PAST: St. George’s School Saints
PRESENT: Nigel Toy Field
FUTURE: OUA University of Western Ontario Mustangs
Owen Pitblado is one of those gamers who knows the basic things make the big things possible.
The biggest of them all may be accountability — to himself, his teammates and all the boys who’ve worn the school crest before him. It’s one reason he plays rugby.
“There is nowhere on the field you can be lazy,” he said.
The five-foot-11 multi-sport athlete at St. George’s embraces his responsibilities. “Everyone buys in and does their job,” he said. “Our coaches teach us all year to run our systems and teach us how to have the heart, desire and will to win.”
Once one of the smallest players and the youngest of four siblings, Pitblado grew accustomed to fighting for space and stature. Now, his coach calls him an “offensive weapon.”
“Owen has a knack for identifying space in and behind a defensive line, where his pace and footwork make him a serious threat,” said St. George’s head rugby coach Mike Stiles. “He is super fit and was our best support player all season. He always pushes the game forwards, applying pressure to opponents.”
A student at the elite all-boys school since Grade 3, Pitblado names the playing fields, courts and boathouses as his most formative classrooms. His teammates are like brothers and his older brother, James, set a course that Pitblado followed, though the two scrum-halves were too far apart in age to play on the school’s first XV together and won’t play together at university — but they might meet in opposition next year.
The coach who taught them both can see the influence. “I am sure that James’s success has really motivated Owen to push himself to his limits,” said Stiles.
“Every sibling has a rivalry within,” said Pitblado. “We've never played on the same team or against each other,” said the younger athlete who will compete in Ontario University Athletics with the University of Western Ontario and could line up against his brother, a former U20 national team player at the University of Victoria.
At Western, Pitblado will study sports management and follow the lead of his father, a trustee with the B.C. Football Hall of Fame.
Playing rugby for Canada is also his ambition, but before he’s considered for that roster, Pitblado will wear the Maple Leaf at the World Junior Ultimate Championships this August in Poland.
“He makes it all look effortless,” said Jon Hayduk, a national ultimate coach and the long-time community coach at St. George’s. He said Pitblado earned his place because of his sheer talent. He might miss practice because of rugby, but he will appear at game time, focused, driven and one of the best to take the field. “I don’t know if there’s a guy who I trust more,” said Hayduk.
It’s that basic.
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