FERGUS – This week is set to be the biggest week of the season for Highland Rugby Club with a big home tournament and three teams competing in regional and provincial finals.
The club is set to host its annual Minis and Youth tournament on Aug. 9, where over 1,000 players and spectators are expected.
Also this weekend the U16 girls will be in London for the U16 Regional Finals and the U18 boys will have two teams competing in finals with the regional team playing in London on Saturday and the provincial team playing in Kingston on Sunday.
Highland U16 girls are going to London as number one seeds as they finished the season with a 6-1 record where they won the Regional West Pool.
This means they get a bye in the first round and enter the finals at the semi final stage – one win away from the gold medal game.
“These girls have been very dedicated all season and are looking forward to representing Highland against other top teams from Western Ontario on Sunday Aug. 10,” stated club officials.
The U18 boys program this year has been a success, with over 50 boys registering to play, meaning Highland could submit teams in both the provincial and regional competitions.
The U18 regional team qualified for finals day in London on Aug. 9 after placing second, so they will play in the first round against Markham Irish.
The team has performed well this season, only losing to Stratford Blackswans.
“This team are an exciting young team to watch and will look to finish the season strong, they are primarily players born in 2008 meaning they will make the step up to the provincial team next season,” officials stated.
The U18 boys provincial team are officially one of the top four teams in Ontario.
They travel to Kingston to play Oakville Crusaders in their provincial semi final on Aug. 10.
The winner will play either Oshawa Vikings or Kingston Panthers to see who is the best U18 team in the province.
Highland recovered from a first game loss to Brantford and have now won seven games in a row to make it to Provincials.
“The core of this team has been coached by head coach Graeme Nelson for over 10 years, so this is the culmination of many years hard work and dedication,” officials stated.
As some of the team will leave for university in the coming weeks, reaching provincials is phase one for this group as they look to bring home the championship.
“This group has developed their play and executed some excellent rugby this season, being led by out half Landon Stafford who will look to push the team further than they have gone before,” officials stated.
For more updates and information keep an eye on the club’s Facebook and Instagram pages @highlandrugby.
