‘It’s a bloodbath:’ Thunder, Hilltops ready for Round 3

In hockey parlance, the Regina Thunder and Saskatoon Hilltops are completing a hat trick Sunday.

The Saskatchewan rivals are to meet in the Prairie Football Conference final for a third straight season. Game time at SMF Field in Saskatoon is 1 p.m.

In 2021, Saskatoon avenged a pair of regular-season losses to the Thunder with a 29-9 victory over Regina in the PFC final. It was the Hilltops’ seventh straight league title.

In 2022, Regina won both regular-season meetings with the Hilltops and then completed the season sweep with a 39-21 win over Saskatoon in the PFC final.

This year, Saskatoon went 8-0-0 in the regular season, with two of those victories coming over the Thunder. The Hilltops won 36-6 on Sept. 9 in Regina and 19-10 on Sept. 30 in Saskatoon.

Thunder tailback Ryland Leichert told The Green Zone’s Jamie Nye that the teams don’t have many secrets from each other at this stage of the season.

“Every year, it seems like we’re in the PFC championship together,” Leichert said. “I like to think that we’re the standards of the CJFL as football teams.

“(Playing Saskatoon) is a bloodbath. All the players know each other well. We see each other three times a year, so it’s (all about) going out and (seeing) who wants it more and playing physical.”

“It’s a battle of two good teams,” Hilltops tailback Boston Davidsen told Nye, “but we’re ready for the challenge and we’re excited for it.”

In 2022, the Thunder went undefeated in the regular season and PFC playoffs to earn a spot in the Canadian Junior Football League final. The Okanagan Sun spoiled the party, beating Regina 21-19 at Mosaic Stadium.

Leichert was with the Thunder in 2021 when it fell to Saskatoon in the PFC final and in 2022 when it lost the Canadian Bowl.

“You can get caught up in the losses, but at the end of the day, we have been taking steps forward and this year is just another opportunity for us to get better and take those steps forward,” he said.

“If we keep that in the back of our minds — what it felt like to lose — we don’t want to feel that way again so we’re doing everything we can to prepare for (the final).”

Ironically, the Hilltops feel the same way. They’re looking back at the 2022 conference final, when Regina snapped their string of league titles.

“In this past off-season, a lot of guys on our team put in a lot more work after that disappointing end to last year,” Davidsen said. “That left a sour taste in our mouth and we worked hard to give ourselves this opportunity to have home field for the playoffs.

“But now, all of that is done. It’s a whole new entity in itself this coming Sunday, so we can’t take anything we’ve done for granted. We just have to move forward and keep working hard.”

That’s the game plan for both teams, which could mean another brawl between the provincial rivals.

“At the end of the day, there is respect,” Leichert said. “You can’t go into Saskatoon thinking that you’re going to beat them because they’re worse than you because that’s just not the case. They’re a good football team (and) they have been for a very long time.

“So you have to respect them, but you also have to bring that mentality that you have to raise your standard and play as a team. You’ve got to show them that you’re not going to get pushed around.”

NOTES: Davidsen was named the PFC’s most valuable player, its outstanding offensive player and its outstanding running back on Friday. Three other members of the Hilltops organization — Tom Sargeant (coach of the year), Trey Reider (outstanding quarterback) and Riece Kack (outstanding defensive lineman) — also were honoured. Three members of the Thunder — Riley Schick (outstanding offensive lineman), Stephen Smith (outstanding defensive player, outstanding linebacker) and defensive lineman Liam Sellwood (defensive rookie of the year) — earned league honours as well.