Bulldogs repeat as provincial champions

By Lethbridge Herald on June 13, 2023.

Jace Forsyth Photo Winston Churchill Bulldogs senior boys rugby players celebrate after winning their second consecutive provincial banner on Saturday in Calgary.

Local senior high school rugby teams attended provincials in Calgary this past weekend and had strong showings.

The Winston Churchill Bulldogs boys team repeated as provincial champions after capturing the Tier 2 provincial banner by beating Calgary’s Rundle College 43-7 in the final on Saturday.

“Yeah, it was good,” said Bulldogs head coach Jonathan Dick.

“ I mean the guys showed up to play and had some good games up there in Calgary this weekend and great to be repeat champions. I mean last year was a pretty easy road and this year was a little bit tougher. We had to play a few games to get the championship ,and the boys played hard and they focused in on the weekend and all the hard work throughout the course of the long season kind of paid off.”

Dick says coming out of the gate real hard and fast is what lead to their success all tournament long.

“You know,  (as)soon as that opening whistle blew, they were ready to play,” said Dick.

“And that first game (against Frank Maddock) really tested us. We ended up winning that first game 19-17. So that was a bit of a test. Probably one of the best teams we’ve seen out of the farther north in all the years we’ve been going up to the provincial tournament. So they gave us a good test and we squeak that one through. But the next two games, you know, we just kind of focused in and regrouped after that first one and came off the opening whistle real hard.”

The Bulldogs opened with a 19-17 win over Frank Maddock High School and defeating Banff 35-7 on Friday on route to the final.

Since rugby became an Alberta Schools Athletic Association provincial sport in 2006, the Bulldogs have won nine championships and have placed second at least three to four times.

As for Churchill’s girls team, they could not repeat as provincial champions as Sturgeon beat them 28-8 in the Tier II girls final and settled for silver.

Taber’s W.R. Myers girls team took home the Tier III girls provincial banner after beating Rimbey 15-7 in  the final on Saturday.

W.R. Myers’ path to gold included a 48-12 win over Highwood and a 44-7 win over Banff Community on Friday.

Other local results include both Chinook High School teams taking home provincial bronze.

The boys team beat McNally High School 28-14 while  the girls dominated Notre Dame in a 40-5 win.

LCI’s senior girls team won the consolation final with a 43-5 win over Bow Valley in that game in Tier 1.

The Raymond Comets senior girls team lost the Tier 1 final 20-12 to Calgary’s Notre Dame.