Pieter Vorster
Special to the Record
A fired-up Comox Valley Kickers team stepped onto the soggy Herd Road pitch to face long-time rivals Cowichan Piggies and came away with an important win that keeps them in the playoff picture.
Due to snow earlier in the season, this make-up game was the first of two consecutive clashes, with the next one set to take place at Cumberland Village Park this Sunday, April 4.
Following a very physical contest the visitors walked away with a few bruises, a lot of big smiles and a 25-5 victory.
The boys in maroon and black started pushing forward as soon as the whistle blew and kept the ball inside the Cowichan end until fly-half Doug Wynd kicked a penalty. Cowichan tried to drive back but saw their first-half hopes crushed when centre Steve Hextall ran in a beautiful 40-metre try, his 16th of the season.
The Kickers opened the second half with a try from fullback Ross Mclean, his ninth of the season, as he put his speedy sidestep to excellent use and ran past three defenders to earn Most Valuable Player honours. Brandon Huddleston converted.
The Piggies answered back but failed to convert, making it 15-5. Shortly after, Wynd powered his way through the Cowichan line for the second try of the half, which Huddleston again converted. Wynd kicked a final penalty to give the Kickers a comfortable winning margin and their third win against two losses since the Christmas break.
Although the points all came from the Kickers' backline, the forward pack deserve much of the glory. Their relentless driving and rock-solid defence kept the host team on its heels, often forcing them into desperate plays that cost them penalties. Captain Greg Merchant led his team by example during this toughly-contested, emotional match.
The Kickers face Cowichan in their return match Sunday at Cumberland with kickoff at 1 p.m.