Sylvan Lake Bears Pee Wee head coach Garnet Rambaut is stepping down after a near-perfect season.
Rambaut has coached minor football for 23 years, the last 16 of those as head coach with the Bears.
He talked about the decision to step aside as the head coach.
"It's time to bring newer people in, it allows me to move on," he said. "I'm not leaving coaching, but I am leaving the head coaching to the younger guys. It's time."
The Bears were undefeated during the regular season and won the League Title beating Lacombe in the championship game by a score of 50-0. The team suffered a tough 34-18 loss in the Provincial Final against the Strathcona Wolverines.
Rambaut revealed what it was like stepping off the field after the final whistle.
"It was pretty emotional in the locker room after I can tell you. Every one of those kids, we know just the way they treat us at the end of every practice. Every one of those kids as they came off the field would shake the coach's hands. That's a pretty good indicator that they want to play and they want to learn."
He talked about what kept him coming back year after year.
"I think seeing the growth of our whole football program. We get the opportunity to see some of these kids for nine years. You see their personal growth and you see what good kids they really are. We hear lots of stories about all the bad ones but there are a lot of good ones out there."
Rambaut will continue to offer his experience and guidance to the Sylvan Lake Lions Bantam football team as an assistant to his son, Geoff, who serves as head coach.
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