Bandits to meet Bengals in League Finals

The biggest rivalry of the Lakeland will meet full force next weekend, as the Bonnyville Bandits host league finals against the St. Paul Bengals.

Both the Bandits and the Bengals beat Lloydminister teams to earn the right to fight for the championship. The winner will move onto the provincial north final.

On Saturday, the Bandits took to Walsh Field, with one goal in mind, remain undefeated. Not only was that accomplished, they shut out the Lloyd Mustangs to win the game, 32-0. “Offensively, we managed to run the ball,” head coach, of the Bandits, Mickey Fagnan says it was a good showing in the first half of the game that propelled the team to a win. “The players came to the field to win.”

“Defensively, we were able to shut the offensive down. Our defensive coordinators, Coach Robbie (Cole) and Coach Kevin (Sartain) have really fired up our back field. They have done an excellent job,” new coaching additions to the team this year, Robbie Cole & Kevin Sartain contributed to a lot of the team’s successes this season, says Fagnan.

“We’re teaching to try to get the ball back. So, a fumble is just as important to us as it is to them. It’s exciting to see when those come through,” Fagnan says the team will continue to put efforts towards a strong defensive team.

The team is undefeated heading into next weekend. A few weeks early they met the St. Paul Bengals, in an intensive game that went all the way to the forth quarter to find a winner. The Bengals will be back with some heat on Saturday.

The St. Paul Bengals beat the Lloydminster Chargers on the road to earn another chance to meet the Bandits. “We’re looking forward to the challenge,” Fagnan says the team will be prepared to meet their rivals this Saturday on Walsh Field at 1:00 pm.