THE Windsor Dukes senior football team went into a dangerous situation against a desperate team Friday and came away unscathed, setting themselves a clear path into the provincial playoffs.
The Dukes travelled across town to take on Handsworth Friday in a game that the Royals needed to win to make the playoffs. Instead it was the Dukes who took control, scoring a 41-0 shutout win to usher themselves into the playoffs on a four-game winning streak.
The victory was an economical one for the Dukes as they made the most of their opportunities. Quarterback Ty Marshall's first pass of the game turned into a 47-yard touchdown for star receiver Joel Brown.
"Getting that first score was key and then we kind of wore them down," Windsor head coach Jim Schuman said after the game. "They're a pretty talented team with a good coach so it was important to get up and get control. . . . That was kind of a sigh of relief that we managed to get a strike in there and get a touchdown."
The efficient effort continued from there as Marshall threw only five passes in the game but completed four of them for 83 yards and two touchdowns. The Grade 11 quarterback also rushed 14 times for 93 yards and two touchdowns.
Brown caught only three passes but still racked up 71 yards and two scores. Fullback Jonathan Kramer also made the most of his touches, turning his seven carries into 120 rushing yards and a touchdown. Backup quarterback Eric Neal finished the scoring in the fourth quarter with a 16-yard touchdown run.
"We didn't turn the ball over, we kept it simple," said Schuman about his team's execution, adding that on defence the Dukes needed to be sharp going against Handsworth coach Jay Prepchuk who is known for his innovative offence.
"He's a good coach, we know what he does. You've got to teach your kids to be disciplined and stay at home," said Schuman, adding that having a lot of experienced players was important for the Dukes on defence. "They're all Grade 12s so they've seen it for a few years. They were able to work within the scheme, stay at home and not give up the big play and to tackle well. That was the key to the day for us."
Jonathan Kramer and Rudy Uhl led the way with six tackles each while Kevin Marquis added five tackles and also went six for seven on single point converts. The Dukes also got standout play from linemen David Yaeger and Ross Stevenson at the line of scrimmage, said Schuman.
The win put Windsor into third place in the AA Western Conference with a 4-2 record, a big improvement over last season when the Dukes went 0-4 in league play to finish in last place. Most of the players from last year's squad are back this year.
"They played games close (last year) but it ended up games would get away from them and their youth kind of showed," said Schuman. "They've played a lot of football so it's nice to see them get a chance at having a positive season and getting some wins after putting all that time in. And it's always fun to get even with the teams that beat ya' the year before. That's high school football."
The Dukes will travel to Victoria on Friday to take on Belmont secondary, the second place team in the Southern Conference. The two teams met once before in the preseason with Windsor scoring a 48-20 win at home Sept. 14. The Dukes are hoping for a repeat performance, counting on the fact that they've made a lot of improvements since that win.
"I feel good about where we're at," said Marshall. "I feel like the team is coming together at the most important time."
Game time Friday is 3 p.m. at Goudy Field.
Carson Graham also made it into the postseason, finishing fourth in the Western Conference with a 3-3 record. The Eagles will face Southern Conference champs South Delta Friday at 5: 30 p.m. at BC Place.
