SACKVILLE, N.B. — It truly turned out to be home sweet homecoming for hundreds of Allisonians of all ages over the weekend, as they gloried at their Mounties taking down the visiting St. FX X-Men to the tune of 36-11.
This marked the first win in five starts for the Mounties, but the 25-point victory allowed them to take over fourth spot, with the losers dropping into the basement of the five-team conference.
Thanks to the strong leg of James Parker, the home team moved out ahead to 6-0 after 15 minutes and he later added three more, plus a trio of converts for his best day on the gridiron.
While Parker was enjoying the afternoon on Alumni Field, others were also stepping up to the front. Sackville’s Jack Estabrooks was unstoppable in running for 148 yards on 19 carries.
Coach Peter Fraser had only kind words for Estabrooks, who has picked up the ground game, especially with the loss of some key players.
Quarterback David Patry also picked up his game considerably, adding to the showing he had in the second half against Acadia the previous week. He threw for 130 yards and a touchdown and was in charge whenever the offense was on the field.
And, as usual, it was a hard-rock defense that kept the visitors away from the end zone. A pair of rookie backs accounted for three of the interceptions, with Lucas Cormier snaring a pair and Dan Bell the other.
They forced six turnovers, with Damian Halstead running back a quarterback fumble for a 64-yard touchdown.
Head coach Peter Fraser described the game as being dominated in the trenches by the Mounties. People like Ross McCormack and Brock O’Brien gave the backs some good openings, while also providing coverage for the quarterback.
The winners racked up 362 yards of offense to just 202 for the visitors while handling the X-Men on both sides of the ball. They had possession far more and were superior.
However, an Achilles heel remains. The Mounties were assessed a total of 239 yards in penalties – more than the total X-Men offense. And coach Fraser knows only too well that they cannot repeat this when they go to Halifax for a Friday night matchup with the St. Mary’s Huskies.
Moncton’s Josh Hicks has emerged as the team’s primary receiver and pulled in eight balls for 91 yards, while Patry went 10 of 14 for 130 yards.
The victory was a must, as it provides hope to a team that has playoff hopes – they must finish with a trio of wins over SMU, Acadia and Bishops in order to qualify.
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