It will be a busy season for the Weyburn Minor Football Association, as ground work has started for their new football field, they will have flag football during the spring and fall, and registration for tackle football will take place on Thursday, M
It will be a busy season for the Weyburn Minor Football Association, as ground work has started for their new football field, they will have flag football during the spring and fall, and registration for tackle football will take place on Thursday, May 17.
In conjunction with the start of the football season, a special "Green and White" gala will be held on Friday, May 11 to support the Weyburn Minor Football Association. The gala is an opportunity to celebrate "Saskatchewan's Team", the Roughriders.
Matt Dominguez, an alumni of the Riders will be the emcee of the gala. Other special guests include Brendon LaBatte, former Weyburn local who was recently signed by the Roughriders and is a Canadian Football League All Star; and Corey Chamblin, the new head coach for the Riders.
"I am looking forward to the gala, it will be an eventful night," said Dominguez. "It will be good to be the 'veteran' of the Riders who are attending the event and be in charge of keeping the train on the tracks."
Dominguez noted that there is plenty of reasons to purchase tickets to the event. "Both Brendon and Corey might be rookies to Saskatchewan, but they have a lot of experience. It is an opportunity to introduce the new head coach to residents and of course Brendon is a former local."
It was also important that the gala will support the Weyburn Minor Football Association. "I always felt that it is important to give back to your community. I have tried to focus on charities and events that benefitted children because there are a lot of children who need guidance," said Dominguez.
"The gala will be a great time, it will be a lot of fun and a lot of laughs."
Tickets to the "Green and White" gala can be purchased from Nicole Wendt or Rochelle Wendt, representatives of the Weyburn Rider Nation. There are a limited amount of tickets, and the evening includes a first-class meal, three guest speakers from the Rider organization and both live and silent auctions.
"We know there is lots of support in our community for all things and minor football is just one of the examples," said Nicole. "Minor football is a growing sport and they are building a new field, which is their major fundraiser. Having both Brendon LaBatte and the new head coach for the Riders as speakers at this gala are a big deal."
Nicole added that she hopes Brendon can inspire other young athletes to achieve their dreams of playing professional.
For those registered players for spring flag football, their season will run from May 7 to June 13. This program is designed for ages eight to nine years.
Registration for tackle football and fall flag football will be held Thursday, May 17 at the Credit Union community room from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Fall flag football is for ages seven to eight years. Forms for tackle football are available at www.ballcharts.com/weyburnminorfootball and the cost is $200 per player, with three different divisions.
There will be a consistent look to all three divisions of the Weyburn Minor Football Association to match with the Weyburn Comp Eagles, as all jersey colours will be red-and-black. Each team will have bird names: the Atom Ravens, the Peewee Eagles and the Bantam Youngfellow Falcons.
Equipment distribution for tackle football will be held during the last week of July. Practice for tackle football will start during the first week of August and there will be a Big Play Tackling Camp held Saturday, Aug. 11.
The Weyburn Minor Football Association main project this year will be their new football field, and they will be touching base with businesses for sponsorship. Information packages are available from Michael Mainil, Brent Allin or any member of the board.
