A lack of urgency in practice last week may have contributed to the Cowichan Bulldogs’ 42-14 loss on the road at the hands of the North Surrey Bears last Sunday.
“I felt we played how we practiced the week before,” head coach Tim Maertz said. “We had good practices, but we needed some more zip in our practices. We weren’t practicing how we should have played.”
The Bulldogs were still in the game, Maertz felt, although it got away from them a bit in the second half.
“The score shouldn’t have been that bad,” he said.
The teams traded touchdowns in the early going, North Surrey scoring first, with Cowichan answering on the next play. The score was 7-7 for a long time before the Bears got another major, followed soon after by another Cowichan touchdown. Again it was 14-14 for some time before the Bears pulled away.
“In the second half, we missed some assignments on defence,” Maertz said. “And they ended up taking advantage of them.”
The entire Cowichan offensive line earned the game ball for giving quarterback Carson Maertz plenty of time and space to work with. The QB did his best to take advantage of it.
“I felt we threw the ball really well,” coach Maertz said. “Carson had some great passes. He threw some interceptions, but he moved the ball well.”
Nicholas Young, the foundation upon which the Cowichan defence is built, had another two sacks, and was involved in another great play when Liam Simmonds, usually a centre but playing defensive end for this particular series, knocked down a pass by the scrambling Surrey quarterback, sending the ball right into the hands of Young, who ran for another 10 yards after the interception.
Maertz was disappointed with the result, but not with his team’s effort.
“The guys are certainly working hard,” he said. “As head coach, I need to keep on them and get the practices a little more intense, so when we get into these situations, we’re ready for them. We’ll build off what we did well and keep going.”
The Bulldogs will be at home this Sunday, hosting the North Langley Kodiaks at McAdam Park at 2 p.m.