By Bruce Campbell
Sports Editor
A Holy Trinity Academy Knight doesn’t know he made the game-saving tackle in a rugby match last week.
The Knights hung on to beat Strathcona-Tweedsmuir Spartans 24-17 when Holy Trinity Academy’s (HTA) Christian Nori tackled speedy Spartan Ben Roskey before he was able to put the ball down for the game tying try Thursday at Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School (STS).
Roskey was trying to get to the middle of the try zone to set up the game-tying convert when Nori made the play but dislocated his knee in the process and didn’t get to see the end of the game.
“I had a lane wide-out from the goalpost, but since we needed a kick to tie it I thought I should cut in (to the middle),” Roskey said. “He (Nori) tackled me and I was in an awkward position and I knocked (the ball) forward. I fell on him and that’s when his knee popped out. He saved the game for them.”
The loss was the Spartans’ first of the year in the Big Sky Rugby Union season. Their record is 2-1 while the Knights evened their record at 2-2.
It appeared early in the game the Spartans would remain undefeated as trys from Cole Pernitsky and Maclean Clark put them up 10-0.
The Knights were able to tie the game at 10-10 when Cristian Sprague picked up a loose ball and ran it into the try zone and Jazz Singh punched the ball in just before the half.
The quick reactions of Knight Nick Villareal gave HTA its first lead of the game early in the second half.
The Spartans were smartly moving down the field when Villareal stepped in front of an STS lateral and didn’t stop for 55 yards until he was in the try zone.
“I just saw the ball and I took it and I just took off,” he said.
The Spartans would tie the game at 17-17 when Roskey found a hole and had a pack of Knights following him as he sprinted 57 yards into the try zone.
“I took a pitch from John Kirtchman and one of their defenders went wide and it opened up a hole and I took it,” Roskey said.
The Knights would take the lead for good when Cristian Sprague, who was named HTA’s Man of the Match, bulldozed his way into the Spartans’ try zone to make the final 24-17.
The Spartans spent plenty of time deep in the Knights zone throughout the game, but weren’t able to touch the ball down for the try.
“We had a number of turnovers inside the five metres line — we just couldn’t execute the final steps to score,” said Spartans coach Christopher Ruskay. “A number of times we had the ball into score, but just couldn’t get that final touch down and HTA could.”
Singh, a scrum half, said it was HTA’S best game of the year. It had to be because the Spartans are a well-organized team.
“They play well as a team and move the ball as a team,” Singh said of the Spartans.
STS uses an offence moves down the field and dishes the ball off like they were playing a game of hot potato.
“We play expansive rugby,” Ruskay said.
“We want to keep the ball moving and the other team running. We are traditionally smaller physically than other teams, but we tend to be fitter.”
STS got back on the winning track by beating Bow Valley Monday 36-7.
In other Big Sky Rugby Union action the Oilfields Drillers downed the Strathmore Spartans 22-12 in Strathmore to improve their record to 3-1. The Foothills Falcons blasted the Chestermere Lakers 67-14 in Chestermere to keep their record perfect at 3-0. The Highwood Mustangs were downed 60-5 by Bow Valley in Cochrane.
In matches this week there is a showdown between the top two Tier II teams in the Big Sky when Oilfields visits the STS Spartans tonight (May 15) at 5 p.m.
The Foothills Falcons travel to Cochrane to play Bow Valley at 5 p.m. on Thursday. The HTA Knights take on Highwood in High River Thursday at 5 p.m.
