Community Football Starbowl showcases BC football talent

The Vancouver Mainland Football League (VMFL) and Valley Community Football League’s (VCFL) annual showcase of the best of BC gridiron talent, at the bantam and midget levels, kept an enthusiastic crowd at the edge of their seats at Rotary Stadium in Abbotsford, on Saturday April 20.

The first game of the day featured two VCFL integrated Junior Bantam teams battling for Valley bragging rights. An undersized, but definitely not undermanned, Team Blue eventually prevailed 32 – 6, over their Team Red counterparts.

This set the stage for a very competitive game between Bantam teams representing the VCFL and VMFL. The first half was a battle of defenses, with neither team able to assert themselves on offense, resulting in a 0 – 0 half-time score. The VMFL offense put together some sustained drives in the third period, but a resolute VCFL defense managed to keep them at bay. The deadlock was finally broken in the fourth period, with VMFL scores on 35 yard and 29 yard field goals. The VMFL was forced to concede a safety with less than two minutes left in the game, but managed to withstand some final VCFL offensive assaults for a final 6 – 2 victory.

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Players of the game for the VMFL were #9 Lucas Kirk (offense) and #57 Andrew Neufeld (defense), while #36 Tyrel Ogloff (offense) and # 32 Won Jae Boo (defense) were recognized from the VCFL squad.

Before the two integrated midget teams took the field for their matchup, a number of players were recognized for their performance during the 2012 season:

Defensive Lineman – Dusean Leblanc, Cowichan

Offensive Lineman – Damir Alihodzic, Coquitlam

Defensive Player – Peter Kilberg, White Rock

Offensive Player – Seye Akinsanmi, North Surrey

MVP – Kalen McMurchy, Langley

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Once play was underway, it was clear to the appreciative audience on-hand, that the drama and tension of the Bantam tilt wold be carried over to the Midget game. Team 2 (the Shockers) struck first, with a quarterback scamper into the end zone. Neither of the evenly-matched squads were able to establish dominance, but Team 1 was able to force a safety to add their first two points to the board. A failed 34 yard field good attempt by Team 2 left the half time score at Team 2 – 7 and Team 1 – 2.

Once play resumed, a failed 34 yard field goal attempt by Team 2 resulted in a rouge (1 point) and a score of 8 – 2. With just under four minutes left in the game, a tackle-breaking run brought the crowd to its feet and added 6 points to the board for Team 1. With the extra point, Team 1 took its first lead of the game, with a score of 9 – 8. However, Team 2 would not be denied and scored a 20 yard field goal, with 26 seconds left on the clock, and held on for a final 11 – 9 victory.

Players of the game for Team 1 were #5 Damion Dorn (offense) and #55 Brock Gowanlock (defense), while #7 Dylan Tucker (offense) and #44 Brock Loewen earned honours for Team 2.

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Photo credits:  Bird’s Eye Photography

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