The Rimbey Spartans are Alberta six-man champions once again, defeating the Breton Cougars 48-44 on Friday night in Lacombe -- a game decided by a few inches.

With the clock run out, it came down to the final play. Cougars quarterback Noah Gooerham launched a pass that landed cleanly in the hands of receiver Tyson Boist in the endzone.

Except, Boist was out of bounds, barely. After finishing second at provincials the last two seasons, Rimbey was back on top.

“As soon as that pass was thrown and caught, I saw the referee signal he was out of the back of the endzone. I couldn’t believe it,” said Spartans head coach Bill Bramfield post-game.

Bramfield sighs.

“I thought we lost it there but that’s the thrill of football. That’s the thrill of six-man football. If anybody was watching this, they’d be going to their school right now and saying we need six-man football because there’s no lead that’s safe. Just amazing. And there’s no room for mistakes. They have good athletes and it took our best athletes to squeak this one out.”

That last play capped off a manic series of misplays in the final five minutes with Rimbey leading 48-38.

The chaos started with Breton threatening to punch in a touchdown late in the fourth quarter. Rimbey forced a fumble, with Alex Stout recovering the ball and running it down the sideline, halfway down the field.

They were able to maintain possession once, fumbling on the drive. But not the second time, recovered by Breton.

The Cougars attempted a passing play, bobbled into the air by their receiver, intercepted by Rimbey’s Hudson Scott near his own 10-yard line.

Then Scott fumbled the ball, recovered by Breton at the one-yard line. They scored, cutting the lead to 48-44 but couldn’t get the conversion.

With 50 seconds left, Breton recovered an onside kick to take possession for the last drive.

The trophy ceremony after a thrilling finish to the provincial six-man championship. Photo courtesy Football Alberta, cropped, lighting adjusted.


 

The Rimbey Spartans erupt onto the field after Breton's final play was ruled out of bounds.


 To recap, that was four fumbles, an interception, and an onside kick to close the game.

“Thrilling. Not the way I’d like to win it. I want to win by two scores, be giving high-fives with five minutes to go but I got to give Breton a lot of credit. They worked hard and they did not quit. They created a lot of of opportunities and that was one heck of a game,” Bramfield said.

Overshadowed by the absurdity of the fourth quarter, Rimbey’s Wyatt Argent returned three kickoffs for touchdowns.

He was in disbelief when he saw officials rule the final catch out of bounds.

“I was kind of in shock, actually. I really had no emotion,” Argent said. “You’re like, ‘holy cow’.”

“The energy levels were sure high. Everyone was nervous so you’re just anxious to get a hold of the ball and get down field and run the clock out. You weren’t even worried about getting the ball in your hands before you start running.”