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The Korah Colts and Algonquin Barons of North Bay will battle for Northern Ontario senior football supremacy on Saturday afternoon at Superior Heights.
After winning their respective city titles, the Colts and Barons will play for the Northern Ontario Secondary School Athletics (NOSSA) title and a berth in the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) Northern Bowl is on the line.
Colts coach Tom Annett said Friday night, success on Saturday will be determined by continuing to do what made them successful this season.
“We have to keep doing what we’ve been doing, both offensively and defensively,” Annett said. “We have to do a better job of protecting the ball than we did in the city final. We got into a little bit of fumble trouble in that game. Limiting, or eliminating ideally, turnovers is a goal.”
“They run a run-and-gun type, spread offence and have some really talented receivers with height and speed,” Annett added. “We really want to try to limit their explosive plays.”
Algonguin coach Ryan Desbiens spoke of the offensive game being a staple of his team.
“We have a lot of skill,” Desbiens said of his team. “Offensively, we pass the ball pretty well. A lot more than probably most teams at the high school level. We’ve got an absolute stud at quarterback (Andrew Robillard). He can throw the ball really well and be accurate. We’ve got some good receivers and a couple of guys that can carry the ball. We’re well-rounded.”
Desbiens said the well-rounded game is something he hasn’t had in a while and added that the team is “very disciplined” on defence.
The Colts enter Saturday’s game on the heels of a 27-15 win in the city final two weeks ago against Superior Heights.
Annett said the extra week off ahead of the NOSSA final was a plus.
“We’ve had a few injuries this year, so some guys have had to step up,” Annett said. “Some guys have had to play more both ways. That extra rest is really valuable. We had a really tough city final game. It was hard-hitting, so that extra rest is definitely beneficial.”
Annett added that the extra time off was important to “fine-time” their game.
Desbiens noted that Sault teams are “typically very well-coached and physical.”
“Since I’ve been involved in football in North Bay, that’s always been the M.O. for Sault football,” Desbiens added. “They’re always strong, physical, tough teams. We’re going to have our hands full.”
Desbiens said one of the keys to Saturday’s game for Algonquin will be to slow down the Colts running game, which includes Nicoletta.
“They rushed for 400 yards in the championship game. In three-down football, it’s pretty impressive to put up that amount of yardage,” Desbiens said. “We have to slow that down or it’s going to be a long day.”
Algonquin advanced to the NOSSA final thanks to a 24-3 win over the St. Joseph Scollard Hall Bears last Saturday in the North Bay city final.
The Barons opened up a 21-3 lead by halftime en route to the win.
Desbiens said the result was a by-product of “basically everything we did all year.”
“We passed the ball well and got a lead and then slowed things down in the second half and the defence took over,” Desbiens said.
The win was the first city title for Algonquin since 1981.
Annett called Algonquin’s North Bay city title “a great story for them.”
“They dominated locally (in North Bay),” Annett added. “They have a core of really elite athletes at receiver. Their quarterback is excellent. He’s being recruited at the next level. Couple that with a couple of huge linemen and they’ve definitely got some talent.”