St. Albert football player Tanner Doll experienced the thrill of a lifetime when Team Canada beat the United States at its own game at the recent U19 world championship in Austin, Texas.
In the final Canada pulled off a stunning 23-17 victory against an American team of mainly high school players with NCAA division one scholarships.
“It was the greatest feeling ever,” Doll said. “We went into their country and beat them up. They didn’t know what hit them. It was awesome.”
The loss shocked the trash-talking Americans.
“They never stopped doing that until that final whistle blew. That’s when they finally realized that we took home that medal,” Doll said. “It was great to know we knocked them off their swagger.”
The Americans were the defending champions at the second annual International Federation of American Football junior world tournament, featuring eight teams from four continents playing four-down, 11-man football. In the 2009 final the Americans crushed Canada 41-3 in Canton, Ohio.
“They went in as the No. 1 seed and we had to go in and knock them off their pedestal and we did,” Doll said. “It was great to have that medal put around your neck, just to know that it really did happen. It’s something you don’t get to feel every day.”
A near flawless performance put Canada on top of the world.
“We knew we couldn’t make too many mistakes and we didn’t,” Doll said. “Our specials teams did great all game so that was huge. Our defence wasn’t giving up much and our offence was moving the ball.”
Doll lined up at linebacker and was the long snapper at worlds as Canada defeated Sweden 43-0 and Japan 33-24 for a berth in the final.
“I was very happy with my performance. In some situations I was asked to do different things just for the betterment of the team so I stepped into my position and did the best I could,” said Doll, who made the junior national team after attending a western regional camp in Moose Jaw.
The high school product of the St. Albert High Skyhawks also played the same role for the World Team at the U20 International Bowl in Austin, Texas. The World Team upset the United States 35-12 on Feb. 1, the first time the Americans were defeated in an International Federation of American Football competition.
The sophomore Calgary Dinos’ linebacker was invited to the International Bowl as a development player, but was promoted to the World Team to handle the long-snapping duties.
Another highlight at the U19 worlds for Doll was carrying the Canadian flag on to the field.
“We were standing in line before the game against Japan and coach [Noel] Thorpe came up to me and handed me the flag. I walked up to the front and led the team out. The second time I did it was against the U.S.A. in the final. It was myself and John Rush [from the University of Guelph] who ran it out. To be leading the guys out with the flag like that was an unreal experience,” said the Team Alberta player at the 2010 Football Canada Cup.
