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Prince Albert Minor Football – A Great Option for Kids

Jan 17, 2011 | 6:39 PM

The Prince Albert Minor Football Association began in 2005 with the creation of a touch football league for Prince Albert's youth.

Two years later, the Prince Albert River Riders were formed, which allowed bantam age players (13 & 14 years old) to try tackle football for the first time.

A pee wee River Riders team was then established in 2008 for 10 to 12 year olds. In 2009, a six-a-side spring league was established, sponsored in part by the Canadian Football League.

Prince Albert Minor Football also offers Trainhard, a series of once a week skill development and conditioning sessions which take place in the early spring.
 
The goal of the Trainhard program is to give the participants the basic knowledge & skills required to play the game of football. Each session consists of a conditioning element, where participants learn and perform a variety of physical exercises to get them in shape for football, a skill development session, where participants are put through a variety of drills which develop the skills required to play each position, and a classroom element, which increases the participant's understanding of the game of football using diagrams and discussion. Trainhard is a non-body contact program, but the knowledge gained prepares the participant to engage in contact in the 6-a-side & River Riders programs.
 
The six-a-side program takes place in late spring
. Six-a-side football has a more wide open style of play, and is less specialized in each position than the traditional 12 per side game. Every player is eligible to run or catch the ball except the centre. All players in the six-a-side league will learn at least one position on both offense and defense.

Smaller team size (approximately 20 players per team) allows for a lower player-to-coach ratio, giving each player more individual instruction time. Thanks to the Canadian Football League's sponsorship of this program, players get to wear replica CFL jerseys during games.

Players in grades 5 to 8 are eligible to play in the six-a-side program. For more information about the six-a-side program, contact Graham McGregor at 763-9094 or ggm126@yahoo.com, or Rylan Michalchuk at 763-2772 or rylan_m37@hotmail.com.
 
The Prince Albert River Riders play in the fall. The River Riders play in the Kinsmen Football League, which consists also of 7 teams in Saskatoon, and a team in Martensville. Home games are played in Prime Minister's Park, & games in Saskatoon are played at the SaskTel Sports Centre.
 
No previous football playing experience is required to sign up for Prince Albert Minor Football. The three programs offered by Prince Albert Minor Football are not prerequisites for each other, however, participation in all three is recommended, because the more practise the individual gets, the faster the player's skills will develop.

All of the mandatory equipment required is provided except cleats.

For more information about Trainhard or the River Riders, contact the pee wee head coach, Wendell Whitter at 961-4562 or rrpwkfl@hotmail.com, or bantam head coach Ryan Hughes at 960-6082 or river_riders_football@yahoo.ca.

http://www.pariverriders.com.