Rugby: Colts Show Vast Improvement

The Colts rugby team has weathered the "storm of progress" this term, making steady and impressive improvement since September. Last Saturday, the Brentwood and Shawnigan Colts squads renewed their long-standing rivalry. The Gold and Black side has been in excellent form throughout the season, having defeated Brentwood on two previous occasions. The Brentwood Colts knew they had their work cut out for them if they were to have success against Shawnigan, given that the opposition are blessed with several talented players. Clearly, the Brentwood players have benefitted significantly from the lessons Coaches Healy and Plater have instilled in them during training sessions. Indeed, Brentwood kept the high powered Shawnigan team in check for the majority of the first half with some devastating defence and rucking. On several occasions, Brentwood had promising attacks stretch the Shawnigan defence. Penalty problems led to a late first-half try by Shawnigan, but it was clear for all to see that Brentwood has developed both the ability and self-belief to compete with their slick counterparts. The second half was dominated by the excellent scrum-half from Shawnigan, who was able to control the match and set up a good try to see Shawnigan through for the victory. The Brentwood players, however, left the field in determined mood and will undoubtedly use the next two weeks of training to find a way to try and defeat their rivals from up the road. Brentwood travels to Vanier High School in Courtenay for a match on Tuesday, and will then prepare for the Island Rugby Championships at Shawnigan the following week. Keep an eye on this site for further details.