The Abbotsford Rugby Football Club’s Division 3 men’s team won the provincial championship, knocking off Capilano 29-19 in the Third Division Tier B title game on May 10 at West Vancouver’s Klahanie Park.
The ARFC side got tries from Nick Hossman, Sebastian Gibson and Aaron Cyr en route to victory, along with three penalty kicks and a convert from Dan Tou and one penalty from Jason Copp.
“It’s uplifting,” said Harry Toews, head coach of the ARFC’s men’s teams. “The year wasn’t the best year (overall). We’re going through a lot of development stages . . . and at least to have some success on the field (was meaningful).”
The key to victory for the Abby side was its success in attacking the middle of the field, Toews said.
“We cut through the middle on two or three occasions, with two of them resulting in scores from that,” he said. “Dan Tou had an exceptional game. There wasn’t a man of the match named on the day, but it there would have been, it would have been him.”
The ARFC’s fortunes took an upswing in the second half of the season with the addition of a series of veterans who hadn’t played in the first half, and that increased depth played a role in the Div. 3 squad’s success.
“There were a few old heads that were ex-first division players who have other commitments now that bolstered the side,” Toews said, pointing to the likes of Tou, Copp and Ryan McWhinney. “The group that finished off the season did well – they had simple game plans, but they executed them quite well.”