When the 2019 season kicks off on Saturday, August 17 the Quebec Junior Major Football League will look much different compared to recent years.
The most important change is the addition of a new franchise in Quebec City. The new team will be called Le Bataillon and it will play its home games at Stade Phil-Latulippe that is part of the Roger-Comtois High School in the Loretteville section of Quebec City.
The new organization is already well established with a full staff and a large roster of players after a successful recruiting campaign. Alex Gauthier is the head coach and their first home game is scheduled for Sunday, August 25.
The acceptance of this new team was officially confirmed at a recent league meeting and it is the culmination of the relentless efforts of one of the league’s biggest supporters Simon Dupuy, who has relinquished his position as the head coach of the South Shore Bruizers after eight successful seasons. The football team that he led has been transferred to the Greenfield Park Football Association and it has been rebranded as the South Shore Packers. The Packers home games will be at the Pierre-Laporte Park in Greenfield Park and their first home game is scheduled for Sunday, August 25.
The team of the North Shore Sabercats is also undergoing changes. The franchise has been transferred to the Laval Football Association and will change its name to the Laval Bulldogs. They will still play their home games at the same field that the Sabercats, which is Stade Cartier in Laval with Dominique Juliani Jr. as the head coach and their first home game is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 17.
The one thing that will stay the same in 2019 are the teams of the Ottawa Jr. Riders and the Chateauguay Jr. Raiders. They will complete the league’s composition of five teams all playing a balanced 8-game schedule of home-and-away games each.
The detailed information about all the teams will soon be posted on the league’s website as well as the game schedule.
QMJFL press release
Montreal, 28 April 2019
