Burnaby Lake knocked off defending premier league rugby champions James Bay Athletic 42-17 in its home opener on Saturday.
In a rematch of last season’s Rounsefell Cup final, Burnaby ran in six tries and secured a bonus point, while holding off the Victoria in the second half.
Winger Brian Murphy scored two first-half tries for the winners, including the game’s opening try after just five minutes of play.
Evan Thomas scored from the opposite wing and newcomer Gurvinder Kalar also touched down, while Geoff Ryan made good on two conversion attempts and a pair of penalty goals to put the home side up 25-0.
In the second half, James Bay closed the gap to 30-12, but Burnaby’s superior conditioning produced two more scores through Preston Petrovitch and Giusseppe Laudisio.
“I think our preseason work on fitness really came through today,” said Burnaby Lake captain Anthony Luca in a B.C. Rugby press release.
Both teams will have the Thanksgiving Day holiday off this weekend. Burnaby Lake will host the UBC Old Boys Ravens on Oct. 19 at Burnaby Lake Sports Complex-East.
In other games, the Castaway Wanderers edged Capilano 18-15, while the Ravens downed the Vancouver Rowing Club 44-15. The University of Victoria also put up big numbers, downing the Meraloma 43-13.
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