Rivalry in sports is nothing new. Strong feelings of passion and a desire to overcome your opponents can often fuel great moments or leave a team torn as they face defeat.
For the Airdrie Irish competitive men's football team, going up against their rival means putting friendships aside and focusing on the task ahead.
On July 15, the Airdrie Irish faced off against their long-time Alberta Football League (AFL) rivals, the Calgary Wolfpack. The annual 'Rivalry Week' game ultimately saw the Airdronians walk off the Shouldice Athletic Park field with an impressive 41-13 win over their opponents.
Head coach of the Irish, Anton Bellot, said the atmosphere of an Irish-vs.-Wolfpack game can get passionate and bring an amplified intensity to the field. He noted that even though the players usually have friends on the other team due to the proximity of the two cities, personal friendships need to be put aside during Rivalry Week.
“They're not big fans of us and we're not big fans of them,” he said. “Got some friends over there, but when we lead up to that week, then they're not our friends. It's a bunch of nameless faces for us come game time.”
Bellot said the Irish had significant moments that highlighted improvements of the team. Emphasizing the growth of the offensive line, he said the Irish O-line is starting to take off.
Receiver Segun Adeseye made a huge impact on the field, scoring three touchdown passes for the Irish.
“He had an unreal game,” Bellot said. “Our offence is really starting to motor. You're going to see it start to explode and take off here, which is what we want to do, especially at this time of year.”
According to Bellot, Airdrie's defensive line is also making strides on the field. He said they have seen lots of improvement in playing an aggressive splitting defence.
With the win, the Irish have secured second place in the league, replicating their performance from 2022. With just one more league game before the AFL playoffs, Bellot said they are shifting their mindset and looking at this Saturday's game (2 p.m. at Ed Eggerer Athletic Park) as a playoff battle.
“Just because it's a regular season game, our mentality is this is a playoff game for us,” he said. “Basically we've told ourselves this is play off week, and every day, everything is a playoff mentality.”
Bellot said the players are feeling energetic leading into this weekend’s game. If the Irish pull off the home win, they will make franchise history with five consecutive victories. Bellot noted that the team is motivated to accomplish that goal.
In a late-night conversation Bellot had with team president and quarterback Josh Williams, he said the Irish needs to improve on the little things to be a championship-calibre team.
Last summer, the Irish marched all the way to the AFL championship game against the Cold Lake Fighter Jets, but found themselves outclassed in the final game.
“We are at the door of being a very dang good football team with championship aspirations,” Bellot said. “We're a great football team, but we're not quite dominant yet and it's going to come down to little things. That's what the guys are focused on. How do we become dominant consistently.”
Playing safety for the Irish, Ty Bessette said the team feels like they are in a good position looking ahead.
With Airdrie being in second place, they have a bye for the first round of playoffs, automatically securing a position in the semi-finals.
Bessette said the head coach has a solid strategy in place and encourages his teammates to not look too for ahead.
“Coach Anton has done a great job. He has a good game plan,” Bessette mentioned. “We take every game as it comes and then we just focus on that.”
