Appleby College - Argus Yearbook (Oakville, Ontario Canada)

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The Under 17 Rugger Team FRONT ROW: Wright I, Jackson II, McBride I, Bourne, Crosbie II, Slattery II, Withey, Moffat, McCarter. BACK ROW: Jennings II, Hall, Johnson I, Bloemen I, Keates I, VanTighem II, Graham, Thomson II, Kingsley, Kacan, Mr. Stuart. This season proved to be the toughest experience by the U-17 team since the school started playing fifteen-a-side. The op- position showed that they are im- proving each year and that easy wins are becoming a thing of the past. The opening exhibition game against Ridley took place in a fifty mile an hour wind, but despite a ball which was hard to handle, the side won 20-0. The first real test came in the second game when a much strengthened U.C.C. side allowed only the narrowest of wins to Appleby. It was then that we knew the op- position was stronger! The first league game was against T.C.S. and by this time the team was playing as a cohesive unit with a number of new players setting the pace for some of the old hands. The T.C.S. game was hardly a test as the score of 42-0 for Appleby would indicate. The real test came when we played S.A.C., narrowly losing by a score of 8-6. In this particular game the inex- v r ? % 113

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in the scrum and the drive that got him many tries; Nick Water- field for his kicking; Rick Wilson for his second effort, that moved the ball extra yards, and John Slattery for his great job at full back - when his health allowed him to play. Without its leaders, the team would not have enjoyed the success that it did. The cap- tains, John Rosseel, Kerry Cantle and Tim Labrie, led the team in ability and enthusiasm. A great deal of the success of the team is due to these three for their guidance, help and leadership. The Rugger team was successful in two ways; we won the league Championship and, more im- portantly, we had fun playing good, clean rugger. The credit for both these successes goes to Mr. Washington. He trained the team (some of whom had never before seen a rugger ball) into a team that could play well. More than just teaching us how to play the game, he taught us how to play it cleanly ' just to have fun - for if we did that, we would win ' . We did that. Thank you, Mr. Washington. D.M.C. 4sF 0?N 112

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• » perience ot many players stood out, particularly in defense where the habit of throwing the ball away under pressure resulted in both of S.A.C. ' s tries. Following the S.A.C. defeat, the first in league competition for two years, Appleby managed to win the remainder of its games against U.C.C., Lakefield and Ridley. The final standings show Appleby and S.A.C. tied for first place as the latter lost one of their league games during the season. It was a good season with much credit going to the leadership of Paul Crosbie, our captain, and Jim Slattery our Vice-Captain. With a number of players likely to remain at this level next year, we should once again look forward to an enjoyable and, we hope, successful season. 114