Comets settle for silver medal in rugby 15s provincial championship

Posted on June 12, 2025 by admin

•  Coach contends game was cut short by 10 minutes

By Garrett Simmons
Westwind Weekly News

The stage was set last Saturday afternoon for a classic match-up between two southern Alberta rivals – Lethbridge Collegiate Institute and Raymond,

In the gold-medal game of the Tier 1 Alberta Schools’ Athletic Association Rugby 15s Provincials, the Clippers and Comets met to determine the 2025 championship.

The game had all the makings of a clash of the Titans but in the end, according to Raymond head coach Dan Bickman, the contest left everyone feeling a little empty. The Clippers took gold, as the Raymond coach said the fans, and the two teams, certainly didn’t get their money’s worth.

After the teams battled to a 12-12 draw at the half, it was a one-score game late into the second half, as LCI was up by five after an early try in the second half.

“Then it was back and forth and at the 20-minute mark, the ref blew the whistle and said the game was over,” said Bickman.

After some discussion, the game resumed before the whistle sounded again. And while the Raymond bench contended there was still 10 minutes left on the clock, the game was over.

“It was the most bizarre rugby game I have ever been a part of,” said Bickman, who added in his opinion, the game was cut short prematurely.

“A provincial championship game is a 60-minute game, and I don’t think we even got 50 minutes. It was unfortunate because all of the teenagers on the field didn’t get to play a full game.”

Bickman added the game featured a ton of stoppages as well, as numerous whistles took away any flow the contest might have had. The coach said it was a disappointing way for both teams to end what could have been an epic match.

“That’s the best LCI team I’ve seen in a decade, and they had to endure a game where the whistle was blown 60 times,” said Bickman, who added the number of calls, and the contentious timing of the game was certainly unfortunate. “It’s a serious insult to the time my kids put in practicing and preparing.”

To make matters more challenging for the Comets, a first-half red card put Raymond behind the eight ball.

“We played most of the game 14 on 15,” said Bickman, who added in his estimation, the biggest game of the year turned into a confusing experience for all involved. “This has been my 20th season coaching, and I’ve never seen anything like this.”

In the end, he added the players did not have a full chance to determine the outcome.

“Raymond and LCI was the showcase match of the entire tournament and to me, it was just a wasted opportunity because you had outstanding athletes on each side of the ball. I really feel for my seniors that finished their careers with that type of game.”

Up until the LCI game, Raymond was flying high after a 24-5 win over rivals Notre Dame to open the tournament. That game was 5-5 early on before Raymond went up 12-5 at the half. An early second-half try from the Comets put things out of reach.

The semi against Western Canada was another back-and-forth game, which was tied 5-5 until Western Canada took the lead in the second half and nearly held on right until the end.

“They had a superstar player – probably the strongest runner I have seen in 10 years,” said Bickman, whose team looked down and out until about 30 seconds remained on the clock. “We were struggling to break their line and the clock was ticking.”

In the nick of time, Grade 10 Lyla Francis found a couple of holes and took a 50-yard burst up the field to score a try, which was also converted, to give the Comets a heart-stopping win.

In the end, that semifinal win was overshadowed by a tough loss in the final, as the coach added even though there were factors at work beyond the team’s control, his team gave it all it had.

“Big picture, it’s a game. We had a great group of kids and they did everything we could have asked for.”