Fifth-year Aurora Bowie recognized as RSEQ Player of the Year following the game
If you’re a North American professional sports fan, you’re familiar with single-game blown-leads such as “28-3” or “It was 4-1.” Saturday, the Gee-Gees women’s rugby team suffered a similar fate as the New England Patriots and Toronto Maple Leafs, as they couldn’t hold on to a 19-5 lead coming out of the half.
You can make comparisons to whatever games or teams you want, but at the same time, recognize that the Gees hold one key advantage over the 2016 Pats or the 2013 Leafs — the immediate chance for redemption.
National championships in Charlottetown are looming, and the Gees will benefit from two weeks to collect themselves and prepare for an even bigger stage than the RSEQ championships at a packed Matt Anthony Field.
“We will take a couple of days to kick some rocks and be disappointed, but then the mindset changes,” said head coach Duncan McNaughton, who received a heartwarming send-off following Saturday’s match in his final game at Matt Anthony as he prepares to step aside for Jack Hanratty. McNaughton, who led the Gees to an undefeated season, was named the RSEQ Coach of the Year following the game.
McNaughton noted that playing in games against programs like Laval is the reason they compete, day in and day out. “That [competition] is really what nationals is all about, every day focused on competing against the best players, and maybe this small set-back helps us in our battle to be the best.”
Tylo Borsboom
The Gee-Gees stormed out of the gate on Saturday. 2023 U SPORTS First Team All-Canadian Tylo Borsboom would earn a try just under 10 minutes into the game and help the Gees’ Leigha Stiles to another just minutes later.
Unfortunately for the team — and Borsboom, who played just one regular season game due to a stint with the Canadian national team — they would lose her to a lower-body injury before the end of the first half.
McNaughton noted that losing Borsboom’s skill and leadership threw a wrench into the game plan. “To be honest, initially I did not think we could recover from her loss,” said McNaughton, who returned from the Canadian 15’s Senior Women’s team to be the Gee-Gees coach before last season.
“But I did remember we had beaten Laval during the season without her playing … so maybe the adjustment was not as dramatic as I had initially thought.” Incredibly — and despite playing just the one regular season game — Borsboom earned an RSEQ Second Team All-Star following the match, recognizing her massive contributions to the team even in limited playing time.
The Second Half
A muffed kickoff to begin the second half and a knock on out of a lineout 10 minutes later gave some foreshadowing for the frame to come. The knock on calls were mostly limited to the Gee-Gees, despite pleas from the boisterous Gees faithful in the crowd throughout the half.
The second half was marked by bouts of unfortunate injury stoppages, broken plays, and trainers rushing onto the field to help players recover from issues including cramping. It was also marked by the Rouge et Or closing the gap on the Gee-Gees.
McNaughton noted that the frequent breaks seemed to compound on themselves, calling them a “negative spiral.” He gave praise to the coaches who provided water during breaks. “Sometimes [the stoppages] can help and sometimes it hurts with momentum, but at the end of the day it is always about ‘the next play’.
The Gee-Gees held a slim lead near the end of the game thanks to an Anna Dodge try. Maybe even more impactful was the ensuing convert by Victoria Hough, the right-footed kicker who made a tough kick from the right side of the uprights.
But Laval was pressing with just a handful of plays remaining, and the officiating crew would not give the Gees an out. Despite bouncing around the Gee-Gee’s goal line for what seemed like an eternity, the strong, desperate defence of the Gees would keep the Rouge et Or out of the endzone, and end up with the ball in their own endzone.
The Gee-Gees would attempt to kick the ball out of bounds to put an end to the game, but the kick would stay in bounds, giving a scrum to the Rouge et Or back on the five-yard line — which resulted in a walk-off victory for Laval.
Aurora Bowie
After being front-and-centre for the Gee-Gees all season, fifth-year fly half Aurora Bowie would ultimately be left out of Saturday’s game due to an upper body injury. Bowie finished the regular season as the conference leader in points, made up of two tries, 36 converts, and two penalties in just six games. Her 36 converts also set a program record.
Bowie became the second Gee-Gee to be named the RSEQ Player of the Year, joining an exclusive club which formerly only included Tanya Gaffney (who won in 2005). “This has been the best six years of my life,” said the Stouffville product, when asked to reflect on what her Gee-Gees career — which began in 2019 — meant to her.
“I want to be there when we’re winning, I want to be there when we’re losing, I want to be there for the team the whole time, so it was really hard to watch … I’m just glad that I can support and do everything that I can [for the team] from the sidelines.”
National Championships & Game Notes
The Gee-Gees will travel to Charlottetown, P.E.I, for the U SPORTS Women’s Rugby Championships, which begin Oct. 30 and will wrap up Nov. 3, when the 2024 national champion will be crowned. The Gee-Gees enter the tournament ranked third in the country. Stay tuned to the team’s Instagram page for streaming and scheduling details.
Second-row players Ketsia Kamba and Stiles, along with prop Alysia Comtois — all in their final game at Matt Anthony — showed off active hands throughout the game, nabbing multiple interceptions.
After first year Sydney Noseworthy was sent off by the referee due to a controversial incident ruled a high hit in the first half, Stiles would pick up her second try of the half, despite the Gees being down a player.
In Bowie’s absence, wing Victoria Hough took over kicking duties. Hough made 3-of-4 converts, including the aforementioned kick near the end of the final frame.
11 Gee-Gees were recognized as first or second team all-stars following the game. Laval (8) and Ottawa (6) combined to make up 14 of 15 players on the RSEQ First Team All-Stars. Check out the Gee-Gees press release for a full list of all-stars.
