Strange penalty hurts Redmen; team prepares for player auction

Dominique Liboiron
Twitter: @DomMCNews
Email: dliboiron4@hotmail.com

“It was a hell of a first half,” Redmen assistant coach Tyson Krause said about his team’s Sept. 22 game against the Indian Head Broncs. The score at half-time was 20-20, but a sudden momentum shift in the third quarter made a significant difference on the final score.
“We were going punch for punch,” Krause said of Maple Creek’s road game. He described the first two quarters as a back-and-forth dog fight.
When play resumed in the third quarter, the Broncs scored on their first possession and went up by seven points. After the ensuing kick-off, the Redmen were penalized because the player who caught the ball had a foot on the sideline. This lead to an unexpected and astonishing decision by the officials – Maple Creek was penalized not in yards, but by losing possession. The Broncs were given the ball on the 10-yard line and scored two plays later to go ahead by 14 points.
Shortly thereafter, the Redmen fumbled and the Broncs earned a 21-point lead –
all in the span of a few minutes. Krause said the team deflated. The final score was 54-20.
In his nine years as a coach, Krause said he’s never heard of a team being penalized by losing possession. Coaches Dale Udal and Brent Mason, with 17 years and more than 30 years of coaching experience respectively, agreed they’d never heard of a similar call, either.
Krause stressed that he’s not complaining about the officials’ decision. He said it could be a rule only he’s never heard of it. The Maple Creek coaching staff is looking into the matter to clarify their understanding of the rules and of the situation.
For Travis Brost, who played safety and end, the Redmen got a boost in energy from their performance in the second quarter, but the outcome of the third quarter, most particularly after the bizarre call, caused the Redmen to lose momentum. “After that, we all fell apart,” the Grade 12 student commented.
He added fatigue and injuries were a factor and yet Brost gave a balanced assessment of his opponents and said the Broncs are a competent team with good defence and strong running ability.
Many Redmen played both offence and defence to fill in for injured teammates. Three of the starting Redmen were out with injuries. These were Tyson Forbes, Drake Francis and Ryley Peters.
Krause said he’s thankful the Redmen have a bye week and will not play until Oct. 6. This gives his athletes time to rest and heal, the assistant coach added.
In terms of team fundraising, the gross revenue that was generated from two BBQs held Sept. 15 amounted to $3,122. This was the day of the Buick Drive For Your Students event and of the Friday Night Lights game. Apart from the $6,200 raised from test drives, the noon BBQ sold $1,395 worth of food and drinks. The evening BBQ brought in $1,727. However, neither BBQ totals include expenses. The net proceeds had not been tabulated at press time.
The team travels to Lumsden Oct. 6 to face the Devils before ending the season at home Oct. 13 against the Fort Qu’Appelle Bisons.

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