The St. Albert Stars put another mark in the win column Saturday when they steamrolled the Lloydminster Vandals 79-3 at Clarke Park. St. Albert has a 3-1 record in their inaugural year in the Alberta Football League.
This was the second big loss in a row for Lloydminster after being shut out by the Grande Prairie Drillers 40-0 in their last AFL game.
The Stars scored nine of their 11 touchdowns in the first half while trouncing the 2012 national champions on Saturday. Eight St. Albert players made touchdowns, with Mike Goldring, Eddie Thompson and Craig Carr all recording two apiece.
Lloydminster’s short bench of 24 players (versus 32 on the St. Albert side) wasn’t able to get anything going until just before the end of the first half when a five-yard field goal brought the score to 52-3.
The Stars were able to move the ball effectively during the entire game, but the Vandals struggled to secure the ball and St. Albert capitalized on every opportunity to recover it.
Quarterback and Stars co-owner Troy Pappas scored a touchdown halfway through the second quarter, carrying the ball the three yards to the end zone. Pappas says the team effort against the Vandals was a conscious one.
“(We were) trying to get everyone the ball today. We’ve got to get everyone ready for the long haul.”
The long haul is the Alberta Football League Championship. Despite the score this weekend, Pappas says the team needs to keep working and improving in all aspects of their game.
“We still need to work on a lot, I think everywhere,” he says. “We’ve still just got to keep elevating our game if we want to win the championship this year, and that’s what we’re after.”
The quarterback threw some bombs Saturday including a 35-yard beauty that landed right in the hands of receiver Corey Treeshin for a touchdown that put the Stars up 65-3 in the last three minutes of the third quarter.
Running back Craig Carr scored two touchdowns for St. Albert and says he felt good on the field, but agrees with Pappas that there are still improvements to be made.
“The score doesn’t mean anything really,” Carr says. “If you look at how we played offensively, defensively, even on special teams there’s always room for improvement and that’s what we need to do. The biggest thing is complacency. You can’t get complacent.”
Carr says the Stars can’t take their foot off the gas pedal just because of the win.
“This is when you really need to buckle down and fine-tune the little things.”
For the St. Albert runningback, that means being prepared to contribute both on the field and the sidelines.
“I’m like a fine aged wine; I know the game inside out so it’s a matter of really understanding and being a student of the game,” Carr says. “Watching more film, understanding who you’re playing and their tendencies – that’s really what the game’s all about.”
The third-place Stars will go for their next win Saturday in Lacombe against the No. 2-ranked Central Alberta Buccaneers. First place is occupied by the Calgary Gators, who have no losses this season.
