Sports This Week: Info sought on early football Royals
By David McIver
Does anyone know much about early high school football players in Rosetown, particularly about any who played after their high school days?
Kerry Cave and Mitchell Wintonyk would like to know.
Wintonyk, the head coach of senior football at Rosetown Central High, wants to put a sign on the new concession booth by the field that tells about those players who went on to post-secondary football.
Cave, after graduating here in 1976, played centre for the Regina Rams when they were a junior team.
More recently, Cave taught his grandson how to do long snaps.
Wintonyk learned about his Rams experience and asked for his help with this research project.
Cave has done some research but would appreciate any information that readers and others can give him.
“If anybody just remembers anything, that would be good,” said Cave.
People can contact Kerry Cave at 306-831-8832 or kpcave@hotmail.com.
Royals was also the sports team name of the preceding Rosetown Composite High School.
So far, Wintonyk has found out about four former players who’ve been drafted by the Canadian Football League.
“Pretty cool to have four former Royals football players drafted into the CFL. I always like to honour the history. Football has been around town since 1958 so there's a lot of history there,” said Wintonyk in an email.
Those four Royals are Art Quinney, Art Lord, Jeff Piercy and Daniel Wiebe, who was just drafted last year.
All had played for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies.
Art Quinney played for the Huskies in 1961-65 and was drafted by the Montreal Alouettes.
After playing for the Huskies in 1968-72, Art Lord was drafted by the Ottawa Rough Riders as a defensive back in 1971.
Jeff Piercy played here for the Royals in Grade 9 before he and his family moved to Saskatoon. Piercy continued in high school football and then played for the Huskies in 2002-04.
The Montreal Alouettes drafted him in the second round in 2005. Piercy played as a fullback for the Als in 2005-07 before a mid-season trade sent him to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
He finished that season and also played for the Ticats in 2008 before retiring.
Daniel Wiebe’s post-secondary career is still being written, having played and set records as a Huskie receiver in 2021-25. The Saskatchewan Roughriders drafted him in 2025. He returned to the Huskies later that year and signed with the Riders earlier this year.
Wiebe made an impressive game-end touchdown catch at the Huskies’ home field, Griffiths Stadium, on May 23 that gave the Riders a win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the teams’ second exhibition game.
Last Saturday was the day CFL teams had to declare their final rosters, after press time for this issue.
Even should he not get on the active roster, Wiebe should make the practice roster, said former Royals head coach Blaine Barnstable.
Minor baseball
The first under-18 baseball team in Rosetown in several years will enter provincial playoffs, said manager Jennifer Werrell.
They’d played three games at the time of her report, prior to a game in Eston on the 25th. The U-18 Angels defeated Kindersley on May 11, lost to Eston on the 13th and lost to Kerrobert on May 23.
The Angels were also to host Kerrobert last Wednesday, host Kindersley on Monday, go to Kindersley on Wednesday, host Eston next Monday and play in Kerrobert on June 10.
They also have an exhibition game during the Rosetown Sports Day, June 13, hosting the Saskatoon Cardinals.
All but two of the Angels are first-year under-18 players, said manager Werrell.
They are Bennett Ironside, Blake Hawkins, Brandt Ivan, Davin Ivan, Jakob Werrell, Jayce Fick, Klaas Woudwijk, Lucas Brisbin, Mykola Melnyk, Owen Meschishnick, Reese Gyug and Rhys Shury.
Damon Werrell is the head coach and Rob Meschishnick is assistant coach, said Jennifer Werrell.