Blue forty-two, set…set…hut!

School football season is nearly upon us and registrations are open for in a variety of age groups for Bonnyville area youth.

There remains the high school Voyageurs, U16 bantam Bandits, and U13 peewee Voyageurs, but there is also an introduction to football for those aged 7 to 9 years old in atom flag football.

The commitment includes three nights a week for the Voyageurs and Bandits, and four nights a week for the Voyageurs, with a game almost every weekend of the fall.

As Bandits coach Robbie Cole explains, football can create memories that last a long time.

“It’s wonderful. Honestly, we’ve had kids growing up coming through that I’ve coach that are now coaching with us. It’s very close, a tight knit family,” said Cole. 

“I’ve gotten a lot of feedback about parents that were very, very kind of timid to put their kids in football because of the risks and the concussions and stuff.

“Honestly, over the years the parents that have come, 99 per cent of them come back and just see the difference in their child being able to push himself and herself past a certain point. Because your friends are around, it’s not at home. We encourage lots of kids to do stuff at home for their parents, stuff like that, and just try and coach them with life as well as football.” 

Registrations can be done online at bonnyvillefootball.com.