As he looked back on the 2018 season, Prince Albert Rivers Dragons coach Paul Roy couldn’t help but marvel at the growth the squad had from start to finish.

“When we got underway this year we had a younger team with a good mix of high quality players and newcomers,” Roy said. “Our main goal as we took the field was to blend that wide gap we had of skill levels and overall experience.

“By the end of the season, we had quite a good team and the entire coaching staff was pleased with just how much progress the boys made. We ended up with a silver medal at the Rowlands Cup, which exceeded the expectations that we had at the start of the year.”

The team officially wrapped up the campaign Tuesday night with their annual awards banquet.

Leading the way were Jonty Kruger and Byran Ferrell, who received the most valuable player and rookie of the year awards respectively.

“Jonty’s been with us for four years now and he’s really become part of the fabric of our program,” Roy said. “Even though this was Byran’s first season, he’s become a valuable part of our team as well.

“Both guys were born in South Africa and the game of rugby is ingrained into their culture like hockey is here in Canada. They’ve both been playing since they were six or seven years old and they already have that intensity that you need out on the field. They also both spend hours online learning the sport from watching games back home in South Africa, and they take the things they learn from those videos to what they do on the pitch.”

The other award recipients, who were determined by votes from the Dragons coaching staff, were Dante Doell (most improved back), Aidan Quinton (best forward), Zach Tretiak (best back) and Jacob Beauchesne (most improved forward)

Thirteen members of the Dragons program will be returning to the pitch this weekend in Saskatoon, as they’ll be taking part in a training camp to make the Northern Saskatchewan Wolverines teams.

Competing in the Under-18 camp are Ferrell, Kruger, Tretiak and Elijah McPherson, while Beauchesne, Quinton, Austin Belair, Thayne Clarke, Connor Elphinstone, Matthew Meacham, Brandon Sayese will be vying for spots on the Under-16 squad.

Riley Clarke and Reese Milligan will represent the club in the Under-14 tryouts

“Those regional teams will then go to Regina to compete at the Manitoba/Saskatchewan regional tournament in Regina from July 6-9,” Roy said.

“That will mark the end of the year for the Under-14 players, but the Under-16 and Under-18 players will have a chance to make the Saskatchewan provincial team and go to the nationals later this summer.”

The Under-18 nationals will be held in Winnipeg, Man. from Aug. 10-12, while the Under-16 nationals will take place in Kelowna, B.C. from July 27-29.

Going up against the top soccer teams from Saskatchewan wasn’t an issue for squads from the Prince Albert Youth Soccer Association over the weekend.

The Under-13 girls’, Under-13 boys’ and Under-15 girls’ clubs all came away with gold medals from the Eastside Bridge City Summer Classic in Saskatoon, while the Under-11 boys’ team captured a silver medal.

“It was a pretty dominant showing from all of the teams this weekend,” PAYSA technical director Dragutin Ivkovic said.

“That tournament sees clubs come in from all over the province and it’s definitely the biggest numbers of players and teams that will see all summer long.”

Although no standings were kept in the Under-9 division, Ivkovic was very pleased by the results of the boys’ and girls’ teams in that age group.

“The scores were pretty lopsided in our favour, especially for the girls team,” Ivkovic said.

“That age group is a huge foundation for what we are working towards for the future. When we started a couple of years ago in Prince Albert, the competitive group was starting at the age of 10. Now we’re getting started at the age of the seven and you are seeing the results.”

While the Under-15 girls’ squad faced some tough opponents on their road to the title, the Under 13 programs had a much easier road to the title.

“Both teams were in control for most of their games,” Ivkovic said.

“I know that the boys’ team have really gotten better this year be playing in the Provincial Soccer League. That’s one of the highest level youth leagues in Canada and they’ve really done well.”

The next tournament for the PAYSA club sides will be the FC Regina Summerfest this weekend.

@lpunkari•sports@paherald.sk.ca

It was a year ago when Prince Albert’s Kolby Skene got his first taste of the National Junior High School Rodeo Finals in Lebanon, Tenn.

“It rained a lot that week and I remember that it was a long drive to get there,” Skene said.

“There were competitors from Grades 6-8 and they were from Australia, Canada and the United States. I had never been at an event with that many people and such tough competition, so it was a great learning experience for me.”

The Grade 8 student at St. Francis is now gearing up for his second appearance at the national event, as he’ll be in Huron, S.D. for the 2018 finals from June 24-30.

“It’s a great way to finish off my Grade 8 year and it’s a lot closer to home,” Skene said.

“I’m hoping to build off of everything that I learned a year go in Tennessee and improve my on my results during my second trip there.”

Skene, 13, is coming off of winning the Saskatchewan male junior high school all-around title earlier this month following a strong showing at the provincial final in Martensville.

He captured the event crowns in the chute dogging and breakaway roping events and finished in third place in the team roping event with partner Landon LeClare of Melfort.

He also had a fourth place result in the ribbon roping competition alongside Ashley Weber of Manor.

“That was a pretty awesome weekend as I was able to accomplish everything that I set out to do,” Skene said.

“I was really happy with how well I did, especially in the chute dogging event, as I averaged a time of eight seconds over the course of the three days.”

LeClare and Weber will both be competing in South Dakota alongside Skene, who is slated to compete in all four disciplines that he excelled in at the provincials.

“We head down to Huron on Friday and the schedule actually works out pretty well this year,” Skene said. “It’s spaced out nicely over course of the week, so I’m able to plan things out over the course of the four events.

“My goal is to try and make it to the short go round. The top 20 in each event make it there and I finished five spots back in the roping event last year. I feel like I’ve been doing really well in that event this season and I’ve been really focusing on hitting my marks in practice.”

After his trip to South Dakota, Skene will then prepare for the Canadian High School Rodeo Finals, which will take place in Merritt, B.C. from July 27-29.

“It’s a little bit of a different atmosphere there compared to event in the States, but it’s still a really strong group and you have to be on top of your game,” Skene said.

@lpunkari•sports@paherald.sk.ca