CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. – Home-field advantage in the playoffs is dangling out there and the P.E.I. Mudmen senior men’s rugby club wants it.
The Mudmen division A (5-0) and division B (5-0) sides tangle with Enfield in today’s Rugby Nova Scotia senior men’s action in Enfield, N.S., and Phil Gallant said P.E.I. has its eyes on the prize.
“Both teams are secured in the playoffs, but home-field advantage is key now,” said Gallant, a longtime Mudmen player and organizer. “Both teams need to win their respective two games to secure top spot and have playoffs go through P.E.I.”
Game times are 1 p.m. for the A team and 3 p.m. for the B side. Enfield is 3-2 in A and 1-5 in B.
The Mudmen B squad didn’t start the regular campaign until July but shot out of the gate with five straight wins. It’s the first meeting between Enfield and P.E.I. this season.
Halifax Tars (5-0-1) leads division B and face the Mudmen next weekend in Halifax to close out the regular season. Winner gets home field throughout the playoffs.
In division A, the Tars (5-1, 27 points) hold a slim edge over P.E.I. (24 points) for the standings lead. The Mudmen tussle with Halifax RFC (3-3) next week in Halifax to end both squad’s regular seasons.
And again, win today and next Saturday and P.E.I., the defending A division champ, earns hosting duties in cozy Co-op Field in Charlottetown for the semifinal and championship games. P.E.I. downed the Tars 27-24 in the lone meeting this season in Halifax in July.
The second division semifinal goes Sunday, Sept. 16, with the first division semifinal on Saturday, Sept. 22. Both finals go Saturday, Sept. 29.
That’s all well and good, but late-season battles aren’t easy ones. Often, said Gallant, players returning to school and university can ice down rosters and cool team chemistry that’s been percolating all season.
For Gallant, it makes things tougher but not impossible.
“The challenge now is losing guys to back to school and having so many guys play at UPEI, too. It’s a lot of rugby for guys and they get tired.”
Should the Mudmen win both divisions’ playoffs, the club would join the Charlottetown Rugby Football Club (CRFC) as double champs. The CRFC won the tier A and tier B senior women’s crowns late last month.
It was the tier A team’s second title in two seasons, while tier B grabbed its first title in its inaugural year.
How They Got Here
A look at the P.E.I. Mudmen division A and B seasons with two games remaining:
Division A
Record – 5-0, 24 points, second in division.
Wins – P.E.I. 103 Valley 7; P.E.I. 31 Dartmouth 12; P.E.I. 27 Halifax Tars 24; P.E.I. 47 Pictou County 15; P.E.I. 77 Windsor Hants County 0.
Points For-Points Against – 285-58 (227-point differential leads league).
Games Remaining – at Enfield, today, 1 p.m.; at Halifax RFC, Saturday, Sept. 8, 4 p.m.
Division B
Record – 5-0, 25 points, second in division.
Wins – P.E.I. 45 Eastern Shore 24; P.E.I. 27 Pictou County 12; P.E.I. 48 Riverlake 10; P.E.I. 46 Truro 12; P.E.I. 50 Caledonia 0.
Points For-Points Against – 216-58 (158-point differential second in league).
Games Remaining – at Enfield, today, 3 p.m.; at Halifax Tars, Saturday, Sept. 8, 2 p.m.
