LONDON, Ont. – Six minutes is all it took for Western to rush through the RMC Paladins and pick up their first try of the season at Alumni Field on September 7. The remaining time allowed for the Mustangs to put up eight more tries and six converts to start their season off with a 57-19 win.
 
Strathroy native Joshua Bald led the way for the Mustangs, putting up three tries in the first half, while Mark Denton followed up by sending six converts through the RMC posts.
 
"We linked up pretty well towards the end," reports Denton. "We had a lot of quick runs in the first half, a lot of breaks where we couldn't really set our systems up. Towards the end of the game we started synching up better, and our defense was a lot stronger."
 
Bald was the first to put up points on the scoreboard, landing a try just six minutes in. Less than two minutes later the Mustangs added another five after Denton broke through the Paladin defense.
 
Western controlled the pace early in the game, putting up 22 points in under 18 minutes. However, around the 20-minute mark, the Mustangs left a lane wide open for RMC's Matthew Courtney to plant the ball in the center of the in-goal area for a try and an easy convert.
 
Responding to the Paladins, the Mustangs pressed RMC and managed to land two more tries before heading into the half.
 
RMC returned to the field more focused, and more driven. Thirteen minutes into the new half they landed their second try and a subsequent conversion kick.
 
The Mustangs quickly responded with a try from Glen Bullock and a successful convert kick from Denton that saw the ball having to curve in from the sideline. 
 
After a ten minute lull that saw the teams struggling to make substantial gains on the field, RMC managed to find a hole in the purple and white line to record their third try of the game – followed by a successful convert.
 
Western closed out the game by putting up 14 points in the last ten minutes of play, ending the game with a final score of 57-19.
 
As for next week, coach Knowles expects the game plan to stay the same and hopefully garner similar results.
 
"We'll approach the next game the same way: same structure, same strategy," Knowles said. "It may change with a couple of bigger and stronger teams, but for the most part we're going in the same way."
 
The Mustangs will make their return to the field on September 9, when they head to Waterloo to take on the Laurier Golden Hawks at 7 p.m.