Local talent shone brightly on a big stage on Saturday, as the Star Bowl community football all-star games took over Rotary Stadium.
The trio of showcase games featured 40 members of the Abbotsford Falcons club – 27 junior bantams (age 12-13) and 13 bantams (age 14-15).
"It's a hotbed of football in Abbotsford, for sure," said David Maxwell, offensive co-ordinator for the junior bantam Blue all-star squad, reflecting on the Falcons' collective performance. "All of the local high schools have a core of Falcons players. It's certainly nice to see."
The junior bantam game was a clash between two Valley Community Football League selects teams, and Team Blue beat Team Orange 32-8. Abby's Samwel Uko was named offensive player of the game after a two-touchdown outing.
The bantam game was a defensive-minded tilt, with the Vancouver Mainland Football League all-stars beating their Valley counterparts 6-2.
"It was a good game," said Khul Sanghera, receivers coach for the VCFL bantam team. "We both pushed hard and we had our chances, but just finishing drives, we came up short."
The midget game did not feature any local players (the Falcons do not have a midget squad), and Team Purple edged Team Grey 11-9.
Maxwell said the event was well-organized and drew great feedback from players.
"Throughout the day, it was a great atmosphere," he said. "The crowd certainly got behind everyone.
"It was a great experience for players to work with different coaches, and to meet the players they play against year in and year out."
A complete list of Falcons players selected for Star Bowl games is as follows.
Junior bantam (age 12-13): Sahil Sahota, Ty Baker, Dion Kelly, Darius Kelly, Sean Roufosse, Dawson Davis, John Madigan, Reese Morrison, Carlos Wormald, Tyson Reid, Nathaniel Davis, Prabjot Sidhu, Ezra Garcia Landa, Trey Black, Addison Kleiber, Samwel Uko, Blake Gervais, Lachlan Silva, Jacob Macri, Ryan Sharpe, Nelson Lokombo, Jayden Murphy, Kiefer Waldenberger, Tanner Marquardt, Taylor Mante, James Keetch and Alex Howman.
Bantam (age 14-15): Madaraka Koul, Reid Dana, Jacob Dodd, Grayson Marquardt, Slayter McRae, Alex Russian, Phillip Cromwell, Reubon Reardon, Tajan Sanghera, Scott Hayton, Chace Joseph, Cole Makkinga and Jordan Goheen.