Football Canada along with provincial partners Football Saskatchewan and the Ontario Football Alliance hosted the final two Senior Men’s National Team selection camps on Saturday February 26th in Saskatoon and Sunday February 27th in Guelph. This weekend’s camps were strongly attended by 140 athletes aspiring to represent Canada at the fourth International Federation of American Football (IFAF) Senior World Championship in Austria from July 6-18.
The coaching staff was pleased with the quality and turn out of athletes that included a large number of current and former players from the Canadian university system as well as the CJFL, NCAA and senior leagues. Players were put through the paces which included physical testing in the morning followed by several on-field activities in the afternoon.
“I was surprised by the level of skill, especially at the wide receiver and quarterback positions… it’s going to be tough to make the team at the receiver position,” said team Canada hopeful Ivan Birungi, a former CIS All-Canadian receiver, two time Atlantic University Sport MVP and Hec Crighton nominee during his time at Acadia University. Birungi compared the talent at the camp to that of a CIS or Canada wide all-star team with players like Université de Sherbrooke QB JP Shoiry and former University of Western Ontario QB Michael Faulds in attendance.
Football Canada’s 2011 coaching staff includes head coach Larry Haylor, former University of Western Ontario head coach who holds the CIS record for most wins (178), offensive coordinator Greg Marshall, currently the head coach at Western, and defensive coordinator Glen Constantin, the reigning CIS coach of the year and head coach at Université Laval. This trio is joined by assistant coaches Jeff Cummins (head coach of the Acadia Axemen), Blake Nill (head coach of the Calgary Dinos), Brian Towriss (head coach of the Saskatchewan Huskies), Steve Sumarah (head coach at Saint Mary’s), and Pat Tracey (Queen’s Defensive Coordinator).
Birungi added that, “being part of the first Canadian [senior national] team would mean a lot to me as I haven’t had the chance to represent Canada during my career.” He further added that playing for Canada would be a great way to cap off his football career.
Held every four years beginning in 1999, the 2011 IFAF Senior Men’s World Championship marks Football Canada’s entrance into the senior men’s competition. Football Canada has enjoyed previous success at IFAF events, having captured silver medals at both the 2010 Senior Women’s and 2009 Junior Men’s World Championships. Team USA is the reigning 2007 Senior Men’s World Champion. Rounding out the field for this event are Mexico, Germany, Austria, France and Japan.
For more information on the Canadian National Team please visit www.footballcanada2011.com
About Football Canada
Established in 1884, Football Canada is the national governing body of amateur football in Canada and a proud member of the International Federation of American Football (IFAF). Working closely with the provincial football associations, we develop programs and resources for players, coaches and officials in the three disciplines of Tackle, Flag and Touch Football. Football Canada’s vision statement is “from playground to stadium” where players can participate in the game of football throughout a lifetime recreationally, competitively and internationally.
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