St Michaels University School - Black Red and Blue Yearbook (Victoria, British Columbia Canada)

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R GBY FIRST FIFTEEN The first fifteen squad did extremely' well this year. For the first time in the history of the school our first fifteen was allowed to enter the Victoria High School Rugby' League. Indeed, we worked hard and well. but fellyiust short of winning what would have been our greatest victory: The squad was not a large side. Certainly' we had some large players such as Banks, Lum, DiCastri and McCarten, but overall it could llol be considered a large. heavy' side. The scrum was effective. however: time and time again we were shoved offthe ball in the set. The loose rucks were not the scrunfs strong point, but when all eight worked together it was devastating. The three-quarter line was very good, and apart from holding onto the ball too long, thus starving the wingers, it consisted of some very' fast and talented players. Reg Moore was often seen bailing the three-quarter line out of trouble. and if necessary' was ready to tackle all the members of the opposition one after another. Bob Wright, who possessed great speed and strength. was another asset to the team, but it was a gamble as to whether or not he would play for the side each game. His white socks, however. flashed the spectators hlind at the majority' of the games. Without a doubt, Olson's kicking was essential. Many' times his penalty' kicks bailed the side out oftrouble and often won the game. Hardman was an extremely good runner. possessing a verv good dummv pass and a long side- L I 1, I mL step. He was known among fellow players to be an excellent tackler. bringing down anything which carried the ball, regardless of size or weight. Fowler and Koo suffered the fate of not receiving the ball early' in the season, however as threequarter improved in moving the ball. their speed was to rank alongside Wright's. Fowler was fast. but lacked good effective tnoves early in the season. Koo was a strong runner. but also lacked moves and was often forced out of bounds. Banks and Lum made sturdy' props and were both well experienced when it came to the sets. Bissett was a good hookerg however.without a good shove he was beaten. DiCastri was Cl2lZ7llI1g in the lineout. His height and experience werejust what the team needed in the line out. Butler was very strong and was prepared to take onthe whole opposing st rum alone. He was well experienced and his quickness and agility on the field were extremely valuable. Higgins also was quick to the loose and very' effective in smuggling the ball out of the loose. Dunbar, whose height was a great advantage, was very' good in the lineouts, especially near the try' line of the opposition. K, K5

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The team fared well against Brentwood and Shawnigan, winning one oftwo games against Brentwood and defeating Shawnigan at home while losing away. St. Georges were a tough, well-clisciplined side, and were our first oppo- nents of the season. Although we fought bravely and scored shortly after the kic k-off and very near the end, we lost 11 to 25. On Oct. 13th we faced St. Georges again, only at home. Determined to win,we paraded onto the field and were promptly beaten 4 to 28. Our third fixture was also to be a de- moralizer. The L'Yic jutes took a victory of 14-0 over us and wet, muddy conditions helped little. On October 20th the first fifteen were determined to break the backs of 15rentwood's first side. We worked as a team, and conditions were in our favour. Our morale grew as we scored and scored again. The final whistle blew and the score was in our favour, 14-1 1. In this game against Claremont we suf- fered injuries and in our next fixture this was apparent. At Shawnigan, on the 3rd November, we were Cut to ribbons. We held for the first half, but to no avail. We failed in the second half. The final score was 32-O. The Old Boys' game was very enjoyable. As would be expected, their team consisted of 19 or 20-odd players who wouldjump on and off the field at their leisure. It was a fun game for all and we came out on top with a score of 18-14. The following weekend,the 17th of November, proved to be demoralizing. Facing Brentwood in the rain and mud was bad enough. but the game was away for us and the school spirit and spectators, which at times throughout the sea- son proved to be an important factor, was left in Victoria. The game was close, but we lost 6-9. On the 8th of December we faced Shawnigan at home and in- tended to win. Win we did. The final score was lll-3 and a hard, tough game it had been. The Spring Term brought the High School Rugby League games. One month after the League got under way, our first fifteen squad made the pap- ers. 'St. Michaels still unbeatenl Our first game against Reynolds gave Fowler a hat trick and Koo two tries. The final score was 40-3. The next three games were all victories. Oak Bay were our only real rivals as well as Vic High and Claremont who were good sides not to be ignored. On February 23, Oak Bay beat us at home, a stunning blow, but Parklands we beat four days later. Claremont and Vic High beat us while we were on foreign ground on March 4th and 8th respectively. The playoffs were tense and did the school a tremendous amount ofgood as far as school spirit goes. On April lst, the semi-final was played and a close game it was. the final score being 1-4-13. Stewart came screaming down the sidelines in the last seconds of the game, received the ball from Wright, dived over the line and won the game. The final between our first fifteen and Oak Bay was a hard battle. The score was to show this, and poor coverage and a lucky break for Oak Bay cost us the four points which enabled Oak Bay to take the cup. It was a close, well-played gatne and was simply a question of who scored first. The rugby year was good in tnany respects. and I would like to thank on be- halfof the first fifteen all those who gave us good support throughout the year. Those persons are definitely restoring our school spirit to its normal peak. Vivatl Murray McCarten lst XV Captain. 24