Canada Champions Again
Niagara Spears (By Jeff Garza)
February 4, 2007
Team USA and Canada squared off for the seventh straight
year for the tournament's gold metal and the success
continued for Canada as they physically dominated Team USA
in a 23-13 victory. The Team Canada roster featured
two Niagara Spears players, James Savoie and John Surla,
both from Niagara Falls (St. Michael).
The United States triumphed in the first four meetings
between the rivals, while Canada took home the trophy the
last two occasions.
Two of Florida's biggest
stars came out to Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Fl to
help celebrate the 2007 Global Junior Championship Game.
Escambia High (Pensacola) and University of Florida product
Emmitt Smith joined Miami Dolphins defensive end Jason
Taylor for the coin toss.
Canada caught the United
States on its heels with a reverse pass by Dalin Tollestrup
to Frank Bruno for 29 yards on the first play from
scrimmage. However, the drive quickly ended as Team USA
forced Canada to punt three plays later.
The first drive of the game
seemed to illustrate the pattern as both teams punted the
ball twice in the first quarter. A total of four first downs
by both teams left the quarter with no score.
The second quarter mimicked
the first as Canadian running back Anthony Woodson ran off
right tackle for 28 yards on the second play of the quarter.
USA's defense buckled down, as they did in the first quarter
after the long gain, and forced Canada to punt.
Starting on their own 20,
Team USA started to click. Frederick Bruno sparked the team
with a 24-yard yard run around the left side. The United
States continued to move the ball down the field to the
Canada 20. The United States lined up with four receivers
and Derek Rifenbury connected with Jason Frierson in the
back of the end zone for six points. That play capped off a
10-play, 80-yard drive, eating up 4:33.
Canada bounced back quickly
with a 48-yard kickoff return by Duncan Hankinson. Starting
in their opponents' territory, the Canadians had great field
position to put points on the board. Five runs and one pass
moved Canada to the USA 7. On third-and-goal, Bruno
Prud'homme (pictured above) missed a wide open Frank Bruno
in the corner of the end zone, forcing Canada to settle for
a field goal. That score cut the USA lead to 7-3 at the
half.
The Canadians made a
statement by running the football on their first drive of
the second half after they forced Team USA to punt. Beating
the Americans at the line of scrimmage, they were able to
pull off runs of 17 and 38 yards to move the ball to the USA
14. On third down, Prud'homme took the snap out of the
shotgun formation and raced into the end zone to give the
Canadians the lead, 10-7.
After a 16-yard punt that
was nearly blocked, the Canadians had another strong
opportunity to keep the United States on their backs. A
21-yard completion on third-and-17 to Anthony Parker kept
the drive and momentum rolling. Canada continued to attack
through the air on the next play as Prud'homme hooked up
with Ismael Bamba for a 30-yard touchdown reception.
17-unanswered points by Canada gave them a 17-7 lead with
02:10 remaining in the third quarter.
The Canadians kept complete
control of the game by getting the football back once again.
The United States third-down defense continued to struggle
as they committed a personal foul on third-and-23, giving
Canada a first down. The first down helped lead Canada to a
field a 37-yard field goal.
The final dagger for USA
occurred with 6:50 left in the fourth period when Canada's
Frederick Plesius intercepted Derek Rifenbury. Canada
controlled the ball on the ground, taking the clock down to
03:08 before kicking another 37-yard field goal by Dan
Village.
With the game well out of
reach, Team USA finished the tournament with an 11-play, 65
yard touchdown drive. The touchdown reception by Michael
Hellman finished the scoring for the game as Canada won the
2007 NFL Global Junior Championship, 23-13.
Team Canada has won three
consecutive gold medals, outscoring Team USA 71-48 over that
span. The MVP Awards were given to Canada defensive end
Ameet Pall and Team USA defensive tackle Jason Paul-Pierre. |