Come-from-behind win for Barbs

BY TED ARVANITIS

The women’s premier division Montreal Barbarians rugby team added one more to their win column by beating Quebec City this past Saturday.

With the victory, the Barbs record now moves to 6-3 and helps solidify their second-place ranking behind Ste. Anne.

Barbarians coach John Thompson is confident this year’s team can repeat as Quebec Cup champions.

“We’ve lost a couple of close ones, but the team has the ability to once again go all the way,” he said.

The Barbs were without the services of several players because of injuries Saturday, but that did not deter them from taking the field against their tough Quebec City rivals.

Both sides were battling very hard for field position. However, this caused the game to have very little flow in the first half, with many knock-ons being committed.

The Barbs struggled to gain ball possession throughout the entire first half and were pinned deep in their territory several times.

Quebec City capitalized on their good field position and took a 3-0 lead in the middle of the first half with a 14-yard penalty kick.

The Barbs continued to fight hard for the rest of the half, but were unable to make any progress against the aggressive Quebec City squad.

Halftime did not seem to change the Barbs play and Quebec scored again once more on a another short penalty kick.

Even though the Barbs were down 6-0, they did not give up. They pushed forward and not only did they gain field position, but they also controlled possession of the ball.

Halfway through the second half Elisa Alarie broke free and managed to score for the Barbs. Jackie Tittley was successful in her difficult 20-yard conversion attempt from the right side, giving the Barbs a

7-6 lead.

Once the Barbs took the lead, they didn’t look back. They controlled the rest of the game and Quebec City was completely helpless until the final whistle was blown.

Sylvia McIntosh solidified the win by scoring in the late stages of the game and once again Tittley made a difficult 22-yard conversion from the right side.

Thompson was satisfied the team kept its composure and didn’t fall apart after failing to score in the first half.

“They stayed calm, moved the ball wider, the forwards did a good job on controlling the ball, and overall we had a good game,” the coach said.

The 14-6 victory was an important one for the Barbs as they look to prepare for the Quebec Cup Championship playoffs later this month.