History of the Bruins

In 1972, John Hume, a transplanted Scotsman and Commonwealth athlete, led the formation of the Maple Ridge Alouettes, who competed in the Fraser Valley Rugby Union’s 2nd Division. Founding members included teachers Mike Suddaby, Dan Lazar, and Bill Stewart, along with Ed Salvail and Andy Ferguson. Hume and Suddaby brought rugby experience from Scotland, Australia, and Vancouver, while Salvail was a graduate of the Maple Ridge Senior Secondary Rugby program. The others were enthusiastic newcomers.

In 1973, the team welcomed Jim Pinson, a former California Golden Bears college rugby player. Together, they formed a formidable scrum. The backline came from John McKenzie’s MRSS football program of the 1960s, including players like Mike Mets, Al Hampton, and Gord “Flame” Stevens. Home games were played at Telosky Park, known for its deep mud and limited facilities. The original changeroom remained until redevelopment in 2020.

Rugby’s social life thrived alongside its competitive side. The Alouettes were well known for their spirited sing-alongs and boat races, a drinking tradition perfected once players turned nineteen in Canada. On the field, they earned victories, including at least one Bert Flynn Trophy in the annual FVRU tournament.

By the late 1970s, the club had secured top-level coaches, Chris Clark and Alan Joels, a former British Army Paratrooper Sergeant. The Alouettes expanded to two squads in the 1st and 2nd Divisions and became the starting point for future Canadian international Ron Van Den Brink, who represented Canada in the 1987, 1991, and 1995 Rugby World Cups.

The Barney family, Greg, Scott, and their 50-year-old father Ollie, were key figures in the club. Ollie eventually joined the Burnaby Twilighters over-40 team, where he played until his passing in 2009. Over the years, the Alouettes hosted touring teams from Limerick, Ireland, and Paris, France. At their peak in the 1970s, home games were played at Mile High Stadium, a superb pitch that now lies unused behind the Pacific Vocational Institute on 248th Street.

Clubhouses were often improvised, ranging from an abandoned Chinese restaurant on Lougheed Highway near today’s Best Western to a shack at West Road and Lougheed, close to the current Staples. For a time, post-match celebrations took place at the Witch of Endor pub, including an all-night party with the visiting Limerick squad. Another annual tradition was the University of Washington Mud Bowl in Seattle, reached by car or, once, by bus. The bus driver swore never to make the trip again.

By the early 1980s, the club began to struggle as founding players married, moved away, or aged out. The Alouettes merged with another struggling side, the Pitt River club, creating the Pitt Bruins. The Bruins toured England in 1985 and later captured the BC Championship in the late 1980s.

Rugby in Ridge Meadows slowed again in the early 1990s, but by the late 1990s and early 2000s, the sport began to grow once more. Graduates from Thomas Haney Secondary provided new talent for both men’s and women’s squads. By 2010, the youth program was producing Valley and BC representatives. Notably, Guiseppe Du Toit joined Ron Van Den Brink on the club’s roll of honor by representing Canada in the 2015 Rugby World Cup. Trent “Bones” Bourke also earned national honors in 2015 by representing Canada in Rugby League.

Today, the Ridge Meadows Bruins field teams at many levels, including Minis, U12, U14, U16, U18, and both men’s and women’s sides. Rugby continues to grow in Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge, carrying forward a legacy that has been built over more than fifty years.