Banff rugby men trying to claw into playoffs

BANFF – The Banff Bears rugby men got the big game they needed with their season teetering on the line. 

The Bears defeated the Calgary Rams 30-19 last Saturday (Aug. 10) at Banff Recreation Grounds in the team’s final home game of the regular season, picking up a crucial victory to keep playoff hopes alive. But with one regular season game remaining, anything can happen.

With a 3-6 record, the Bears are trying to claw into the eighth spot for the playoffs, but the reeling Red Deer Titans (3-6), which have lost four straight, stand in the Bears’ path.

The two teams’ final regular season games are this Saturday (Aug. 17), with the Bears taking on the sixth-ranked Foothills Lions and the Titans against the second-seeded Calgary Saints.

The Bears currently have the advantage in the case of a playoff tie breaker in points for vs points against differential, according to Alberta Rugby rules.

“But it all might not matter if we win our next game and they lose,” said Bears head coach Andrew Mitchell.

After knocking off the fifth-seeded Rams, the Bears, which is mostly a new team on the pitch this year, are finding their groove late following four straight losses to start the season. 

“We’re kind of finally hitting our stride and it’s telling as a team,” said Mitchell. “They’re getting used to each other so they know what the guy next to who’s gonna do and where to be, so they’re quietly confident. We just have to come play our game and not get sucked into whatever Foothills want because when we play our style, we’re right up there with the best in the league.”

Two games ago, the Bears were up against the then top-seeded Saints, and the local squad led at half. Although the Bears were unable to hang on, their game was starting to click.

The young Bears squad plays a fast-running game that has mostly been high-risk, high-reward throughout the season. 

Bears Captain Matthew Soukas said a lot of things they’ve worked on in training are starting to pay off.

“This last game was kind of like the pinnacle of that,” Soukas said.

“So I think if we play like we have been the last number of games, we kind of beat anyone.”

The first round of the Calgary Rugby Union playoffs starts Aug. 24 at the CRU park.