Sherwood Park Wolverines Football Club:

The Wolverines Mission

The mission of the Sherwood Park Wolverines Football Club is to provide the opportunity for players from Sherwood Park, Strathcona County, and surrounding area to -

Click the helmet below for some food for thought.

Play competitive football in the Capital District Minor Football Association (CDMFA).
Learn and develop beginning and advanced football skills.
Practise good sportsmanship and citizenship skills.
Learn, develop and practise leadership skills.
Achieve personal and team goals in a team environment.
Develop positive self esteem and physical conditioning.
Renew old friendships, and establish new ones.
Have a positive football experience.
Have Fun !

We also believe that there are areas in a player's life that are more important than sports and football. Therefore, we will always defer to the importance of our players' family, school and religious obligations.

The Wolverines Philosophy

To provide fair playing time for all players. We are committed that all Wolverines will play in all regular season games.
To have open and transparent competition for all positions. No reserved positions for veterans or returning players.
To encourage all players to learn more than one position.
To focus on skill development through progressive learning, using mentoring techniques such as positive reinforcement and constructive criticism.
To provide a positive learning and teaching atmosphere, stressing team building and team skills.

The Wolverines Look For and Develop Competitors. Are You One?

So, what's a competitor? Well, rather than us trying to define what a 'competitor' is, just ask yourself if your coaches, teammates, and opponents are likely to make these statements about you.

"He plays like every play means the championship."
"This guy NEVER gives up. He's never beaten mentally."
"He's a BIG PLAY maker. He comes through when the team needs it the most. He might not make fifty yards when you're up twenty points and don't really need them, but if you're tied late in the game and you really need five, he's your go-to guy."
"Watch out or he'll knock you on your butt. He just likes to block."
"He's consistent. He just keeps doing his job, play after play, no matter what the score."
"He makes the real tough catches. You just can't knock him loose from the ball."
"Dropping a pass doesn't discourage him. He comes right back and catches the next one."
"Watch him pursue and tackle when there's an interception."
"He's never totally satisfied with his performance, even if he's awarded the Game Ball."
"Doesn't matter if he's tired. He just keeps on going."
"He comes off the line every single play as if he KNOWS the ball's coming to him, even on a running play. He runs you to death. You can't relax for one minute covering this guy."
"He's not afraid to make mistakes. He never plays cautious; he's always aggressive and on the attack."
"He's more interested in the team's goals than his own. He plays for the name on the front of the jersey, not the one on the back."

If the answer is consistenly "Yes", then you're a competitor. If you have to answer "No" a few times, then do something about it! Everyone can develop these traits. It's not easy, and takes discipline. But it has nothing to do with talent! Competitors have made the decision to become what they are; no one has handed it to them. You can do it too!

The Wolverine Promise

Since our inception, the Wolverines have always believed that a player can only improve his skills if afforded the opportunity to play. Hence the "Wolverine Promise"-

"The Wolverines commit that each and every player who wears the Wolverine Navy and Gold will play in all exhibition and regular season games, according to his commitment, desire, loyalty, hustle and ability."

What does the promise mean?

The promise means that if you play for our club, you will play in each and every regular season game, according to your-

Commitment: Commitment means the level of “buy-in” that you display to the philosophy that all players must first and foremost have the interests of their team and teammates at heart. This means that you do not miss practices or games, or be late for practices or games, without an acceptable reason and without calling coaches beforehand. Commitment means that the goals of the team are more important than the goals of any individual player. In other words, when you spell the word “TEAM”, there is no "I." Commitment means that you are willing to do whatever is required to better yourself by upgrading your skills and abilities, by learning and by working hard for the benefit of yourself and the team.

Desire: Desire is a wishing or longing. It is, in some ways, a quality that is hard to quantify. However, it becomes very evident to a coach early in camp who has it and who doesn’t. Desire does not have to be loud and “rah-rah”; sometimes it can be a fierce, quiet determination to excel. But desire is an absolute necessity for a football player. The Wolverines train desire and a wanting to be the best that you can be, and to never stop striving for the top; after all, you are the only one that can keep you from reaching your goals.

Loyalty: Loyalty is a feeling or attitude of devoted attachment and affection. Let's face it, football is unlike any other sport because football practice alone is not a once-a-week activity. Playing football is a sacrifice, and because of that sacrifice you develop loyalty to the organization and to your teammates. As the team succeeds, you begin to develop pride in knowing that you are part of something good. The Wolverines build on this development and we ask our players to always be loyal to themselves when it comes to making the right decisions, both on and off the football field.

Hustle: Hustle is displaying enthusiasm for the game and for your teammates. Are you always eager to participate in practice? Are you one who never takes a play off? Are you one who listens to the coaches without chattering? Are you one to be first in the huddle, the one who pitches in to carry equipment on and off the field without being asked? If so, you display hustle.

Ability: We believe that ability is the least important of the above qualities. Almost all players of lesser skills are taught to become good football players. However, there are some important safety considerations.

We will not put a player into a position where he is overmatched. To do so is very good recipe for serious injury. Such an injury could happen to the player himself, or to another player who may depend upon him to perform a certain function (i.e., a block). When that function is not performed correctly, injury to another player could result. Therefore, we will not place a player in that position until he has demonstrated his ability to handle the job.

We will always attempt to put players in a position whereby they have the best chance to succeed. This builds confidence, especially in the rookies. Conversely, we won't play a player in a situation where we feel that he may be put at risk. Common sense therefore must dictate that certain players of various skill levels and abilities will be accorded playing time that reflects these skills and abilities.

What does the promise Not mean?

The promise does not mean "equal playing time".

Football is not like other sports. In soccer or hockey, for instance, it is possible to “hide” players of different skill levels by playing them at certain positions. In football, if you do this, you are asking for an injury. Therefore everyone on the field has to know his job.

We do not promise “equal” playing time. No football team can. If they do, they are not being honest.

Instead, we promise “fair” playing time. That time will be determined by the criteria that have been outlined above, and will be different for every player. It will be fair to the player, his teammates and the team.

The promise does not mean playing time in playoff games.

During playoffs, the coaches will play those players that have consistently demonstrated commitment, desire, loyalty, hustle and improved ability through the entire year and that they believe will give the team its best chance of winning the game and advancing further in post-season play, hopefully all the way to the Bantam Provincial Championship game.

It has been said that Bantam football is “rep” football. We do not believe that this is 100% true; we will accommodate players of all skill levels, and find a way for them to succeed on the field. This is normally the function of a house league program, not a rep program. However, Bantam football is a rep program in that we compete for a Provincial title. Also, we will, if necessary, cut players. Normally, house programs do not do either of these things.

Midget football is widely regarded as or "developmental". In our view, these adjectives adequately describe the overall philosophy of our organization. However, there is no denying that emphasis must also be placed on the on-field success of the Wolverine Midget team, and a proper balance must be achieved. We feel that the "Wolverine Promise" strikes the proper balance between player development and competitiveness at both the Bantam and Midget levels.

And in conclusion:

The Wolverines will do anything that is within our power to ensure that all players have a positive football experience. We understand that a rookie who has never played before may be frustrated or intimidated by his inexperience. We can only encourage him to have patience. Players moving up from a younger division or second-year players may receive more playing time than first-year players; again, see the above criteria. If you're a new player, we suggest that you use your rookie year to learn the game, and to get used to the idea of what football is all about (read the section on "commitment!"). We believe that, if you treat your rookie season as the learning experience that it is, you will find your experience with the Wolverines to be a rewarding one.

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