Recovering an onside kick on the opening play was a good omen. Having a safety called back in the last minute of the first half wasn’t.
Those two points would have been the difference, but instead the Airdrie Storm lost 14-8 in overtime to the Calgary Colts in the Calgary Bantam Football Association’s Division 3 City Championship game at Shouldice Park on Nov. 6.
Josh Duazo ran back a 25-yard punt return to the Colts’ endzone, with 47 seconds left in the second quarter, only to fumble the ball, just before crossing the line. The Colts recovered the ball in its endzone and by rule – “an opponent in possession of the ball is tackled in his own endzone” – the play should have been ruled with two points in Airdrie’s favour.
“I can’t clarify it up either,” said Storm head coach Steve Kemp. “It should have been a two-point (safety) because we had possession, but they messed it up and said it wasn’t a safety. That would have made a huge difference, but that’s the way it goes. It’s a hard one to swallow.”
Dallas Boath put the Colts ahead in overtime with an 11-yard touchdown run on the first possession. The Storm couldn’t respond, as quarterback Duncan Little’s pass to Nathaniel Cross on third-and-nine fell incomplete.
Boath opened the scoring four minutes into the second half, when he broke outside and ran 67 yards for a touchdown to put Calgary ahead 8-0 (kicking converts are worth two points in Bantam football).
“He’s a dangerous player,” Kemp said. “We didn’t want him to get outside. I thought our defence did a really good job, but he broke outside once in the game and in overtime he got outside again and that took them down to the endzone.”
Duazo answered for the Storm four minutes into the fourth quarter with a one-yard touchdown run.
He had a 55-yard punt return called back on an illegal block midway through the second quarter, in addition to the controversial play near the end of the first half.
“We weren’t executing all the time and had a lot of mental mistakes and penalties,” Duazo said. “It kind of puts everyone down, because you get really excited and then it’s gets taking away.”
“It’s not the ref’s fault, it’s our fault – a couple mental mistakes at bad times that really hurt us,” Kemp said. “I thought we played good. It was a tough game; both teams came to play. It was hard on offence for both teams.”
“I think we were recharged and ready, but a few mental mistakes cost us the game,” said linebacker Jared Johnsonn. “Obviously it was a tough loss.”
Despite the loss, Kemp said his players were upbeat because they played well and exceeded expectations during the season.
“I’m proud of the guys,” he said. “They left everything out there after working really hard all week, but just fell short. They have nothing to hang their heads about.
“For a few years, the Storm were not taken serious by any other team. Now, they’ve started a tradition where we’re going to be hard-working team and you better come prepared.”
“It was a good overall season, as we haven’t gone this far before,” Duazo said. “We’ve got vets moving on, but I’m sure the Storm team will be just as strong next year too.”
