The Pontiac High School (PHS) girls’ rugby program earned its fourth consecutive Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) Division 3 regional championship after a series of hard-fought games at the league’s final weekend in Aylmer.
The finals, hosted at D’Arcy McGee High School, featured teams from across the Outaouais, including two teams from Pontiac High School, which were ranked number one and two going into the weekend.
The Pontiac 1 team started the day off with a 27-12 semi-final win over Philemon Wright High School. The Pontiac 2 team followed that up with a 12-5 semi-final decision over D’Arcy McGee, setting up a PHS versus PHS final matchup.
After a hard-fought game, it was the Pontiac 1 team that came out on top, posting a 14-5 win over their Panther counterparts. Girls’ head coach Phil Holmes said this is the first year his teams have finished first and second at regionals, something he said speaks volumes about how much his players have improved during their time with the program.
“It speaks to the amount of work that went into the program this year and how much work the girls put in and the experience that they gained through the course of the year. It says a lot for our two teams who were able to beat the teams from much larger schools,” he said.
Holmes, who played a hand in building the school’s rugby program back up after the COVID-19 pandemic, said the program has built a lasting team culture – something that didn’t come without its challenges.
“We overcame them leading up to this year. The challenges are playing as a team, getting along as a team, getting younger players up to speed. But it didn’t take long this year – right from day one, we worked together so well,” he said.
“My most enjoyable experience coaching in my life was watching these girls grow as a team, and not only how fierce and competitive [they are], but how hard they were willing to work to get better as well.”
The PHS boys’ program also had two teams competing in the final weekend. The Pontiac 1 team qualified for the semi-final by defeating D’Arcy McGee by a score of 24-5. Then, in the semis, they suffered a 20-5 defeat to Philemon Wright 1. The Pontiac 2 team lost their semi-final matchup against Philemon Wright 2 by a score of 12-5.
Boys’ coach Reece Bastien said while the result wasn’t what his team wanted, he was proud of the way his teams fought and improved throughout the season.
“We had a tight knit group, and it was awesome seeing them grow together,” he said.
Bastien also gave a special shout-out to the team’s manager Nancy Pirie, who he said was involved in everything from planning the team’s April trip to New Brunswick, to bringing extra water bottles to the games, to collecting and washing jerseys.
“This season wouldn’t have been possible without Nancy’s help and dedication. This is what rugby is all about. The sport unites people and brings the best out of them.”
