It was another barn-burner battle for bronze in the Rocky View Sports Association (RVSA) high-school football league this year.
Nearly a yeard to the day since the Bert Church Chargers produced a last-minute touchdown to secure third place in the RVSA's 2021 consolation final against the Springbank Phoenix, the east Airdrie team found themselves yet again suiting up for a chance to finish the 2022 campaign with a bronze medal around their necks.
This year, it was against the W.H. Croxford Cavaliers on Nov. 4. And similar to last year's bronze-medal game, it was a tightly fought battle that resulted in a thrilling spectacle for everyone in attendance.
But this time, it was W.H. Croxford who came out on top, courtesy of a 28-27 win over Bert Church.
Cavaliers head coach Josiah Donahue said the season-ending victory meant a lot for Croxford's many Grade 12 players who were donning the blue-and-orange football jersey for the final time in their high-school careers last Friday.
“Anytime you can end with a win in your last game, it definitely takes away a bit of the sting that your high-school career is over,” Donahue said. “It adds to the highs and those lasting memories with your team. It was an awesome day.”
According to Donahue, the Chargers started on the front foot, scoring right away after a trick play got the better of his defence. Bert Church tacked on a field goal later in the quarter to increase their lead to 10 points.
Before the end of the first half, the Chargers were up 18-7.
But the Cavaliers rallied back with two touchdowns to lead 21-18 at halftime.
“They were tough to handle,” said Chargers head coach Tony Lucas. “They’re a very strong team, and when they started to run the ball on us in the second and third quarter, it was very difficult, so I give them a lot of credit.”
The Chargers made a game of it with a late offensive push, and came within one point after scoring a touchdown with 40 seconds left.
Going for the one-point convert to tie the game and force overtime, the Chargers' kick was blocked, and the Cavaliers were able to run out the clock on their ensuing possession.
“It was a pretty wild game,” Donahue said.
Winning the consolation final was a great way for the Cavaliers to end what has been a historic campaign for W.H. Croxford's football program. The team spent most of the 2022 season ranked second or third among the province's top 10 Tier II teams, their movement up the charts coming on the back of a six-game winning streak to start the season.
Donahue noted the Chargers were also ranked 12th in the country among schools of a similar enrolment by CanadaFootballChat.com. While their playoff run ended at the semi-final stage due to a heavy loss to the George McDougall Mustangs, the Cavaliers ended the 2022 campaign with a pair of wins in the RVSA's consolation playoff bracket.
They ultimately finished the season with an 8-2 record, their only losses coming against the Mustangs and the Cochrane Cobras.
“There was just one game we fell short, but we were able to finish the season with two great wins,” Donahue said.
For Bert Church, the narrow defeat means they end the 2022 campaign with a 3-5 overall record in what will largely be considered a rebuilding year for the team.
But as Lucas said, the Chargers showed growth throughout the season, as evidenced by their two results against Croxford. Their regular-season fixture against the Cavaliers ended 35-7 in favour of Croxford, while the second went down to the last play.
“To be fair, that [first] game was 12-7 with less than half of the fourth quarter to go,” Lucas said. “But for us to stick with them all the way to the end meant a lot. That’s one of the better teams in the province. I feel we left it all out there and no one has any regrets.
“It did mean a lot to the Grade 12s to have a close game against Croxford and show we were a much better team than the scoreboard showed in our earlier contest.”
Lucas added that all three Airdrie teams represented the city well this season, showcasing the talent of the local football community.
“We were definitely the third of three, but I also feel they were three pretty good teams,” he said. “We did improve as the year went on. Our last two games were probably our best two games.
“The other two programs did very well and gave us something to shoot for, for sure.”
