History will be made Friday no matter who wins the Saskatoon Secondary Schools Athletic Directorate 3A football championship game.
Either the North Battleford Comprehensive High School Vikings will capture their first title since joining the league or the Tommy Douglas Tigers will hoist their first trophy in team history.
“We were last in this situation a few years ago [2012 when they lost to the Bishop Mahoney Saints] so there’s an excitement level among the guys and the students,” Vikings head coach Mike Humenny said. “Our main focus right now is on the game but there’s always a good feeling when you have a chance to play in a final.”
“I think the realization of what our team has accomplished is starting to make it’s way around the school and there’s a lot more of a buzz among the students as we get closer to Friday’s kickoff,” Tigers head coach Leo Grosjean added.
The championship game, which will take place at 5:15 p.m. at the Saskatoon Minor Football Field, will mark the second meeting between the two sides this year.
Back on Sept. 21, the Tigers came out on top in a back and forth 35-26 affair over the Vikings in Saskatoon.
“That was a game where they had the lead for most of the game before we moved out in front,” Grosjean said. “The Vikings are a really well coached team and they are big, strong and physical.”
“If you look at the tendencies from our previous meetings and when we’ve played common opponents, it seems that whoever has the ball last ends up having the upper hand,” Humenny added. “We wouldn’t like it to go that way obviously, but we’ll see how things go Friday.”
The Vikings, who finished first in the regular season 3A standings with a 5-2 record, advanced to the final with a 49-14 win over the Evan Hardy Souls in the semifinal last Thursday night.
“I have to give Evan Hardy a lot of credit as they played a much better game against us than they did in the season opener,” Humenny said. “Looking back on it, I think our ability to run the ball allowed us to control the line of scrimmage in that game.
“We’re not planning to change very much against Tommy Douglas. We’re going to keep doing the things that have worked well for us as you don’t want to stray to far from the game plan when you’re going for a city title.”
The Tigers, who had a 4-2-1 regular season mark to clinch the second seed for the playoffs, punched their ticket to the title game with a 51-45 victory over the defending city and provincial champion Saints in Thursday’s other semifinal.
“We knew that was going to be a back and forth battle and we were able to come out on top,” Grosjean said.
“If you look at our team, there’s no one player that stands out on either side of the ball. Our offence is fairly balanced and gelling more and more every time out, and our defence has been getting in every game despite it being a young group.”
The winner of the Saskatoon league will go on to host the 3A provincial championship game on Saturday, Nov. 11.
The opponent for that affair will be determined in the provincial semifinal Saturday in Regina between the Yorkton Raiders and the Greenall Griffins of Balgonie, who won the Moose Jaw and Regina city championships respectively.
