Regina, Saskatoon meet for WWCFL championship

Just as it has been for the entirety of the Western Women’s Canadian Football League existence, a team from Saskatchewan will hoist the trophy as league champion.

The only question remaining is if it will be Saskatoon or Regina getting the final win of the season.

While the Regina Riot and Saskatoon Valkyries have met in every previous conference final, this will be the first meeting of the two teams with the championship on the line since a cross-over came into effect this season. Since the league first came into existence in 2011, they have been the only teams to hoist the trophy.

Riot head coach Olivier Eddie said these matchups against Saskatoon are usually very fun for the players.

“We practice all year, we practice all winter, we plan in the off-season expecting to play each other and I think both teams always look forward to those games because, honestly, they can go either way,” Eddie said.

He said the Valkyries have done a good job recruiting U SPORTS athletes, no matter what sport they were playing.

“We’re trying to replicate that in our area as well,” Eddie said.

The success of the two teams has helped contribute to growing women’s tackle football in the province.

“It’s a point of pride for us, me personally as well, looking at what’s happening in our province when it comes to women’s football,” Eddie said. “There’s no question about it that there’s more excitement than ever, there’s growth.”

Eddie said they are seeing girls and young women getting involved in the sport in leagues such as Regina Minor Football and in Melville.

“It’s very promising for our sport in our province but also nationally and it’s really neat for us to be a part of that.”

The Riot also had to overcome a unique obstacle during their conference final game — their team van with their jerseys inside had been stolen earlier in the week. The Regina Thunder would end up giving the team their jerseys to wear.

“It was pretty special. It was the right jersey for us to select given who they are in our community,” Eddie said.

Police have located the van and the jerseys were recovered.

Kickoff is at 3 p.m. at Mosaic Stadium.