By Cammy-M Bernier – Contributor

USports’ rugby season kicked off two weeks ago as the Gaiters women’s rugby team wrapped up a warm pre-season marked with hard work, blood, sweat and the eight Cs: courage, curiosity, creativity, clarity, confidence, connectedness, compassion and composure. These eight words act as the stepping stones of the 2023 season. On top of rugby-specific skills and tactic development, the past month has been based on emotional intelligence skills-building. Emotional intelligence is an essential component to unite a squad of 35 players, consisting of 17 freshmen.

On Aug. 19, the varsity team came together to establish on- and off-field goals for the 2023 season. These goals included rugby performance, academic performance and community involvement aspects.

As a very young team in the RSEQ women’s rugby circuit, we must show up mentally and physically prepared day after day. We have to implement an entirely new offensive system, which is a challenging adjustment both for rookies and returners. The words connectedness, curiosity, courage and clarity resonate with us when so many new details must be put together within as little as two weeks. This new system allows our physically small team to exploit our main strength – speed – as the roster is filled with small and agile players.

The start of the season has not been without challenges. In fact, just two weeks into the regular season, we have suffered two hard losses. Our season opener did not conclude as planned. We fell short to the McGill Redbirds at the Percival-Molson stadium — an opponent whom the Gaiters’ team has had positive and dominant results with in the past. A short ten days later, we stepped foot on the home field of the Concordia Stingers, another game that finished in disappointment. Confidence and composure are on the menu as we attack the season, wishing to turn the scores in our favor.

Regardless of the challenges faced so far, the positives are not to be dismissed. Gaiters’ defense is one of the most structured, connected and efficient it has been in the women’s program. Additionally, incoming freshmen are strong, skilled and creative, resulting in a very bright near future for the program. Team unity is another strong feature at this point in the season.

The varsity team will benefit from a bye week during Bishop’s homecoming weekend. Coaches plan rest, recovery, adjustments and skill refinement for the team. We will look to bounce back on the road in Montreal on Sept. 20 against the Carabins.