A Swift Current football player has returned home with some hardware after competing at the 2025 Football Canada Cup in Antigonish, Nova Scotia.
Linebacker Jackson Gording-Dovell helped lead Team Saskatchewan to a bronze medal on Sunday, knocking off second-seeded Quebec 36-8 at ST.FX Stadium.
"I think we fell a little short, which is alright," he said. "But it's alright to come home with some hardware."
"I think the experience was very good. Nice weather and a beautiful campus. The campus there was really nice. It was hard work, but it's a great opportunity for us to get noticed and represent our province and our city."
Saskatchewan opened the tournament on July 14 against fifth-ranked New Brunswick, flexing its offensive and defensive prowess, winning 42-0. They then turned their attention to top-ranked Ontario and narrowly lost 41-36.
"It was a really good game," he said. "We were down 21-0 going into the second quarter, then by the end of the half it was 25-24 for us. Then we kept battling through the second half but could pull it (off)."
Gording-Dovell is eligible to return to the under-18 national competition next year and is excited for a shot at a gold medal. He said there was a noticeable difference in the competition level between the U16 Western Challenge Cup and the 2025 Football Canada Cup.
"So previously I played U16 and that was only Western (Canada), so there isn't too much competition, like Sask is always on top," he said. "You go over to the east, and you've got Ontario with so much more people and Quebec. It was definitely a lot harder."
