The rugby season is fast approaching and there seems to be a lot to look forward to for head coach Keith Reeves and the Sea to Sky Eagles rugby league club.
The biggest event to look forward to is the first-ever British Columbia Rugby League (BCRL) Canadian International 9's Championship in 麻豆社国产on Saturday, May 11.
Reeves said the momentum for the tournament is building as it draws closer.
This was originally going to be a local tournament with local teams, but it kind of snowballed, he said. Now we have a Fiji team, a team from New Zealand and we're probably going to put together an Australian team.
He said the Australian team will be made up of Sea to Sky residents and there will also likely be a rep team made up of the best players from the province. Another division at the tournament will feature the Eagles and other BCRL teams.
The tournament will also feature the first-ever women's rugby league match in Squamish. Reeves said a local team will challenge a team from Kelowna between some of the men's games.
Another announcement from the Eagles is that they have twinned with a pro team in the United Kingdom and now have a working arrangement with the Yorkshire-based Keighley Cougars. Reeves used to coach the team and he said it seemed like a logical fit.
The idea started because I went down to work with them earlier this year and it just sort of developed, he said. They have two players in particular who want to come over and play with us. Some of the guys over there would love to come over here for the summer and get some new life experiences. Then they can head back to the U.K. having seen a bit of the world.
Reeves also said the Eagles will sport an all-new roster with seven semi-pro players from Australia who all live in Whistler.
Some of these guys are outstanding players and could play professionally, he said. They will make the team a lot stronger and we expect to be challenging for the BCRL championship this year. The great thing is that it raises the game of our local guys. They can learn more being on the pitch once with these players than by 20 sessions with me.
The Eagles will also put together a U20 team for local young people interested in rugby league. The team will be heavily involved with the Howe Sound Sounders team as well.
We're going to help out with some of the coaching and practices with the high school, Reeves said. We'd like to make it a sort of feeder system for us. Josh [Watts] and Nolan [Prevost] played for us last year and are back with us this year and they played in high school. Unless kids go to college, once you've left high school there's not that many teams in town. I'd like us to try and fill that gap.
The international tournament kicks off on May 11 and is set to take place at Howe Sound field. BCRL regular season action starts for the Eagles on May 25 when they take on Surrey.
For more information on the BCRL, visit www.bc.canadarugbyleague.com.
