| Annual battle is about culture and camaraderie |
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| Local Content - Local Sports |
| Written by publisher |
| Tuesday, 23 February 2010 16:09 |
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By Paul Grigaitis Over 600 people attended the 28th annual Battle of the Little Big Puck Feb. 20 which brought in over $3,600 for equipment for the new integrated health care facility. Maple Creek’s traditional friendly hockey game between local cowboys and Indians brought in $3,161 through admissions and $520 through 50-50 tickets for a combined total of $3,681 that was announced to a round of applause immediately following the game. The Battle of Little Big Puck is a tradition that was born in the beverage room of the Commercial Hotel in the late 1970s. The first battle was held in Maple Creek in 1978. The event has skipped the odd year, but organizers say it still carries the same kind of enthusiasm that bonds the community with one common goal – charity. “It’s been a fundraiser the whole time for different things, mostly for the hospital, the ambulance and the old folks home. There was a couple years there when we held it for the rink,” said this year’s organizer Bobbie Maines Jr. Aside from charity, the event is symbolic of the way the two cultures interact with each other, he said. “We’re all just kind of together here. It’s always been that way. They’re proud of being Indians and we are proud of being cowboys.” In order to play in the Battle of the Little Big Puck, cowboys from Maple Creek or the surrounding area must have held at one time a membership card for a recognized rodeo association. To play for the Indians team, players must be a member or have been a member of Nekaneet First Nation. Dale Mosquito said he has played for the Indians team every year except for maybe one or two. “It’s always an exciting event,” Mosquito said immediately following Saturday’s game. “After 28 years, you would think it would lose momentum, but it doesn’t.” The enthusiasm was evident on the ice as players from both sides wore smiles and shared laughs with each other both during and in between plays. The enthusiasm was also evident among the audience who let out a roar of cheers for each and every of the 19 goals scored in the back-and-forth battle. During the first two periods of the hockey game, players from both sides wear traditional hockey gear, but for the third period they swap helmets for cowboy hats and headdresses. The final minute of play is a free for all with every player in the game permitted to skate. In the end, the cowboys won the 2010 game by a score of 10-9, but Mosquito said the game is more about the community than the score. Mosquito said members of Nekaneet First Nation have traditionally worked for cowboys since the reserve’s inception in the early 1950s. The Battle of the Little Big Puck, he said, is an example of the camaraderie that exists between two very proud cultures and that camaraderie is an example for their children. “It’s actually for them,” Mosquito said. |
