Plenty of hardware was handed out for the hard working, and hard hitting, players of Estevan Minor Football on Wednesday night.

Awards in a variety of categories were given, for qualities such as sportsmanship and team support, as well as the celebrated MVPs.

"It's good to recognize their hard work, and to show them appreciation for the effort they put in. I firmly believe that the one award every player should strive for is hosting that championship, rather than a personal gain or glory, but it is good to recognize the kids and make sure that they understand that there is rewards to work ethic," shared Paul Duncan, President of the Estevan Minor Football and the Head Coach of the Estevan Lions Club Bantam Oilers.

He also stressed that the sport fosters a variety of different values and morals in the youngsters, ones that they can take with them for life, on and off the field.

The Power Dodge Atom Cudas award winners and coaches.

The winners from the Power Dodge Atom Cudas...

  • Defence MVP---Kalib Roy
  • Offense MVP---Peyton Tendler
  • Most Improved---Carter Eagles
  • Sportsmanship---Rayelle Curtis
  • Team MVP---Cooper Pukas
  • Fundraising---Nicholas Ogdanskiy and Matteo Amosah

The winners from the Century 21 Peewee Chargers...

  • Defence MVP---Noah Peters
  • Offense MVP---Kross Punshon
  • Most Improved---Kashton Casemore
  • Sportsmanship---Seth Peters
  • Team MVP---Noah Peters
  • Fundraising---Preston Sibley

The Century 21 Peewee Chargers award winners and their coaches.

The winners from the Estevan Lions Club Bantam Oilers...

  • Defence MVP---Jonah Bachorcik
  • Offense MVP---Ben Wagstaff
  • Most Improved---Dawson Simon
  • Sportsmanship---Kolby Forseth
  • Team MVP---Jonah Bachorcik
  • Fundraising---Chris Sutter

The Bryan Illerbrun Award is handed out in honor of Bryan Illerbrun, who played high school football in Estevan, then in the CFL. Some of his time was spent with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, winning the Grey Cup with them in 1989. It goes to a player who shows good sportsmanship and leadership. The award was given to Kalib Bechtold.

Before the food and awards were handed out, however, the group took care of business with their Annual General Meeting. This was the first time that they had combined the two, and Duncan noted that it resulted in a much better turnout and participation.

One of the items noted during those moments included a growth of 8 percent. While a slightly larger 10 percent was the goal, he was happy with their number.

The Estevan Lions Club Bantam Oilers award winners and their coaches.

"I would always like to shoot for 10 percent, just because every single year, as you grow, that number continues to get higher as enrollment gets higher. If we could get every kid in Estevan to come out and play football, it would be fantastic."

This past year they introduced the same colors for all teams, and began some new advertising initiatives with signs around the fields and such. They received nearly $2,000 from donations from the community, and nearly $1,600 from fundraising.

In addition, the coming season will see black digits on the kid's jerseys, as parents had commented that the previous green color was hard to see from the sidelines.

"The greatest thing about football is the fact that it allows kids from every walk of life, every age group, every athletic style, every body type and size to come out and play. There is a spot for you on a team. We really believe that football is family," Duncan concluded.