Men's Rugby | 11/3/2018 9:46:00 PM
MONTREAL --
Jack Oatway of Peterborough, Ont., scored a pair of tries as third-place Bishop's University upset second-seeded McGill 19-17 in an RSEQ men's rugby semifinal, in gusty, rainy, sub-zero temperatures at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium, Saturday.
It was the first BU playoff win over McGill in 15 years, since their last title in 2003 as the Gaiters improved to 6-12 lifetime against McGill in the playoffs, including 1-4 in the conference semifinal.
The result also marked the third straight victory for Bishop's, which posted a 4-2 record during the regular season. The Gaiters will now confront undefeated Concordia (6-0) in the RSEQ championship game on Nov. 10. The Stingers won their semifinal 17-0 over visiting Sherbrooke.
BU led 14-5 at halftime on the strength of tries from
Carter Filion of St. Catharines, Ont., and
Oatway, both of them converted by
Josh Bray of Lennoxville, Que.
Things got interesting as the final minute of the half approached. McGill elected to not take points on a penalty-kick from 25 yards out in the middle of the field. Instead, they kicked for touch and a line-out but the Gaiters forced a turnover.
Following a small melee, Bishop's player
Louis Millet was assessed a yellow card and the Redmen took advantage. Rookie
Benjamin Russell, a native of England, scored on the last play of the first half but the conversion was missed, narrowing the gap to 14-5 at the halftime break.
Centre
Ewan Lawton secured the win for Bishop's with an unconverted try in the 65th minute, putting the Gaiters ahead 19-5.
Momentum for a McGill's rally continued in the second half, with
Jessen Gibbs and
Alexander Pantis of Montreal scoring a try each but
Elliot Esposito-Menard, a sophomore from France, was only able to connect on one conversion and left McGill trailing by two. Possession flipped back and forth at midfield as the clock ticked to the 80
th minute. Eventually the ball ended up in Bray's hands and he booted it to touch for the final whistle and the Gaiters win.
It was a disappointing finish for the Redmen who had a promising 4-0 start but dropped two of their last three contests.
The team's final game on the schedule will be a recently added fixture at Harvard on Nov. 16 for the 37th edition of the Covo Cup. McGill has won six straight Cup victories over the Ivy League school and owns a 22-14 lifetime in the almost annual competition which was initiated in 1974 to mark the centennial of the first meeting between the two storied clubs in 1874. The trophy is named in memory of the late
Peter Covo, a former multi-sport athlete at McGill, who went on to become a professor and rugby coach at the University.
SCORING SUMMARY
Bishop's 19, McGill 17
RSEQ SEMIFINAL @ PERCIVAL MOLSON STADIUM
- BISH:Carter Filion (TRY; convert made by Josh Bray), 19' (BISH 7-0)
- BISH:Jack Oatway (TRY; convert made by Josh Bray), 36' (BISH 14-0)
- McG: Benjamin Russell (TRY; convert missed by Elliot Esposito-Menard), 40' (BISH 14-5)
- BISH:Jack Oatway (TRY; convert missed by Josh Bray), 65' (BISH 19-5)
- McG: Jessen Gibbs (TRY; convert missed by Elliot Esposito-Menard), 71' (BISH 19-10)
- McG: Alexander Pantis (TRY; convert made by Elliot Esposito-Menard), 78' (BISH 19-17)
CARDS:
BISH:
Louis Millet (yellow), 32'
McG:
Michael Nwabufo (yellow), 40'+
BISHOP'S-McGILL -- All-Time Playoff History
Bishop's is 5-12 against McGill in the playoffs all-time (0-4 in semifinals).
2017 Semifinal: Bishop's 19, McGill 17 (Montreal)
2016 Semifinal: McGill 27, Bishop's 20 (Montreal)
2014 Semifinal: McGill 21, Bishop's 17 (Lennoxville)
2012 Semifinal: McGill 76, Bishop's 15 (Lennoxville)
2009 Final: McGill 55, Bishop's 7 (Montreal)
2008 Final: McGill 21, Bishop's 0 (Montreal)
2007 Final: McGill 31, Bishop's 13 (Montreal)
2004 Final: McGill 55, Bishop's 17 (Montreal)
2003 Final: Bishop's 16, McGill 11 (Montreal)
1998 Final: Bishop's 20, McGill 15 (Lennoxville)
1997 Final: McGill 17, Bishop's 0 (Montreal)
1996 Semifinal: McGill 17, Bishop's 12 (Lennoxville)
1995 Final: McGill 13, Bishop's 6 (Montreal)
1994 Final: Bishop's 23, McGill 13 (Lennoxville)
1993 Final: Bishop's 9, McGill 5 (Lennoxville)
1991 Final: McGill 11, Bishop's 0 (Montreal)
1990 Final: Bishop's 9, McGill 3 (Montreal)
1989 Final: McGill 11, Bishop's 3 (Montreal)
| 2018 RSEQ Men's University Rugby Standings (FINAL) • Classement de la saison régulière du reugby masculin |
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