Last week’s weather may not have been conducive to football practice, but with the midget Northern Raiders set to open its season next week, the team was forced to brave the elements in preparation.
The team participated in an intra-squad game, March 25 at George McDougall, in training for the Calgary Midget Football Jamboree, March 30, and its season opener against the Cochrane Lions, April 6 at Shouldice Park.
“Tonight is all about getting the offence going,” said head coach Steve Kemp, who is replacing former coach Dwayne Clayden on the sidelines this season.
“There is a lot of new players, so we’re seeing who wants to play and who’s going to compete for a starting position. It’s really important. You find out real quick who wants to play and who’s just out here for the jacket. These cold weather practices pay off in the end. If we can play successfully in this kind of weather, then the hot, summer days are nice and easy.”
Kemp, who coached the Airdrie Storm bantam team to a surprising run to the Calgary Division 3 city final last fall, will bring 14 players with him from that team, including standout running back Josh Duazo.
Also in the mix is George McDougall High School head football coach Brent Legault, who will handle quarterback coaching duties and help out with receivers.
“He’s been a tremendous help,” Kemp said.
“He’s a good bank of knowledge to bounce ideas off of and it’s nice having another head coach on the staff. He understands some of the stuff I’m going through on a nightly basis.”
Both coaches said the biggest difference with this year’s Raiders team is the fact that Airdrie has built a respectable feeder system from its Storm minor teams.
“The sport is growing and the team is growing,” Kemp said. “The teams in Calgary who are always in the perennial top of the league – they have feeder systems. Every year, they graduate 20 kids and get 20 new ones in, so it will be good for us to get that.
“It’s the first time we’ve ever had this many kids. We actually had to go buy more equipment. It’s really promising going forward and it’s very exciting to watch these kids grow.”
Although the Raiders will field a young team, Kemp says the running game, with three rotating backs, should be a strength.
“We are a young team, but we’re fast, and we probably have three of the top running backs in the league,” he said.
The team went 5W-1L during the 2010 season in the Boulton division, but realignment this year will see the Raiders move to the Parkinson division against top Calgary teams such as the Bulldogs and the Wildcats.
“We’re playing a lot of teams that we haven’t played before. The Bulldogs are a very well coached team and same thing with the Wildcats. They’re always good,” Kemp said.
“But we’re looking to prove to everybody that last year wasn’t a fluke. We want to show that we are one of the hardest working teams and that we deserve to be at the top every year.”
Airdrie will open its season on April 6 against the Cochrane Lions. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. at Shouldice Park’s Encana Field.
