It was a battle of two teams on separate ends of the standings.
The Airdrie Northern Raiders extended their season-long losing streak with a 41-0 loss to the first-place Calgary Mavericks, May 3.
Despite the loss, Raiders Head Coach Steve Kemp was pleased with the team’s effort.
“I thought our guys played really well,” he said. “They played loose and like they had nothing to lose, which made them a dangerous team for three quarters. The score doesn’t reflect how they played. We’ve said that a lot this year, but it’s truly one of our best games.”
While the offence wasn’t able to close the gap between the team and the Mavericks, the Raiders held the Calgary group to only three touchdowns in the first half of the game and kept it off the scoreboard entirely in the third.
However, the Raiders struggled to hold onto the momentum the team’s early defensive presence might have sparked.
The Mavericks intercepted three of the Raiders’ best chances, twice in the second quarter and once more late in the third. Add in a fumble halfway through the fourth and a last-minute interception, the fifth of the game, and the Raiders’ lack of execution proved to be a constant source of frustration.
“It seems to be the story of the year for us,” Kemp said. “We get a little bit of momentum and we shoot ourselves in the foot. It’s something that we’ve been working on all year. We’re getting better, but it still rears its ugly head every once in a while.”
Injuries to key players were also a factor for the Raiders late in the game and the Mavericks scored three times in the fourth quarter, putting a late game comeback out of reach for the Raiders.
“We had some injuries in key positions, but we know that they’ll be doing everything to get back,” said Kemp. “(They) started to add up, but we had guys step up and play roles they’ve never played before. They did the best they could and we’re proud of them. They did a really good job.”
The Raiders will play its final regular season game May 10 against the Calgary Prairie Fire at 7 p.m. on Shouldice Park’s Encana Field. Kemp said that the team has only one goal for their season finale.
“A win.”
