VICTORIA – For the second game in a row,
Tamilore Awonusi (Dublin, Ireland) dotted down twice for Trinity Western's men's rugby team, but the Spartans ultimately fell 46-17 against the table-topping Pacific Pride Saturday at Westshore RFC.
Playing against a Pacific Pride side (4-0-1) littered with up-and-coming Canadian rugby stars, including Brennig Prevost, who most recently played with Canada on the World Rugby Sevens Series, and Olympian Jake Thiel, the Spartans (0-5) put together a strong outing, but still remained on the outside of the winner's circle.
Flyhalf
Keegan Marengo (Johannesburg, South Africa), who entered the weekend second in the Coastal Cup in penalty goals, was perfect from the tee, knocking through two converts and a penalty.
The Pacific Pride is Rugby Canada's National Development Academy team based in Langford, B.C.
QUOTABLE
TWU Captain Caleb Gerth
"It was definitely a tough match. They're a strong side. They have a lot of talented athletes from all across Canada and I think we put up a pretty good front near the end of the game. We took our opportunities and put up some points and did the things we needed to do.
Since the beginning of the season, we've learned a lot about how to play in this league and how to deal with this level of pressure and contact. The boys have really stepped up and we've improved a lot and you can see our ability to play out multiple phases and make the right decisions. We're definitely continuing to get better."
Tamilore Awonusi
"It was a tough game and tough opposition. We didn't have the best of starts but the guys gave it everything over the full 80 minutes and we were able to work out way back into the game. Unfortunately, the scoreline didn't really reflect that. The guys are really working hard and we're looking forward to next week and building on the momentum we've started to pick up. I think our growth as a team this semester has been just short of phenomenal. We've scored five tries in the last two games and our forwards are doing an outstanding job of giving us a platform to work from. I think it's really coming together and next week I think we'll bring it all together and finish on a high note."
TWU Director of Rugby Andrew Evans
"Today was similar to last week in that we came alive late in the game and were able to score a couple of tries.
Matthew Willemse (Pietermaritzburg, South Africa) had a strong game at fullback. Our scrum was pretty good.
Adam-Jay Fort (Red Deer, Alta.) played 70 minutes at prop and he had a really good shift. The difference today was how athletic and physically well-developed the Pride players were. They had really strong ball carriers, which caused us a lot of problems and they moved the ball really well. They were able to capitalize and score a lot of points in the middle portion of the game.
Our players never gave up. They were tackling all afternoon and eventually we were able to connect and put things together on the attack. We're getting there each weekend and we're looking forward to next weekend's home game against the Crimson Tide."
ROSTER
1.
Scott Bowers, New Westminster, BC, United Rugby Club
2.
Caleb Gerth, Langley, BC, Surrey Beavers / Langley Rugby Club
3.
Adam-Jay Fort, Red Deer, AB, Red Deer Titans
4.
Erik Niebuhr, Surrey, BC, Bayside Sharks
5.
Josh Halladay, White Rock, BC
6. Caleb Van Til, Tsawwassen, BC
7. Genaro Gandolfo, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Club San Andrés
8.
Nate Schroeder, West Kelowna, BC
9.
Fynn Murphy, White Rock, BC, Bayside Sharks
10.
Keegan Marengo, Johannesburg, South Africa, Xerox Golden Lions
11.
Tamilore Awonusi, Dublin, Ireland, Clontarf RFC
12.
Collin Lagat, Dallas, TX, Dallas Reds RFC
13.
Sam Wegert, Langley, BC, UBC
14.
Lynden Duggan, Burnaby, BC, Burnaby Lake Rugby Club
15.
Matthew Willemse, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, Langley Rugby Club
16.
Seth Klassen, Surrey, BC, Bayside Sharks
17.
Favour Olaniyan, Gibsons, BC, Capilano Rugby Club
18.
Grayson Hardie, Chilliwack, BC
19.
Tinashe Chirara, Harare, Zimbabwe, Old Georgians RFC
20. Isaiah de Peiza, Edmonton, Nor'Wester Rugby Club
21.
Jan Lourens, Smoky Lake, AB, Clansmen RFC
22.
Ethan Bernardin, Langley, BC
23.
Max Darcy, Calgary, Hornets RFC
NEXT UP
The Spartans will return home to play their final match of the Coastal Cup on Nov. 6th against the Vancouver Island Crimson Tide at the Willoughby Community Park.
About Spartan Athletics
As official members of U SPORTS, the Spartans currently compete in 13 sports in the Canada West conference, including women's and men's soccer, volleyball, basketball, hockey, cross country and track & field, as well as women's rugby sevens. TWU also competes as an independent team in men's rugby. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 12 U SPORTS team championships and 29 Canada West team championships.
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