The St. Paul Lions are no longer in contention for the Wheatland Football League title, after falling to Holy Rosary out of Lloydminster on Friday night, but the team will continue to play after the squad qualified for provincials on Oct. 17, beating the Cold Lake Royals.
“It was definitely the most intense and toughest games I've played in all my years of football, and we’re feeling pretty confident heading into provincials,” said Lions’ player Madison Brousseau, after the week wrapped up.
He added that playing in the cold weather is a bit of a worry for him, personally.
Coach John Lumby says Monday’s game, which was originally supposed to take place on Oct. 14 but was rescheduled due to a snowstorm, was a great showing for the Lions’ defensive squad.
“Our defense played great,” said Lumby, adding they didn’t allow Cold Lake to score any points, and the Royals’ only two points of the 9-2 game were given up on a safety by the Lions’ offense.
“It was an especially strong defensive effort,” said Lumby, adding Cold Lake couldn’t gain many yards on the Lions throughout the game, and the Royals simply couldn’t handle the pressure put on them by the d-line.
Lumby noted that although the field had to be plowed prior to the game due to the snow, the weather wasn’t really that bad.
After the Lions held the score at 2-0 throughout much of the game, it came down to a big offensive play that solidified the win for the Lions. A touchdown pass from Parker Lumby was caught by Sheldon Scrannage and gave the Lions enough edge to win the game, 9-2.
The win also gave the Lions a spot at provincials, with the team heading to Grand Prairie to take on Sexsmith on Nov. 12.
The Lions were dealt a defeating win at the hands of Holy Rosary School out of Lloydminster on Friday night, losing by a score of 52-0.
“Holy Rosary is a great team this year. They have a good chance of winning the league and maybe tier 3 provincials as well,” said Lumby. He acknowledged that the Lions did not have a very good game on Friday night.
“We were disposed to a high level of football, hopefully we learn from that.”
