Mitch Calvert
With plenty of political unrest in the senior football team’s ranks coming off a forfeit loss to River East on Friday, there soon should be light at the end of the tunnel if the progress of the newly-created junior program continues.
The Muskie ‘B’ team came out short in a 47-6 loss to the visiting Thunder Bay Huskies at Muskie Field on Saturday, but they certainly didn’t look like the rookie-laden team they are.
“If we can get this program up and running and keep it going, I think in five years our senior team will be challenging for a Manitoba championship,” co-lineman coach Walter Prymak said.
“We had very good [crowd] support and if we can maintain that support, we’ll be in good shape.
“If you can get 10 or 12 mothers together, they are unstoppable,” Prymak stressed.
On the field, the squad made several leaps forward after being blanked in a pair of games in Thunder Bay a couple of weeks ago.
“It’s all a learning process but they’ve already made a lot of big strides. We even scored our first touchdown,” coach Lou Gauthier noted.
“[The Huskies] are in the Manitoba league and we’re striving to get to that level.
“Not to make any excuses, but we’re taking baby steps and they’ve already taken them,” Gauthier added.
Quarterback Tanner Gill Roisin punched in the Muskies’ touchdown late in the first half on a one-yard plunge, but the offence moved the ball consistently all game with Gill Roisin and Ian Kitt splitting time at the helm.
The running game also produced several big gains from Malcolm Wilson and Thomas Onichuk.
Braden Webb was particularly impressive as the punter, routinely making up for lost field position with booming kicks.
The defence also showcased its raw talent with several big defensive plays.
“Paul Smart had five or six tackles in the backfield,” Prymak noted. “He didn’t travel with us to Thunder Bay, so this was his first game and he was the defensive player of the game on the line, for sure, with a close second being John Meyers.”
“We were 100 times better [Saturday] than we were in Thunder Bay [two weeks ago],” fellow coach Bob Swing stressed. “And we’ll be 100 times better when we go to play again.
“Twenty to 25 percent of our players are made up of kids in Grade 6, and they are going up against kids in Grade 8 and 9,” he added. “The majority of our players are in Grade 8, but it’s still the first time those Grade 8s have had equipment on.
“It takes some time to catch up,” he remarked. “But when you see the number of kids who want to do it and the number of committed coaches who are engaged at the youth level, it’s only a matter of time.”
“There’s so much potential out there,” echoed offensive coach Doug Stein. “Once they learn the fundamentals, it’s going to be an nice little program that will help the Muskie high school football team later.
“It’s enjoyable teaching young kids,” Stein added. “You are taking raw talent and if you do it right, because you have to remember they’re still kids, then you can have fun and they can have fun, and they turn into decent football players in the process.
“The only thing we’re weak at is a little bit of missed blocking assignments, but it’s their first year ever playing organized football,” he reasoned, noting the Thunder Bay team has been together for almost seven years.
