The Barrie North Vikings were scheduled to play Nantyr Shores Thursday for the Simcoe County high school football title, but the team has been disqualified for having an ineligible player.
A complaint was made to the Georgian Bay Secondary School Association citing Vikings receiver Elijah Kent was an ineligible player late last week.
After reviewing the complaint, the GBSSA ruled the Vikings were disqualified from the finals and would be replaced by the Bear Creek Kodiaks.
“We all want kids to have the opportunity to play sports – these rules are in place to ensure fair play,” said GBSSA honorary chairperson Mark Keating. ”OFSAA set these guidelines and we have to abide by them.”
The coaching staff and players were notified Wednesday morning.
“I would’ve rather see me punished and not the team,” said Elijah who now feels he let his team down and they’re all paying for his mistake.
Elijah used to attend Barrie Central Collegiate before moving to Florida in 2015 to live with his aunt and uncle. In January, he returned to Barrie Central but never submitted the required transfer form to play high school football in Barrie.
Following the closure of Barrie Central this past June, Elijah transferred to Barrie North Collegiate Institute.
“The hardest part for everybody is this wasn’t brought up at the beginning of the season and that there might have been an issue and it could be rectified,” said Elijah’s dad Timothy Kent. “Instead they wait until the eleventh hour, the day before the game.”
Under the GBSSA Constitution, all games in which an ineligible player competed that team is given an automatic loss.
