Former BC Lion Cory Philpot has Langley Rams in the running for the junior national title

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Cory Philpot thinks this is the year of the Langley Rams.

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Former BC Lions running back and now Rams head coach has his new team in the Canadian Bowl youth soccer final Saturday at 9 am against host London Beefeaters at Western Alumni Stadium, the facility on the campus of the University of Western Ontario.

This is the third consecutive national final for the Rams and the fifth in the past nine years. They have never won.

“That’s it. This is the year because we went out and recruited defenses and we have one of the best defenses in the nation,” said Philpot, 51, whose five-year stint with the Lions included helping the team capture the Gray Cup. from 1994, and his 22 touchdown campaign in 1995. “We have a lot of guys who are hungry for redemption. This would be huge for the show. This would show we’re on another level.”

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A BC team hasn’t won a Bowl since 2009, when the Vancouver Island Raiders beat the Edmonton Wildcats 51-14 in the title game at Nanaimo with five TD passes from Jordan Yantz. The Raiders also won in 2008, beating host Burlington Braves 35-8 in Ontario.

This year’s Rams defense intercepted four passes, recovered three fumbles and led to a whopping six turnovers in bad times. against Saskatoon Hilltops in a 17-14 victory at McLeod Stadium in Langley in the national semifinal on November 20.

The Hilltops were the reigning six-time Bowl champions and had won nine of 10 national crowns before this weekend. They had beaten the Rams 11-6 at McLeod in the 2019 final and 58-21 at Saskatoon in 2018. Philpot was an assistant coach for those two years. He was promoted to head coach in August 2021.

The Bowl was canceled in 2020 due to COVID-19.

“Every year, everyone prepares to beat the Hilltops,” Philpot said. “We prepared ourselves as best we could to do that.”

Beefeaters coach Gavin Lake told the London Free Press : “Langley always has exceptional athletes. Every time you can take a victory away from the Hilltops, you’ve done something special. “

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Philpot has a lot to do to keep him busy. He is the director of operations for the BC Provincial Soccer Association. Get individual training with their All-Star Youth Sports Camps. His twin sons Jalen and Tyson just finished their third season as receivers with the University of Calgary Dinos and There are already rumors around them excelling in the CFL.

“I like training more than playing. They don’t hit me or tackle me, ”Philpot said. “The key is to make children understand that soccer becomes easier if you understand the game. You have to understand the game first. “

The Beefeaters defeated the St. Clair Fratmen 15-14 in the Ontario final at Windsor on November 20. , erasing a 14-point deficit in the last three minutes. They have never been to a national final.

Langley quarterback Michael Calvert was 19 of 25 for 229 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions against the Hilltops. Kicker Tato Ferreyro Araya was good on 3 of 5 field goal attempts, including an eight-yard shot with 2:20 left that provided the winning points. Defender Beko Wande had two interceptions and a fumble recovered.

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twitter: @SteveEwen