After a change in schedule, the Virden Collegiate Institute football team will open its Rural Manitoba Football League season at home on Sept. 20. Kickoff will be at 1 p.m. on Sunday against the Neepawa Tigers. The Golden Bears had previously been scheduled to open their season on Sept. 13 on the road against Winnipeg’s St. Vital Mustangs. However, the Transcona Nationals pulled out of the league and all Week 1 contests were cancelled.

   Head coach Marc Talbot said the extra week of preparation can help his team. The Golden Bears added a number of players last week who are new to the sport. “Our main focus this week heading into our first game is finding where all these new players fit into the roster,” he said. “Are they fast? Good hands? Good tacklers? And so on. We are also trying to encourage the veterans on the team to help guide the new players. We are only as strong or good as our weakest link. The good thing about football is that there is a spot for any type of player.”

     The Golden Bears will host the Parkwest Outlaws on Friday, Sept. 25, at 1 p.m. in the Tundra Bowl. The teams will battle for a trophy donated by Tundra Oil & Gas.

“I think the players get excited about the Tundra Bowl because it will be a competitive game,” Talbot said. “Parkwest has a good program and we are pretty even in roster size and skill level.”

Findlay at MacEwan

     Edmonton’s MacEwan University recently announced Winnipeg’s Ayva Findlay as one of its new women’s soccer players for this season. Findlay is the daughter of Amelie and former Oak Lake resident Jason Findlay. Her paternal grandparents were Renee and Bob Findlay.

"Ayva is a power forward," MacEwan University head coach Dean Cordeiro said on the team’s website. "She can play anywhere in the front three. She's got a knack for scoring goals, she's fast, physical and tested really well. She's had a great start to her preseason.”

Oil Caps Exhibition Season

     The Virden Oil Capitals went 3-2 in the exhibition season. The Manitoba Junior Hockey League squad fell 6-4 to the Yorkton Terriers of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League on Sept. 4. They beat the Terriers 3-2 in a shootout the next night. The Oil Caps defeated the SJHL’s Weyburn Red Wings 5-3 on Sept. 7.

     The Virden team wrapped up its preseason by splitting its games against the MJHL’s Portage Terriers. On the road, the Oil Capitals beat the hosts 2-1 on Sept. 8. Portage scored in the first period, but Virden lit the lamp twice in the third to earn the win. Jaxson Cullen and Gavin Anderson did the honours for the Oil Capitals. In net, Sawyer Wallin started for Virden and stopped 13 of the 14 shots he faced. Adam Courchesne took over partway through the second period and turned away all 12 shots sent his way.

     In Virden on Sept. 9, Matthew Campenella scored in overtime for a 4-3 Portage win. Virden had led 1-0 in the first period thanks to a Bryan Laing goal. The Terriers scored three in the second to take a 3-1 lead. Carson Wright and Oak Lake Beach’s Tyson Draper scored in the third period to tie things up. Oil Capitals goalie Micky Gross made 24 saves on 28 shots.