Despite a setback from Superintendent of Schools Anthony Serio Jr. and the Canton Board of Education, the members of the Friends of Canton Football are forging ahead with a slightly different plan - a club team.
"We are a motivated group," said Bill Plourd, vice President of the Friends of Canton football. "We will not quit. You can feel defeated at times, but the group as a whole is single-minded. We will keep moving it forward."
Less than a year ago, Friends of Canton Football formed with permission from the Canton Board of Education to begin raising money to fund the establishment of a football team at Canton High School. After a successful golf tournament in the fall and a winter raffle, the Friends of Canton of Football were on a roll. In early 2006, hopes were high among members of the Friends of Canton Football that the Canton Board of Education would formally add football to the slate of sports offered. In a surprise announcement this spring, though, Serio and the Board of Education concluded they wanted more time to study the issues surrounding the addition of a football team, issues regarding field space, costs, and Title IX issues, a law which requires a level of "equality" in boys and girls sports teams.
So for now, the group has decided to start a club football team at Canton High School for the 2006 fall season.
Grabowski said that Canton High School principal Gary Gula has been very supportive of a football program at Canton High School although fielding a team in 2006 would require a fair amount of time and energy from his administration. "Everything from scheduling games and practices to ordering football equipment and hiring a coach would need to be accomplished in a very short period of time in order to play this fall," said Grabowski. "The group feels it can pull together its resources and take care of these logistical issues for the first year and then transition the program fully operational to the school in 2007."
The club football team will be a junior-varsity team that plays a six game schedule, all away games due to field constraints in Canton. The team also has no league affiliation and will play other junior varsity team. However, according to Plourd, the club team will follow all the CIAC guidelines for a high school football team. "We are going to work out the kinks this year," said Plourd.
The Board of Education will again address the idea of a football team at Canton High School at the conclusion of the 2006 fall football season. "This is a very positive step for football in Canton," said Grabowski. "Our group is financing the entire program 100 percent this year and for the many years that hopefully will follow. The Friends of Canton Football have worked tirelessly developing a solid foundation of support in the community. We are committed to managing the team financially and administratively in 2006 working closely with Principal Gula and athletic director Nancy Grace to insure a smooth transition to the High School in the future."
According to Plourd, a recent survey at Canton High School concluded that 90 students are interested in playing football. 57 of those respondents are not currently participating in athletics at all.
The Friends of Canton Football will begin football registration in both the middle and high schools on May 9. Athletes will have until May 17 to complete the registration forms. The position of head football coach has been advertised in the Hartford Courant sports section.
"We are very excited about adding an additional opportunity for these students at Canton High School and look forward to seeing Canton football back on the field in 2006," said Grabowski.
To date, the Friends of Canton Football have raised over $40,000 and have secured a $50,000 line of credit. With a recent approval from the state for tax-exempt status, Plourd said people can now take a tax deduction for making a donation to the Friends of Canton Football, something that limited their fundraising ability this year.
Donations can also be sent to
Friends of Canton Football, Inc.
P.O. Box 54
Canton, CT 06019
For more information, call 693-9518 or log on to Friends of Canton Football http://www.focf.zoomshare.com/0.html
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