Quarter final matchups set in McCormick Cup

September 12, 2018

Exciting first round of McCormick Cup ushers in quarter finals this weekend

The 2018 McCormick Cup playoffs got underway this past weekend with great rugby being played across the six first round matches. With the quarter finals kicking off this weekend, there will be much more at stake for the teams as they look to get that much closer to the finals. Brantford Harlequins and Toronto Scottish tag back in to the fold after sitting out week one on byes. They will look to come out of the gates strong after a rest in the first round.

The only upset in Round 1 saw the Burlington Centaurs (10th seed) defeat the Peterborough Pagans (7th seed) in a high-scoring affair.

The winners of round one have moved on to quarter final play on September 15. September 22 and September 29 will then be the dates for the McCormick Cup Semi and Cup Finals, respectively. The Cup Final will take place at Fletcher’s Fields with further event details including streaming to be announced.

McCORMICK CUP ROUND ONE RESULTS

Markham Irish 83 - 12 Aurora Barbarians

Lindsay RFC 56 - 26 London St. George’s

Balmy Beach 98 - 7 Ajax Wanderers

Crusaders RC 32 - 10 Barrie RFC

Peterborough Pagans 36 - 48 Burlington Centaurs

Stoney Creek Camels 39 - 29 Waterloo County

McCORMICK CUP QUARTER FINAL MATCHUPS

Brantford Harlequins (1) v Stoney Creek Camels (8)

September 15, 2018, 3:00pm ET at Harlequins RFC

Brantford is coming off of a week one bye to host the Stoney Creek Camels. Though given a round one rest, the Harlequins did travel to Montreal on Labour Day weekend to play in the Canadian Rugby Club Championship against the Montreal Irish. Coming off of that win and a week's worth of rest, Brantford will be dialled in to hoist their third straight McCormick Cup. Stoney Creek is looking to play upset as the underdogs. The Camels will be playing in the Marshall Championship in 2019 after a tough 2018 season, but would love to make a good run in the playoffs before heading down.

Toronto Scottish (2) v Burlington Centaurs (10)

September 15, 2018, 3:00pm ET at Fletcher's Fields

The Toronto Scottish are also coming off of a week one bye and they will be taking on the red-hot Burlington Centaurs in quarter final action. The Centaurs had the one upset of Round One, defeating the Peterborough Pagans. Prior to their Round One win, Burlington narrowly missed out on promotion to the Marshall Premiership in the Ontario League Playoffs - losing to Waterloo in double overtime. The Scottish had another stellar season in the Premiership, sporting an 8-2-0 record, losing only to the Markham Irish and Brantford Harlequins.

Markham Irish (3) v Crusaders RC (6)

September 15, 2018, 3:00pm ET at Fletcher's Fields

Markham and Crusaders are West Premiership division rivals and both had substantial wins in the first round to book their ticket to the quarter finals. The Crusaders had a tough regular season, sporting a 2-8-0 record, but they know that the playoffs are all that matters at this point. Markham on the other hand had a 7-3-0 record, placing just behind the Brantford Harlequins in their division. The Irish won both of the times these teams met in the regular season, but the Crusaders will look to change that in their second round matchup.

Lindsay RFC (4) v Balmy Beach (5)

September 15, 2018, 3:00pm ET at Lindsay RFC

Last but certainly not least and possibly the most enticing quarter final match, Lindsay will play host to Balmy Beach as the number four and number five ranked teams battle it out. Division rivals in the East Premiership, Lindsay and Balmy Beach both sported 5-5-0 records in the regular season. Lindsay secured second place in the division with a bonus point advantage over the Beach. It is anyone's game in this one after the teams split their matches this year - Lindsay took the first contest 40-19, while the Beach won their final meeting on July 14 by a score of 36-14.

CUP CONSOLATION MATCHUPS

Ajax Wanderers (12) v London St. George's (13)

Barrie RFC (11) v Aurora Barbarians (14)

Byes: Peterborough (7) and Waterloo County (9)

For more information on the McCormick Cup including results and a detailed playoff bracket, go to www.rugbyontario.com/mccormickcup.

Gee Gage and Intermediate Cup Playoffs

Along with the McCormick Cup Playoffs, the Gee Gage Cup and Intermediate Cup are also taking place in September.

The Gee Gage Cup is an optional championship for Marshall Seconds team and Branch Firsts teams. This year, the competition will include eight teams.

The teams competing are Balmy Beach (Marshall 2), Hamilton Hornets, Bay Street Pigs, Crusaders, Fletcher’s North (Combined Aurora Barbarians and Markham Irish), Toronto Scottish, Toronto Saracens and Balmy Beach Academy (Keenan 1).

Spanning over the same four weeks as the McCormick Cup and culminating with the Gee Gage Cup on September 29, the matchups and results for the first three weeks can be found here: https://www.rugbyontario.com/league/132336/.

The Intermediate Cup includes two home-and-home series to determine entry into the Marshall Championship for the 2019 season.

In the West Marshall Intermediate Cup, the Sarnia Saints (NRU League Representative) and the Toronto Nomads play a home-and-home series with matches on September 8 and September 15. Aggregate score determines entry or return into the West Championship for 2019. In the September 8 series opener, the Nomads came out victorious on the road by as score of 24-14. The Nomads host the Saints on September 15.

In the East Marshall Intermediate Cup, the Vaughan Yeomen (TRU League Representative) and the Oshawa Vikings play a home-and-home series with matches on September 8 and September 15. Aggregate score determines entry or return into the East Championship for 2019. In the September 8 series opener, the Oshawa Vikings defeated the Yeomen 36-31 to open the series. The Yeomen will host the Vikings on September 15 to close the series.

For fixtures and results of the Marshall Intermediate Cup, go to https://www.rugbyontario.com/league/132358/.

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