Avenging last year’s loss to San Francisco Golden Gate, the Glendale Raptors scored first and held off the defending champions to win their first Pacific Rugby Premiership title at Infinity Park Stadium May16. In a repeat of the finals here last year, the hosting Raptors this time lived up to their promise with a 25-11 victory.
In the 2014 finals San Francisco edged Glendale 39-38. San Francisco won here again in March as part of a series split between the two teams during regular season. The Raptors defeated Golden Gate in San Francisco on Valentine’s Day.
Fullback Max Statler slipped a tackler and the Raptors went up 7-0 in the first five minutes of this year’s showdown match. Earning two penalties, Golden Gate drew the game within a point at 7-6. After stealing a lineout deep in Golden Gate territory, Preston Bryant slipped a tackle and scored a try to give the Raptors a 12-6 halftime edge.
Statler Extends Lead
Less than a minute into the second half Golden Gate scored but missed a straightforward conversion to leave them again trailing by a point, 12-11. Glendale added to the lead with a 40-meter kick extending the score to 15-11. Going wide the Raptors sprung Dustin Croy down the right sideline. The winger found Statler streaking inside to extend the lead to 20-11.
A run by Hanco Germishuys moved Glendale to within meters of the goal. Preston Bryant followed with a scoring run giving Glendale a 25-11 lead with 12 minutes to play. The 18-year-old Germishuys, who came into the game as a substitute, “Made a massive impact with all his carries and tackles,” observed Team Captain Zach Fenoglio following the game. “Hanco is an extremely talented young player and definitely deserves a lot of credit in helping us get the win.”
Turnover Stops Threat
With the clock ticking late in the game and San Francisco threatening, Dustin Croy forced a turnover. Despite playing the final minutes with a Glendale player in the sin bin the score remained unchanged at 25-11. Preston Bryant and Maxwell Statler shared Player of the Match honors.
“It definitely didn’t disappoint in the sense that both sides came out wanting to win a championship,” suggested Fenoglio post game. “I was really proud of how the boys fought to get the W.”
Added Raptors scrum half Mose Timoteo, “My thoughts were that it was going to be tough, but the guys were up to the challenge. When we were warming up, guys were ready and the coach mentioned it was our best warm-up of the season.”
The championship was the first for Glendale, but the second for the 38-year-old Timoteo, who joined the Raptors after captaining San Francisco in last year’s final.
“We started off well,” said Raptors Head Coach Andre Snyman. “We’ve always been saying that we wanted to get on the scoreboard first and that’s what happened. I think our patience was most impressive. We kept the ball and our defense played well.” The coach’s bottom line: “I honestly believe all 23 guys played really well. There were some good ball carries and a heroic defensive attitude. I can’t single anyone out, it was a team effort,” he concluded.