Old Brentonian named rugby All-Canadian
Brentwood College graduate and current UVic Vike, Siôn Griffiths, of Mill Bay has been named a first team 2024 rugby All-Canadian. The announcement was made at the Canadian University Men's Rugby Championship awards brunch, Nov. 14, in Ottawa.
The freshman centre and his team played at the Canadian University Men’s Rugby Championships in the nation's capital Nov. 13-17. The No. 3 ranked Vikes fell to Queens in the semi-finals on Nov. 15, ultimately placing fifth.
UVic's men's rugby squad also features Duncan products freshman Josh Ketch, and sophomore Jaxon Jones.
A six-foot-tall back row player, Jones graduated from Cowichan Secondary School and plays club rugby with the Cowichan Piggies.
A 5-foot-11-inch outside back, Ketch graduated from Shawnigan Lake School and lists the Salish Sea Warriors as his home club.
Norsten represents Canada at Premier Rugby Sevens All-Star Tournament
Fresh off an Olympic silver medal, Queen Margaret’s School ('21) and MacDowell Rugby Academy product Carissa Norsten, of Waldheim, Sask. played with Team Canada at the Premier Rugby Sevens (PR7s) All-Star Tournament on Nov. 17 at Providence Park in Portland.
“The PR7s All-Star Tournament will help us kick off the 2025 season, giving our program an opportunity to take on some quality competition and see some new player combinations ahead of the start of the 2026 HSBC SVNS series,” said head coach Jocelyn Barrieau, ahead of the event.
Canada went on to beat the PR7's All-Stars squad 27-0 and Team USA 26-5.
Cowichan rugby players named to BC Bears for Global Youth Sevens
Duncan's Rafi Barrack, of the Cowichan Rugby Football Club had been named to the BC Bears U18 girls rugby team competing at the Global Youth Sevens Dec. 13-15 in Aukland, New Zealand.
Joining Barrack in representing British Columbia, Sam Blundell (Brentwood College School, Nanaimo), Jonty Nicholas (UBC Thunderbirds, Cowichan Valley), Rio Iwabuchi (Salish Sea Warriors, Shawnigan Lake), and Owen Barlow (Salish Sea Warriors,Victoria) have all been named to the U18 boys team.
The Global Youth Sevens tournament offers players a high level of competition on the field but also a week of culture and hospitality.
Cowichan Piggies dominate junior games
It was a clean sweep for the Cowichan junior Piggies on Nov. 17 when the U18 boys and girls, the U16 boys and girls and the U14 boys were all in action and were victorious.
The five teams didn't just win, though, they dominated their competition. The U18, U16, and U14 boys all visited Westshore. The U18s won 41-0, the U16s won 88-57, and the U14 boys won 72-28.
Meanwhile, the U18 girls travelled north to Comox and beat them 53-7 while the U16 girls were on the road in Port Alberni and they beat NVIRU 59-14.
The U18, U16 and U14 boys sat third, second, and third in their league's through the season's first six games respectively while the U18 girls were second through six games and the U16 girls were third through five games.
The future's looking good for Cowichan rugby as well. While all the juniors were on the road, the Cowichan Rugby Club hosted more than 260 mini rugby players at Piggie Park for the last all-Island mini-jamboree of the season.
