River Rider News – PA Minor Football

The spring season of Prince Albert Minor Football concluded on Wednesday, May 17th. The outdoor flag program for ages 8 to 10 had one last game, and participants in the 6-A-Side tackle program handed in the equipment that was provided for them by Prince Albert Minor Football. A record enrolment of 301 players participated in the variety of spring programs offered by Prince Albert Minor Football, starting at age 4 with our non-contact Little Tykes skill development program, up to players in grade 11 that participated in our Senior 6-A-Side Tackle program.
 
As the 6-a-side season was winding down, both the pee wees and bantams participated in two jamborees.Two weeks ago, on Saturday, June 6th, Melfort Minor Football hosted teams from Prince Albert, Outlook, and Hafford on the local high school’s football field. On the following Saturday, the 13th, the Melfort and Hafford teams participated in the jamboree here in Prince Albert. Both jamborees were great successes. The players no doubt slept very soundly after playing three games each on both of those Saturdays!
 
Though the spring season has ended, the coaches and directors of Prince Albert Minor Football are already preparing for the fall 12-player tackle season. Online pre-registration is available now at http://www.pariverriders.com.

All registrations received before Tuesday, June 30th will get $75.00 off the registration fee, payable at our equipment fitting on Sunday, August 23rd at Crescent Heights Arena. All the necessary equipment is provided except cleats and a water bottle! The discounted registration fee is $175.00, plus a $250.00 equipment deposit is also required, which may be a cheque post-dated to the end of the season in October. The online registration process is fairly simple and easy, and just takes a couple of minutes. Visit http://www.pariverriders.com, click on “Registration” on the menu bar near the top of the screen, then select either the “Aug-Oct PEE WEE” form for players 10 to 12 years of age, or the “Aug-Oct BANTAM” form for players age 13 and 14.
 
The Prince Albert River Riders play in the Saskatoon Kinsmen Football League, consisting of 7 teams in Saskatoon, one in Martensville, and one team in Prince Albert in each age division, Pee Wee and Bantam. We practise on Tuesday and Friday evenings from 5:30 to 7:00 pm, and Saturday mornings from 10:30 am to Noon. Our regular season will start on August 23rd, and ends the week of Thanksgiving in October. We play eight games in a season, four at home at Max Clunie Field in Prime Ministers’ Park, usually on Sunday afternoons, and four in Saskatoon at either the SaskTel Sports Centre on Attridge Drive, or Saskatoon Minor Football Field (formerly Gordie Howe Bowl) on Avenue P South, usually on Wednesday evenings. All teams in the league play at least one playoff game, Playoffs start the week following Thanksgiving.
 
As the sport of football is growing in Prince Albert and area, we are anticipating having to enter two pee wee teams in the league this year. Therefore, we are looking for more coaches. If you are interested in coaching, please contact Bob Coffin at boblcoffin@hotmail.com or 306-922-4184. The Prince Albert Football Officials Association is also looking for more referees. If you are interested in refereeing, contact Barry Mihilewicz at bigdrum@sasktel.net or 306-961-8034.
 
New for this fall, Prince Albert Minor Football will be hosting a Pass Punt and Kick competition. It’s FREE to enter, and participants could win tickets to the last Rider home game of the 2015 season, on October 24th! The Pass, Punt and Kick competition has taken place annually throughout Saskatchewan for over 40 years, sponsored by Football Saskatchewan, the Saskatchewan Roughriders, and SaskTel. Traditionally, the Pass Punt and Kick competitons are held as an optional activity in elementary schools.

The PA Minor Football Pass Punt and Kick competition is open to children whose schools are opting not to have their own competition. There are separate divisions for boys and girls, and three age divisions; 10 and under, 12 and under, and 14 and under.

The PA Minor Football Pass, Punt & Kick competition will take place on the field between Crescent Heights Arena and Diefenbaker School on Saturday, October 3rd, starting at 1:00 pm. Winners from the schools and the PA Minor Football event advance to the Regional Final, which will be held October 10th, also at Crescent Heights Arena field. Eighteen winners from the Regional Final (one boy and one girl in each event and each age division) advance to the Provincial Final in Saskatoon on Saturday, October 17th.