Football Nova Scotia honours the best of 2011

Football Nova Scotia recently held their annual awards night in Halifax. It was a night to honour the best in provincial football for the 2011 season. The organization honoured players, coaches and officials at various levels of football in the province.

Here is a list of the awards recipients:

Nova Scotia Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) Player of the Year:
Jacob LeBlanc, Defensive Lineman, Mount Allison Mounties:

LeBlanc, who is originally from Halifax, has played football for seven seasons. The defensive lineman has experienced great success in the CIS as a member of the Mount Allison Mounties. In 2011, he was named Atlantic University Sport (AUS) rookie of the year, a nominee for the CIS Peter Forman Trophy as top rookie in the nation for amassing 30 tackles (including nine that resulted in losses) and five sacks. Moreover, LeBlanc was selected to the 2012 World Junior Team. Previous to playing for the Mounties, the defensive standout had as uccessful high school career with the JL. Ilsley Judges of the Nova Scotia Student Athletic Federation Football League (NSSAFFL). During his time with the Judges, the defensive lineman was named school athlete of the year and Nova Scotia high school MVP. As a member of Team Nova Scotia, LeBlanc participated in the 2010 Football Canada Cup, where he was named a defensive all-star.

Nova Scotia High School Player of the Year:
Taylor MacDonald, Linebacker, Charles P Allen Cheetahs/Under-18 Tackle and Flag:

MacDonald had a breakout season in 2011 in the Nova Scotia high school ranks while playing for the Charles P Allen Cheetahs of the NSSAFFL. The Cheetahs linebacker was the Nova Division rookie of the year and selected to the division’s second all-star team. Additionally, MacDonald suited up for the provincial under-18 tackle team and won a gold medal as a member of the provincial under-18 men’s flag team.

Doug Quackenbush Coach of the Year:

Grassroots Level:
Kevin Hayes, Valley Bulldogs:

Recently completing his sixth season coaching at the minor and high school levels in the Annapolis Valley, Hayes has experienced many highlights. In his first two seasons of coaching as the defensive coordinator for the Central Kings Gators, he led the team to the 2009 NSSAFFL Tier 2 championship title. Additionally, Hayes has served as an associate coach of the Valley War Dogs of the Nova Scotia Varsity Football League (NSVFL). For the past two seasons, he’s been an associate coach with the Valley Atom Bulldogs. During his recent tenure with the Bulldogs, Hayes led the team to a 10-1 en route to winning the Tier 1 Atom championship title. This is impressive considering the roster of 25 players had 18 that were in their first year on the team. As an executive of Valley Minor Football, Hayes has done a lot of fundraising to bring in revenue and created initiatives such as spring camps to increase participation in the league.

Provincial Level:
Randy Rudel, 2011 Provincial under-18 Men’s Flag Team:

Rudel has coached at coached at various levels including high school, youth flag, touch and minor tackle. Among the teams he has instructed include the Dartmouth Destroyers of the NSVFL and representing the province at the 2009 under-15 Canadian Flag Championships. In 2010, Rudel guided Nova Scotia to a gold medal at the 2010 Senior Men’s Canadian Flag Championships and to a fourth place finish at the World Championships. This past season, he coached the provincial under-18 Men’s Flag Team to a gold medal at the Flag Nationals, which was hosted at Dalhousie University.

Assistant Coach of the Year:

Grassroots Level:
Quentin Tynes, Halifax Football:

Tynes has instructed for the past three seasons at the flag and tackle levels in the Halifax region. Last season, he played an instrumental role in the success of both the Raiders and Argos in getting into the provincial finals. As one of 4 assistants on the Raiders and with a roster of 40 rotating players (no two-way players), Tynes guided them to an 8-0 regular season record. As a result of him coaching flag, there has been a 200 percent growth in the sport.

Provincial Level:
Sean Cluett, Provincial under-18 Men’s Flag Team:

Cluett has played a big role in the success of the provincial under-18 flag team. As an assistant to head coach Randy Rudel, he helped to guide the team to a gold medal finish in the 2011 Flag Nationals, which were hosted at Dalhousie University.

Official of the Year:
Brian Neil, Nova Scotia Flag Official:

Neil holds a Level 1 Officials certification. While coaching the peewee Giants, he oversaw the 12 games in the final six weeks of the 2011 season. Moreover, Neil was invited to officiate the under-16 and under-18 Flag Football National Championships this past July in Halifax. During the tournament, he was one of 14 officials from the nation and oversaw 16 round-robin and playoff games. In those 16 games, Neil served as head official of the three person officiating group. In addition to officiating, he was a volunteer assistant to the Operations Director and Officials Coordinator with field set-up and teardown during the tournament.

Volunteer of the Year:
Mike Campbell: Flag Football Leagues/NSFFOA Chair:

Campbell has made significant contributions to the flag teams at the local, provincial and national levels. He played an integral role in the development of the Men’s Flag Teams in 2010 and 2011. Furthermore, he created an official certification program in Nova Scotia as there was no national program. In 2011, Campbell was the Officials’ Coordinator for the National Flag Championships which were hosted at Dalhousie University.

Rick Rivers Lifetime Achievement Award:
Larry Priestnall, Valley Bulldogs:

Priestnall has played, coached and has done administration work in football. During his playing career as a fullback with the Acadia Axemen, he was an AUS all-star, two time all-Canadian, and two time Vanier Cup winner. The former president of Football Nova Scotia completed his NCCP level 3 certification and coached at the bantam and junior varsity levels with the Valley Bulldogs. Currently, he is head coach of the Central Kings Gators of the NSSAFFL. I n 2009, Priestnall got into the provincial coaching circuit as he was the running backs coach for the under-17 team. The next season (2010), he was the offensive coordinator of the under-18 team that participated in the Football Canada Cup in Wolfville.

Offense Most Valuable Players:

Atom:
Mark Mombourquette, Bedford/Sackville Saints
Colby Giusti, Dartmouth Destroyers –White
Mitchell Tufts, Dartmouth Destroyers –Black
Kellen Tynes, Halifax Argo
Malcolm Bussey, Timberlea Titans
Michael Adams, Truro Tides
Jackson Comeau, Cumberland Wolfpack
Jayden Simmonds, Valley Bulldogs

Peewee:
Cameron Robichaud, Bedford/Sackville Saints
Coby Roberts, Cape Breton Panthers
Sam Beck, Dartmouth Destroyers – White
Adre Simmonds, Dartmouth Destroyers –Black
Tyler Mckay, Fall River Dragons
Greg MacDonald, Halifax Raiders
Jarett Saumure, Timberlea Titans
Tyler Ball, Truro Blue Bombers
Peter Mackey, Valley Bulldogs
Blake Thompson, Cumberland Wolfpack

Bantam:
Will Chamberlain, Bedford/Sackville Saints
Jarrad Detheridge, Cape Breton Panthers
Nick Green, Dartmouth Destroyers
Marquis Diggs, Fall River Dragons
Ian Farrell, Halifax Redhawks
Nick Bennett, Timberlea Titans
Gregory McCarthy, Truro Freightliners
Benjamin Best, Valley Bulldogs
Kyle Gordon, Western Valley Wing
Cody Rector, Cumberland Wolfpack

Junior Varsity:
Cody Cluett, Dartmouth Destroyers
Brandon Buckingham, Cape Breton Panthers
Mark Gaudry, Halifax Redhawks
Matt Shannon, Halifax Redhawks

Varsity:
Zack Clarke, Metro Mustangs
Aaron Fraser, Dartmouth Destroyers

Provincial Teams:
David Nisbet, Under-16 Provincial Team
Cody Cluett, Under-18 Provincial Team

Defense Most Valuable Players:

Atom:
Ethan Price, Bedford/Sackville Saints
Dequon Downey, Dartmouth Destroyers-White
C.J. March, Dartmouth Destroyers – Black
Jacob Yazbek, Halifax Argo
Nick Taylor, Timberlea Titans
Kyle Taker, Truro Tide
Bradley Hawkes, Cumberland Wolfpack
Logan Potter, Valley Bulldogs

Peewee:
Ian McIntosh, Bedford/Sackville Saints
Alex Noszczyk, Cape Breton Panthers
Lynell Downey, Dartmouth Destroyers –White
Noah Brown, Dartmouth Destroyers – Black
Matthew Turner, Fall River Dragon
Jacob Morgan, Halifax Raiders
Tyler Webster, Timberlea Titans
Ethan Devouge, Truro Blue Bombers
Tyler Corbin, Valley Bulldogs
Justin Leach, Cumberland Wolfpack

Bantam:
Matt Bayne, Bedford/Sackville Saints
Connor MacDonald, Cape Breton Panthers
Tyjah Borden, Dartmouth Destroyers
Dion Thomas-Hodge, Fall River Dragons
Will Campbell, Halifax Redhawks
Jake Sherwood, Timberlea Titans
Cory Knockwood, Truro Freightliners
Noah Graves, Valley Bulldogs
Dillon Lutz, Western Valley Wing
Jarrett Leach, Cumberland Wolfpack

Junior Varsity:
Dylan Cossar, Dartmouth Destroyers
Taylor Morrison, Cape Breton Panthers
Nate Rostek, Halifax Redhawks

Varsity:
Liam Fair, Metro Mustangs
Christian Plante, Dartmouth Destroyers

Provincial Teams
Logan Prosser, Under-16 Provincial Team
Adam Melanson, Under-18 Provincial Team

Flag/Mites Tackle Most Valuable Players:

MITES:
John Troke, Bedford/Sackville – Angels
Ty Pero, Bedford/Sackville-Angels
Cole Carroll, Bedford/Sackville – Devils
Michael Urbanc, Bedford/Sackville – Devils
David Waller, Halifax Hornets
Joshua Roode, Halifax Redhawks
Ben Fish, Timberlea Titans
Julian MacDonald, Cumberland Wolfpack
Connor Voss, Cumberland Wolfpack

FLAG Under-11:
David Corkum, Cardinals
Rylan Baird, Lions
Colby Giusti, Vikings

Under-13:
Ian McIntosh, Panthers
Justin Morgan, Bills
Samuel Gruchy, Chiefs
Matthew Mendes, Chargers
Geoffrey Lawton, Giants

Under-15:
Collin Cluett, Buccaneers
Kyle Conrad, Browns
Ian Zinck, Saints
Rachel Field, Jets
Holly Allen, Steelers
Josh German, Ravens
Jack Campbell, Ravens
Benson Auld, Cardinals
Greg Boone, Texans

Under-18:
Michelle Fraser, Steelers
Cody Cluett, Patriots
Taylor MacDonald, Redskins

Provincial Teams:
Nick Bronson, Under-16 Men’s
Anna DeWolfe, Under-16 Women’s
Kelsey Clory, Under-18 Women’s
Cody Cluett, Under-18 Men’s

Larry Uteck Memorial Fair Play Award:

FLAG
Under-11:
Richard Miller, Cardinals
Aiden Robertson, Lions
Mitchell Tufts, Vikings

Under-13:
Matt Tolton, Panthers
Ben Ryan, Bills
Aiden Phipps, Chiefs
Jack Ryan, Chargers
Max Tzrop, Giants

Under-15:
Nick Green, Buccaneers
Nick Zachernuk, Browns
Logan Richards, Saints
Chris Whebby, Jets
Courtney Hubbard, Steelers
Matt Tanner, Ravens
Steward Langely, Texans

Under-18:
Alli Hay, Steelers
Kelsey Brumm, Patriots
Bradley Petrie, Redskins

Provincial Flag Teams:
Peter Nottegar, Under-16 Men’s Team
Jessica Pittman, Under-16 Women’s Team
Jamie Muir, Under-18 Women’s Team
Andrew Shaw, Under-18 Men’s Team

Tackle Mites:
Steve Sorenson, Bedford/Sackville Angels
Kyle Keen, Bedford/Sackville Devils
Xavier Buckley, Halifax Hornets
Jayden Johnson, Halifax, Redhawks
Austin Gavin, Timberlea Titans
Braydon Richardson, Cumberland Wolfpack

Atom:
Noah Dagenais, Bedford/Sackville Saints
Brady Frank, Dartmouth Destroyers – White
Ryan Hudson, Dartmouth Destroyers – Black
Trydell Mentis, Halifax Argos
Liam McGrath, Timberlea Titans
Jordan Waller, Truro Tide
Riley MacKenzie, Cumberland Wolfpack
Jack Hayes, Valley Bulldogs

Peewee:
Evan Mosher, Bedford/Sackville Saints
Alec Lefort, Cape Breton Panthers
Shamus Tobin, Dartmouth Destroyers – White
Josiah Simmonds, Dartmouth Destroyers – Black
Sam Korecki, Fall River Dragons
Kirklen Spicer, Halifax Raiders
Spencer Carlton, Timberlea Titans
Dustin Pettigrew, Truro Blue Bombers
Jordan Smith, Valley Bulldogs
Matthew Rector, Cumberland Wolfpack

Bantam:
Brad Bevan, Bedford/Sackville Saints
Liam Stapleton, Cape Breton Panthers
Daniel Harris-Sampson, Dartmouth Destroyers
Cameron Valardo, Fall River Dragons
Donovan Wade, Halifax Redhawks
Nick Bennett, Timberlea Titans
Nicklaus Zsheile, Truro Freightliners
Mason Rice, Valley Bulldogs
Griffin Reid, Western Valley Wings
Alexander Laird, Cumberland Wolfpack

Junior Varsity:
Alex Matheson, Dartmouth Destroyers
Martin Hatcher, Cape Breton Panthers
Ryan Murchison, Halifax Redhawks

Varsity:
Marcus MacIsaac, Metro Mustangs

Provincial Teams:
Will Chamberlain, Under-16 Provincial Team
Taylor MacDonald, Under-18 Provincial Team

(Photo Credits: All photos provided courtesy of Scott Kirkpatrick)
Website: www.stkphoto.com