MONTREAL -- Rookie Martin Laval scored a game-high 11 points as McGill edged Concordia 23-21 in the men's rugby season opener, Saturday, to capture the fourth Dave Hardy Cup rivalry game.

It was a key victory for the Redbirds (3-2), who sit fourth in the seven-team RSEQ conference, one win behind Concordia (3-3) with a game in hand. McGill will close out the regular season next week and can clinch third-place with a win over Bishop's (3-2) on Oct. 21 in a game that will be part of the McGill Homecoming festivities. Kickoff is slated for 3 p.m. at Percival Molson Stadium. The third-place finisher will meet the loser of next week's first-place showdown between Ottawa (4-1) and ETS (5-0).
 
Laval paced the Redbirds attack with three penalty kicks and one conversion, Dominic Russell tallied seven points, with one try and a conversion. The other Redbirds try was scored by Gaspard Poire.
 
For the Stingers, Joe Mabi scored a pair of tries, while Cameron Pouw and Libor Stefik had one apiece. Connor Tordon added one conversion.
 
Each side received a yellow card from the referee, with Laval getting flagged for McGill and Stefek receiving an infraction for Concordia.
 
The result was McGill's first win in Hardy Cup play since the inaugural meeting in 2019, a 23-21 victory for the Stingers. There was no game in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Concordia won the 2021 contest 14-6 and also prevailed 24-17 last year. The annual game is named after Hardy, who coached at both institutions. He served as bench boss at McGill from 1982 to 1989 and later served as an assistant coach at Concordia.
 
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SOURCE:
Earl Zukerman
Sports Information Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
CELL: 514-983-7012
E-MAIL:earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca