After an effort to ensure local football players had the opportunity to join the Sundre Bison, the team was forced to fold from lack of participation.
The squad was among two out of five teams in the Mountain View 9 Man Football Conference that folded this season.
Wade Grimm, Carstairs-Crossfield Tigers coach as well as a league executive who stepped up to the plate following the resignations of the organization’s commissioner and secretary-treasurer, said although he has not received official confirmation, the Bison have basically forfeited the rest of their games.
The unofficial decision was announced by way of email a few weeks ago just before a scheduled game against Innisfail, he said last week.
The Didsbury Dragons were also forced to fold as a result of insufficient player turnout, he said, adding last year was a similar uphill battle to secure an adequate turnout to play.
“Every year, getting the numbers is a struggle,” he said.
Ideally, at least 18 players would consistently turn out for practices and games, but typically there are not much more than a dozen, he said.
“That’s the way it goes with small-town football.”
The league’s recent resignations will also require a restructuring of the organization to ensure its longevity, he said. A vote to find replacements for the vacant positions will follow the end of the season, likely towards the end of November or early in December, he added.
“Hopefully they’ll have the time in the off-season to get things straightened around and be ready to go” for next year, he said.
However, in the absence of willing volunteer league executives, the future of the organization is not written in stone, he added.
“Far as I know, we’re not pulling the plug on the league. But if no one steps in as commissioner or secretary-treasurer, that could be a problem,” he said, adding a league cannot run as a one-person operation.
“We’ll have to see what the new year brings.”
Meanwhile, the rest of the season is being played out with Innisfail and Strathmore facing off in the finals, he said, adding Carstairs is out of the championship run.
Despite the Sundre and Didsbury teams’ “unfortunate decision,” Grimm expressed optimism for the future and is hoping for an “infusion of fresh perspective” that will come to the table and help rebuild the league next year.
He welcomes anyone who might be interested in getting involved with the executive to contact him by email at [email protected].
