The YRHS Raiders senior football team is about to kick off another season on the field.
The end of the last season didn’t turn out as the players and coaches had hoped, when the Raiders lost in the semi-finals of the Moose Jaw High School Football League. But with new young and talented athletes, the team is hopeful for the upcoming season.
Head coach Roby Sharpe said losing graduating players is tough every year. This year, the team is physically smaller than what they’re used to, but Sharpe thinks it will work in their favour.
“It’s funny that we’re not that big. Yorkton is known for having huge football players,” he said. “I don’t think that’s going to be our style this year. We’ll have to out-finesse them a little bit. Our skill positions are top shelf for sure.”
Tenth-grader Jordan Rusnak is taking over the quarterback position. Sharpe said going with such a young quarterback is not something they normally do, but said Rusnak is “a stud of an athlete.”
Returning receiver Matthew “Sunny” Mandziuk was also praised by Sharpe, after spending the summer training at the Huskies’ training camps.
Mandziuk said so far, the team is looking good.
“We’ve got a grade ten quarterback who’s looking really good. We’re looking just like we were last year in the hunt for the city title,” he said.
As for goals for the upcoming season, Mandziuk wants to finish what they weren’t able to last year.
“We want to make the city finals. Last year it was disappointing not making it. We all knew we should have been there. And going on from there, I think we definitely have a shot at the provincial title this year,” he said.
Sharpe echoed some similar thoughts.
“The goal is always to win the championship, but you try to win one game at a time,” he said. “You try not to get too far ahead of yourself. Our goal right now is to go into Swift Current and beat them.”
The Raiders will be travelling to Swift Current on Thursday, Sept. 1st to kick off the first game of their season against the Swift Current Colts.
Sharpe said the focus for this week has been polishing up the playbook.
“It’s just kind of getting our plays down, solidifying our defence a little bit,” he said. “Our guys should be in shape. They know how to play football.”
Even beyond the football scores and statistics, Sharpe praises the players he’s worked with over the past several years for being good, all-around kids.
“We’re a hard working group of I would say blue-collar kids. We’ve got some farm kids, so it’s just that attitude we bring in. Our guys always work, they learn how to work, and they learn to be humble. You know, we’re from Yorkton. Remember where you come from and what it’s like to be from here. We’re pretty proud of those guys,” he said.
