2 p.m. Saturday at Calgary Rugby Union.
“This is why we play, ” said Hawes. “For the big games. ”
-30-
