The Cranbrook Rocky Mountain Rams bantam football team had been slated to host the Kamloops Broncos on Saturday afternoon.

The Broncos called to cancel due to injury, and it was news the Rams did not take well.

?They wanted to play,? said head coach Derrik Bishop. ?We worked really hard in practice (last) week, and we thought we were prepared and had a really good chance this weekend. A win?s a win so I guess we?ll take it.?

Out of that disappointment, the Rams decided to carry on the tradition of the annual coaches-versus-players flag football game instead, sponsored by Taylor Adams Chartered Accountants.

This year, the coaching staff took the trophy.

To start off, the attendant players split into two teams, who battled for the right to play the coaches up at Moir Centennial Park.

Bishop joked that having the athletes square off first wears them down a little, giving his side a better shot at beating them.

?All our coaches, we?re pretty old and we?re kind of beaten up so we let the kids beat on each other a little while,? he said. ?The coaches have never lost, so there?s a lot of pressure.?

The opening game allowed the coaches to take note of particular weaknesses, like that of the elastic band in Jeremy Stewart?s shorts that allowed Ryan Smith to pants him on a first-half tackle.

A barbecue followed the good-natured games. Attention now turns back to Kamloops, where the Rams are slated to play on Sunday.

The Rams had opened the Southern Interior Football League season with a humbling 54-0 loss to the Salmon Arm Chargers on Sept. 5.

?After a loss like that one, you really see everything you have to work on, which is kind of a positive if you want to look at it like that,? said Bishop.

?We knew we had some problems moving the ball and we had some problems stopping the ball, so we put in a couple new formations and the kids adapted really well to it. We look like we?re getting stronger and stronger every day.?