Before their home game season opener kicked off on Sept. 10, the Bantam Broncs football team paid tribute to alumna player Emily McMillan and the 2021 Bantam Broncs for being named last year’s Most Sportsmanlike Team.
McMillan, who is a current senior player, was a part of the Alberta Girls U18 team that won the national championship during the summer.
“Not only was she a massive part of her team’s success, she was named OMVP for the entire tournament, and, therefore, for the entire country,” said bantam head coach Todd Lewis.
“While Emily obviously has dominant physical abilities and skill, it’s her character that makes her so exceptional — not only as a player, but as a person.”
The Bantam Broncs have been named the Most Sportmanslike Team for the last three years in a row, a feat Lewis said has never been accomplished before by a team in the Central Alberta Football League.
When the team was founded in 2007, it was built on the belief that true success comes from “effort, dedication to growth, playing with class and respect for oneself and the game.”
The Broncs met the Hanna Hawks on the field Sept. 10, defeating them in a decisive 32-0 victory.
The Bantam Broncs started the game with a “furious tempo” and drove the field for a quick score, making it 6-0, said Lewis.
After this score, however, the Broncs’s offence struggled with substituting new players onto the field efficiently, resulting in numerous miscues and illegal procedure penalties.
In the second half, the offence tightened up and played with more consistency.
“The Bantam Broncs defence was ferocious. There were many tackles in the backfield, made by many different Broncs.”
The Broncs host again on Sept. 17, kicking off at 1 p.m. against the Stettler Cougars.
