When everything is clicking, the football gods seem very generous. The Hamilton Ironmen have been on a roll all season long and while they’ve been slowed down, they’ve yet to be stopped. Much of this is due to the play of their offense and particularly, the play of quarterback Alex Hill.
Hill has carried the offense with his strong right arm throughout the first three games of the season. As long as Hill was under center, the Ironmen always seemed like they had a chance to win. However, last Friday night in Niagara featured a very different storyline.
“We were missing eight starters due to high school graduation ceremonies,” Coach Rob Underhill stated, “We played a lot of second and third stringers, many of whom haven’t seen much action yet.”
Fitting right in. Ironmen quarterback Kyle Van Wynsberghe evades defenders to run for a first down.
Among those who had to miss the game for a graduation ceremony was their starting quarterback. The absence of Hill meant that rookie pivot Kyle Van Wynsberghe would get his first career start at the varsity level.
The Hamilton offense didn’t miss a beat as they rallied around their quarterback to beat the Niagara Spears 31-14.
“I can’t say enough about how proud I am of these guys,” gushed Underhill, “they came out here and gave a really gutsy performance. This was a very important win for us as a team.”
Although the starting roster was different, the approach remained the same. As always, Underhill stressed fundamental football before the game.
“We knew we had to keep things simple, get back to fundamentals,” echoed Underhill, “we knew that we could give up yards, but not big yards.”
The defense took the message to heart. After a shaky first half, which saw the Spears head into the locker room with a 14-10 lead, the defense tightened up in the second. They were relentless up front; stuffing the run and harassing the Spears quarterback throughout the entire game.
Hamilton’s Santino Gallo (39) caused problems for Niagara’s offense all evening.
“The D-line really stepped up for us, especially in the second half.” said Underhill, “They stopped the run and got pressure on the quarterback without sending the blitzes. They played phenomenal.”
While the defense stood tall for Hamilton, their outstanding play was probably overshadowed by the play of Van Wynsberghe, who made a handful of big plays to go with his two passing touchdowns in his debut as a starting quarterback.
“We showed them that Kyle Van Wynsberghe is the real deal,” praised his coach, “he stepped up in the pocket, made some good throws and he ran when he needed to. He did a great job.”
Van Wysnberghe did have the luxury of some very sure-handed receivers to throw to. Wideouts Daniel Petermann and Adam Felinczak were money once again for the Ironmen. Each caught a Van Wynsberghe touchdown pass and made several big catches in the win.
Kicker Domenic Bellardini boots a kickoff through the endzone for a single.
Kicker Domenic Bellardini made three goals and a single for Hamilton, while Jeremy Haggarty scored a rushing touchdown late in the second half to round out the scoring.
Despite a slow start, Underhill made adjustments and stuck with his guys. Although a little kick in the pants never hurts.
“I told the guys at halftime that these kinds of opportunities don’t come around very often, so you have to take advantage of them,” recalled Underhill, “we proved that we’re more than just eight players. We’re a team.”
A pretty damn good team at that. The win puts Hamilton atop of their division at 4-0. Another win will all but secure an Ironmen playoff berth. While it may be a little early to crown them the favourite, there’s no doubt that the Varsity Ironmen are the real deal.
The Ironmen will try to keep their win streak alive as they host the Sault Ste Marie Sabrecats this Sunday afternoon at Ron Joyce Stadium. Game time is scheduled for 1:00pm.
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