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It wasn鈥檛 a Test victory for sa国际传媒, but it still felt good. Especially for James Bay Athletic Association products Connor Braid and D.T.H. van der Merwe, who helped the Glasgow Warriors鈥� win their first Guinness Pro 12 League championship last season.
Langford-based sa国际传媒, with Braid and van der Merwe both starting, defeated the Warriors 19-12 in Halifax on Saturday. It was the final 2015 World Cup tune-up on Canadian turf and the result came as a relief to a Canadian side that has lost its last seven Test matches and 10 of its last 11.
鈥淢ore than anything, we needed a win,鈥� said Braid, a graduate of Oak Bay High.
鈥淚t didn鈥檛 matter what it looked like. We just needed a win. This is a morale booster.鈥�
sa国际传媒鈥檚 tries came from van der Merwe, Matt Evans of Duncan and Jamie Cudmore of Squamish while Nathan Hirayama from the University of Victoria Vikes kicked two conversions. Glenn Bryce and Junior Bulumakau scored the Glasgow tries.
Fleet-footed winger Van der Merwe, who played for JBAA after his family emigrated from South Africa, now plays pro in Wales with the Scarlets. Van der Merwe, headed to his third World Cup for sa国际传媒, became the all-time leader in tries scored for the Warriors during his six seasons playing in Glasgow.
鈥淒.T.H. and I are pleased to get one over on our old club,鈥� Braid said by phone from Halifax.
The game was billed as the Battle for New Scotland, and it was a pitched affair.
鈥淭here was no love lost out there. It was a hard-hitting game with bodies strewn about. The boys are hurting,鈥� said Braid.
sa国际传媒 was much improved from its lost Test summer.
鈥淲e closed out this time,鈥� said Braid, referring to several recent losses late in games. 鈥淎nd we didn鈥檛 have as many turnovers as we have been giving away. We hung on to the ball and that was the key.鈥�
sa国际传媒 leaves today for England, where its World Cup preparations continue with Tests against Georgia on Wednesday in Esher and Fiji next Sunday at The Stoop in London. The preparations began with a training camp last month at Shawnigan Lake School.
鈥淲e鈥檝e done a lot of hard work and we鈥檝e been playing pretty well, but we needed a win to get some momentum and some confidence,鈥� said Canadian head coach Kieran Crowley of Mill Bay. 鈥淚 thought the boys played really well. Defensively, [the Warriors] were outstanding, but we got a couple of opportunities which we took. [sa国际传媒] certainly dug in and it was nice to get over the line for a change.鈥�
sa国际传媒, ranked No. 18, opens the World Cup against No. 2 Ireland on Sept. 19 at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. sa国际传媒鈥檚 other Group D matches are on Sept. 26 against Italy in Leeds, Oct. 1 against France in Milton Keynes and Oct. 6 against Romania in Leicester.
