By Jeff D'Andrea

P.A.’s Milligan to be a part of rugby history in Colombia

Dec 13, 2014 | 7:31 AM

Next week, Prince Albert’s Ashton Milligan will be part of rugby history.

He’ll participate in the first ever U-18 men’s Ultra Sevens Rugby tournament in Colombia from Dec. 17-20. He’s part of the 20-man Dog River Howlers club, a select team made up of players from across Canada. They’re based in Regina and named after the fictional town that Canadian sitcom Corner Gas is based in (the ‘Dog River Howler’ is also the town’s newspaper in the show).

Milligan will play the historic first game with the Howlers on Dec. 17 against Marovia’s Mirmidones Rugby Club in Medellín, Colombia.

“It will be really exciting. It will be great for us and great for them too, because we’re introducing the game of 7’s to them,” said Milligan. “It’s something new for them, and us travelling there, it’s something new for us, too. It’s great for everybody.”

The trip will also conclude a city tour of Medellín and a hiking trip in small town Guatape.

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Milligan has played in the last three U-18 National Championship Festivals with Team Saskatchewan’s 15-aside rugby club, winning the last two bowls (the championship in their division) in Calgary in August and in Vancouver last year.

From his experience there, the Howlers head coach Shane Thompson, who coaches elite sevens teams in British Columbia, invited Milligan to join the club.

Also included on their team as a coaching consultant is retired Fijian great Waisale Serevi, who’s widely regarded as one of the best rugby players of all-time. Serevi’s daughter Asinate is on the U-18 women’s Howlers, part of the Howlers’ tour in Colombia.

Milligan has been playing with the Saskatchewan Rivers Dragons and has blossomed into their go-to standoff, rugby’s equivalent to a quarterback.

“I heard about it when I was in Grade 8 and got an early start on it. It’s mainly a high school sport so I started on it early,” said Milligan, who will likely play in the backs for the Howlers. “The main things I like about it are the physicality and the speed of the sport. A lot of sports don’t play at the same speed and the same intensity for as long as rugby does.

“The amount of team spirit in rugby is immensely greater than most sports I’ve played.”

jdandrea@panow.com

On Twitter: @jeff_dandrea