The Ponoka Bantam Broncs kicked off their fall 9man season on Saturday, Sept. 12th in Stettler.
The young athletes were eager to hit the gridiron as they have been practicing since late August. After the CAFL regular 12-man season was postponed, Ponoka and five other teams decided to start up a developmental league so that Central Alberta footballers still have the opportunity to play and develop their skills.
For the first game of the developmental season, the Broncs and Cougars played a jamboree-style game (no special teams and coaches were allowed on the field).
The Broncs started the game with great momentum. Their starting nine on offence was able to execute a variety of plays and move the ball downfield well.
The defense was aggressive and confident and, as a result, blanked the Cougars’ offence in the first half of the game.
Ponoka looked like a team in mid-season rather than a team playing its first game of the season.
Despite this success in the first half, the Broncs did give up a few touchdowns to Stettler in the second half after a few of them suffered some injuries.
Coming into this game our goals were to use our entire playbook and get all players quality reps in a variety of positions, especially our younger and newer players.
The experience gained from this game will certainly set up the Broncs for future success down the road.
Due to our season being postponed, this Broncs group gets to play in our fall developmental league and the actual regular season in the spring. Everything the kids learned (on Saturday) is going to pay off in the spring when it matters more.
Standouts from the game include Danyl Deardren who had numerous tackles on defense and three receptions for massive offensive gains.
Blake Miller-Zimmer was a favourite target of QB Daylan Owen, hauling in four receptions of his own.
The Broncs are eager to compete again when they host the Olds Rotary Bulldogs on Sept. 27.
Any kids currently in Grades 7 to 9 are still able to join the team. Email todd.lewis@wolfcreek.ab.ca for more details.
- Submitted by head coach Todd Lewis