Thanks for Barry for the game reports and Lisa Cooper for the game photos.
Saturday was a very chilly, but eventful day for fans who braved the rather unfriendly weather elements. The first JBAA game involved our women’s team and you can check out Lisa’s game report in our separate post.
The Premier Reserve team played Nanaimo Hornets in the second match of the day, coming away with a convincing 20-7 spanking over the visitors, The Bays controlled the game from start to finish and had it not been for some questionable decisions to kick away possession, could likely have widened that gap. Mitch Sora opened the scoring with a nice break off a line-out resulting from the Bays’ first foray into Nanaimo territory after being hemmed in their own end for the first 15 minutes. Eric Mitchell-Herman slotted the convert to make it 7-0. Two yellow card to JBAA stalled their production somewhat although Jordan Brown of the Bays made multiple crashing runs during this half as he punished defenders time and again. The score remained 7-0 as the half-time whistle blew.
The second half saw the Bays coming down the slope. Initial minutes were scrappy for both teams until veterans Cheezie Waldmann and Ben Johnson hooked up for some dazzle-dazzle pass and bosh to carry the Navy Blue inside the opponent’s half to be awarded a penalty for a high tackle on the Cheese. Eric drained the ensuing opportunity to make it 10-0. Minutes later, he repeated, to stretch the lead to 13-0. Midway through this half, U-17, Jyye Graffi, on the wing for his first senior men’s game, got the ball with minimal space and blasted 65 metres to score between the posts. With the Mitchell-Herman convert, the Bays finished with 20 points; a late try by Nanaimo put the scoreboard at 20-7 when the final whistle blew.
The Premier division match saw the U23 Pride come away with a 67-31 victory over the home squad. Pride coach Phil Mack, along with his manager Wingnut Collins, had indicated that the Pride was very fit and would be running the ball from everywhere. This strategy was effective and clearly caught the Bays flat-footed with a game pace much faster than usual, allowing Pride to jump into a 20+ lead. Not to be cowed, the Bays responded with a backline try from Henry Do and a forward tally from big Alex Jordan; Thomas Burton converted both and added a penalty goal to tighten the score to 17-29. The athletic backline of the visitors continued to cause problems for the home team, although a scintillating 50 metre run by Keith Graham gave the JBAA its 4th try. The try was once again converted by Burton who went 5 for 5 with the boot on the day. Captain Blake Van Heyningen scored the Bays final try on an impressive forward maul, something that the Pride had trouble defending against all day.
Full credit to a well-coached and talented Pride team, as well as a nod to the Bays for their edge in scrummaging and their refusal to fold under the continuous onslaught they faced.
Reserve team wins against Nanaimo 20-7; Prems lose to Pride 31-67.
