Westlock’s Thunderbirds football team wasn’t a very nice guest when they travelled to Vegreville last Thursday to take on the Vortex.
In their final Wheatland Football League regular season road game, the T-Birds finally won a game away from Westlock, overcoming an early deficit to defeat the Vortex 46-8.
The win gives the T-Birds a 2-3 record on the year, with only an Oct. 12 home date against the Vermilion Marauders remaining on the schedule.
Coach Jon Kramer said the win in Vegreville was the team’s largest of the season, and featured a strong performance on both sides of the ball.
“On the defensive side of the ball, (Vegreville) really struggled to get first downs against us,” he said.
The only time the Vortex were able to sustain any offensive momentum was in the early stages when they jumped out to an 8-0 lead.
However, once the T-Birds got their offence in gear, the game took on a decidedly different look.
“Offensively, we were keeping long drives going, which is something we hadn’t done throughout the year,” Kramer said.
While Westlock had managed to put together some strong drives in their last meeting with the Vortex, he said much of the offence was the result of quarterback Brett Snell’s long runs or big plays. This time, the points came from a more varied segment of the team, including the kicking unit.
“We found ourselves in positions where we were close enough, where it was third and long,” Kramer said. “So, we decided to try kicking field goals.”
The team tried three times, and kicker Dylan Foster was good on two of them, chipping in six points for the cause.
Foster was so solid on his attempts that Kramer said he feels comfortable adding field goals to the team’s offensive weaponry.
Also contributing points was the defence.
Kash McCotter picked off a Vegreville pass at the T-Birds’ 30-yard line, and returned the interception 80 yards for a touchdown.
Overall, Kramer said he and his fellow coaches liked what they saw in Vegreville, and not just because the T-Birds won.
“We had lots of people executing, which is something we’ve been working on all year,” he said.
Up next is the regular season finale at home against Vermilion. The T-Birds are looking for a bit of redemption after they were blown out 62-6 in Vermilion on Sept. 21.
Even so, Kramer said the team is all but assured a third-place finish, and will play Athabasca on the road in the opening playoff round, meaning the result against Vermilion is not critical.
However, he is eager to see how the T-Birds will perform against the Marauders considering how they have improved since the first meeting.
Kickoff goes at 4 p.m. on Oct. 12 on the field being the Community Hall.
