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Earl Marriott Secondary has four graduates set to play for the Canadia national men’s rugby team in the Pacific Nations Cup opener.
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Published Aug 23, 2024 • 3 minute read
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Earl Marriott Mariners head coach Adam Roberts speaks to his team in 2009. Photo by Les Bazso /PNG
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If there’s one thing a Grade 8 boy can’t say no to is a chance to get a slice of pizza.
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And that’s what drew Izzak Kelly to the after-school sale at Earl Marriott Secondary a decade ago.
“The rugby team would sell pizza for two bucks after school,” he said, after Rugby Canada wrapped up a practice at B.C. Place Stadium in preparation for Sunday’s Pacific Nations Cup opener versus Japan.
He was just hungry.
Then Earl Marriott rugby coach Adam Roberts spotted Kelly.
“Geez, you’re huge!”
The rest is history. Kelly was a big boy, but he was timid, he said. He loved sports, just about every sport he came across.
He played hockey and lacrosse, along with rugby. His mom Leanne took him to all the games and he’s thankful to her, too.
Rugby became his first love — and he found his way to be a physical presence. Now standing 6-foot-6 and remarkably athletic, Kelly could be the future of the Canadian men’s team’s second row.
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And it all goes back to Roberts, he said, whose enthusiasm for the game knows know bounds.
Canada’s Talon McMullin got his start in rugby at Surrey’s Earl Marriott Secondary under coach Adam Roberts. Photo by Andre Ringuette/Rugby Canada
It’s no accident that there are four EMS grads on the Canadian roster this weekend.
Talon McMullin, who is starting versus Japan at inside centre, has been Kelly’s teammate since high school. So has McMullin’s twin brother Takoda, plus their pal Calixto Martinez.
“He just sees something in every person where they can excel at rugby. And that’s kind of why he’s being so successful developing guys,” McMullin said. The high school game is dominated by private school powerhouses St. George’s and Shawnigan Lake, who have seemingly bottomless resources, but Roberts has managed to have EMS almost keep pace, despite being a public school.
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“He’s the biggest optimist I know,” McMullin added.
It’s about how he gets his players to buy in to what it takes to truly take your team to the next level, Kelly said.
“He does a very good job of creating a team culture and creating an environment that is really fun for all the boys,” he said.
Four players from one school is remarkable, which speaks to the energy Roberts has instilled in his former players.
That quartet is among a group of seven players at the University of B.C. who played under Curry Hitchborn. Canada has struggled over the years to keep up as the game has gone professional elsewhere around the world, but the work Hitchborn put into the UBC program over the past decade gave a least a small group of players a near-professional quality program. Hitchborn is now running the semi-professional Vancouver Highlanders, who are looking to lead the rebirth of the elite in men’s rugby in this country.
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Canada’s Izzak Kelly got his start in rugby at Surrey’s Earl Marriott Secondary under coach Adam Roberts. Photo by Rugby Canada
McMullin noted the importance of Hitchborn’s efforts.
“His goal is to get you to be better and to develop rugby in Canada, which is a very tough thing,” he said.
For his part, Hitchborn noted Roberts’ work getting young athletes into the game has had a huge effect on the UBC program.
“Adam Roberts has always had long-term vision when it comes to developing people. His body of work shows that,” he said.
Curry Hitchborn coaching the UBC Thunderbirds men’s rugby team during Canadian university national championships, Dec. 4, 2022. Photo by Bob Frid
Growing up with a single mom, paying for university would be a challenge for Kelly. But the game also got him a scholarship. And his dedication to the game has already taken him a long way.
He’s playing for Canada because of the start Roberts gave him and the extra pushes Hitchborn has given him.
“He’s very good at seeing potential in people and then kind of coaching them and guiding them toward being able to be their best self,” Kelly said.
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pjohnston@postmedia.com
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Courtesy : https://theprovince.com/sports/surrey-school-players-rugby-canada