added September 1st 2006

The Confederation schedule is out and it looks like Confed has come out of it with the sweetest one of all! They play their arch rival the St. Bens Bears in the North South Classic to kick of the year and end the regular season against with a rematch against the Vikings. It will have been 11 long months since the Vikes narrowly defeated the Chargers on a missed (not blocked, MISSED) extra point to claim the S.D.S.S.A.A. Championship.

The Chargers have never lost to St. Bens in regular season play but were defeated in their first showing in the North South Classic in the 2002 season. This came a week before the Chargers outlasted the Bears is a 29-28 showdown in The Jungle @ Confed in front of some 600+ Charger fans. Confed football has been riding a high ever since then but the Bears have been hungry for revenge ever since. Look for this North South meeting to carry a little more intensity then the rest of the scrimmages.

Week 1 sees the Chargers perform in front of what will be a packed house in The Jungle while they entertain the North Stars from Sudbury Secondary. The burning question is who will the North Stars suit up? Rumour has it that Stars Austin Roy and Dustin Crowder won’t be donning the red and blue this fall but there have been no official reports of that. Either way, look for Confed to try and assert them selves in front of their fans and prove to S.D.S.S.A.A. that they will not roll over and die just because they lost some key veterans to graduation.

Week 2 will in all likelihood be a ball control game that may very well be decided based on who has the ball in the final minutes. Confed has two top running backs in the line-up included 2005 leading rusher Mike Switzer, while the Lancers have been dubbed by many as “the Denver of S.D.S.S.A.A.” for churning out so many quality running backs year after year. “Remember, Remember the 14^th of November”. This is the first time the two teams have met outside of the North South Classic since November 14^th 2003 where Confederation completed a Cinderella season and finished as City Champs.

Week 3 sees the Chargers take on the Cards under the lights at Queen’s athletic field. Confed has won the last two meetings with St. Charles and have won 3 of the last 4. The end of this game will mark the half way mark of the season and the playoff contenders should be clear at this point. Look for another battle on the ground as the Cards have also developed a reputation for discovering talented young running backs. Many expect the Cards to put the ball in the air this year and we will have to wait and see how or if that materializes.

Week 4 is Ellsworth’s return to Confederation. This marks the first time since he led the chargers to Sudbury’s first O.F.S.S.A. Bowl birth that he will set foot in The Jungle. His Knights are expected to be “The Greatest Show on Turf” or at least as great a show as can be seen at this level so the Chargers may have their hands full in this one. This game should bring out a lot of emotion in players like Mike Switzer and Matt Mott, both of whom played under Ellsworth during the 2003 and 2004 seasons.

Week 5 Confed stays in the familiar surroundings of The Jungle to pay the CND Alouettes. Notre Dame was embarrassed by Confed last season and in fact has not beaten the Chargers since 2002. That mud bowl saw the Als pound Confed physically and in their psyche. The Chargers have never forgotten how the Als poured it on in the forth quarter and will never take them lightly.

Week 6. Rematch. Just as the Lancers have never forgotten how they let their perfect season fall ruin to the Chargers in the finals, the Chargers will never forget how a missed extra point and a miscommunication in the dieing seconds of the first half cost them a shot at N.O.S.S.A.A. Just like they will never forget how it took “The Lilly Creek Miracle” for the Vike’s to beat Confed for the first time ever. LCS is the only school in the city with a winning record against Confed and the Chargers will look to right that in the final game of the regular season.

As you can see, Confed is developing a rivalry with just about every school in the city.

This stems mostly from the fact that they have enjoyed such great success in their infancy while most had expected them to enduring the growing pains that most expansion teams face. Growing pains like Sudbury Sec experienced in their first two seasons, or like St. Bens who went winless for years. As the most hated team in the league, Confed will never be taken lightly as they should be considered the Oakland Raiders of Sudbury High school football