Touchdowns, thrillers and broken fingers: Area football week delivers it all

BY DAVID MCIVER

Last week the football teams in this area split games, suffered serious injuries, won a cliffhanger and lost what must be a record-setting shootout.

Ryder Summach (L), Joseph Bouclin (96) and Jasper Adnam (background) of the senior Rosetown Royals run to tackle Noah Petrie of the Kindersley Kobras early in the second half of a nine-a-side exhibition here on Sept. 30. They and other Royals limited Petrie - who scored both Kobra touchdowns - to a three-yard gain. The Royals won 19-3. The teams conclude this home-and-home exhibition for back up players in Kindersley on Wednesday night. PHOTO BY DAVID MCIVER

The senior Rosetown Royals defeated the Maple Creek Redmen 52-20 in Maple Creek on Thursday, beat the visiting Kindersley Kobras 19-13 in a nine-a-side exhibition of backup players on Sept. 29, and lost a night game 24-15 in Unity on the 26th.

The Royals conclude their home-and-home exhibition series in Kindersley on Tuesday and then host the Unity Warriors in the Harvest Festival Friday Night Lights game.

The North West Central Wildcats lost 53-36 to the Kerrobert Rebels in Plenty on Thursday. The Wildcats play in Biggar on Thursday.

The Rosetown Junior Royals edged the Junior Blazers 38-36 in Biggar on Wednesday. The Jr. Royals host Kindersley in a night game on Wednesday.

The Plenty Junior Wildcats lost 108-84 to the visiting Eatonia Spartans last Tuesday. The Jr. Wildcats play in Unity on Wednesday.

Mark Mofolasayo, Boyd Anderson and Malcolm Ledding each had a rushing touchdown in Maple Creek, said Royals head coach Mitchell Wintonyk. Scoring details weren’t available.

The defence “played well as a unit,” he said.

Against the Kobras, Gage Nickason and Cohen Wickett each rushed for a touchdown, and Justice Zacharias scored another major on a reception. Tom Fortin and Mitch Nunweiler rotated at quarterback, said Wintonyk.

Noah Petrie rushed for one Kobra touchdown and caught a pass from quarterback Maddox Garret for the other.

In Unity, Ledding and Harper Willis both scored rushing majors.

The entire defence “played great,” said the coach. Despite playing a new position, Brandon Friesen sacked the quarterback twice and blocked a punt.

During the game, Royals starting quarterback Alex Nickel broke a finger in his right hand, which is his throwing hand.

Backup Sam Cadieux played some, as did Mofolasayo and others, said the coach.

“We faced a season’s worth of adversity in the first half of that game and didn’t throw in the towel,” said Wintonyk.

“Early in the third quarter we were down 24-0 and the kids never gave up and just kept picking away at the score. If we can take care of business against Maple Creek, we get another shot at them at home,” he said. Having got the win over the Redmen, “it is set up to be a fun game on Friday at home,” he said.

The Rebels’ running game “beat us up,” said North West Central assistant coach Logan Rieger. The Wildcats lost starting safety Cole Sittler within the first two plays of the game and, two plays later, also lost starting quarterback Chase Halter, said Rieger. With the two backups, they made it a close game, down only by a touchdown until near the end, he said. The Rebels “just kept pounding the ball on us” and scored two more touchdowns. Halter, who is in Grade 12, is out for the year, having torn a hip muscle, said Rieger.

Cohen Phillips, the Rebel quarterback and middle linebacker or safety, scored all or almost all of their touchdowns and intercepted two passes, he said. Phillips is “probably the best player in our league,” said Rieger.

The game in Biggar was close throughout, said Jr. Royals head coach Kent Carlson. The teams traded touchdowns in the first half.

Henry Wiens rushed for two touchdowns, and Asher Purcell and Emery Carlson each rushed for another. Carlson also passed to Purcell and Wiens for two more majors.

Owen St. John, Nixon Dyok and Caleb Woudwijk did “phenomenal” blocking all game, “punctuated by a huge block by Caleb to help us keep the ball at the end of the game and allow us to run out the clock,” said the coach.

Carlson picked up “a huge first down” on a broken play with three plays remaining to allow the Royals to take a knee to hold on for the win, he said.

Their defence did a good job to limit the Blazer offence, said Kent Carlson. Ryder Lundberg “was a menace” for Biggar, rushing for four touchdowns in the first half and one in the second half, he said.

Lundberg also played defence and “caused a lot of trouble,” said the coach.

That 108-84 game had “not a lot of defence,” said Jr. Wildcat head coach Morgan Rousseaux. Emerson Summach got most of the Plenty rushing touchdowns. Teagan Swan may have rushed for two majors, said Rousseaux. One player got every Spartan touchdown. “He was a man amongst boys out there,” he said.