Belleisle faces Dartmouth for title
Published Saturday October 31st, 2009
BELLEISLE - It didn't matter that fingers were numb and noses were runny from the cold, crisp air at the local pitch.
Members of the Belleisle Rovers B team practised this week as if they were unaware of the drop in temperature. And when darkness settled in, players turned on two gigantic lights attached to the bleachers.
Toughness is a trademark of the club, and that should come in handy when the Rovers host Dartmouth in today's Maritime B championship at 1:30 p.m.
"These guys deserve to get to the final and we'll let them have some fun with it,'' Rovers coach Grant Beckingham said. "Some of these guys are on a great roll in the past few years.''
The majority of Belleisle's younger players recently won an under-20 championship. But the B side also includes seasoned veterans like Sonny Urquhart, Gary Caines, Al McLeod and Steve Gillies.
"It makes my job so much easier,'' Beckingham said about the impact of the veterans. "It's just like the real world. If you can learn from an older guy or somebody who knows something and just listen, it makes life so much easier.''
Jeff Rogers, the team's other coach, said there will be several keys to success in today's match.
"Just as long as we get our backs enough balls and room to work with, that's pretty much the strength of our team,'' he said. "We have a young, quick backfield and that should open things up. We're really looking to just run them all over the park in the first 40 and then come out and hopefully open things up in the second half.''
Although Rogers lives in Saint John, he appears to have found a coaching home in Belleisle.
"It's been a fantastic year so far,'' he said. "I probably couldn't have written it any better. Belleisle is a really special place and it's a good group of guys to be involved with and the spirit of rugby is alive and well in Belleisle.
"That's what attracted me here - the heart and the passion the guys have for the game. At the end of the day, I think that's what separates Belleisle from a lot of other clubs, and that's why I'm here.''
Rovers captain Adam Garnett said all reports about Dartmouth revolve around the team's imposing size.
"We're prepared for that,'' he said. "We know a couple of guys who are playing there and from what we've heard from the coaches, that's what the word is. That's what we've been preparing for.''
Vice-captain Barry Chamberlain said today's championship contest is an opportunity to cap a memorable season.
"We're like a big family,'' the 19-year-old said.
"We go out and have a lot of fun together and everyone wants to help the other guy.''
Meanwhile, the Fredericton Loyalist men's A side, which last weekend won the provincial championship and McNair Cup by virtue of their victory over the Saint John Trojans, take on the Nova Scotia Rugby League champion Halifax Tars for the Caledonia Cup today at 3 p.m. at Loyalist Field.
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