The Comox Valley Kickers women's rugby team made a powerful statement in their season opener at home, delivering a dominant 88-0 victory over Castaway Wanderers (CW), who travelled up island from Oak Bay.
"The Kickers showcased impressive teamwork, with quick ruck speed and great passing contributing to their overwhelming performance," a release from the team says.
Cali McKay powered through the defense, scoring an impressive four tries. Sophia Julien added three of her own, and Amelia Gallow, Sienna Stigant and Natalie Nguyen each contributed two of their own. Daris Forberg rounded off the scoring with one try. The team showed their depth and versatility. McKay was in top form, converting nine of the tries.
"The women displayed exceptional skill, with quick hands and explosive speed propelling them across the pitch," the release says. "It was a complete team performance that sets a strong tone for the rest of the season."
This victory also lets them hang on to the Gudmundseth Shield, which is only defended on home fields against other Vancouver Island teams.
Captain Dara DeMarce said, 鈥淲e came out strong and utilized the game plan we鈥檝e been practicing. It鈥檚 a great way to start the season, and I鈥檓 excited to keep this momentum going.鈥�
The men's team, meanwhile, faced a challenging rematch on the road against the James Bay Athletic Association. However, this time they managed to show significant improvement over their last game against the team, though they did fall short with a score of 22-55. Tries came from Brandon Hudson, Andy Hextall, Jesse Ramsay and Nick Gilmour. Kyle Hall added a conversion to the team's tally.
Though the score was not in their favour, the release says that the team "exhibited greater cohesion and a stronger performance overall, signalling growth and development as they move forward in the season."
Captain Brandon Hudson said, 鈥淲e fought hard and made big improvements from our first match. The score doesn鈥檛 reflect how close the game was for most of the time, but running low on subs really hurt us in the last 20 minutes. I鈥檓 proud of the effort the team put in 鈥� we鈥檙e getting better every game, and we鈥檒l keep pushing forward.鈥�
Both teams have plenty to build on as the season unfolds, with the women off to an electrifying start and the men poised to make further strides. There is a league wide bye next week for Thanksgiving. The women are back in action at home on October 19 vs. Westshore; the men have a week off, with their next game on Oct. 26 against Port Alberni.
