A five-team junior varsity football will begin play the first full week of September with teams from Prince George secondary school, Kelly Road, College Heights, Duchess Park, and Nechako Valley in Vanderhoof. Games will be played on Fridays, starting Sept. 9, just before the varsity teams take to the field.
"We've been doing the high school [league] for over five years now, it's time to start developing the next level to grow their talent and skill," said Ryan Bellamy, head coach of the Kelly Road Roadrunners varsity and junior varsity teams.
"Teams are realizing there's a lot of interest from younger players in the schools. It's hard to put Grade 9 kids in situations against Grade 12 kids where they are going to succeed, so this is a natural development."
Once the junior varsity league gets established, Bellamy says it's only a matter of time before the league champion will be contending for B.C. High School Football Association provincial championship.
"I think you will find it will take off," said Bellamy.
"It might be smaller rosters for the first year but from there I have a feeling it will blow up kind of like varsity athletics did. Everywhere else in the province has junior varsity ball."
The new league will also provide a new training ground for coaches and referees. With most junior and senior teams practicing together, Bellamy said that should help teams run more position-specific drills in practices.
The prestige that comes with playing for a high school team has made it easy for most schools to recruit junior varsity players. The number of players signed up for football at College Heights secondary doubled overnight to 60. While that's great for raising school spirit, it does put a strain on facilities, says Grant Erickson, head coach of the College Heights Cougars.
"It's doubling the size of the league and we'll be stretching ourselves thin, resource-wise, with our fields especially," Erickson said. "We're having a heckuva time trying to fit these junior varsity games in and not wear out out Masich Place Stadium, which is our only lit facility. The grass at Masich has taken quite a beating, and that's going to present a challenge for us."
Most of the junior varsity teams will play their home games in September on their own school fields, just before the seniors take to the field. But the lack of natural light becomes problematic in the latter half of the fall season when the sun begins to set in the late afternoon. Once October hits, teams will have no alternative but to use Masich Place Stadium. Erickson said scheduling games for earlier in the day is not possible due to the fact most referees have day jobs.
"We need to somehow get another lit facility going here," Erickson said. "Otherwise, we can only grow so far."
It has been suggested junior varsity teams play on Saturdays, but the coaches are against that idea because it conflicts with community football. Erickson said a possible solution would be to have lights installed at Lac du Bois school, home of the Prince George Minor Football Association.
Plans to build an all-weather field at Duchess Park secondary school have been shelved, and Erickson said it will take a joint effort from the community user groups, combined with government grants and corporate sponsors to raise the estimated $1.5 million needed for the project.
n The Kelly Road and Duchess Park senior teams will be on the road for exhibition games on Aug. 27. The Roadrunners will be in Salmon Arm to play the Golds, while the Condors will meet South Delta Sun Devils in Kamloops.
