Three local football players are taking the field by storm, after being invited to play on a provincial level.
Duncan Critch, 13, and Kistin Watchmaker, 14, put it all on the line for the U16 Team Alberta coaches. In the end, both players made the team.
From July 4 to 7, they will compete against other western provinces like British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba in the upcoming 2018 U16 Western Challenge.
“It’s a big expectation for us to go in and beat the other teams,” expressed Duncan. “We’re expected to perform at our highest level and know what we’re doing.”
Kistin added, “I’m looking forward to playing with my teammates and getting better as I move on.”
Duncan started playing football at the age of 10, and has been making his family and team proud every step of the way.
“I don’t know if there’s words to explain how proud we are,” said Serena Critch, Duncan’s mother. “He puts in a lot of work, time, and effort. Pushing himself whether it’s on the track and he’s working on his speed, or in the gym working on his strength. He’s extremely dedicated.”
For Kistin, the sport runs in the family. His brother, Navarone Watchmaker, has also made a provincial team after scoring a spot on the U17 Team Alberta.
“I’m extremely proud of them,” expressed dad Vernon Watchmaker. “I take them and support them with their practices and games. All the work and effort is on them, and I’m really glad that they enjoy playing football. It makes me and their mom proud.”
The young athletes started their football careers with the Bonnyville Renegades, before graduating to the Bandits. Since Kistin started early, he played with the Bonnyville Voyageurs.
The tryouts for the U16 Team Alberta were broken down into two camps, the North Identification Camp and South Identification Camp.
“I went to the North Identification Camp and it was all the kids from the north side of Alberta that tried out. They short-listed the players to about 45 from 120,” Duncan detailed.
Kistin described the tryouts as “pretty challenging, but I showed the coaches what I can do and they took me.”
While Kistin sticks to the offensive line, Duncan likes to switch it up. He plays anywhere from the defensive end, full back, and even quarter back.
However, in order to land himself a spot on Team Alberta, he showed the coaches his favourite position to play, running back.
“I like it because you not only get to catch the football, but you get to run it, make people miss, cut, and hit people,” Duncan expressed. “I love to drop my shoulder into people and put them on the ground, and then you get to score those touchdowns with the nice flashy running phase.”
On June 30, both of the U16 players will be heading to Edmonton where they will meet all four of the competing teams.
Duncan said, “Alberta has a very good football program, not just in the north but in the south too. We have high expectations, not only from the coaches, but for ourselves as well.”
