Johnny Bright Park – The peewee version of the Battle of St. Albert ended with the Colts winning a berth in the Tier 4 provincial final.
The Colts trampled the Riders 28-6 on a cold and windy Saturday morning for the Capital District Minor Football Association championship and a shot at the Football Alberta title.
“I am damn proud of these kids. They gave everything they had and won themselves a championship,” said Quentin Bochar, head coach of the 3-6 Colts.
They will now play the winner of the north semifinal between the Stettler Panthers and Lloydminster Colts in the Nov. 17 final. Kickoff is 10 a.m. at Johnny Bright Park.
“It’s really exciting but the downer is it’s getting colder as the year goes on,” said Ty Adolph, the Colts’ slippery running back who also doubles as a safety.
Bochar said going to provincials is icing on the cake for the Colts.
“For them I think this win will be more important than a provincial win,” he stressed. “This was your hometown rivals. There was also a lot of in school stuff going on before this game – it’s the same thing as the high school (Battle of St. Albert between the St. Albert High Skyhawks and Bellerose Bulldogs) – so to win this game for the guys is great.”
Bragging rights were at stake in the big game, especially after the Riders (3-6) shut out the Colts 6-0 in the Tier 3/4 division season opener.
“They were always saying at school they were better so it was a good thing to beat them and get it over with,” Adolph said. “It was a real exciting game.”
Adolph, 11, listed off several reasons why the Colts were victorious.
“We ran the ball good and did the outside containment and the defensive line broke through and made a few big tackles and sacks and then it was third down before you know it and then it was our ball again and we just marched down the field and scored,” said the Grade 6 Elmer S. Gish student.
The Riders opened the scoring on their first possession as Bryce Workman ran 21 yards for a touchdown.
The Colts replied with a six-yard burst by Adolph with 3:47 left in the first quarter. A 13-yard reception by Brynn Karch from quarterback Adam Bochar put the Colts in scoring range. Karch also kicked the two-point convert.
Early in the second quarter, after a turnover on downs, the Colts marched from their 44 into the endzone. Bochar’s 30-yard bootleg made it 14-6. A big run by Vincenzo Funaro kept the Colts moving forward.
Late in the first half, the Colts stopped the Riders on third down with a tackle in the backfield at the Colts’ 22.
In the third quarter the Colts drove the kickoff deep into Riders’ territory on the strength of three long runs, including a pair by Adolph. However the Riders stood their ground to stop Adolph on third down at the one.
Back on offence the Riders strung some first downs together, but a tackle in the backfield on second down forced the Riders to punt from their 34. The Colts would then huddle up at their 54, where their ground game pushed the boys in blue to pay dirt as Bochar scrambled five yards for the major with 10:52 to play. Karch’s two-point convert extended the lead to 22-6.
The scoring drive was highlighted by Adolph’s run up the gut on third and one to the 16.
Funaro’s TD run on third and goal at the five capped off a 58-yard drive after the Colts stopped the Riders again on third down. Adolph’s 43-yard romp set the stage for the last TD of the game with 1:29 remaining.
“For us this was a very good game. We came off the (regular) season with a 1-6 record so we’re happy,” said coach Bochar.
The head coach of the Riders declined an interview request by the Gazette after the game.
