Western Mustangs Sports

MUSTANGS SEASON COMES TO AN END WITH LOSS TO EXCALIBURS

10/20/2018 8:26:00 PM

By: Francesca DeNoble

LONDON, Ont. - The Trent Excalibur defeated the Western Mustangs 52-20 in a hard-fought match on Saturday afternoon on Alumni Field. With the loss, the Mustangs will bring their 2018-19 rugby season to an end as Trent advances into the first round of the OUA playoffs.

Western struck first in the opening minutes of the game with a penalty goal by fly-half Mikko Vorster. Shortly thereafter, winger Keegan Matheson and prop Drew Neely brought the Mustangs to a lead of 15-0 with tries instituted by the quick hands and fast passes of their teammates. However, within the next ten minutes, Western received a red card and proceeded to play the remainder of the match short-handed.

As the wind began to pick up, so did the Excalibur. The Mustangs' quick offence was abruptly met with a defence that ceased their march down the field and overpowered their rucks. Trent's ability to move the ball quickly down the line allowed them to break through the purple and white, beginning a steady tally of tries that seemed to increase in time with the rain. Trent led the scoreboard as the first half of the game came to a close.

After a brief pause in action due to inclement weather, the Mustangs and Excalibur returned to a hail-covered pitch that shifted the balance of the remainder of the game. As Trent's momentum continued to carry them down the field, Western struggled to keep up. Winger Emerson Padley scored an additional try for the Mustangs, but the attempted convert was unsuccessful and Western was brought to their final score of 20. Trent's fullback Fawad Nasseri was a frequent aid in the increase of the Excalibur's score with consistent conversions, and brought the green and white to their total of 52.

However, despite the quick increase in score and the sleet that came about suddenly, Western failed to back down. Regardless of conditions that made it near impossible to hold a rugby ball, the Mustangs proceeded to use their fast passes to gain ground and continue the fight.

"I think we played with a lot of heart at the end," said Samuel Kahn. "The score was not what we wanted, but we kept it quite clean and our tackling was where we needed it to be in the first half. I think we've grown a lot as a team and bonded with one another quite well. We're young with not a lot of experience, and I think that, overall, though the results don't really show it, we've developed strongly and I think that that's put us in a good spot for next year. We're excited for the off season. I've made a lot of great friends this year, and I just think that the Mustangs men's rugby is going to have a really tight team going forward."

"We started out very well with our defence which is exactly what we have been working on, so we're very happy about that," said coaching staff member Jon Gamble. "We scored two quick tries right out of the gate, but the wheels seemed to have come off after that red card. I think we have lots of young talented guys that, over the next couple of years, will become pretty bright young stars. We're excited to get back on track."

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