FCC2017: British Columbia wins first game since Football Canada Cup return

It wasn’t easy, but British Columbia worked hard to accomplish a major feat at the 2017 Football Canada Cup.

British Columbia got their first win on Tuesday since returning back to the Football Canada Cup, defeating Manitoba 16-7 at Acadia University’s Raymond Field in Wolfville, Nova Scotia.

After a scoreless first quarter, Keelan White rushed into the end zone for a 42 yard touchdown to give British Columbia the lead.

Manitoba responded back when quarterback Riley Vankoughnett found Eric Adams for a passing major.

Late in the second half, Manitoba conceded a safety to BC. With 34 seconds in the half, pivot Josh Haydu connected with Colburn Pearce for a 31 yard major.

At halftime, British Columbia enjoyed a 16-7 lead over Manitoba.

Timely defence plays in the second half didn’t allow Manitoba to score any points and secured the win for British Columbia.

Players of the Game for British Columbia were WR/RB Keelan White (offence) and LB/HB Dylan Rachel (defence).  Manitoba’s Players of the Game were WR Eric Adams (offence) and LB Eric Bujalski (defence)

Overall, British Columbia was thrilled to get their first victory since returning back to the national championship.

“We came out and played today,” commented British Columbia Head Coach Cory Philpot. “Manitoba did their film work and they were there; what a team!”

“It was tough waking up and playing early in the morning but the kids hung in there and we came out with a win.”

Philpot said while the defence struggled a couple of times early on; however, they refocused and played a significant role in today’s victory.

“I think the defence played really well,” he assessed. “The defence we had a couple of breakdowns but I think our coaches made some adjustments and they (the players) just kept the ball where we could try to use the ball for offence.”

On the the other side, Manitoba was disappointed with their performance as British Columbia exposed areas they need to improve on before their next game.

“We’ve got to be better at the line of scrimmage,” said Manitoba Head Coach Don Burrell. “They beat us at the line of scrimmage and we had some coverage breakdowns.”

“Overall, we gave them two points and they got the other points on their own at the line of scrimmage. Today was indicative of who won the most sets at the line of scrimmage.”

This post is also available in: French