MONTREAL – In a physical, low-scoring affair, the Thunderbirds suffered their first defeat of the 2025-26 campaign in the Canadian University Men's Rugby Championship semifinals.
 
The victors were the Guelph Gryphons, who fell behind early but tied things up by the end of the first half and nudged ahead late in the second.
 
To begin the match, the T-Birds were certainly in control. They didn't Guelph touch the ball past the halfway line at all in the opening period of play.
 
Their repeated drives forward paid off in the 12th minute, as they turned a lineout deep into Gryphons territory into a UBC maul pushing the ball towards the goal line. Emmett Allan was the try scorer in the end, with teammate Callum Arnesen helping pull him across the final couple yards. Liam James' kick sailed through the uprights, putting his team up 7-0 early.
 
Both teams had the opportunity to put points on the board on following possessions, but some key turnovers on both sides left the score the same until the very end of the half.
 
Trouble began for the T-Birds when the Gryphons got the ball deep into UBC territory. Then, Ben Martin was shown a yellow card to give Guelph the advantage. They made full use of it, as Liam Bowman played a perfectly placed low kick through the Thunderbirds' defence, which Kobe Faust ran onto and dove on in the try zone.
 
The two teams thus entered the break tied up at 7-7, with all to play for in the second half.


 
Still playing a man down to begin the second period, the T-Birds worked hard to try and ensure ensure that there was no more scoring from their opponents. Demetri Patterson nearly sprang loose down the left sideline, but was dragged back by a Gryphons defender before he could truly break free.
 
As the clock continued to tick by with no scoring on either side, each team knew that every possible point was becoming more and more crucial. The Gryphons went for a very long penalty kick attempt with 10 minutes to go, but it fell short.
 
Guelph's kicking came through in the end, however, as they scored six points on a pair of kicks in the final few minutes to push themselves ahead. The Thunderbirds were unable to make a charge forward to grab the win at the death, and the Gryphons booked their place in the championship match for the first time ever.
 
UBC will now play for bronze on Sunday afternoon. Their opponent will be either familiar foes UVic, or tournament hosts ETS.