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Sun Host Hilltops

By Ryan Watters (@ryan2tswatters), 04/14/16, 10:00AM PDT

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Saturday September 17th history will be made at the Apple Bowl ... again

Photo courtesy of Louis Christ

The Okanagan Sun in collaboration with the Canadian Junior Football League (CJFL) will make history in 2016 with an Interconference Game during the regular season.

This will be the first time in the CJFL’s long history that teams from the BC Football Conference will face teams from the Prairie Football Conference in a regular season game.  On Saturday September 17th fans will see a rematch of the 2015 Canadian Bowl when the Sun host the defending champion Saskatoon Hilltops at the historic Apple Bowl at 7:00pm.  This game will count in the BCFC standings.

"When the CJFL proposed a full interlocking schedule earlier this year,  as an organization we were pretty excited," says team President Bill Long. 

"We felt it was exactly what the league needed to make all teams better, and generate some excitement for fans in every city. The initial proposal was ambitious, and after much discussion we were presented with the opportunity to be a part of one of the two inaugural games this season. We jumped at that chance.  From the Board of Directors through the coaching staff, everyone is fully supportive of this initiative. Yes, it does give us a tougher schedule than other teams, but it is important to look beyond just the one year implications.  This is the future of the CJFL, and we need to have these games to see how we can make this a viable fixture on the schedule every year. Our fans deserve that."

“I think it shows there`s a real benefit to be part of the CJFL,” says CJFL Commissioner Jim Pankovich.  “The teams in BC and the teams in the Prairies, play each other in their regular seasons, but what if we included some interconference games?  What`s the level of competition and is there an opportunity to look at it during the regular season? We wanted to look at some really competitive matches, not just necessarily the first and second place teams but right through the entire depth of each conference.  There is a lot of enthusiasm from the member teams.  It’s a really interesting concept and a really interesting idea to bring forward because of the excitement and interest in can create.  I’m looking forward to both games.”

This game will be one of two Interconference Games this season.  Also on September 17th the Winnipeg Rifles travel to Chilliwack to face the Valley Huskers at 1:00pm.

The Sun and Hilltops have faced each other nine times since 1988, the Sun winning three of those matches.  All eight of the previous games were part of a national playoff, whether it was for the Canadian Bowl or a national semi-final game.  The most recent of course was last year’s Canadian Bowl in Saskatoon.  The Sun last hosted the Hilltops in the 2000 Canadian Bowl.

The CJFL and Sun will release the 2016 schedule on Thursday April 21st.