Mets, Yankee fans say alliances spur friendly rivalry

In the land of Yankee and Met fandom, these four friends have picked their sides, and it's a draw.

Raymond Nader and Christopher Williams of Greenlawn are die-hard Yankees fans, while their buddies, Frankie Rafanelli and Vernon Leake, swear by the Mets. The group of friends met at Instant Replay sports bar in Huntington Station before Friday's game to have a drink and some food and talk trash.

"There is a dividing line during the game," said Nader, 37, of Melville, admitting alliances sometimes get in the way of friendship. "All we do is argue all the time."

Sporting a Mets jersey, Rafanelli, 46, said he was feeling confident about his team.

"You have to play the best to know you're the best," said Rafanelli, of East Northport. "I'm really confident. If we take tonight, I think we could sweep."

But Williams teased that the Mets likely wouldn't have to worry about postseason play.

"One thing you find about a Mets fan: They never buy a hot dog at Citi Field after September," he said.

At Yankee Stadium, Friday's Subway Series matchup attracted a wide range of Islanders.

Laurie Hlavaty of Islip Terrace wore a Yankees shirt, while her nieces, Kristine Alemany, 21, and Tiffany Alemany, 20, wore Mets gear. The sisters, who were visiting from North Carolina, grew up watching Mets games with their dad, they said.

Hlavaty joked that she respects the right of Mets fans to "make a bad decision."

"As long as we have a good game, that's all we care about," she said.

Hector Hernandez of Brentwood and Luis Verges of the Bronx are two of five brothers in a baseball-loving family. Three are Yankees fans, two Mets.

"It's always a problem," said Verges, 42, a Mets fan. "I've been through a lot."

Hernandez, 37, says he rooted for the Yankees in large part to contradict his brother. "I don't bother him too much," Hernandez said. "It's too easy."

Verges bought tickets to Friday's game for his brother. Would Verges, who wore a Mets jersey, cheer inside Yankee Stadium? "It depends what the score is," he said.

Bohemia native Doug Ekberg, 47, wore a Mets-Yankees jersey he stitched himself. "It's one of a kind," said Ekberg, who lives near Naples, Fla., and often roots against the Yankees.

Nick Danisi, 52, his son, Nick, 19, and the younger Danisi's girlfriend, Michela Christianson, 15, all of Valley Stream, faced potential trouble. Both Danisis love the Yankees, but Christianson grew up a Mets fan.

"That's their problem," the elder Danisi said, laughing.

John Donnarumma of Lynbrook and his wife, Madeline, brought sons John, 7, and Peter, 5, in Mets jerseys. When the Yankees made it to the World Series last year, John bought the family Phillies caps - the Yankees' opponent and the Mets' division rival.

"My uncle tried to take me to Yankee Stadium" growing up, he said. "When I learned to drive and think for myself, I became a Mets fan."

With Deborah S. Morris