On an extremely windy day, the Lanigan Lazers took their show on the road to battle Wynyard's Bears in a regular six-man league game of high school football on September 30.
The opening quarter saw some great defensive play by the Lazers, holding the Bears to only eight points with an extremely strong wind at their back. The team's offence did its best to move the ball ahead and chew up time but was unable to put up any points on the board.
The second quarter saw Lanigan go to the air and have great success moving the ball. The players connected on numerous passing plays to jump into the lead, 22-8, at the half.
With momentum on their side the Lazers were eager to get back to the game for the second half, but credit an experienced Wynyard program for turning the momentum in their favour. The Bears returned the kickoff for a major and then scored on their very next possession. Lanigan was unable to move the ball successfully with the wind in their face and Wynyard put up more points to end the third quarter with a 32-22 lead.
The Lazers had the wind with them in the fourth quarter, but had numerous good-looking drives snuffed out by extremely costly penalties. With only five minutes left to play, Lanigan closed the gap to within seven points by kicking a 35-yard field goal. The final two minutes were extremely intense, with the Lazers getting the ball twice thanks to some great defensive play.
Unfortunately the Bears stepped up their defence, and although the Lazers were able to move the ball, they could not put it into the endzone. The final score was Wynyard 32, Lanigan 25.
The Lanigan players and coaching staff are grateful to Wynyard for their great hospitality and a wonderful game. The athletes learned a lot from this game, and look forward to what should be a wonderful rematch October 11 in Lanigan.
