AA Varsity Week Five
Week Four In Review
South Delta again served notice that it is the team to beat in the South en route to a huge win over Hugh Boyd. Kalmalka did the same in the Interior, while Carson Graham rallied to defeat a tough Handswroth squad in the Buchannan Bowl. The Rick Hansen Hurricanes returned to play in stellar fashion gashing the Seaquam Seahawks for 41 pts. Look out for the Dukes folks, Windsor is back on the upswing. The Dukes gave Barsby everything they could handle on Friday! Rounding things off, Pitt got themselves a solid win over Nanaimo District and Belmont kicked-their offense into gear vs the Griffins of Eric Hamber. Nice momentum headed into week five games for these two programs.
Look very closely folks, it is early yet, but you can begin to see some nascent playoff seeding beginning to emerge. October is going to be a decisive month indeed!
Weekend Scores
Belmont 49 Eric Hamber 6
Kalamalka 26 South Kamloops 21
Pitt Meadows 14 Nanaimo District 0
Rick Hansen 36 Seaquam 21
Ballenas 51 Argyle 0
Chestermere (AB.) 33 Mt. Baker 0
Carson Graham 22 Handsworth 19
South Delta 49 Hugh Boyd 6
Holy Cross 45 Langley 7
GI’s AA Varsity Top 5
1. Mission Roadrunners
2. John Barsby Bulldogs
3. South Delta Sundevils
4. Robert Bateman Timberwolves
5. Ballenas Whalers
Gridiron’s Picks
Friday, 5 October
Correlieu @ Kelley
Road : Kelley Road ought to take this one as all things equal, the Roadrunner offense is simply more potent than the visitors in this tilt. GI's Pick: Kelley Road by 14
Robert Bateman @ Rick Hansen: This is the marquee match-up of the week and a real test as to who is for real in the East. Both teams have been winning by impressive scores and both are getting it done on the ground. Hansen has the edge throwing the ball however. I believe that the Bateman team speed will be the decisive factor on Friday and that Hansen cannot run with em for four quarters. GI's Pick: Bateman by 14
John Barsby @ Nanaimo District: The pads will be a smacking in this neighborhood rivalry game between players who have been tusseling on the gridiron in many instances since gradeschool. The Islanders are at home and will play tough. Barsby however has bigger numbers, bigger players and more team speed than their hosts. Bad math for the Islanders. GI's Pick: Barsby by three scores plus.
Valleyview @ Eric Hamber: Hamber is having its struggles and Valleyview looks to be the class of the Interior this year. Coming off of a big win vs South Kamloops, the Vikings will be all momentum headed into this game. GI's Pick: Valleyview by 22
Argyle @ Handsworth: The West's "Road Warriors" pay a visit to Handsworth this week. The Royals just about clipped arch-rival Carson Graham this past week and are on the rise. The Pipers are working towards finishing the season intact and with the growth that comes through a program's pioneer days. Handsworth will win this contest, but how they win it will effect the tone of contests between the two programs years from now. GI's Pick: Handsworth by 30
Okanagen Mission @ South Kamloops : The Titans are quite simply playing better football than the Huskies at this point in the season. A close loss this past weekend has certainly alerted them to the fact that not making the playoffs can happen. Look for a big rebound this week. GI's Pick: Titans by 16
Holy Cross @ Hugh Boyd: Two thrashings in a row have got to have the proud Trojans in a foul mood and looking for some redemption vs visiting Holy Cross this Friday. The Crusaders on the other hand, enter the game with momentum offensively. This game was close last year and will be fairly close this year. I think HC can pound the ball better than the hosts. GI's Pick: Holy Cross by 10
Ballenas @ Belmont : The Whalers are all about momentum coming off of two home victories and they get to lay the smack down on a fast field under the Friday Night Lights this week. Belmont has shown improvement recently and has established some momentum of their own. I don't think the Blue Bulldogs can run and hit with the Whalers yet, but they might make it interesting for a quarter or so. GI's Pick: Whalers by 26
Pitt Meadows @ Mission : Pitt is up against it in every conceivable way on Saturday when they roll into Mission to play the BC Champions. This game will get blown open early as the speed differential manifests itself. Bad dreams for the Marauders from there on out. GI's Pick: Mission by 28
South Delta @ Seaquam: South Delta is the class of the Southern Division this year and they are going to lay a similar beat down on to the Seahawks as they did to the Trojans last week. How? Lego won't have room to run as the trenches will be firmly is SunDevil hands. The Seaquam passing game can't pick-up the slack and the South Delta offense will find itself with the ball in its hands a lot. This is not a good thing as SD can score quickly and in bushells. GI's Pick: South Delta by 26
Westsyde @ Kalmalka: Kalmalka is likely going to be number one or two coming out of the Interior into the playoff tourney this November. Westsyde just doesn't match-up in terms of team speed to their hosts. Could be a long afternoon for the Blue Wave. GI's Pick: Kalmalka by 24
AA Junior Varsity
Beginning this week, GI will be publishing a JV Top Five along with some commentary when merited.
JV Story of the Week: An Estimated 1300 people turned out in Chilliwack to witness the GW Graham Grizzlies host the Robert Bateman Timberwolves. What a great tribute to the new program and wow folks, you best get your licks in now cus the Grizzlies are for real!!
Also, the rest of the province had better take note, because the Valley is going to be hyper competitive in the years to come resulting in a whole lot of championships and playoff domination.
GI's AA Jr. Varsity Top 5
1. Abbottsford Collegiate
2. Robert Batemen Timberwolves
3. Mission Roadrunners
4. John Barsby Bulldogs
5. Argyle Pipers