Laval 78, Concordia 0: Goliath Beats Up David

Laval Shows Their Might in Women’s Rugby Match Against Concordia

SportsConor Tomalty — Published September 21, 2022 2 minutes

Stingers’ Head Coach Jocelyn Barrieau emphasized post-game that her team’s goal headed into the match-up was to have victories one minute at a time. She also noted that the Stingers are a developing team. 

“It was hard to string a few phases together [on offence], so we had a hard time getting through their defence. They’re known for their defence, so we have to work on a few more details on the attack side of things,” Barrieau continued.

Laval showed their strength immediately. In the second minute of play, Laval formed a maul off of a line-out and push their way to Concordia’s try zone. Laval flanker Noemie Tremblay was credited for the try. A missed conversion attempt made it 5-0 Rouge et Or.

Laval continued on this early momentum with two additional scores in the first 10 minutes of play. One off of a set play where eighth man Marie-Pier Fauteux found an opening, and the other coming from inside centre Alexina Tardif-Simon being sprung free through a break in the Stingers' line. 

The weather impeded Fauteux’s ability to convert kicks, but Laval still led 15-0.

As weather conditions worsened, the ball became more slippery  and receiving passes grew harder in the frigid rain. 

Although the climate was growing chaotic, Laval did not cease scoring. Laval winger Marie Laura Choquette and hooker Rosalie Lepage-Tremblay would score tries by the 16th minute of play. Fauteux missed the first conversion and made the second, giving Laval a 27-0 lead. 

Fauteux would tally two more tries by the end of the half, and make both conversions. Her hat-trick of tries and conversions made it a 41-0 game at halftime. 

The rain turned into a downpour by the start of the second half. Despite Loyola’s turf field turning into a slip-and-slide, Laval picked up where they left off. Rouge et Or winger Anais Gilbert and fly-half Laurence Chabot scored in the first 10 minutes of the second half, but missed conversions made it 51-0. 

The last thirty minutes of play saw five more tries for the Rouge et Or, with Fauteux collecting two of those scores. Laval would make one of five conversion attempts, and the game would conclude 78-0.

“We had some low points and some high points, but we fought from the minute we started.” said Stingers’ Captain Mahalia Robinson.

Concordia looks to rebound with a win against the McGill Redbirds on Sunday, Sept. 25. Opening kick is set for 2:30 p.m..