Polars, Condors and Falcons all took to Prince George secondary school's pitch Friday afternoon.
Line-outs, scrums and tries were the name of the game during a series of 15-aside and seven-aside exhibition matches between PGSS, Duchess Park and Lake City (Williams Lake) girls' rugby sides under the warm, sunny sky.
"(The concept) is for the girls just to be having fun and build the game," said Polars coach Jeremy Greenfield. "We're trying to get more schools involved. Duchess Park and PGSS have been going back and forth (this season) and it's great to see. Any shape and size and fitness level is acceptable (for rugby)."
PGSS has about 20 girls in Grades 8 to 11 suiting up for the Polars this season.
The mix goes from one extreme to the other. Friday's matches were only the second and third time some of them had ever played, while others have played since Grade 7 and 8.
"We don't have any Grade 12s this year," said Greenfield. "We rely on more experienced players to help the less experienced players come up. We have to break it down to the basics. If we have the ball, then we control the game. If not, then we're on defence."
Because of not enough players to field separate junior and senior squads, both PGSS and Duchess Park have a combined junior and senior girls team.
Duchess Park has 11 girls who started practicing in March. It's the first year the school has fielded a team to play in the Cariboo high school zone league alongside PGSS and Williams Lake.
PGSS has only been practicing outside since the last week of April. The Polars travelled to Kamloops to compete in Rugby Fest on April 17-18.
"They learned a lot in Kamloops," said Greenfield, adding even with the big age gap between the Grade 8 and 11 players, the team puts it together on the field. "This is a sport that you have to play and that's where you start to click."
The Polars also compete in friendlies against Houston, Smithers and Vanderhoof.
The Lake City Falcons didn't hesitate to drive two hours north to Prince George to take on the Condors and Polars. Head coach Morley Wilson brought 40 girls with him to get more experience and playing time.
"We have a bunch of girls who need repetitions," said Wilson, who also serves as the Cariboo zone rep with the provincial high school girls rugby association. "We need to build rugby in this zone. Travel and distance are the main obstacles, but we really need the community and businesses to support it."
The Falcons won the bronze medal at the B.C. High School Girls Rugby Association seven-aside championship in April and are currently ranked third in double-A in 15-aside.
Williams Lake is hosting the 2016 double-A, triple-A and
Tier 2 15-aside provincials on the third weekend of May.
Beginning on May 20, Duchess Park and PGSS will alternate between their fields to play each other every Wednesday night until the middle of June.
Interested girls who don't have a team at their school can visit Greenfield at one of PGSS's practices on Monday and Wednesday nights between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. and he will connect them with a coach.
