THUNDER BAY -- Win the battle on offence, defence and special teams and the victories will start to mount.
That’s precisely what the Hammarskjold Vikings did on Thursday afternoon at Fort William Stadium, dominating every facet of the game as they opened the Superior Secondary Schools Athletic Association junior boys’ football campaign in winning fashion, crushing the Sir Winston Churchill Trojans 32-0.
The scores came early and often.
After taking a quick 3-0 lead on a 21-yard field goal, the Vikings set up first-quarter touchdowns with an Owen Steele blocked punt that led to a 14-yard scoring strike from Gavin Perkins to Zach Kuzik.
Then, as the quarter was coming to a close, a muffed punt and recovery on the Churchill four-yard line earned them another major, Caleb Perzan bursting into the end zone from a yard out.
A fast start to both the game and season were key, Kuzic said, adding his team is not taking anything for granted, despite the easy nature of their opening triumph.
“Bouncing back Week 2 will be absolutely tough. The Tigers are an excellent program,” he said, already looking forward to next week’s battle against Westgate.
Not surprisingly, Kuzik credited the Vikings play on special teams for the win.
“Special teams were the star of the game,” he said. “Sometimes special teams come into the game more effective than the defence does or the offence does. We played absolutely great for special teams today.”
Perkins, who finished 2-for-7 passing for 40 yards and a touchdown, added another score on the ground late in the second quarter, running one in from two yards out. In the third it was Logan Pumphrey finding his way past the goal line, a two-yard sweep rounding out the scoring -- after the Hammarskold defence had sacked Churchill quarterback Scott Fleming in the Trojans end zone for a two-point safety.
Churchill struggled to move the ball most of the afternoon, not recording a first down until Cameron Vander Wees picked one up on a seven-yard run with fewer than four minutes remaining in the first half.
It was a complete game, said Hammarskjold coach Matt Steele.
“It’s a great testament to our coaching staff and our players who came to play today here in Week 1," Steele said.
Yard marks: The Vikings have taken in several former Superior Collegiate players this season. In tribute to their school, which dropped its junior and senior football programs this season, Superior students will wear the baby blue Gryphons helmets this fall. Steele said he and Vikings varsity boys coach Mike Judge will wear blue armbands on the sidelines next week. The two schools are slated to merge in 2017-18.
