The Hugh Boyd Trojans are getting an early jump on the 2015 B.C. High School Football season by heading to where they have never gone before.
The team has been on the practice field for nearly two weeks in preparation for a trip to Juneau, Alaska. The Trojans leave Tuesday and will play a pair of mini-games against local schools. They will be making the trek north with the Earl Marriott Mariners.
Bill Haddow happens to be good friends with Mike McKay-Dunn and it was a casual conversation between the two head coaches that initiated the idea. It will be Boyd’s first trip out of the country since playing in Texas two years ago.
“Mike and I are always talking and it progressed where we decided to do this together,” explained Haddow. “They went a couple of years ago and it was a really positive experience for them.
“We are trying to get on a two-year cycle with these kind of trips. That way, the kids coming into Grades 11 and 12 will always be a part of it.”
While the Trojans were in the mecca of U.S. high school football during their tour of Texas, this trip will take them to a part of the continent where finding different opponents can be a challenge.
“There are some teams in the area but it’s my understanding they have an annual travel budget of $100,000 just to put a schedule together,” continued Haddow. “They are anxious to get teams up there so they’re pretty excited we are coming. It’s going to be a big thing. The local TV and radio stations have already lined us up for interviews before the game.”
The teams will travel out of Seattle and it’s just a two hour flight to Juneau which is Alaska’s most southern major city –– located on a sliver of land that runs parallel to B.C.
“My brother gave me a geography lesson by looking at a map,” laughed Haddow. “For whatever reason, it’s not part of B.C. Almost like Point Roberts.”
The players will be billeted and there will be plenty of sightseeing over the five days.
“It is a very big part of it,” added Haddow. “We want them to see the world and how other people live. It’s going to be a much different than what they are use to. They are going to live with families and meet people. To me, that’s life.”
The Trojans will return home then prepare for their home opener on Friday, Sept. 11 (7 p.m.) when the defending provincial AAA champion South Delta Sun Devils come to town. Boyd was originally scheduled to take on Chilliwack’s GW Graham but when that game fell through, Haddow accepted an offer from the Tsawwassen school that has lost a number of key players but will still be an elite team in 2015.
“I did think about it for a bit,” he smiled. “It’s a non-conference game so the score is irrelevant and we have some good players who aspire to go to the university level. So let’s test ourselves.”
