The Dauphin Mavericks carried a lead into the second half of their game against the Brandon Barbarians, Saturday afternoon, but could not hold onto it, falling 34-31.

Dauphin led 19-12 at halftime, but for the second straight game, the opposition erased that lead en route to beating the local men’s rugby squad.

Oliver Dandeneau scored two tries for the Mavericks, while Jeff Zeiler, Will Miner and Joseph Davidson had one each and Daniel Evans had three converts.

Mavericks co-coach Codi Harrigan felt conditioning was a factor in the second half collapse.

“Another thing is those offloads we’re trying when we shouldn’t be and we should just be going to ground with the ball for ball retention, that’s what really hurt us,” he said.

“We had some penalties in the second half that cost us, as well.”

Harrigan liked the team’s communication with each other. The Mavericks were missing some key players, but the older players stepped up to provide some leadership.

“And the young guys really came out to show, too. When one ran, there were two supporting. That was very nice to see,” he said.

Dauphin hits the pitch again this Saturday when they host the Winnipeg Wasps at 5 p.m.

The Mavericks are currently tied for fourth place in the six-team league with two wins, three losses and one draw.

The Wasps, meanwhile, are winless in six contests.

Harrigan feels there is no reason for the Mavericks to hang their heads after the loss to Brandon.

“That’s a tough team over there, the Barbs. They’ve got lots of chemistry. They’ve been playing together a long time,” he said.

Being able to play with the top teams in the league will give the Mavericks confidence as the season winds down.

“This is our third week in a row coming close to the top teams in the league. So I’m going to have a word with the guys here today and let them know they are a contender for top spot. And if we clean up the small errors, this would have been a landslide victory,” Harrigan said.

The Lady Mavericks played their first home game in more than 20 years, falling 27-8 to the Lady Barbarians.

Kent Miner was recruited to coach the team about two weeks ago. He feels nerves were a factor in the game, which consisted of two 20-minutes halves due to the heat and lack of players.

“We were the better team on the field. We had lots of ball control over them. We just made a few key errors that came back and cost us in points,” he said.

In his short time with the team, Miner likes what he sees and feels they could become a contender in two or three years.

“If they can get the numbers, they can be a good, contending team. As long as the same girls keep coming out and we’ll have a few more next year from injuries, I think the (Lady) Mavericks are going to be a good team in the near future,” he said, noting there are not many players over the age of 25.

The key to the team’s success will be to recruit more players.

One thing that will help that cause is a change in the rules where high school players in Grade 12 are allowed to play in Rugby Manitoba’s women’s league.

“So I think next year we’ll have a lot more high school girls coming out, because we have probably 12 girls in that age group that will come out and fill spots and play the game they love,” he said.

The Lady Mavericks will host the Winnipeg Wasps, Saturday, at 3 p.m.