RECAP: Gee-Gees drop men’s rugby home opener to Stingers

The University of Ottawa men's rugby team fell in their home opener to the Concordia Stingers by a 59-10 score at Matt Anthony Field on Sunday.

Ahmed Edali scored the Gee-Gees lone try on Sunday afternoon. Nathaniel Maginnis converted the try and also made a penalty kick.

"They are a very tough and very experienced side," said Gee-Gees head coach Steph Crawley. "We're a young group. This is going to be the hardest match of the season. It's not what I wanted on the scoreboard, but we have to build off of it."

"The crowd was bumping, I loved it," said Edali, a first-year from Ottawa. "First time I've seen that many people in the crowd."

Maginnis's long penalty kick opened the scoring, but the Stingers would then account for 31 unanswered points.

Concordia's offensive onslaught could have been worse, had it not been for a physical defensive play from Toff Patel. The finance major from Ottawa made a textbook open field tackle, preventing a certain Concordia try. 

"We played well on defence, but unfortunately we weren't able to turn on our attack," said Crawley. "When the ball came free, we continued to play defence instead of turning it into an attack opportunity."

Edali's try came in the 52nd minute, capping off a move down the left flank by the Gee-Gees. Jeff Radford rumbled to within five yards of the goal line, before passing it off to Edali for the try. Maginnis converted the try from an acute angle, making the score 31-10 at the time.

"We were quiet for the first half," said Edali. "The wind took its toll. It was a good game overall. We'll get them back next time. It's a new, fresh team and the chemistry isn't quite there yet. We'll get there though." 

The Gee-Gees now sit at 1-1 for the season and travel to Bishop's University to face the Gaitors on Friday, Sept. 27. Ottawa returns to Matt Anthony Field on Oct. 10 to face McGill. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.

The Stingers improved to 2-0 and extended their winning streak in RSEQ action to 19 games.

Tickets for all Gee-Gees home games are available for purchase at tickets.geegees.ca.