It was a victorious weekend for the Springbank Phoenix girls’ rugby 7s teams. Both the junior and senior teams won gold in their respective divisions at the Phoenix’s second invitational tournament, May 26.
The Springbank, Chestermere and Oilfields high schools both entered teams in the junior division. Each school also fielded a senior team along with Ernest Manning High School and Weber Academy in Calgary and Bow Valley High School in Cochrane.
The Phoenix defeated the Oilfields Drillers 34-12 in the senior gold medal final while the junior Phoenix defeated an amalgamated Chestermere/Oilfields team 34-0 after injuries depleted both rosters.
Based on comments from the visiting players and coaches, the tournament was a resounding success, according to Gary Moore, manager for the Springbank Phoenix.
“It was fantastic,” he said. “One coach said that (his) Grade 10s and 11s can’t wait to be back and the Grade 12s are sorry they won’t be there. It was received well by everybody and I’m very pleased with how the day went.”
While a highlight for the spectators was the fast-paced, hard-hitting action on the field, a highlight for the players were the off-field contests. In between games, the tournament featured a “cowboy-ninja-bear” competition, a full-body take on “rock-paper-scissors,” a drop goal contest and haka performances from each team. The contests helped build a fellowship between the teams, according to Moore.
“The rugby culture is awesome,” Moore said. “High school girls can be pretty cliquey, but there’s a kind of camaraderie in rugby. It breaks down those boundaries (because) it brings girls together who aren’t playing other sports. There’s something for everybody.”
Last year marked the first that Springbank hosted the tournament and the first year that it participated in the Big Sky Rugby Union. The league includes teams from Canmore, Strathmore, Okotoks and High River. The success of the girls’ teams motivated the school to establish a boys’ team this year and the sport has the school’s highest participation rate.
Women rugby 7’s will be implemented into the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, which Moore is hoping helps grow the sport even more in North America.
“Rugby in Canada isn’t getting a lot of TV exposure,” he said. “With it coming into the Olympics and seeing the success of the women, which I’m expecting they will have, we’ll see the sport take off in popularity and participation. The women’s team should be a medal hopeful in Rio.”
