Iacobelli and Gonzalez star for the Caledon Cavaliers at Barbarians’ Mini’s Rugby Festival in Aurora

By Jim Stewart

Christian Iacobelli of the Caledon Cavaliers' U12 and Sebastian Gonzalez of the Caledon Cavaliers' U10 squad had outstanding tournaments, respectively, at the “2023 Mini's Festival” hosted by the Aurora Barbarians Rugby Football Club on Sunday morning.

Over 530 U6-U14 players enjoyed the ideal July conditions on the eleven fields deployed for the Festival at Sheppard's Bush and St. Maximilian Kolbe CHS in Aurora.

Visiting teams included the Cavaliers, Balmy Beach, Ajax Wanderers, Toronto Nomads, Barrie Rugby Club, Georgian Bay Titans, Brock Rugby Club, Peterborough RC, Guelph RC, and Toronto City Rugby Club. 

Gerardo Gonzalez, Junior Director of the Caledon Cavaliers RFC, said he was impressed by his four clubs' performances on and off the field in Aurora.

“For our U6-U8 players, we want them to have fun, enjoy themselves, learn the game as we go, and build friendships. The communal meal for all the younger players after the games were done —which is served up by the host club with some help from Harvey's – was a highlight for those entry level players.”

In addition to engaging in the collegial culture that is rugby, Junior Director Gonzalez was impressed by the “more competitive play of our U12 squad, particularly Bolton resident Christian Iacobelli who was battling injuries, needed to be taped up, but still scored 4-6 tries per game at the Festival and made 12-15 tackles per game. It's Christian's eighth season in rugby and his experience really shows.” 

More than 60 Cavaliers participated in the Festival in Aurora and the four teams produced memorable moments for the organization. The Cavaliers Junior Director, who oversees the grassroots development plan for the club's U6-U12 program, also noted the play of “U10 Cavalier Sebastian Gonzalez who scored 4-5 tries per game against non-contact competition in Aurora.”

The Vaughan resident was a regular call-up to the 10U Cavaliers last season and his experiences in 2022 have contributed greatly to his on-field success in 2023.

Gonzalez added that, “Sebastian has been playing since he was four so his experience as also showing as it is with Christian Iacobelli in a division higher.”  

Gerardo Gonzalez noted the importance of gathering that experience through participation in Festivals during the season so players can “learn how to deal with things, especially adversity.”

“Rugby is a tiring sport—learning to play hurt and tired is such an important element.  Equally important is the camaraderie between teammates after the game.”

The Cavaliers' Junior Director indicated that the best part of the Barbarians' Festival was seeing the event return to Aurora.

“This is the first time in many years, due to the Pandemic, that Aurora is hosting again.  These are fun times for the kids. It was good that the Barbarians had a facility where everybody could be hosted in one place and get everyone fed on site.” 

Experiencing rugby culture at Festivals and growing the game at the grassroots level is critical for the Cavaliers, according to Gonzalez, as it is for organizations across the province. 

John Reich, who was inducted into the Rugby Ontario Hall of Fame in 2013 and is the Past President of the Aurora Barbarians, was pleased by the number of participants the tourney attracted this year.

“We've got 350 kids from the U6-U12 divisions, 60 U14 girls playing on the artificial turf field here at Sheppard's Bush, and 120 U14 boys playing up at St. Max.”

The Hall of Famer was most excited about “the kids' exposure to the sport and just getting them out to play.”

“We're happy they could meet Archie the Mascot of the Toronto Arrows and to meet Arrows players at the event. We're also grateful to the Town of Aurora for releasing the soccer fields for today's Festival.”

According to Reich, the Barbarians are working on a plan with the Town of Aurora to build a new rugby field at Sheppard's Bush to help house their growing program.

“We're committed to building a new field—a second artificial turf field just north of the existing one.  As an organization, we've committed $1.75 M to the building of a rugby complex that would include the much-needed field, a clubhouse, public access change rooms, and public washrooms.” 

Equally committed to growing the game is the Toronto Arrows RFC—Canada's professional rugby franchise that competes in Major League Rugby.

Brock Smith, the Manager of Communications for the MLR squad, noted that “The Arrows have attended four festivals so far this season to build rugby at the grassroots level.”

“We've got our mascot, Archie the Raccoon, here today to meet the kids and parents. Our season's now ended and nine of our players have been selected for the Internationals being hosted in Fiji and Tonga.”

Smith added that “The Arrows now supply the Canadian National Team with the most players.”

“We want to demonstrate to Canadian players that there is now a pathway to pro rugby and that Canada has a pro rugby team.” 

One of those pro rugby players in attendance at the Festival on Sunday was Travis Larsen, a flanker for the Arrows and a member of the Aurora Barbarians Senior Coaching Staff. The 6'3”, 240 pound forward, who played the 2022 MLR season with the Seattle Seawolves prior to being rostered by the Arrows, observed that the best part of the Barbarians' Mini's Festival was “getting kids playing rugby and enjoying the best sport in the world.”

“It's fun for the kids, it's great to see them trying rugby, and getting exposed to the sport at a young age.  It's a global game with so many opportunities to travel.”

Larsen, a well-travelled 31-year-old veteran who has played for a number of international clubs in Europe, was born in Canada, but raised in the rugby hotbed of New Zealand, summed up his season with the Arrows.

“We had a rough year. We were struck by the injury bug, but, as a result, lots of Canadian players had opportunities to play because so many veteran international players got hurt. Brendan Black from Oakville really stepped up for the Arrows and became the youngest player to ever start in a Major League Rugby game.”

The evident theme of the day, according to Gerardo Gonzalez of the Caledon Cavaliers, Hall of Famer John Reich of the Aurora Barbarians, and Brock Smith and Travis Larsen of the Toronto Arrows, was kids having fun playing rugby.

It was a successful road trip for Gonzalez's four Cavaliers teams and the 60 players who enjoyed the Festival in Aurora on the weekend. Mission accomplished by Cavaliers RFC as they grow their program at the grassroots level for the residents of Caledon and surrounding areas.