2007 OCAA MEN'S RUGBY REGULAR SEASON PREVIEW

2006 REGULAR SEASON STANDINGS
Mohawk (7-0)
Fleming, P (5-1)
Humber (5-1)
Seneca (4-3)
Conestoga (3-4)
Georgian (2-5)
Loyalist (1-6)
Fleming, L (0-7)
(W/L)

2006 OCAA CHAMPIONSHIP
Gold: Mohawk
Silver: Humber
Bronze: Seneca

THIS WEEK IN THE OCAA
Three games will be featured in the opening week in Men’s Rugby. The Mohawk Mountaineers (2006 defending champions) will unveil their championship banner at home as they host the Loyalist Lancers on Wednesday afternoon in Hamilton. Mohawk will then travel to Toronto on Saturday to face the George Brown Huskies in their OCAA Men’s Rugby debut. Long time rivals will match up in Peterborough on Sunday afternoon as the Fleming Knights will host the Conestoga Condors.

TEAM PREVIEWS

Mohawk College
2006 Regular Season Record: 7-0
2006 Playoff Record: 2-0 (Gold)
Championships Won: 2

The only thing sweeter than going undefeated enroute to the gold medal is to do it all over again. That is the challenge the Mohawk Mountaineer are faced with as they enter the 2007 season as the defending OCAA Champions. In his ninth year as the Mountaineer bench boss, Alex Paris will hope the remaining nine players from his 2006 championship squad can show the freshmen class the ropes as opposing teams will be bringing their “A-game” against Mohawk all season long.

Key veterans returning to the team will be 2006 scoring champion James Cumpson, flanker Steven Johnston, 2nd row Jeff Perssia, hooker Keith Garbett and back row Tyler Struyk. These players were all key members last season where the Mountaineers went undefeated picking up 6 of 7 bonus points along the way.

The Mountaineers will most likely stick with the same game plan which used team speed and spread the ball out evenly, never allowing their opponents to focus in on one player. Last season, five of the top seven scorers wore Mohawk colours. This year, the team will look to win their first back-to-back Men’s Rugby title in their college’s history. Mohawk will kick off the season at home as they face the Loyalist Lancers on Wednesday night.

Humber College
2006 Regular Season Record: 5-1
2006 Playoff Record: 1-1 (Silver)
Championships Won: 0

The Humber College Men’s Rugby team have taken a step up every year since they entered play four years ago, with last year being a near golden performance. The silver medal was the final outcome, but in reality a potential championship was just a few yards away in the rainy conditions on the pitch at Fletcher’s Fields.

A number of key performers will be returning this year, including MVP, Andre Rose-Green, Rookie of the Year, Andre Blake and OCAA All-star Dale Essue.

Carey French will take over the head coaching role on his own as former co-head coach Alister Mathieson will concentrate on college duties. Carey, along with current assistants Gary Noseworthy and Rick Bot have been very active in identifying talent for the Hawk’s squad.

Look for the Hawks to play a very athletic game, complete with speed and toughness. A regular season title is something still eluding the Hawks, but is very much in view this year. With a division title usually comes a favourable semi-final match up and a possible trip back to the gold medal game. Humber will have to wait awhile for their season opener as they travel to Kitchener on September 26 in a match-up against the Conestoga Condors.

Seneca College
2006 Regular Season Record: 4-3
2006 Playoff Record: 1-1 (Bronze)
Championships Won: 5

After having their five-year championship title dynasty ended last year by a stellar Mohawk Mountaineer team, Seneca Rugby will look to rebound this season and regain the lustre that was once so dominant.

Returning 12 players to the roster, Hooker, Adam Handscomb and Centre, Bryan Walmsley, will look to lead the team back to a title game. Coach, Bob McArthur, will also be returning to the sidelines for his ninth season at the helm and hopes to send his boys back to the playoffs and contend for another provincial championship.

Seneca has set the benchmark for OCAA teams to strive for in Men’s Rugby. From 2001-2005, the Sting managed to win five provincial titles, including a 46 match winning streak.

Seneca will first hit the pitch in 2007 on September 18 as they travel to Belleville to face the Loyalist Lancers.

Fleming - Peterborough
2006 Regular Season Record: 5-1
2006 Playoff Record: 0-2 (4th)
Championships Won: 2

The Fleming Knights and 13 year veteran coach, Rick Nydam, will look to avenge a disappointing end to their 2006 season that saw the team miss a Provincial Championship medal by a mere single point in the bronze medal game verses Seneca College. This was the first time in eight years the Knights did not reach the medal podium.

With 12 players returning, including Steve Basel (back-row), who could move into the top five all-time career scoring leaders this season, Kurtis Horn (scrum-half), Eric Abbott (front-row), Josh Andrew (front-row), Chad Carl (centre) and Dean Dwyre (lock), this squad should be a top four team again and gold may be the colour this Peterborough based team could be in the hunt for. The Knights will have home field advantage in their season opener as they host the Conestoga Condors on Sunday afternoon.

Conestoga College
2006 Regular Season Record: 3-4
2006 Playoff Record: DNQ
Championships Won: 0

Conestoga just missed out of the post season festivities in 2006 as they posted a 3-4 record, losing to the fourth place Seneca Sting 27-15 in the final weeks of the regular season. Conestoga must have a well balanced scoring attack if they hope to qualify for the post season in 2007, as the Condors only had three players scoring over 10 points last season.

The Condors have a tough start to their season, as three of their first four games are against 2006 play-off qualifying teams (Mohawk, Humber and Fleming P). If the Condors manage to pull out a couple of wins during this tough stretch, they will certainly be contenders heading down the stretch and into the post season. Conestoga will be on the road for their first two games of the season as they travel to Peterborough for their season opener on Sunday afternoon and then make the journey to Toronto to face the first year George Brown Huskies on September 21st.

George Brown College
2006 Regular Season Record: did not participate
2006 Playoff Record: did not participate
Championships Won: 0

The George Brown Huskies are the new kids on the block as they enter the 2007 season as the ninth team in Men’s Rugby. The Huskies will be put to the test right away as their first game is against the 2006 defending champion Mohawk Mountaineers. Head coach Alan Kasperski will lead the way for the first-year Huskies and will look to build a program that is successful for years to come.

Georgian College
2006 Regular Season Record: 2-5
2006 Playoff Record: DNQ
Championships Won: 1 (’96)

The 2006 edition of the Georgian Grizzlies faltered down the stretch as they lost their final three games of the regular season and dropped out of playoff contention. Head coach Kevin Gillan (8th season) will hope the Grizzlies will be able to rebound from the disappointment last season and qualify for the post season for the first time since 2002.

The Grizzlies might have the most experience on the pitch this season as they are bringing back 14 players from last year’s squad. Key returnees include team captain Christian Walsh (full back), OCAA All-Star Phil Lapointe (2nd row) and team leading scorer Sean Swierlinski (outside centre). Rugby fans in Barrie can expect the Grizzlies to gel quickly with the large number of returning veterans. In their first game of the year, the Grizzlies will match up against the Mohawk Mountaineers on September 19th in Hamilton.

Loyalist College
2006 Regular Season Record: 1-6
2006 Playoff Record: DNQ
Championships Won: 0

The Loyalist Lancers are back for their second season in OCAA Men’s Rugby. The Lancers faired well in their first year in the league, averaging 19 points per game against non-playoff opponents. The Lancers picked up their lone win in convincing fashion as they defeated the Fleming Auks 34-10 on the road. In his second year with the team, head coach Larry Cook will hope that having one year under the team’s belt will allow the team to crack the .500 mark in only their second year in the league. Loyalist will open their season up on the road against the defending champion Mohawk Mountaineers on Tuesday afternoon.

Fleming – Lindsay
2006 Regular Season Record: 0-7
2006 Playoff Record: DNQ
Championships Won: 0

In their first three seasons in Men’s Rugby, the Fleming Auks qualified for the playoffs, earning a silver medal in 1996, a bronze medal in 1997 and a fourth place finish in 1998. Fleming has not been able to continue their success as they have failed to qualify for the playoffs in seven straight seasons. In 2007, the Auks will look to get back to their early success and qualify for the playoff in the upcoming months. To do this, the Auks need to come up with a stronger defensive strategy as they allowed a league high 35.7 PPG. The Auks open their season in Barrie as they travel up the 400 Highway to challenge the Georgian Grizzlies on September 23rd.