VICTORIA - The UVic Vikes men's rugby team is 2010 Rounsefell Cup champions. The Vikes earned the distinction of provincial champs by knocking off Meraloma 31-27 in Saturday's title match at Wallace Field.
With 1,200 fans packing Wallace Field for the CDI BC Premier championship game, the Vikes failed to disappoint on home soil. Nate Hirayama accounted for 26 points and the Vikes toppled the defending champs, to win their first Rounsefell Cup since 2003.
"It was a fantastic win for the guys. I knew the team was good and they exceeded expectations," said head coach
Doug Tate. "After the first playoff win against Old Boys, I figured they could play against anyone and they showed it the last two weekends."
Hirayama scored two tries, was 4-for-5 on penalty kicks, and made a pair of improbable converts from the far reaches of the field. His fourth penalty kick of the match, coming near the 50th minute, gave the Vikes their largest lead of the game at 31-13.
"Coming into the game we knew we had a good shot and we stuck to the game plan," said Hirayama. "It shows the quality program that has been built over the year and hopefully this isn't the last championship we win."
Meraloma mounted some late pressure with a pair of tries, scored by Eric Wilson and Sam Jenkins, respectively. However, the Vikes defence bore down, and despite a
Phil Mack try being waved off, held on for the win.
The Vikes miracle run to the final included playoff victories over the UBC-Old Boys and top-seeded James Bay, despite being depleted by injuries, national selections and summer work commitments. Classes at UVic had ended in early April, and exams were done by the end of the month.
"This has been one of the most resilient group of guys I've ever been with, said captain Dave Spicer. "We have some great young guys coming up and hopefully we can build off this and be in contention for the next couple of years."
The Vikes have won the Rounsefell Cup three times, with victories also coming in 1971 and 2003. The Vikes also won Canadian University Championships the only two years the tournament was held in 1998 and 1999.