It was time for an epic showdown: #1 Bears hosting #5 Gaels under perfect weather. Within the first 3 minutes of the game, Cal attempted a penalty kick which missed, but then we got another penalty kick which was good, putting us up by 3. But St. Marys then got a penalty kick (3-3), followed by another Cal kick (6-3), followed by another St. Marys kick (6-6). Defense really kicked in for both teams as there was no more scoring for a good chunk of the first half. But then St. Marys found some weaknesses and scored two successive tries, making the score 21-6 favoring the visitors, which is how the half ended.
Cal has always been a second half team, and today was no exception. We scored a try within the first three minutes of the second half, followed by another a few minutes later, bring the score to 21-20, favoring St. Marys. But Cal then notched their third try of the game, finally putting us ahead. I think we scored another try followed by a penalty kick before St. Mary's scored their next try. After that I lost track of the scoring sequence, but the game ended Cal 42, St. Marys 31.
I was really impressed by the Gaels - they played their hearts out and made very few mistakes. I think they were as good as UBC. They were about the same build as Cal, and had plenty of speed. Lineouts were about equal (I think each team stole a lineout from the opposition), but IMO St. Marys was slightly dominant in the scrums. One crucial difference was the conversion kicker. Twice their kicker missed relatively easy kicks following their tries, whereas our kicker, Jake Anderson, made three [U]really [/U]tough conversions from the sidelines. Together, these accounted for a 10 point differential in Cal's favor, and may have been the ultimate deciding factor in the game. St. Marys also brought a very vocal cheering crowd, so their team had plenty of support.
Regrettably, there were some injury problems: We lost two men in the first half to injury, and a third in the second half. We also had two players leave the field for blood injury, but those were minor, and I believe they came right back.
So congrats Bears! We may get to see them one more time at Witter Field this year if Cal is chosen to host the April 27th semi-finals game, but even if not, this was a magnificent finish for our home games this season.
Cal has always been a second half team, and today was no exception. We scored a try within the first three minutes of the second half, followed by another a few minutes later, bring the score to 21-20, favoring St. Marys. But Cal then notched their third try of the game, finally putting us ahead. I think we scored another try followed by a penalty kick before St. Mary's scored their next try. After that I lost track of the scoring sequence, but the game ended Cal 42, St. Marys 31.
I was really impressed by the Gaels - they played their hearts out and made very few mistakes. I think they were as good as UBC. They were about the same build as Cal, and had plenty of speed. Lineouts were about equal (I think each team stole a lineout from the opposition), but IMO St. Marys was slightly dominant in the scrums. One crucial difference was the conversion kicker. Twice their kicker missed relatively easy kicks following their tries, whereas our kicker, Jake Anderson, made three [U]really [/U]tough conversions from the sidelines. Together, these accounted for a 10 point differential in Cal's favor, and may have been the ultimate deciding factor in the game. St. Marys also brought a very vocal cheering crowd, so their team had plenty of support.
Regrettably, there were some injury problems: We lost two men in the first half to injury, and a third in the second half. We also had two players leave the field for blood injury, but those were minor, and I believe they came right back.
So congrats Bears! We may get to see them one more time at Witter Field this year if Cal is chosen to host the April 27th semi-finals game, but even if not, this was a magnificent finish for our home games this season.