If you want to be the best, you have to beat the best and that’s the position the Mount Douglas Rams are in this afternoon at 2 on the Mainland, challenging the No. 1 and undefeated New Westminster Hyacks at Mercer Stadium.
“New West is loaded with talent this year, has a deep roster and is certainly well deserving of their No. 1 ranking in the province,” said Rams head coach Mark Townsend, whose troops were defeated 29-6 by the Hyacks back in Week 3, the second of three straight losses.
The Rams were without No. 1 quarterback Gideone Kremler at the time and are currently riding a four-game win streak, including last week’s opening Subway Bowl playoff game, 45-13 over Mount Boucherie to advance to this quarter-final.
“We are extremely proud of our Rams players considering we have been playing most of the season with a varsity roster of less than 20 players,” said Townsend. “The boys have been playing their best football of the season the past four weeks, and for us to be successful this Friday, we need to continue to play at a high level, and very importantly, take care of the football.”
Weather conditions will likely factor into this matchup, which means turnovers and field position will be critical. Defending against a potent Hyack offence is also imperative.
Last week, Rams’ defensive tackle Ivan Xu opened the scoring for the visitors when he intercepted a pass and ran it back 30 yards for a major score.
“Jake Ounsted was outstanding and was constantly making huge plays in the Boucherie backfield,” added Townsend.
Ounsted led the Rams in tackles with eight and recorded two quarterback sacks. Soren Hallschmid was also stellar in recording seven tackles, one fumble recovery and added an interception. Ben Pierik also had an excellent game on defence with six tackles and three QB sacks.
Zaireck Kremler, who had a big game on offence, also registered six tackles and a pair of sacks on defence.
New Westminster finished the regular season at 7-0, having scored 270 points, while allowing just 95. The Rams tallied a 4-3 record with 164 points for and 143 against.
