By TERRY PUGH
Winning the Hardy Cup with the University of Regina Rams football team earlier this month was a “pretty cool” experience for Toryn Swystun-Bernes.
Even if it came at the expense of some of his closest friends from high school.
The Warman resident, who is currently studying at the University of Regina, said the Rams’ 19-14 victory over the University of Saskatchewan Huskies November 9 was one of the toughest games he’s ever played in.
It was right up there with the provincial high school nine-man football championship he and his Martensville Royals teammates won back in November 2021. At that time, Swystun-Bernes lived in Warman but went to Martensville High School because there was no football program at Warman High School. He was one of the captains of the team and an anchor on the Royals’ defenisve line.
But this time around on the University of Saskatchewan’s home field, those former teammates were on the opposite side. While some of his former Royals colleagues signed with the Huskies after graduating from high school, Swystun-Bernes opted to hook up with the Rams.
The University of Regina offered him a scholarship; and he turned down similar offers from the University of Windsor and Queen’s University in Ontario in order to stay closer to his roots. In just his second year with the Rams, he was elevated to the starting nose tackle position after the other two players ahead of him cracked the roster for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the CFL.
“It was a big jump from high school to university football,” he said. “The speed of the game and the size of the players, and also the complexity of the playbook. We called our defensive coordinator ‘the mad scientist’ because everything he draws up is so crazy. But, it works. It just took me a while to get accustomed to the plays.”
Signing with the Rams wasn’t a hard decision for him.
“The Huskies were always the big thing in Saskatoon, Warman and Martensville,” said Swystun-Bernes. “Everyone wanted to play for them. But, I wanted something a little different.
“So in that Hardy Cup game, I was able to play against friends of mine from back home. It kind of brought back some good memories of playing minor football with the Martensville Maddogs, and high school football with the Royals.”
At the same time, victory was sweet.
“The Huskies are a really good football team, and they always kind of looked down on us,” he said. “So it was a pretty cool feeling to defeat them at home in the championship game.”
Swystun-Bernes said he’s looking to keep playing football beyond university, and has his sights set on turning pro with a CFL team.
It may be a lofty goal, but Swystun-Bernes isn’t intimidated. He’s faced plenty of challenges in his young life already.
His mother, Pamela Bernes, said Toryn has dealt with learning disabilities since early childhood. She raised him as a single mother, and said life was never easy for the family as thousands of dollars in therapy had to be paid for privately with little or no assistance from the educational system.
“Toryn was speech and launguage-delayed and could barely speak. He also had a lot of difficulty with his fine motor skills, which resulted in tremors in his hands,” said Bernes. “Writing, typing and speech were very difficult for him all through school. So he had therapy pretty much from the age of one year right up until he was ten.”
She said her son finally received a firm diagnosis after having an MRI done.
“Football was a way for my son to channel his feelings,” said Bernes. “It allowed him to be in control and helped his confidence tremendously. He has worked hard to get in shape and stay physically healthy in order to keep playing football at a high level. He also works in the off-season at a landscaping comany, which keeps his strength up as well.”
She said she’s very proud of her son’s accomplishments.
“He was the youngest player on the defensive line,” she said. “It was a challenge for him, but he met that challenge like he has so many others.”
She said getting involved in sports is important for many young people.
“Sport can be expensive, “ she said. “But, it’s worth it. It provides opportunities for kids and youth. Football has really made a big difference for my son’s life. He’s tough, and that’s not surprising, because Saskatchewan football players as a rule are tough as nails.”