Anderson leads Leafs to victory
The new squad will play in the Tier B circuit, mimicking what the P.E.I. Mudmen do with teams in the first and second divisions of the N.S. senior men’s league.
Abby Goodwin, CRFC cofounder and president, said the new addition is a reaction to the current appeal of women’s rugby.
“We’ve had a lot of interest from university and varsity players and provincial team members who want to play all summer. Players are coming back to competitive rugby after playing high school and university,” Goodwin said. “The team is (also part) of a developmental program and for players looking to play recreationally.”
That inclusiveness is what drives the club. Goodwin, who played with a Canadian university all-star team in a two-game friendly with an American university all-star squad in 2011, said the CRFC was founded as much for rugby as a meeting place for the players and those who want to join the rugging world.
“I just love the community Alysha Corrigan, right, of the Charlottetown Rugby Football Club is pictured in action with the club versus the Truro Saints in Nova Scotia senior women’s rugby league action last summer.
and what it has done for us on and off the field. For younger girls, rugby builds confidence on and off the field. It’s more that just a sport,” she said.
And so far it’s working as 50 players are confirmed for the club this season with eight more on the fence.
That’s more than enough to field two squads on Saturdays this summer provided commitments hold.
“If that stands up, we should be OK,” Goodwin said.
The CRFC and the Mudmen run under-12 rookie rugby programs
through the P.E.I. Rugby Union as a way to bring boys and girls into the sport.
And this year, those programs are expanding to Stratford and Montague, are being revived in Summerside and will continue in Charlottetown.
The CRFC team begin practices in May, going Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6-7:30 p.m., at Charlottetown Rural High School. No regular season schedule is available yet from Nova Scotia Rugby, but league games usually start in June.
There’s also a revival of the
senior provincial men’s and women’s teams for the Atlantic championships in Montague. Also, CRFC players Alysha Corrigan and Holly Jones will attend Rugby Canada national team tryouts May 16-20 at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ont.
Both are former standouts on the UPEI Panthers women’s rugby team.
All in all, it looks like heady times for Island ruggers.
“I’m thrilled, absolutely delighted to push women’s rugby on P.E.I.,” Goodwin said.
Sumara Profit, a former Atlantic University Sport all-star with UPEI, is joining the CRFC coaching squad alongside James Voye and Craig Inward this summer.
The Charlottetown native recently moved back to P.E.I. with her wife from Moncton, N.B.
Frederik Andersen made 32 saves as the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Boston Bruins 3-1 to tie their firstround playoff series 3-3 on Monday night.
William Nylander, Mitch Marner and Tomas Plekanec, into an empty net, scored for the Leafs, who trailed the Eastern Conference quarterfinal 3-1 before winning two straight to force Game 7 on Wednesday in Boston.
Nikita Zaitsev added two assists. Marner and Plekanec had one assist each.
Jake DeBrusk replied for the Bruins. Tuukka Rask stopped 27 shots after getting pulled in Game 5 at TD Garden.
The winner of the series will meet the Tampa Bay Lightning in the next round.
There was a moment of silence before the opening faceoff at Air Canada Centre to honour the 10 people killed Monday when a van mounted a sidewalk in Toronto’s north end and struck multiple pedestrians. Fifteen others were injured.
Scoreless after an end-to-end first period, the Bruins grabbed a 1-0 lead 1:02 into the second when David Krejci won a faceoff after an icing against Auston Matthews right to DeBrusk, who ripped a shot between Andersen’s arm and body.