Give a boy a football in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan and he will dream of being a Saskatchewan Roughriders player. So goes the theme of The Always Team, a new children's picture book by former TV anchor and journalist Holly Preston.

With vibrant, zany illustrations by former Regina resident Val Lawton, the book welcomes a pint-sized new generation of Rider fans. Complete with an authentic signature by the team mascot, Gainer the Gopher, it's a delightful story of three Saskatchewan boys who love football. They set out to learn from the Riders during a visit to Mosaic Stadium on game day.

“In the season leading to the Riders' Grey Cup victory in 2007, I was struck by the number of children attending games with their families,” Preston said. “I thought there should be a way to welcome them into the fold.” So The Always Team is dedicated to “all young Rider fans who know that football helmets really do grow from watermelon seeds”.

Preston works as a freelance writer and part-time radio host in Calgary. The hardcover book, from Your Nickel's Worth Publishing in Regina, sells for Cdn $19.95 at Saskatchewan Roughrider stores in Regina and Saskatoon and online at Riderville.com.

At 1 p.m. on September 11, Preston will attend a book-signing event at the Rider Store in Regina's Northgate Mall.

Sheri Trapp
Communications, Saskatchewan Roughriders
Regina, Canada

(September 8, 2010)


Three boys set out to learn on a visit to
Mosaic Stadium, home of the Roughriders.

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