Kamloops city high school football championship revived under new name: Chow Cup

Did he shed tears into Fox’n Hounds beer?

“Not until they wanted to pay the tab,” quipped Chow. “It was unexpected.”

Chow has been involved in the minor, high school and junior football ranks in Kamloops for nearly 50 years.

“You’re testing an old man’s memory here,” Chow said. “I’ve been involved with so many programs I have to think about it. Westsyde, Kam High and South Kam, Valleyview, Kamloops minor, the Kamloops Cowboys and the Broncos, being both on the coaching staff and board of directors, 20-plus years at Simon Fraser in the summertime with high school development camps and various clinics … It’s been a good ride, a long ride.”

The South Kamloops Titans and Westsyde Whundas (the football program ditched the Blue Wave nickname ahead of the 2024 season) will clash in the inaugural Chow Cup matchup on Saturday (Sept. 28), a 2 p.m. start at South Kam secondary.

“This is our 50th year of having a football program at Westsyde,” said Whundas’ junior varsity head coach Stefen Reid, who won a Grey Cup playing for the Montreal Alouettes in 2002.

“It’s tradition. It’s a culture in Westsyde. It’s a small community and there is a lot of pride in how we play football.”

Reid said the River City is experiencing a post-pandemic pigskin renaissance, with participation numbers booming in the minor and high school ranks.

The Vikings are fielding a junior varsity team this year (Chow is on staff), reviving a football program dormant since 2018.

With no Valleyview in the mix this year at the senior level, the 2024 Chow Cup combatants were pre-determined — South Kam versus Westsyde.

“Huge week, yeah,” said Titans’ standout Hudson Jones, whose team fell 20-17 to Westsyde last year. “Guys are feeling pretty good. Practise has been pretty dialled. We’re feeling confident for the big game coming up Saturday.”

The B.C. School Sports AA Football Rankings dropped earlier this week, pegging Westsyde at sixth in the province, two spots ahead of South Kam.

With matching 1-0 records heading into the city title tilt, the game carries pivotal post-season implications.

Westsyde head coach Dayton Schadlich is encouraging the football community to gather and Whundas’ star Kooper Groeneveld is expecting a mammoth crowd.

“The atmosphere, it’s incredible,” Groeneveld said. “You come out, your hear all the people cheering and then you hear the boos, as well. People on the sideline getting chippy from the other school, but it’s a great experience. We’re going to look back at it one day and wish we could come back.”

The man whose name is on the trophy was asked to pick a winner.

True to form (and sitting firmly on the fence), his allegiance is only to the game.

“I’m cheering for football in Kamloops,” Chow said. “That sounds like a good, neutral answer. It’s a unique sport in that it demands commitment and, maybe getting on my soap box a little bit here, it’s so easy nowadays for kids to quit. Football demands commitment.

“Nearly 50 years … I’m thinking of all of the players and coaches. This is a celebration of all of that.”

by Marty Hastings

Kamloops city high school football championship revived under new name: Chow Cup

Our Community