There weren’t a lot of touches when it came to offensive plays.
But when the New West Hyacks lined up to move the ball, move it they did.
The senior AAA football team made it a terrific homecoming game by beating the Mission Roadrunners 42-14 on Friday, putting 375 total yards on the board.
Being their final exhibition test before the regular season starts on Sept. 22, New West improved on their past efforts and didn’t have to reveal all their cards.
Newcomer Sebastien Reid set the tone with a three-touchdown day. The receiver caught three passes for 134 yards, including one for 65 yards which broke a 7-7 tie late in the first quarter.
The Grade 12 transfer student opened the scoring on a 15-yard catch from quarterback Kinsale Philip. To start the second quarter, Reid dashed 70 yards on a punt return to make it 20-7.
Just before halftime, running back Sammy Sidhu bolted free for a 67-yard touchdown, then added a two-point convert to give the Hyacks a 28-7 advantage before a boisterous homecoming crowd.
In the second half, tight end Finn Stark, on a 15-yard pass from Philip, and Michael Kingsley, on a 17-yard run, rounded out the offence. Converting three majors was Zachery Northgraves.
Sidhu finished with 92 yards on a pair of carries, then led the defence with nine tackles. Philip picked up four tackles, while Isaiah James and Evan Nolli counted three apiece.
Despite the score, head coach Farhan Lalji said the result was deceiving.
“I don’t know if we’re there yet,” he said, adding the squad only ran 30 offensive plays. The kids left the game feeling great, and we scored a lot of points but it never felt like we really got a lot of sustained pressure. We had a handful of big-yardage plays.”
The chemistry between Reid and Philip is producing points, while the team has yet to lean on the powerful rushing talents of Sidhu and Broxx Comia.
