After a 19-month absence, men's rugby returned to the Coast last Saturday as the Gibsons Pigs entertained the East Vancouver Scribes at Elphinstone Secondary School.
The rain subsided before the match started, and a few rays of sunshine poked through, providing ideal conditions for an afternoon of action.The teams locked horns in this exhibition match to honour the 36-year-old tradition of hosting rugby matches in Gibsons. The Ferry Cup was on the line in this inter-club challenge that dates back to the early '80s.
The Pigs seized the early play after the opening kick-off, working the ball down-field to just inside the Scribes 22-metre line in the first 10 minutes. But with the Pigs away from competitive play for a while and a strong Scribes side, which featured several internationals from down under, the Pigs mishandled a pass that was scooped up by the Scribes for a 70-metre run down-field and the first try of the match. The Scribes failed to convert and led 5-0.
As a score against the flow often does, this caused disarray for the Pigs and the Scribes quickly scored again to take a 10-0 advantage. It looked as though the Pigs were in for a tough day on the pitch, but experience calmed them and Gibsons regrouped, took control and worked their way down the field to within striking distance when Gibsons scrum-half Stu Frizzell took the ball from the base of a ruck and scampered in for a try to cut the score to 10-5. Things stayed that way for the remainder of the half.
The second half saw a well-matched game played out with surprisingly fine form shown by the forwards and the back line alike. In the closing minutes, Gibsons was once again pressing the Scribes' try line, but this time the visitors held on, preserving the 10-5 score line and winning the match.
"Afterward, as is tradition, the Gibsons clubhouse was filled with stories of past campaigns and toasts of the day's game," said Frizzell. "The visiting Aussies got to experience the legendary trip to Gibsons and the Pigs' clubhouse before heading back overseas. The hardware was presented, future challenges were set in play, and all who attended basked in the glory of having once again played rugby in Gibsons."
