Spartans Football Team 2006

Wednesday, September 20 at CVR

The senior boys traveled to Ormstown, Quebec to face Chateauguay Valley Regional (CVR) for their first game of the year. With a lot of new faces and even more who have never played a game of football no one was quite sure what to expect.

The boys came out firing and moved the ball well. The game remained scoreless until the midway mark of the second quarter when Barry Roytman ran a quarterback keeper around the outside of the line, breaking a tackle and lunge into the end zone for a 6-0 lead. The convert was failed and so the boys went into to halftime with a 6-0 lead.

In the second half, CVR put together a few good runs but couldn’t get deep into Stanstead territory. On their second drive of the second half Stanstead marched down the field and capitalized on a two-yard run from running back Brian Cho. The convert was failed and the score sat at 12-0.

CVR looked to find new life when a player broke free off a punt return and looked be gone all the way when defensive back Cedric Moore tracked him down and made a touchdown-saving tackle.  

It was a great learning experience for the boys and as coach Simard said in his post-game speech: “That was as beneficial as five practices.” The boys look forward to a scrimmage against BCS Saturday at 9:45 a.m. at Stanstead to continue to getting ready for the big Homecoming contest against a visiting high school team from Alberta. Congratulations on a hard fought win!

- Coach Spirk

Homecoming, Saturday, September 30

The Stanstead Spartans took to the field this Saturday to take on the Beau Valley Bobcats from Cochrane, Alberta led by alumnus Steve Etcheverry ‘72. It was a beautiful fall day and made better by the fact that it was Homecoming and numerous alumni were out to support.

The boys got out to a good start driving the ball downfield. It was a very tough opposing defence and they stopped a good drive deep in their own end. We kicked the ball away and the high-powered Bobcat offence came in to the game. They threw the ball well and had experienced running backs. We held them off for much of the first half but they managed to run a deception play around the outside and put 6 points on the board. The convert was failed and so life seemed to come in the eyes of the Spartans.

The following drive, we moved the ball downfield and capped it off with a great pass from quarterback Barry Roytman (Grade 12, Staten Island, NY) to Michael Ainslie (Grade 12, Sherbrooke, QC) for the score. The two point convert to Michael Ainslie was successful and the Spartans were up 8-6. Before the half the Bobcats responded with two touchdowns back to back to leave the final going into the break at 19-8 Beau Valley.

The second half showed more trick plays and nice passing from the Beau Valley squad and by the end of the third quarter it was 33-8. The Spartans, although inexperienced, never gave up, and it paid off as they successfully moved the ball down the field. Sitting at the Bobcats 20-yard line they opted for a passing play which saw Cedric Moore (Grade11, Quebec City, Qc) make a spectacular catch in traffic for the touchdown, only to have it called back due to holding. Most teams would have folded after losing the ball so close to the end zone but not the Spartans. On the ensuing drive, rookie Will Aston-Reese (Grade 11, Staten Island, NY) made a spectacular interception and ran it back 40 yards for the touchdown. The two-point conversion was completed to Cedric Moore and the final score read 33-16.

A hard fought game by the boys in Red and White against a very strong and experienced opponent from Cochrane, AB. Honorable mention to Mathieu Root (Grade 12, Montreal, Qc) for an inspired performance on the line.

- Coach Spirk

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At BCS, October 18

This past Wednesday the Spartans traveled to BCS for a two-game total-point contest for the right to hoist the Senator Howard Trophy, which has been competed for between BCS and Stanstead for over 50 years. The Spartans opened up the scoring with a 25-yard passing play from Barry Roytman ( Staten Island, NY) to Michael Ainslie ( Sherbrooke, Que.). The two-point conversion was attempted and made with a similar pass from Roytman to Ainslie, putting Stanstead up 8-0 after the first quarter.

In the second quarter BCS’s deceptive running game came into play and they marched downfield and capped it off with a sweep around the outside for the score and point after, making it 8-7 Spartans. Near the end of the half BCS again pounded the ball down the field and settled for a field goal to go into half time with a 10-8 lead.

The Spartans looked to rally in the third quarter but costly turnovers kept them off the scoreboard. BCS made good on one of these turnovers when it looked like Stanstead had them backed up on third and long. BCS’s deception again came into play and they pulled a reverse that went for 45 yards and the score. The convert was made and after three quarters of play the score sat at 19-8 BCS.

In the fourth quarter, the Spartans marched downfield with some good throws and some solid runs. Unfortunately they could not capitalize in the red zone and all BCS had to do was run out the clock. The game finished 19-8 for BCS. It was a hard-fought game by both teams, with BCS digging deeper inside to make solid tackles and run with a purpose. Great defensive efforts were made by Steven Markowitz ( Staten Island, NY) and Matt Root ( Stowe, VT).

Stanstead now have the tough task of beating BCS at home Friday afternoon by 12 points to regain the Senator Howard Trophy.

- Coach Spirk