The Pen High Lakers junior boys rugby team gave the Salmon Arm Gold a test in the South Zone playoffs at McNicoll Park May 13, but it wasnāt enough.
They bowed 34-17.
āThey played against a team that was probably a little bit better than them, a little bigger, a little stronger,ā said Lakers coach Ken Sommerfeldt āThey ran hard. All year long they have been up against teams that were probably a bit bigger than them.ā
After emphasizing the size factor, Sommerfeldt said the Lakers played well. To him, the score wasnāt the right indicator of how the game played out.
āThe boys at the end got a bit tired and a couple scores got run in,ā said Sommerfeldt. āOverall it was a fairly close game until the last 10 minutes.ā
Critical injuries also hampered the Lakersā efforts and the coach didnāt have enough spare players and was forced to put some players in unfamiliar positions. Thatās when things began to fall apart.
Laker Braden Innes said they played their hardest, but added it could have been better.
āIt was a pretty good game,ā said Innes. āThey are a good team. They played tough. Itās definitely a challenge.ā
Innes pointed out that as the Gold increased their lead, some Lakers lost motivation.
After the game, Darian Butler was named man of the match by Sommerfeldt, who said Butler tackled every person in sight.
āHe ran with the ball strongly,ā said Sommerfeldt. āHe was on the ball all the time. He was aggressive the whole game. I thought he was very visible out there. That was his best game.ā
Dante Kilian scored two of the Lakersā tries and Finn Kennedy scored their third try.
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