Football Canada championship season ends on Island time
National U-20 & U-18, Eastern U-16 flag champions crowned
CHARLOTTETOWN – Over 420 flag football players descended on Prince Edward Island for the Football Canada Regional U-20, National U-18 and Eastern regional U-16 flag championships, held last weekend in Charlottetown. Quebec came away with four of the six gold medals available, as they swept the two U-20 crowns, and took home the women’s U-18 and boys’ U-16 titles. Manitoba won the Men’s U-18 championship, while Nova Scotia White emerged victorious in the Women’s 1-16 event.
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS:
Men’s U-18: Team Manitoba picked up its only gold medal of the weekend, with a 40-30 upset of Team Ontario in the gold medal game. Manitoba had finished round-robin play tied for third at 3-2 with British Columbia, but upset previously-unbeaten Nova Scotia 48-33 in the semifinal. On the other side, Ontario downed B.C. 27-6 to advance to the final game. Nova Scotia salvaged the day with a bronze medal, as they defeated B.C. 27-13. Saskatchewan took fifth place, thanks to a 25-13 win over Quebec, while P.E.I. downed New Brunswick 45-39 in the seventh-place game.
Women’s U-18: Quebec eased past Saskatchewan 32-6 in the championship game, capping a weekend that saw them go a perfect 7-0 in the tournament. Quebec was 5-0 in round-robin play, and dumped Ontario 46-6 in the semifinal. Alberta picked up bronze, defeating Ontario 31-7. PEI and Manitoba finished tied for fifth place, as they both fell in the quarterfinal round.
REGIONAL CHALLENGES:
Boys’ U-16: Quebec scored its fourth gold medal of the weekend with a 40-14 win over Ontario in the Boys’ U-16 Eastern Challenge. Quebec was 5-1 in round-robin play, suffering their only loss to PEI #2. Quebec downed Nova Scotia White 34-25 to advance to the final, while Ontario notched a 41-7 win over PEI #2. PEI #2 won the bronze medal with a 22-18 win over Nova Scotia White. Nova Scotia Blue finished fifth, thanks to a 34-19 win over New Brunswick in the consolation final, while PEI #1 finished seventh.
Girls’ U-16: Nova Scotia White picked up their province’s only gold medal of the weekend with a 26-19 win over Quebec Blue in the final. Nova Scotia White went a perfect 6-0 in the round-robin and advanced to the final with a 35-0 shutout of fourth-seeded Ontario. Quebec Blue downed Nova Scotia Blue 35-7 in the other semi. Ontario won bronze as they edged Nova Scotia Blue 30-26. Quebec White won fifth place after a 40-0 shutout of PEI #2 in the consolation final, while PEI #1 finished in seventh place.
Men’s U-20: Team Quebec shut out Nova Scotia 12-0 in the championship game to take the gold medal in the three-team event. Both teams had gone 3-1 in round-robin play, splitting their two meetings and sweeping the hosts from Prince Edward Island. Nova Scotia cruised past PEI 32-12 in the semifinal.
Women’s U-20: It was an all-Quebec matchup in the championship, as Quebec White downed Quebec Blue 20-12 in the final game. Quebec White went undefeated through the four-team event, posting a 6-0 round-robin record. Quebec Blue went 4-2, while Nova Scotia was 2-4 and Ontario 0-6. Ontario upset Nova Scotia in the bronze medal game, however, 25-19.
The conclusion of this tournament marks the end of the 2022 domestic championship season for Football Canada, and the completion of a full program of championships for the first time since 2019.
