Vancouver Valley Vipers rugby league team took silver in the provincial Rugby League in a close 18-16 Grand Finals senior men鈥檚 championship against Whistler Wolves on Saturday, July 26 at the 91原创 Rugby Club (LRC) field.
It was the first time LRC has hosted the Grand Final. Most of the Vipers roster is 91原创 players, and the LRC on 91原创's Crush Crescent is their home field.
Vipers second row Preston Lahmer, a South 91原创 resident, is vice-president of the 91原创 Rugby Club.
"We've been through adversity the last four years, making it to the semifinals and the grand final once," Lahmer told the 91原创 Advance Times in a post-game interview.
"We worked hard this year, finishing second in the league, just came up short by two points in the final."
It was still a great way to end the season, Lahmer commented.
"I think as a team, we'd rather come and play competitive games than be rolling through the season easily," said Lahmer.
"I'm super proud of the boys. Obviously, the goal is to always win, but when you're in [a] loss, I think if you choose to find the lessons in it, we can rise to the occasion and come back better next year."
It was the second championship win in a row for the Whistler team, which was undefeated all season.
Rugby League B.C. is a non-profit association, currently the largest domestic rugby league competition in Canada.
Founded in 2011, RLBC is the governing body for rugby league football in the province, operating under the Canada Rugby League.
In 2021 RLBC introduced its first women's competition.
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