BRISTOL, England – Trinity Western University played to a 24-24 draw with the University of Bristol Saturday afternoon in the Spartans second and final match of their England Tour.
Martin Zubiri (Pergamino, Argentina,
Lynden Duggan (Edinburgh, Scotland) and
Sam Tsoi (Hong Kong, China) each score a try, while
Matthew Willemse (Pietermaritzburg, South Africa) slotted all three conversions and also hit a penalty.
TWU built a 24-12 lead early in the second half, but a quality Bristol side rallied to force the tie.
Willemse just missed a penalty in the 79th minute that would have put the Spartan ahead.
AS IT HAPPENED
Bristol opened the scoring in the second minute of the game, but a Zubiri try in the eighth minute evened the score line 7-7, setting the stage a tight contest.
Bristol went ahead again with an unconverted try in the 31st minute but seven minutes later, Duggan dotted down and Willemse converted to give TWU a 14-12 lead at halftime.
A Willemse penalty in the 42nd minute gave the Spartans a five-point lead before Tsoi scored four minutes later to give TWU a 12-point edge. However, Bristol tries in the 61st and 75th minute evened the score.
NOTABLE
· TWU entered the contest after dropping a 61-19 decision against Cambridge University.
· Saturday's match marked yet another contest against world-class university competition, as the Spartans schedule over the years has consistently featured some of the top university sides in North America, including perennial USA collegiate powers Saint Mary's and CWU, along with the Pacific Pride (Canada's National Development Program) and historic Canadian rugby strongholds UBC and UVIC.
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 and disc golf. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 13 U SPORTS team championships and 32 Canada West team championships.
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