The senior rugby team travelled to Victoria for their second-round match in the Stadium Series. The Cavs faced St. Michaels University School (SMUS) who have won the last three AA BC titles. To make things even more difficult, the game was played in front of a large crowd who were at SMUS for their annual alumni homecoming event. It was a fantastic atmosphere as two of the top teams in BC took to the field.
SMUS struck first when their outstanding kicker knocked one across from over 40 meters out. The home crowd was buzzing but they were soon shocked into silence as the Cavs scored three incredible tries in a 12-minute span. All three were set up the power of the Collingwood forwards and then finished clinically by the speed and handling of the Cavs' backs.
Ethan Lucke scored to make it 5-3 for Collingwood. Cole Young then raced down the left sideline to the dismay of the SMUS fans in the hospitality tent to make it 10-3. When Nate Holm then sliced through the SMUS defence to make it 15-3, beer sales began to double as the Blue Jags' fans realized it could be a long afternoon for their team.
SMUS narrowed the deficit to 15-6 with their second penalty kick of the afternoon. However, any momentum the Blue Jags had disappeared when Duncan Bustos dummied and then cut through the SMUS defence and then converted his own try. At halftime, the Cavs were up 22-6.
Unfortunately, Collingwood was not sharp at all to open the second half. Multiple opportunities were squandered and the Cavs found themselves constantly starting from deep in their own end due to the tactical kicking of SMUS.
Finally, Collingwood regained their pattern and this put Cam Bruk into space. Cam drove towards the line carrying multiple SMUS defenders on his back before he reached out with the ball to score a terrific try. Thomas Simon followed this up with the final try of the day when he crashed over. Duncan's conversion capped off the outstanding 34-6 win.
Collingwood will now enter this week as the #1 team in the province in AA. The annual Hatch Shield game is this Friday at Rockridge so the Cavs will be playing another of their arch-rivals in the final league game of the year.
Duncan Bustos had a superb day as he tormented the SMUS defence with a mix of kicks, forward charges and well-spun wide balls that released the pace of the Collingwood backs.
Cam Bruk with ball scored an amazing individual try showcasing his speed and power. Cole Soprovich (in support) had his best game in the 1st XV as he was fast to the breakdowns and moved the ball away quickly.