Friday Night Lights Draws Capacity Crowd
Cumberland City Councillor and amateur sports champion Stephen Blais kicked off a new tradition in Orléans with a Friday Night Lights football game between the St. Peter Knights and their cross town rivals the St. Matthew Tigers in the inaugural All Saints Bowl.
“Sports is an amazing way to build character and important life skills,” says Cumberland Councillor Stephen Blais. “With a capacity crowd of over 1,300 screaming fans we’ve also demonstrated how sport, and a healthy rivalry, can instil pride and bring communities together.”
Parents, teachers, students and alumni came out en masse to cheer on their team and helped set the stage for what is sure to become an annual tradition and a highlight of the high school football schedule.
“The St. Peter’s Knights want to thank Councillor Blais for making this night possible and are happy to be a part of this new tradition,” said St. Peter teacher and Knights Head Football Coach James Mick. “It’s nice to have a guy like Stephen who understands the importance of sports in building strong communities.”
Scouts from several major universities were also in attendance to see how the young men would perform in front of the biggest crowd of their careers.
“Football is alive and well in Ottawa, and Orléans is the hotbed of football talent and enthusiasm,” says Blais. “Orléans has produced a plethora of highly recruited football talent in recent years and we hope to continue to help build on that success.”
In an exciting and highly competitive contest, decided in the last minute of the game, the Knights defeated the Tigers 29-20 and take home the inaugural All Saints Bowl. Tigers running back Ted Kubongo and Knights running back Quinn Nadon-Stencill were named players of the game.
“This was very exciting and we thank Councillor Blais for putting this together, also to the St. Peters Knights for a great game,” said Jean-Sorphia Guillaume, St. Matthew teacher and St. Tigers Head Football Coach. “I am really looking forward to next years’ All Saints Bowl and know we can count on Councillor Blais continue promoting local sports for our kids.”
The expanded amenities at Millennium Park opened in 2016 following a record $8 million investment by the City of Ottawa in partnership with the local homebuilders. The park features nine natural grass soccer fields, a fully lit natural grass football field, a natural grass ultimate Frisbee/cricket pitch and a fully lit field turf stadium for football and soccer. The park also features major play structures, a pirate themed destination splash pad, nature trail and community centre.
“This is the type of event that Millennium was designed for,” says Cumberland Councillor Stephen Blais. “From hundreds of families enjoying the new splash pad on hot summer days to thousands enjoying soccer and football, Millennium Park has established itself as the premiere outdoor recreational facility in the region.”