Trailblazing high school F.H. Collins competed at the Clearwater Cup in Calgary over the weekend and came away with sunburn, some bruises but with pride intact.

Three teams left Whitehorse bright and early on Thursday under the guidance of Director of Rugby Charlie Feht with hope in their hearts but butterflies in their stomachs as this was a trip into the unknown, as most of the team had never played a competitive game in their lives.

The Clearwater Cup is the biggest high school rugby tournament in Canada, with over 80 teams competing across four divisions.

The senior boys’ team had the hardest assignment. They were up against teams that had been playing together for five years or more but put up a fierce fight, with Jack Anderson, skipper Torrin Resch and Gallagher D’Abramo performing at the highest level, with slick Nathan Mostyn scoring the most trys for the team.

Lukas Temple, Joel Girouard and Jalen Kaminecki were the work horses of the team, putting in the hard yards.

The Junior boys, led by Mackenzie Jenner had an outstanding tournament, only failing to score in one game which was to the eventual winners.

Lou Perren, Alex Wilson and Gavin Morgan-Evans were fearless in the tackle, with the youngest member of the squad, Charlie Todd, playing hard in the scrum with Koome Marangu and Zephyr Fabre-Dimsdale.

The jewel in the F.H. Collins crown was the senior girls’ team, captained by Imogen Resch, who not only scored multiple tries, but they also won two games against teams that clearly expected an easy game, only to be bloodied by the heroic exploits of the team.

Abby Jackson and Anju Perren played tenuously while Kalie Bennett scored tries, ran hard and would have tackled a freight train if it had stupidly wandered onto the pitch.

Emily Vangel, Vivian Blanchard and Mackenzie Kiefer put the capital A in aggression as they battered the opposition into submission, and after the hammer came the knife as Sydney Sinclair and Kalina Morrison sliced through the opposition with their speed and guile.

The team made friends with everyone they met and gained a reputation for playing hard rugby, but with a smile on their faces.

A huge thanks to the coaches, parents and support staff that put Whitehorse rugby on the map.

- submitted by ANDY TODD