Sabres host Grant Park Pirates for spring football tune-up

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This article was published 06/06/2023 (747 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It may not go down as an official victory, but the Steinbach Regional Secondary School (SRSS) Sabres will take it.

The Sabres’ junior varsity team picked up a 34-22 win against the Grant Park Pirates in an exhibition game hosted May 25 at A.D. Penner Park. It was the junior varsity team’s first 12-man win since 2019, and the program’s first victory in over a year, as both the junior varsity and varsity teams went winless last season. Later in the day, the varsity squad fell 21-0.

While the win was nice to have, the Sabres spring camp isn’t about results on the field. Program manager Jamie Peters said it was about introducing high school football to new players, and preparing for the upcoming fall season.

“Spring football is about tearing it down back to the basics, and building it up,” Peters said as the junior varsity team played.

“We start with the simplest form of learning how to tackle, learning how to fall, learning how to take a hit, learning how to give a hit.”

With many inexperienced players taking the field, safety was a point of emphasis, as quarterbacks were sacked with only a slap, and punts downed exactly where they were fielded, with only the long snapper, kicker and two returners out on the field.

More than 100 potential players try out football at SRSS each spring. Included in those numbers are players who have never suited up for football before, but are willing to try it out.

“When you play another school, somebody’s got to be the hammer and somebody’s got to be the nail,” Peters said.

“It’s an eye-opening experience, and it’s fun to see how the kids react.”

The game also marked the first time any grade 8 students will have suited up in the Sabres black and yellow.

“There’s some talented players at all of our levels and we’ve got some raw players at all of our grade levels,” Peters said.

“It’s a matter of the players themselves deciding if they want to take coaching, if they want to commit to something… If they give that dedication, then they’re going to reap some solid rewards.”

Peters also praised the work the Eastman Raiders minor football program does at preparing the experienced players for the high school program.

The Grant Park and Steinbach programs often work closely together during pre-season, with the Sabres visiting them for games last season, and hosting them in 2023.

“They have a similar skill set for us… so it allows for some great competition,” Peters said.

Registration night for the Sabres football program is set for June 1 and fall camp scheduled to kick off Aug. 28, with the program aiming for improvement this season.

“We’re looking to compete to the best of our abilities, and we believe if we do that winning takes care of itself,” Peters said.