Vikings’ defence stands tall in rainy home opener

Rain changes the way football is played on a fundamental level. The slippery ball is tricky to keep a hold of, and executing plays is far more difficult. At the high school level, mistakes multiply in the rain.

The Vincent Massey Vikings battled through tricky weather conditions and the Steinbach Sabres to win their Winnipeg High School Football League home opener 20-7 at Doug Steeves Field on Friday.

“What a step up from last week. We kind of got our asses kicked last week,” said quarterback Charlie Gauthier. “We were definitely the underdogs coming into this week, but playing with a little chip on our shoulders never hurt us, and in the end it worked out in our favour.”

The game started with a feeling-out process as both sides took the measure of their opponent while coming to grips with the weather.

Just under six minutes into the quarter, Steinbach found the end zone on a short pass to the left by quarterback Mason Wiebe that wound up in the arms of Ryan Martin. They failed to convert on the extra-point attempt.

From there, the Vikings found their legs. They marched down the field, ending the opening quarter with a nice run by Gauthier that was stopped short at the five-yard line.

A few plays later, Gauthier found Haiden Samuels on a screen pass that he took to the house before Timi Fadare used his cannon of a leg to convert on the extra point attempt, giving the Vikings a 7-6 lead. It was the first touchdown of the season for the Vikings, who failed to record a point in their opener against the Vincent Massey Trojans.

“We saw so much improvement late in the week, and I felt like we’d finally clicked as a team,” said Vikings head coach Mike Steeves. “We had two really great practices to end this week and it really showed on the field (Friday).”

Before the end of the quarter, the Sabres picked up a point on a rouge to even the score, but it was anyone’s game heading into the second half.

The Vikings’ defence and untimely penalties against the Sabres were huge factors in the second half.

Early in the half, the Sabres went down the field and looked to have scored a touchdown on a play that was ultimately deemed offside.

The Vikings defence rallied, forcing the Sabres offence off the field on third and long thanks to a big tackle by Cole McDuffe.

A few possessions later, the Vikings received the ball on the Sabres 30-yard line thanks to a great return and a penalty for unnecessary roughness against Steinbach.

With just over two minutes remaining in the third quarter, Gauthier called his own number on third down, going straight up the middle for a 15-yard touchdown to give the Vikings a 13-7 lead after the extra-point attempt was blocked.

“Aways feels nice, but I was more proud of the passing touchdown to be honest,” said Gauthier. “I walked into the far end zone untouched; that was all on the O-line, I wouldn’t even call that my touchdown.”

On the kickoff after the touchdown, the Sabres returner wound his way through the defence, and it looked like he was going to score, until Fadare made a diving tackle to stop him at midfield. From there, the Vikings defence went into overdrive.

“They’ve been a real surprise,” said Steeves. “They played tough today, they dug in, and they played with some swagger.”

With 7:30 remaining in the game, the Vikings defence forced a three-and-out. On the Sabres’ next drive, they went all the way downfield and were threatening to score with 2:40 remaining in the contest. With just one score separating the two sides, Amadeus Crossman jetted into the backfield and stripped the ball from the hands of Steinbach running back Braeden Sinclair before pouncing on the loose ball.

“I saw the same motion they were doing all game, and I knew it was a run outside, so I just attacked,” said Crossman. “It felt incredible because I looked at the time and I was like ‘Oh ya, we’re winning this football game.’”

A few minutes later, Gauthier ran home his second touchdown of the afternoon to seal the win for the home team.

“It’s great; it gives us confidence,” said Steeves. “We struggled in the exhibition against Oak Park, and we struggled in the opener against Vincent Massey, and doubt starts to creep in.”

The run game was very efficient for Vincent Massey throughout the game. Gauthier ran for 117 yards while Ethan Smith recorded 54 yards on seven attempts and Daxton Brock picked up 39 yards on five attempts.

With the win, the Vikings improve to 1-1 on the season.

Next week, the Vikings are back on the road for a huge game against the St. Paul’s Crusaders on Saturday, Sept. 26. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the school, and the atmosphere will be intense for the team’s home opener.

“They’re a great opponent, and they have a great atmosphere,” said Steeves. “You prepare the best you can, and we need a couple of breaks. Today we got a couple, so maybe we have a few left in the trick bag.”

» rmccarthy@brandonsun.com