The Paul Kane Blues junior football team passed its biggest test of the year, and they did it with honours to earn a spot in the Oct. 26 Edmonton Metro league premier semifinals.
The first junior team in Paul Kane history clinched top spot in pool B with a 14-9 victory Tuesday against the dangerous Bellerose Dawgs at Riel Park.
"It's a huge win," said Greg Fleming, a Grade 10 Paul Kane standout at running back and linebacker. "Bellerose really came to play but we stepped up too."
The third win in the metro Edmonton league and the fourth overall for the undefeated Blues was extra special.
"This means we're the best [junior] team in St. Albert. We also beat SACHS," Fleming said of the 56-0 dismantlement of the St. Albert Hawks last week. "SACHS wasn't quite as skilled or as physical as these guys."
Bellerose is 1-1 in pool B and 3-1 overall with one game left before the playoffs. A victory Tuesday against the winless Hawks would nail down a semifinal berth. Kickoff is 7:30 p.m. at Riel Park. The final is Nov. 3.
"We hope to see PK again. They're a good team," said Nick Svenson, a talented Dawg on both sides of the ball. "They showed a lot of class today. I give them props for that."
The Blues racked up 156 points in three shutouts before the Battle of St. Albert.
"This game was so much tougher. Those first games they had a lot of young players who had never played before and a lot of small guys who weren't quite as skilled," Fleming said.
Blues bust loose
The Blues led 14-0 at halftime on touchdown runs by quarterback Cory Knott and Fleming. Isaac Kong kicked the conversions.
"We came out really strong. In the first half we were just pounding on them. We were really moving the ball," Fleming said.
The Dawgs got off to a rocky start in the first football game between Bellerose and Paul Kane. They fumbled the ball away on their third play from scrimmage and Fleming fell on it at the Bellerose 43.
After both teams traded punts, Knott finished off a 41-yard TD drive with a four-yard bootleg on third and goal late in the first quarter. The big play was a catch-and-run by Jake Lee for 24 yards to the 10.
In the second quarter, Knott was stopped on third and one from the Bellerose 29. The Dawgs benefited from a generous spot of the ball by the officials.
After the turnover on downs, both teams were guilty of unnecessary roughing penalties and more punts were exchanged.
With less than three minutes remaining in the half, an incomplete pass by the Dawgs on third and two gave Paul Kane the ball at the Bellerose 44. On first down, Fleming galloped through the middle of the Bellerose defence for the team's second TD.
"I got the ball and a hole opened up. I had some beautiful blocks and then I cut through some people," Fleming said.
Dawgs regroup
In the second half the Dawgs unveiled a revamped ground game that saw Svenson move the yardsticks three times with first-down runs. Taylor Brown's one-yard TD capped off the penalty-filled drive with 7:12 left in the quarter. Delmas made the conversion.
"In the second half we came out really slow," said Fleming. "They had a new setup and started driving on us. We let one in but then we tightened up a lot on defence and slowed them down."
In the fourth quarter, after another two-and-out by the Blues, the Dawgs pushed forward from their 46 to the Paul Kane 28. Shannon Stuht's quarterback sneak on third and inches kept the drive going. However, on third and six, Svenson was swarmed at the 25 and the Blues took possession with 4:54 to play.
Another third down stop by the Blues ended a promising Bellerose drive at the Paul Kane 24 with 1:33 to go.
"Those were big third downs stops," Fleming said.
The Blues then ran the clock down. Knott, who is also a punter, conceded a safety on third down while running around in the end zone as the horn sounded to end the game.
Svenson, 15, wasn't discouraged by the loss.
"I'm proud of us. We did lots of good things, like running and blocking, but lots of bad things too. Too many penalties for sure," said the multi-purpose Grade 10 running back, slotback, safety, linebacker and kick returner.
The Dawgs showed how good they really are in the second half.
"We paid attention better. We knew what they were doing," said Svenson, the leading Bellerose rusher. "They just played a better game than us today. They came out ready to play."
The Blues have been a big hit on and off the field in the first season of football at Paul Kane.
"It's a great atmosphere. Everyone wears their jerseys at school. I'm so proud to play football at PK," said Fleming, 15.
The Blues have two exhibitions scheduled before the playoffs. They tackle the St. Joes of Grande Prairie at 5 p.m. Tuesday at Riel Park and the Austin O'Brien Crusaders (0-2 in pool A) Oct 18 at 7:30 p.m. at Clarke Park.
