VANCOUVER - When these two teams met in early October it was Burnaby who came away with the win, scoring three tries from their dominance at the set scrum when prop
Chris Taylor left the field with an injury. There is no doubt that the home team was expecting to exploit this set piece dominance again and there was an air of confidence among the home team and its supporters. The dominance never materialized as UBC produced an outstanding display at the sets and in defense to complement the overall team speed around the park and come away with a 20-10 victory.
The Birds struck early. With just over five minutes on the clock possession was claimed from a scrum in right field in the UBC half.
Theo Sauder (St George's) started the play and got a second touch when he wrapped around
Adam McQueen (Canmore). The covering Burnaby forwards were left grasping at air as Sauder came round the corner and straightened up at pace before feeding full back
Nick Collett (Southridge) who passed on to
Manar Kulkhan (Port Moody). Kulkhan's form has been consistent all season and he powered through and away from defenders to score on the left. McQueen converted and the visitors led 7-0.
The gap closed to 7-3 when Burnaby stand-off Mike Goodall converted a penalty against UBC. The game within the game was also taking shape as Burnaby looked to assert itself at scrum. When, after fifteen minutes, the scrum was reset three times and the home team was unable to move the UBC pack it was apparent that the outcome of the game may be different from the one in September. This became clearer when the Birds began to claim its own line-out ball and also disrupt the Burnaby line-out possession. The overall team speed of the birds continued to cause Burnaby problems. Sauder almost created a second try when he countered down the left and fed outside center Nico Clironomos (Lord Byng) who delayed his pass to Kulkhan and the chance was gone.
After twenty-five minutes it was speed of thought that opened up the Burnaby defence again as
Jorden Sandover-Best (Robert Bateman) took a quick tap up the centre of the field. The ball was shifted quickly from the ruck to Sauder and then
Connor Hamilton (St George's) who passed to Clironomos to finish off near the corner. The conversion failed but the Birds stretched their lead to 12-3. The home side had an opportunity to close the gap when they were awarded a penalty right at the half but Goodall's effort hit the post and the score remained at 12-3.
With the Birds leading at the half and scoring two tries in the process, this game was following a similar pattern to the one in October apart from two important points; first, the weather conditions remained dry and second the Birds were more competitive at the sets. UBC were also closing down Burnaby's attempts to play a more expensive game in the backs.
The first twenty minutes of the second half saw both teams trying to create some continuity in terms of both possession and field position. UBC flankers
Nakai Penny (Penticton) and
Jake Ikeda (Magee) were in everything; challenging at the contact points, picking up loose balls at line-outs and harassing Burnaby ball carriers. The turning point of the half came just after twenty minutes when
Cole Keffer (Sutherland), who had come on to replace Sauder, penetrated at searing pace off a left field line out just outs UBC's twenty two. Clironomos carried on the move before UBC were awarded a penalty. The Birds then drove the ball to the right and pummeled the Burnaby line before
Neil Courtney (Handsworth) drove the ball across the line in the right corner. McQueen missed the extra points but the lead was now 17-3.
The final blow was delivered from another line out, this time on the right. UBC attacked on the left and Clironomos almost got through the defence. The attack drew a penalty from Burnaby and McQueen capped off a fine all round display by converting the penalty from wide out on the right to extend the lead to 20-3. Burnaby continued to press as time wound down and eventually scrum half Rockson crossed from close range on the right. Goodall converted and the game finished 20-10 for UBC.
UBC's Ben LeSage gets first cap for Canada
In Romania, a frustrating evening for the Canadian National side was a watershed moment in the career of UBC Thunderbirds centre
Ben Lesage. Lesage earned his first national team cap as part of the Canadian side that started slow and couldn't complete the comeback versus Romania, falling to the Eastern European side 21-16.
The senior men's side is looking to grab at least one win on their November tour, as they also lost to Ireland on 52-21 on November 12th. The Canadians square off against Samoa on November 25th.
