June 30, 2021
OUA announces rugby schedules for 2021 season
Burlington, Ont. - Ontario University Athletics (OUA) is pleased to announce the 2021 regular season rugby schedules, set to commence on September 24.
Key Dates
Training Camp Start | W/M: September 4, 2021
Regular Season Start | W/M: September 24, 2021
Regular Season End | W: October 23, 2021; M: October 24, 2021
Championships | W/M: November 6, 2021
With no changes to previous years' formatting, the women's rugby field will once again be broken down into the Shiels and Russell Divisions, respectively.
September 24 marks the official regular season return of OUA women's rugby, as the Guelph Gryphons visit the McMaster Marauders for an evening tilt to kick off the schedule. Combining for titles in five of the last six seasons, it is a championship-calibre commencement for the highly-anticipated return to the pitch.
Another six teams will see their campaigns get underway the following day, with the Trent Excalibur squaring off with the Waterloo Warriors, the Toronto Varsity Blues battling the Western Mustangs, and the Brock Badgers hosting the defending champion Queen's Gaels.
The remaining two teams, the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks and the York Lions, will have to wait another week before they make their respective returns, with the former visiting the Varsity Blues on October 1 and the latter, who makes their way into the Shiels Division this season, heading to Queen's on October 2.
After welcoming the division newcomers, the Tricolour will then turn their focus to the Gryphons the following week (October 9), who they have met in the OUA Championship each of the past three seasons. After claiming both a regular season and championship game victory in 2019 against Guelph, all eyes will be on the Gaels to see if they can continue their recent string of success against the 16-time champions in 2021.
The five-week regular season schedule then wraps up two weeks later with a pair of games each on October 22 and 23.
While there is no change in the divisional breakdown for men's rugby, the season's slate has been condensed from six to four games, which makes it that much more important to come out of the gates strong when the five-week regular season gets underway.
The first two teams vying to put their best foot forward will be the Trent Excalibur and McMaster Marauders, who will start the season's festivities on September 24 in Hamilton. The following day will see the Brock Badgers and Guelph Gryphons serve as hosts for the Western Mustangs and Waterloo Warriors, respectively, while the defending champion Gaels will round out the opening weekend calendar with a visit to the Varsity Blues on September 26.
Wilfrid Laurier will make their 2021 regular season debut on October 2 against the Mustangs, while the RMC Paladins will commence their return to competition on the road a day later against Toronto.
All games will be played within each team's respective division to complete the four-game regular season set-up, the finale of which will take place between Western and Waterloo on October 24.
The complete 2021 OUA regular season women's rugby schedule can be found HERE, while the men's schedule can be found HERE.
*The rugby schedules, as with all OUA schedules for the 2021-22 season, remain subject to change based on any pertinent updates from the provincial government, public health authorities, and provincial sport organizations. Game-specific adjustments to dates/times may also be made by OUA members over the summer months.
Key Dates
Training Camp Start | W/M: September 4, 2021
Regular Season Start | W/M: September 24, 2021
Regular Season End | W: October 23, 2021; M: October 24, 2021
Championships | W/M: November 6, 2021
With no changes to previous years' formatting, the women's rugby field will once again be broken down into the Shiels and Russell Divisions, respectively.
September 24 marks the official regular season return of OUA women's rugby, as the Guelph Gryphons visit the McMaster Marauders for an evening tilt to kick off the schedule. Combining for titles in five of the last six seasons, it is a championship-calibre commencement for the highly-anticipated return to the pitch.
Another six teams will see their campaigns get underway the following day, with the Trent Excalibur squaring off with the Waterloo Warriors, the Toronto Varsity Blues battling the Western Mustangs, and the Brock Badgers hosting the defending champion Queen's Gaels.
The remaining two teams, the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks and the York Lions, will have to wait another week before they make their respective returns, with the former visiting the Varsity Blues on October 1 and the latter, who makes their way into the Shiels Division this season, heading to Queen's on October 2.
After welcoming the division newcomers, the Tricolour will then turn their focus to the Gryphons the following week (October 9), who they have met in the OUA Championship each of the past three seasons. After claiming both a regular season and championship game victory in 2019 against Guelph, all eyes will be on the Gaels to see if they can continue their recent string of success against the 16-time champions in 2021.
The five-week regular season schedule then wraps up two weeks later with a pair of games each on October 22 and 23.
While there is no change in the divisional breakdown for men's rugby, the season's slate has been condensed from six to four games, which makes it that much more important to come out of the gates strong when the five-week regular season gets underway.
The first two teams vying to put their best foot forward will be the Trent Excalibur and McMaster Marauders, who will start the season's festivities on September 24 in Hamilton. The following day will see the Brock Badgers and Guelph Gryphons serve as hosts for the Western Mustangs and Waterloo Warriors, respectively, while the defending champion Gaels will round out the opening weekend calendar with a visit to the Varsity Blues on September 26.
Wilfrid Laurier will make their 2021 regular season debut on October 2 against the Mustangs, while the RMC Paladins will commence their return to competition on the road a day later against Toronto.
All games will be played within each team's respective division to complete the four-game regular season set-up, the finale of which will take place between Western and Waterloo on October 24.
The complete 2021 OUA regular season women's rugby schedule can be found HERE, while the men's schedule can be found HERE.
*The rugby schedules, as with all OUA schedules for the 2021-22 season, remain subject to change based on any pertinent updates from the provincial government, public health authorities, and provincial sport organizations. Game-specific adjustments to dates/times may also be made by OUA members over the summer months.
