Brantford repeat as McCormick Cup champions

It’s two in a row for the Brantford Harlequins as they wrapped up a nearly perfect season in style by defeating the Balmy Beach by 40-27 on Saturday to lift the McCormick Cup once again. An entertaining contest played in ideal conditions at Fletcher’s Fields saw nine tries scored between the two sides but almost as many cards brandished as tempers flared repeatedly over a bruising 80 minutes of action.

The first points came for the Beach from the boot of Conor McCann, landing a routine penalty inspired by a barging run from Chilean international Lucas Bordigoni. Brantford gained major real estate from a midfield scrum and were working towards a try but a thumping hit by Tomas Larouche on his opposite Dylan Mundy spilled the ball and shut the move down.

It would take more softening from the Harlequins forward but eventually they would get their rewards. After spreading the ball wide the defense was thinned up the middle and prop Graeme Mahar crashed over for the game’s first try. Steve Piatek converted and the defending champions were on their way.

Piatek knocked over his own penalty soon after on the end of a huge line break created by himself, his midfield partner Hugh McDonell taking a flat pass on the gain line to race nearly half the field untouched. Harlequins were rampant now and after Mundy was felled just short it looked as though a certain try was on wide left but another bone-rattling hit, this time from right wing Fharid Samano, sent the scoring pass careening forward.

The defense could only hold so long, however, and the influence of international hooker Eric Howard made a second try. First it was a turnover won at the breakdown on his own side of halfway, then he simply willed himself through seemingly the entire Beach pack to surge over the line.

Just when it looked as though Brantford would strike another telling blow the Beach scored against the run of play. A loose pass was quickly shipped to Samano and the Mexico star simply stepped on the gas pedal, racing 60 metres untouched to plant the ball under the sticks.

It would not phase the defending champions who went straight back to their winning formula. A dominant scrum set the platform for Howard’s second try, this time with only Bordigoni to step inside for the easy score.

While the Harlequins were finding gaps it was not coming without cost as the Beach tackling could be heard across the grounds. Bordigoni, McCann, and Cole Sopik blasted into Brantford rib cages in quick succession, the third earning an offside penalty from the knock-on.

From his own end McCann sent the ball sailing down the pitch to roll into touch just a couple metres out in a brilliant effort. It was ingenuity, rather than brute force, that landed the try as Hank McQueen stepped unmarked into the lineout and took a short ball from John Mackie to dive over for a vital try just before the intermission.

The second half started with a bang as Dave Shouten took exception to a Samano tackle and was greeted with a fist from the Beach winger. When the dust settled the officials settled on yellow as the color for both combatants, perhaps lucky that video replay was unavailable.

With more space playing to their advantage Harlequins worked an overlap but it was the unlikely figure of second row Tom van Horne who was loitering on the wing to race into the corner. It was a double blow for the Beach as flanker Ben Harmer was shown yellow for foul play in the act of scoring, leaving his team 12 points down and with only 13 men on the pitch.

In defiance the Beach rolled up their sleeves and smashed ahead through the forwards. McCann opted to go quick from a kickable penalty and the gamble paid off. Three quick phases later big second row Carlos Durand barreled over with McCann’s extras making it just a five-point gap.

The tables swung completely when Jon West took a ball in space on his own 22 metre line and promptly sprinted straight through two tacklers to score an incredible length-of-the-field try. From wide out the conversion was too difficult but somehow the scores were now level.

Unfortunately for the challengers their good fortunes had run out. Piatek landed his second penalty goal and then another scrum penalty landed replacement prop Chris Hewitt in the bin. A knock-on gave the Beach the put-in and somehow Lucas Rumball was able to clear the ball but he lost it forward in the tackle and Nathan Boeyenga was there to pick and dive under the posts for the killing blow.

The final minutes would not tick away without incident. Kolby Francis received the game’s fifth yellow card for a cynical penalty and then Samano’s discipline failed him again. A swinging arm off the ball on Jordan Kozina earned the Beach winger his second yellow and with it red. Piatek took the easy points from the penalty and then left the field a minute early as he and Durand made it eight cards all told.

A draw with London Scottish in August was the only match that the Harlequins did not find victory this season and their unbeaten run now stretches back to the beginning of 2016, an incredible 33 games across Marshall Premiership and post-season fixtures. This is the first time the club have won back-to-back titles and the fifth time they have been crowned champions in the 67 year history of the competition. Brantford defeated Scottish by 37-17 in the 2016 final.

 

SCORING

BRANTFORD 40
Tries – G. Mahar (13’), E. Howard 2 (24’, 33’), T. van Horne (45’), N. Boeyenga (70’)
Cons – S. Piatek 3/5 (14’, 25’, 71’)
Pens – S. Piatek 3/3 (17’, 62’, 77’)
Yellow cards – D. Shouten (42’), K. Francis (74’), S. Piatek (79’)

BALMY BEACH 27
Tries – F. Samano (28’), H. McQueen (37’), C. Durand (48’), J. West (50’)
Cons – C. McCann 2/4 (29’, 49’)
Pens – C. McCann 1/1 (3’)
Yellow cards – F. Samano (42’), B. Harmer (45’), C. Hewitt (67’), C. Durand (79’)
Red cards – F. Samano (76’)

 

TEAMS

BRANTFORD HARLEQUINS
1 Cullen Fawcett, 2 Eric Howard, 3 Graeme Mahar, 4 Tom van Horne, 5 Josh van Horne, 6 Paul Auzins, 7 Lucas McIvor, 8 Graham McKelvey, 9 Adam Shouten, 10 Nathan Boeyenga, 11 Jordan Kozina, 12 Steve Piatek, 13 Hugh McDonell (capt.), 14 Dylan Mundy, 15 Rory McDonell

Replacements: 16 Dave Neill, 17 Kolby Francis, 18 Tyler Mirco, 19 Ryan Blunt, 20 Adam Maahs, 21 Casey Bouk, 22 Janusz McNeill, 23 Matt Lindsay

BALMY BEACH
1 Craig Telfer, 2 John Mackie, 3 Lucas Bordigoni, 4 Carlos Durand, 5 Hank McQueen, 6 Connor McLoughlin, 7 Ben Harmer, 8 Lucas Rumball, 9 Kieran O’Donnell, 10 Haydn Gage, 11 Fharid Samano, 12 Cole Sopik, 13 Conor McCann (capt.), 14 Tomas Larouche, 15 Jon West

Replacements: 16 Chris Hewitt, 17 Chris Sopik, 18 James Roseborough, 19 John Stoneham, 20 Ed Matthews, 21 Brendan Douros, 22 Matthew Mufandaedza, 23 Colin Alexander

 

MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee: Moe Chaudhry (RC)