Preparation and selective forgetting are among the asks this week as the New Westminster Hyacks prepare one last time to play football in 2017.
And there’s nothing routine about this last routine.
As they prepare to face their foe the Terry Fox Ravens in Saturday’s B.C. Subway Bowl AAA championship final, 7 p.m. at B.C. Place, it all comes down to details.
First, forget a lot of what was absorbed during the 10-1 regular season and playoffs. There’s no substitute for the drills pertaining to the next game. Like an actor, they need to learn their lines, get their blocking down pat and leave it all on the stage.
“We’re not going to be one of those teams that all of a sudden forgets its fundamentals this late in the season,” remarked Hyacks head coach Farhan Lalji. “Our fundamentals still need work and we have to focus on that this week. We’re not going to radically change how we play, we just need to get better at finishing blocks and getting off blocks and tackling.”
The 2016 B.C. champion
Ravens entered the year ranked No. 1 but graduated a majority of its starters and stars from the 2016 final. While the pundits would move New West into that top spot midway through a very strong regular season, Fox, now 9-3, continued to grow and gain respect, thanks to a sideline full of experienced coaches and a good mix of youthful exuberance and returning leaders.
“We give (Fox) full credit for everything they’ve done. They’re a very good team, they are well coached, and they’ve been here before,” said Lalji. “They’ll take advantage of that. We’re fortunate because our seniors and our juniors, a good chunk of them, were here two years ago with the (junior varsity champions) so we draw on that. It’s not like we’re completely foreign to it. They know what it takes to get it done at this time of year.”
The Ravens’ lineup includes provincial all-stars on both sides of the ball: six-foot-six offensive lineman Matthew Hew Baddege, defensive lineman Michael Evans, linebacker Mason Reeves and a Grade 11 extra selection, quarterback Jevaun Jacobsen.
Jacobsen scored three times in his team’s semifinal victory over St. Thomas More last week, lining up both at QB and running back. He has good football bloodlines, being the younger brother of Calgary Stampeders Cory Mace, and undeniable skills.
“I’ve known Jevaun for a long time. He played in our youth program,” noted Lalji. “He’s a talented kid, a real good leader and a high character kid. When you put all those together, it’s a special player and they’re lucky to have him. Our goal is just to make sure we do everything we can to not let him take the game over.”
Lalji, who because of his career as TSN’s West Coast reporter, has regularly been unavailable for the B.C. semifinals due to the network’s Grey Cup assignment. The past two times saw him away and the Hyacks lose.
He and his coaching staff decided this year they’d try a different approach.
“I’ve gone through this every year, where I’d get prepared like I’m coaching at the game, watch the game and try talking with the coaches at halftime. It’s the most helpless feeling in the world. So I wanted no part of that, let’s try something different.
“We haven’t been able to get out of that round with me away. I just thought, let’s do it differently and see what happens. I had (fellow TSN analyst) Giulio Caravatta surprise me with the result at the end of the game.”
When it comes to the final week of preparation, the players understand what is at stake. Lalji said it is best if they could prepare just as they always do, without additional distractions and extra pressure on what this game means. But even he concedes it is tough.
“Players know when the big games are. It is different just to culminate and ‘this is it.’ So even when it comes to getting players motivated for practice, like I said today at the film session, ‘This is your last Tuesday film session, and today will be your last Tuesday practice. That’s that. You better make it count.’”
