BC Rugby Announces Provincial U20 Women & U19 Men to Contest Canadian Rugby Championship

Vancouver, BC – July 5, 2016: BC Rugby is proud to officially announce the U20 Women’s and U19 Men’s Fifteens Teams that will competing at the upcoming Canadian Rugby Championship (CRC). The tournament takes place July 14th-19th in Markham, Ontario.

The BC Rugby U19 Men’s Fifteens Team will be aiming to win a fifth title in the last six years, while the BC Rugby U20 Women’s Fifteens Team are looking to claim top spot in the country for the first time.

Both rosters will feature a number of players who have previously been part of National Rugby Festival winning Teams with BC Rugby at the U16 and U18 levels, in addition to several players who have represented Rugby Canada in U18 and U20 competitions.

“From our first meeting we talked about team values of required discipline, courage and respect to play the game that suits this team,” said BC Rugby U20 Women’s Coach, Dave Grisdale. “The message heading into the CRCs is to focus on the process and the outcome will take care of itself.”

The BC Rugby U20 Women fielded a young team in 2015 and struggled at times against more established competition. This year’s side features a balance of newcomers, veterans and some of the rising stars of Canadian Women’s University Rugby.

“There are a lot of new faces in this squad, and through the short time we have been training, we have come together as a cohesive unit,” said BC Rugby U20 Women’s Team scrum-half, Nicole Crowley from Victoria. “We will be looking to build off the base we have established over the past few weeks and continue to build towards each game. We obviously want to do well in Toronto, so sticking to the game plan and following the process will be key for us.”
 
The BC Rugby U19 Men captured the 2015 CRC title in dramatic fashion, as a potential Championship winning penalty kick from Ontario Blues’ fullback Andrew Coe was turned back by strong winds on the final play of the game. This year, the Men from BC know that they will face another strong test from their rivals, with teams aiming to take down the reigning champs.

“This is a very talented group of players who are fierce University rivals, but who have come together to represent BC,” said BC Rugby U19 Men’s Team Coach, Curry Hitchborn. “The core of this team won the U18 Nationals with BC Rugby as sixteen year-olds, and players like Nick Frost, Liam Doll, Callum Botchar and Connor Sampson have gone on to play for Canada at the U20 level. We’ll have those guys on the Team, plus players who have returned from overseas to compete for BC, like Ben Scher, who has been studying in England, and Fraser Hurst, who has been playing in New Zealand. It should be a fun tournament.”
 
“During training the atmosphere was light, but still serious,” said UVic Vikes’ and BC Rugby U19 Men’s Team fullback, Noah Bain. “Most of the team has been playing together for a couple years now, and Coaches Curry (Hitchborn) and Ken (Erikson) trust us, so we’ve clicked well quite quickly. We have high expectations to do well in Toronto and we know that we can fulfill them.”
 
BC Rugby U20 Women’s Fifteens Team Roster
 
Maira Acevedo from Surrey, BC (Bayside Sharks)
Adel Arndt from Merville, BC (Comox Valley Kickers)
Chloe Baird-Titcomb from Hornby Island, BC (Comox Valley Kickers)
Tanika Bonneville from Surrey, BC (Bayside Sharks)
Mackenzie Carson from Abbottsford, BC (Abbottsford RFC)
Nicole Crowley from Victoria, BC (UVIC / Westshore)
Gupreet Dhaliwal from Abbotsford, BC (UVic Vikes)
Taya Gagnon from Courtenay, BC (GP Vanier /Comox Valley Kickers)
Madison Gold from Merville, BC (UBC Thunderbirds)
Taiid Haines-Young from White Rock, BC (Bayside Sharks)
Ashlynn Jackson from Duncan, BC (UVic Vikes / Westshore RFC)
Natasha Johnson from 150 Mile House, BC (UBC-Okanagan / Kelowna Crows)
Sofie Kennedy from North Saanich, BC (Castaway Wanderers RC)
Delaney Martin from Cobble Hill, BC (Brentwood College School)
Camila Maslo from Surrey, BC (Burnaby Lake RC)
Brooke Miller from Salmon Arm, BC (Kamloops Raiders RC)
Hannah Morten from Duncan, BC (St. FX University)
Kristine Osachuk from Campbell River, BC (Lindenwood University)
Olivia Peers from Surrey, BC (Bayside Sharks)
Kendra Penner from Penticton, BC (Unattached)
Lauren Sargent from Courtenay, BC (Castaway Wanderers RC)
Avi Sharabi from Mill Bay, BC (Brentwood College School)
Olivia Thoen from Port Alberni, BC (Nanaimo Hornets RFC)
Shaye Tudor from Victoria, BC (Castaway Wanderers RC)
Tess Woldring from Burnaby (Burnaby Lake RC)
 
U20 Women’s Schedule
July 14 – BC Rugby vs Rugby Ontario – 6:00pm ET
July 15 – BC Rugby vs Prairie Wolf Pack – 2:00pm ET
July 16 – BC Rugby vs Nova Scotia Keltics – 12:00pm ET
July 18 – Semi-finals
July 19 – Final

BC Rugby U19 Men’s Fifteens Team Roster
 
Donald Carson from Vancouver, BC (UBC Thunderbirds)
Callum Botchar from Vancouver, BC (UBC Thunderbirds)
Liam Doll from North Vancouver, BC (UBC Thunderbirds)
Liam Mahon from West Vancouver (UVic Vikes)
Chase Taylor-Robins from West Vancouver (UBC Thunderbirds)
Malcolm Klaver from North Vancouver (Capilano RFC)
Fraser Hurst from Vancouver, BC (Canterbury, NZ)
Matt Anderson from North Vancouver (UBC Thunderbirds)
Jake Thiel from Abbotsford, BC (Abbotsford RFC)
Josh Thiel from Abbotsford, BC (Abbotsford RFC)
Nick Frost from West Vancouver, BC (UBC Thunderbirds)
Noah Bain from Abbotsford, BC (UVic Vikes)
Elias Ergas from North Vancouver (Collingwood Secondary School)
Thomas Heuser from Sardis, BC
Liam Sullivan from Surrey, BC (Bayside Sharks)
Michael Smith from Surrey, BC (Earl Marriott Secondary School)
Liam Morrison from Surrey, BC (UVic Vikes / Bayside Sharks)
Aaron Hersant from Victoria, BC (UVic Vikes)
John Jubenvil from Surrey, BC (Earl Marriott Secondary School)
Jake Lan from West Vancouver (Capilano RFC)
Connor Sampson from Vancouver, BC (Burnaby Lake RC)
Gavin Kratz from Victoria, BC (UVic Vikes)
Ben Scher from Vancouver, BC (Durham University)
Spencer Cooper from Vancouver, BC (St. George’s / Rowers)
Anton NgoNgo from Victoria, BC (Castaway Wanderers)
 
U19 Men’s Schedule
July 15 – BC Rugby vs Voyageurs – 4:00pm ET
July 16 – BC Rugby vs Rugby Ontario – 6:00pm ET
July 17 – BC Rugby vs Atlantic Rock – 2:00pm ET
July 19 – BC Rugby vs Prairie Wolf Pack – 10:00am ET

Event Details:
Location: Fletchers’ Field, Markham, ON
Dates: July 14-19
Live streaming details: to be announced.

Scores and updates:
The Canadian Rugby Championship website – canadianrugbychampionship.com – will be posting up to date standings tables and scores for this tournament.