INNISFAIL – Minor football will look a little different this season.
That’s because there will be just one team this year with the Innisfail Minor Football Association.
The Innisfail peewee Cyclones have already hit the Jim Brittain Athletic Field for practices in preparation for their first game at home against Rocky Mountain House on Sept. 14. at 10 a.m.
“Football Canada came out with some new regulations. Tackle football for atoms is going to be disappearing in 2020, so as an association we’ve decided to comply (with the new regulation) a year early and have the 10-year-old players that were part of the atom team join the peewees to help bolster the numbers,” said Dallas Haldorson, head coach and president of the association.
Football Canada is making changes to the atom program (for players 8 to 10 years old) for player safety, he noted. Starting next year all atom level players will participate in flag football where no contact is allowed.
“We’re actually coming in line with a lot of the teams we play against. A lot of the teams in our league don’t field atom teams,” said Haldorson. “It is more the norm to start tackle football at the peewee level.”
Since Aug. 20, the Cyclones have been holding practices three days a week, Tuesday to Thursday.
“We’ve been working on our conditioning, working on the safe contact drills that we’ve learned through Football Canada and we’re also working on football fundamentals for the kids, such as throwing, passing and catching,” said Haldorson.
“They’re also learning a lot of the rules for the game because for a lot of these kids it’s their (first time playing),” he added.
Registration is still open, noted Haldorson, adding the team has about 13 players, both boys and girls, signed up.
“We’re going to be at the Fall Registration Night on Sept. 10 so we’re still looking for more kids for the team, boys and girls,” he said, noting two new coaches have stepped up as well.
Assistant coaches Alexis Verhegge and Holden Janzen are now part of the team.
The Innisfail peewee Cyclones will play as part of the nine-man division in the Central Alberta Peewee Football League this season.
“I think we’re going to have a great season. We have some really good athletes this year,” he said.
One of the peewee Cyclones this season is 10-year-old Kate Haldorson.
“We’ve been doing drills, running, (practising) safe contact and tackling,” she said, noting how excited she is to see some success on the field this fall.
“They work really hard. I think that our team’s going to be really good this year,” said Dallas Haldorson.
For more information visit the Innisfail Minor Football Facebook page or email Dallas Haldorson at [email protected]
