Business as usual
Year-round emphasis on development continues to pay big dividends as Myer wins 28th in a row
Cold temperatures, high winds, a little rain, some snow, and a lot of yuck.
Thursday night’s weather in Niagara Falls had something for everyone.
Needless to say, the harbinger of yet another winter – they all come too soon, don’t they? – was an invitation to stay warm and dry indoors.
Not everyone answered that call to come in from the cold. Under the nights on the turf field at A.N. Myer Secondary School, it was business as usual for the Marauders senior football team.
And since late in the 2014 season, the business of producing a pigskin powerhouse has enjoyed sustained success, winning battles along the line of scrimmage, winning quarters, winning games, capturing championships.
Myer’s 41-0 victory over the visiting Greater Fort Erie Gryphons for the Niagara Region High School Athletic Association (NRHSAA) championship was the Marauders’ 28th in a row dating back to a loss to the Saint Paul Patriots late in the 2014 regular
season.
The Marauders came back to beat Saint Paul in the playoffs on their way to winning the first of three Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) championships.
Several factors have contributed to this remarkable reversal of football fortunes at Myer, not the least of which are the players themselves.
“First of all, we’ve been fortunate with the cycle of kids,” head coach Dave Buchanan said. “Yes, we had kids graduate, but we still had kids who were good coming in.”
Commitment to a “structure” that emphasizes player and coaching development on a yearround basis is also important.
But No. 1 is we’ve just been fortunate in getting kids who are good athletes who want to work hard.” A.N. Myer senior football head coach Dave Buchanan
“I have a lot of coaching support,” he said. “We put in a ton of hours, so I think we get kids definitely to the point where they are buying in.”
“Turnover is happening, but the expectation is there.”
Thanks to clinics for players as well as coaches development drills and plenty of practice, there is no need to reinvent the wheel every time Myer lines up for an opening kickoff.
“We’re winning the rep game, because of the amount of hours we spend in the off-season,” Buchanan said. “We’re not always hitting, but we’re catching and throwing, skill development.
“That helps us be a little bit unique compared to other teams. We can throw pretty effectively, which gives us some options that other teams may not have if you’re struggling in the run game, for instance.
“But No. 1 is we’ve just been fortunate in getting kids who are good athletes who want to work hard.”
The seeds for Thursday night’s victory over Greater Fort Erie were sown in Grade 9, when members of the team began trying out for Myer’s junior team. When it comes to player development and expectations, all the football coaches at Niagara Falls’ largest high school are on the same page.
“When they come into the program, they’re expected to work, they’re expected to show up,” he said. “The off-season is hugely important, there’s a lot of stress there on skill development.
“The seed is planted early, then it carries on and the kids who don’t want to work move on, and the kids who do just get better.”
The coaching and teaching hats are interchangeable when Buchanan, a teacher at Myer, and the coaching staff work with student athletes.
You’re going to be employable and people are going to understand that ‘Hey, this kid has the characteristics we’ve been searching for.’
A.N. Myer senior football head coach Dave Buchanan
“After you come out of a program when you’ve worked this hard, you’re going to continue that success because you learned how to work that hard,” he said. “You’re going to carry it on to university, you’re going to carry it on to work.
“You’re going to be employable and people are going to understand that ‘Hey, this kid has the characteristics we’ve been searching for.’
“We stress that stuff all the time. It sounds corny, but it’s true.”
Myer put on an air show against Fort Erie as the Marauders shut out the Gryphons for the second time this year and recorded their fifth shutout overall . Ryan James threw touchdown passes to Dallas Bone, Mateo Corritore, Trent Hunter and Josh Lisi to help the Marauders improve to 7-0.
Lisi, on a short run; and Bone, field goal; rounded out the scoring for the Marauders who also got a two-point safety.
Myer, which so far has played three night games this year, will also be under the lights next Thursday when it faces Niagara Catholic Athletic Association (NCAA) champion Notre, 6-0, for the regional championships.
Winner of the 7 p.m. kickoff at Kiwanis Field in St. Catharines goes to compete in the provincial playdowns.