The Calgary Rugby Union (CRU) championship cup is returning to Banff for the first time since 2018, after the Banff Bears senior men's team defeated the Bow Valley Grizzlies of Cochrane 19-15 in a back-and-forth battle Sept. 10 in Calgary.
Playing in his retirement match at CRU Park, Bears veteran player Mark "Hoops" Hooper enjoyed a Cinderella moment, scoring the game-winning try for Banff with less than two minutes on the clock to overcome the Grizz.
"I cried like a baby afterwards; I couldn't have wished for a better thing," said Hooper. "It wasn't a massive run, it was only about 10 yards, [but I] got the try. No complaints."
The title-deciding match concluded both teams' stellar 2022 campaigns. Banff went the whole summer with just two defeats on their CRU record, while Bow Valley's only two losses of 2022 were at the hands of the unbeaten Bears.
"It was a close one," said Grizzlies head coach Ty Hawes afterwards. "[Our guys] were a little disappointed but it’s been a great season in all. We only lost two games the whole year, so [Grizzlies players] can certainly hold their heads up.
"It was a very good Banff team we played, so for it to come down to four points definitely shows something.”
Even though Bow Valley was leading 10-8 at halftime, Hawes said Banff's depth made the difference in the final minutes of the championship game.
“They just kept working. They had some really good depth and never gave up," he said of the never-say-die attitude shown by Banff's squad. "They’ve got some strong players out there.”
"The boys made amends in the second half and we dug deep and we turned it around," Hooper added. "It wasn't a pretty game, but we played with what they gave us and got the W."
Battle of the Bears
In winning Saturday's contest, Banff not only claimed the CRU senior men's title but also received the inaugural Grizzly Bear Cup – a new trophy awarded to the winner of the overall mini-series between Banff and Bow Valley, which has fittingly been dubbed the "Battle of the Bears."
The two-game series ended in a tie during the regular season, with Banff winning one match-up and Cochrane winning the other.
"Any of the games [against them] could have gone either way, so there was some really good competition between us," Hawes said.
The trophy unveiling Sept. 10 was an emotional occasion for both teams. In honour of two late rugby players with connections to both clubs, Ethan Enns-Goneau's and Toby Price's names were ingrained on the trophy.
Enns-Goneau was a Banff resident and former Bears player who was tragically murdered earlier this summer. Price, who was an officer with the Calgary Police Service, played with the Grizzlies for many years around the time of its establishment. He died in early 2019.
Overall, Hawes agreed the Grizzlies had little reason to hang their heads after the defeat. The Cochrane-based club ended the season with a 10-2 record and created a competitive culture in the wake of two pandemic-altered seasons.
“There was obviously some disappointment, but I think there was some really good growth this year coming out of COVID," he said. "I think there’s a lot to build on and the guys are already looking forward to what we can achieve next year, and what we should set as our goals.”
U16s win
While Cochrane's senior men's rugby squad came up just short, the Bow Valley Grizzlies/Lions U16 boys' team won their CRU city finals match-up on Saturday, defeating the Calgary Hornets/Rams.
Head coach Terran Kavanagh said the game was well contested and the Cochrane/Okotoks combined team was able to show off their chemistry – an impressive feat, given the players were unable to practice together for the most part this summer.
"The lads came out and really executed their game plan of moving the ball quickly and finding the space that was needed to score tries," he said. "They were really good at just reading the pitch, looking around and taking a second to see where their attacking lines were. They played well together."
Most impressively, the title-winning tilt meant the Grizzlies/Lions squad finished the year unbeaten.
"They looked like a team that's been playing together all year," Kavanagh said. "It's hard sometimes when you have a combined team to try and get that [chemistry], but with the skill level these boys possess, it's easy for each of them to slot into the positions they need to play and work together cohesively."
—With files from Jordan Small/Rocky Mountain Outlook
