Estevan is among the communities that could have a spring under-18 football league this year.
Kevin Mortenson, who is the president of Penta Completions Estevan Minor Football, said they’re looking to find a way to give kids in Grades 9-12 a chance to play, since they didn’t get to play high school football last fall.
The other communities in the Moose Jaw High School Football League – Moose Jaw, Swift Current, Yorkton and Weyburn – also seem to be interested, Mortenson said.
“We think there’s a way that we can get these kids to play, especially the Grade 12s, and give them one last kick at the can before they go up to university or out in the workforce this spring,” said Mortenson.
About 25 kids in the Estevan area had expressed an interest in playing football as of Sunday afternoon. If the league has nine players on the field for each team, then he hopes Estevan would have at least 30 players. If it’s 12-player football, then he would want at least 40 athletes.
This new league would be a great opportunity for some of the younger players in Grade 9 to gain good experience.
“There are some good players out in Oxbow, and of course some good local players who never got to play last fall in high school. So I think they’re pretty excited to join the team and see what it’s like,” said Mortenson.
When it was first discussed, Mortenson had some doubts. It meant asking coaches to spend time away from their families in the spring in addition to the fall minor football season.
“I didn’t want to burn the coaches out,” Mortenson said.
He stressed that this is not an Estevan Comprehensive School (ECS) initiative or activity, so it would need to happen under the minor football branch. They likely won’t have access to the practice field, and they might have to find jerseys and other gear.
Some coaches from the community have expressed an interest in being part of the team.
But there is the potential to have a strong team. In their previous season in 2019, the ECS Elecs won their two playoff games to take the B pool championship in the Moose Jaw league. Many players from that team are now in Grade 12.
Moose Jaw has said they might have two teams for this league instead of the three they have in the high school circuit.
A Zoom meeting is scheduled to take place with the other communities in early April. At that time, they’ll decide whether they’re going to play nine-player or 12-player football. And they would need the green light from the Saskatchewan Health Authority before this league could proceed.
Mortenson hopes practices could begin in April and a season could start May 1 and continue until the end of June. But he admits that would be a perfect scenario.
He believes something like this could go a long ways in boosting people’s morale as well, since many sports have been on hiatus since late November.
Anyone who is interested in playing can contact Mortenson at 306-421-3377.
