Today’s playoff doubleheader at the St. Albert Rugby Football Club also marks the last home games of the year at the Riel Recreation Park facility.
At 2 p.m. the third division men battle the Grande Prairie Centaurs and at 4 p.m. the premier men scrum down against the Strathcona Druids.
The thirds (9-3) and Centaurs (8-4) finished second and third, respectively, in the Edmonton Rugby Union.
The winner plays the Pirates (10-2) or Parkland Sharks (8-4) in the Visser Cup final next Saturday at noon at Ellerslie Rugby Park to determine the ERU rep in the Digby Dinnie Cup provincial final Oct. 3 at Ellerslie. The Pirates are last year’s ERU champions and provincial finalists.
The thirds are undefeated in five matches after losing 33-3 to the Centaurs in July.
The last third division hurrah for SARFC was 1997 as the winner of the Visser and Digby Dinnie cups.
The premier north semifinal features the best and worst teams in the Alberta Cup. The SARFC first 15 (11-2-1) finished on top of the premier table for the second year in a row and the fourth time in six years. They are also 6-0 against north teams in the Alberta Cup, including lopsided results against the Druids (1-12-1) of 63-14 in the season opener and 72-5 last weekend.
The winner lines up against the Nor’Westers (7-6-1) or Clansmen (4-10) in the Ken Ann Cup north final next Saturday at 4 p.m. at Ellerslie.
The north and south playoff champions qualify for the Labatt’s Cup provincial final Oct. 3 at Ellerslie. Last year the firsts celebrated their sixth Ken Ann Cup in seven years and the second Labatt’s Cup in SARFC history was the first since 2010.
The St. Albert Merchants host the Beverly Warriors in Sunday’s home opener in the Capital Junior B Hockey League.
Faceoff is 8 p.m. at Akinsdale Arena.
League play started Friday for the Challenge Cup pennant winners the last two years (32-6 in 2015 and 34-3-1 in 2014) but the score against the Fort Saskatchewan Hawks was unavailable at press time.
The St. Albert Sabres make their season debut in the Alberta Major Bantam Hockey League with two home games at Akinsdale Arena.
The Sabres skate Tuesday against the SSAC Southgate Lions and Thursday against CAC Inland Cement at 7 p.m.
The Sabres wrap up a successful John Ferguson Memorial Tournament with games today against the Lloydminster Heat and Sunday against Sherwood Park Flyers at 10:30 a.m. at Terwillegar Community Rec Centre.
