It鈥檚 over 5,000 kilometres from Lennoxville, Que. to Squamish, and the journey for two 麻豆社国产natives started by putting on a 麻豆社国产Titans jersey eight years ago.
Tyson Thompson and James Harney shared the Titans gridiron back in 2006, and their friendship and love of football has now extended to the Bishop鈥檚 University Gaiters CIS football club in Quebec.
The pair suited up for the Gaiters in 2014 and hope to be a bigger part of the team in the coming years. It鈥檚 Thompson鈥檚 second year in Quebec and he said it鈥檚 been a blast to have another 麻豆社国产guy on the team.
鈥淚t's been great having James around,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t's just like the days back at Howe Sound when we played together. He has grown a lot as a person since the day he got here and he's one of the youngest guys on the defence, so he still has a lot of work to do before he sees the field, but I think he's on his way.鈥�
Thompson graduated from Howe Sound Secondary School (HSSS) in 2013 and Harney transferred from HSSS to Notre Dame Regional Secondary School to play in the football program and complete his Grade 12 in 2014.
The pair had looked forward to hitting the field as Sounders in 2012 but ACL surgery that summer took Harney away from football that year. He said the friendship with Thompson grew from the experience on the Titans, and he sought his advice when looking to further his football career after high school.
鈥淭yson and I met playing GSL football for the Titans back in 2006 and we have had a lasting friendship since then,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e kept in contact when he went on to Bishop's and throughout his first year. The biggest thing that impressed me in my conversations with Tyson about Bishop's football was how Coach [Kevin] Mackey and the rest of the coaching staff helped him adjust to all the changes and giving him the confidence to stick out his first year in CIS football.鈥�
Thompson mans the offensive line while Harney is slotted on the defensive line, but both realize they need to keep improving to one day hit the field.
鈥淚 still need to work on my physical strength and know the playbook thoroughly to compete at this level,鈥� he said. Going from HSSS to CIS football is quite a big jump, and I am still one of the youngest on the team, so I feel if I keep working hard my time will come and I'll get opportunities.鈥�
鈥淚t is a huge jump in competition, size of players, age difference of players and playing experience of players,鈥� Harney said. 鈥淎lso, the RESQ is the most competitive conference in CIS Football. I need to keep focused on working hard on the field with my positional coaches and continuing to learn, develop and understand this level of play. I also need to be committed to the gym and continue to have the opportunity to play in the CIS by putting in the necessary equal commitment in the classroom.鈥�
It was an off year for Bishop鈥檚, as they finished in fifth place in their division with a record of one win and seven losses. Thompson and Harney hope to help turn around the program in 2015.
鈥淥ur team is having a bit of a rough year and it was kind of in a transition after the amazing season we had last year,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e had a lot of senior guys leave last year and so there were a lot of spots available for guys to step up this year. We are a younger team that still needs to gel together and grow a bit, but we are definitely unsatisfied with the results of this season.鈥�
鈥淭his year's team was a rebuilding and young team,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 am super-excited to be part of it and I feel I have been fitting in well. The senior players have been great in providing leadership and positional guidance to incoming players.聽 I want to continue in the spring and summer with training and coming into the 2015 training camp to have the best the opportunity to dress and play next season.鈥�
For more information on the Gaiters football club, visit www.gaiters.ca.聽
