Thursday was the home finale for the John Paul II Crusaders football team for the 2016 season.
Given what happened to them against the Delisle Rebels, they now need some help from their other competitors if they want to host a playoff game this year.
The Crusaders gave up 27 points in the first half and never recovered as they fell to 2-2 following a 48-14 loss to the Rebels.
“We sure dug ourselves a hole that’s for sure,” Crusaders head coach Bruce Yockey said. “It’s disappointing when that happens at home as you want to come out and play well in front of your fans.
“I thought the defence started off well and kept us in the game in the first half, but we were just too stagnant on offence. Our passing game was too predicable and when you can’t run the ball and you’re facing a second and long situation, it really limits you to what you can do out there.”
Although the Crusaders did get rushing touchdowns from Jacob Stynsky and Joel Doke, their ground attack was stymied by the fact that Stynsky is currently playing with a sprained ankle.
“He tried to play but he’s only at 50 percent at the moment,” Yockey said.
“I have to give him credit for going out there and giving everything that he had, but it just wasn’t there for him today.”
The Rebels (1-3) earned their first win of the season thanks to the strong play of quarterback Colton Noel, who rushed into the end zone twice and had a passing touchdown in the second quarter to help build his team’s lead.
“Our program is one that’s had a lot of success in the past, so I’m very happy to see that our team is pushing through here after a tough start,” Rebels head coach Ken Byers said.
“It was a matter of our team knowing the plays a bit better than they had earlier in the year. Our pass and run blocking from our offensive line was exceptional as well and that made a huge difference.”
The Crusaders have two games left in the regular season as they look to solidify a berth in the post-season.
They will travel to Warman Thursday before wrapping up their campaign on Oct. 14 on the road against Meadow Lake.
“I think if we have a 3-3 record we’d be alright to get in the playoffs,” Yockey said.
“We have some work to do though in order to get there though. We need to have our offence moving once again and we need our players that our hurt to get healthy, as having more depth will help us out a lot.”
