SURREY — The Panthers of Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary will be looking for the school’s first Junior Varsity football provincial title at the AAA level this weekend.
They’ll be going for it under the bright lights of a big stage – BC Place Stadium – on Saturday afternoon (Dec. 3), starting at 2:30 p.m., as part of day-long Subway Bowl championship action among B.C. high school teams.
The Tweedy team of Grade 9 and 10 players will be up against Victoria’s Mt. Douglas, after putting the boots to Van College 40-6 last Thursday afternoon (Nov. 24) at Burnaby Lakes.
The Panthers haven’t lost a game this season, and they’re aiming for another “w” at the Dome.
“The boys have put in a good year of hard work so they’re quite excited about this,” said first-year head coach Nick Kawaza.
“It’ll depend on how we play and what our mindset is going in,” he added. “If we do our jobs and all that, we’ve got an opportunity here.”
CLICK HERE to visit the Subway Bowl website.
Some standout Panthers this year include Braeden Hutchinson, Graham Goddard, Kojo Odoom, Trey Jones, Jaden Simon and Addison Sadler, he said.
“We have a number of very good kids, some really good athletes, and their work habits are quite good,” Kawaza continued.
During their seven-game regular season, the Panthers scored 235 points while allowing just 33, good for top spot in the JV West division.
Overall, it’s been a successful fall of football at Tweedsmuir.
The Senior team finished the regular season with a record of five wins and two losses. On Nov. 11, they were knocked out of the playoffs in a 41-19 loss to Abbotsford Panthers at Cloverdale Athletic Park.
At the Grade 8 level, Tweedsmuir finished second in the AAA conference with a 2-2 record.
“It’s been a good year here,” said Brien Gemmell, the school’s athletic director.
“The senior team finished second in their conference, and had some injuries that really hurt them going into the playoffs, but that’s the nature of a long football season,” he said. “It’s a bit of attrition. We play in a very tough conference against all the top AAA teams and it’s usually the team that can withstand the most bumps and bruises that can get to the end.”
For Subway Bowl updates, visit Bchighschoolfootball.com.
Other championship games Saturday will see Notre Dame meet Terry Fox in the AAA Varsity final (7 p.m. start), while North Delta’s Seaquam squad battles Vernon for the AA crown (4:30 p.m.). The AA JV title game will feature John Barsby against Nanaimo (11:30 a.m.), and the Grade 8 championship will be contested by Vancouver College and Notre Dame (9 a.m.).
tom.zillich@thenownewspaper.com
