LIC veteran Garden City faces Newfield
Garden City High School running back #26 Patric Berkery, second from right, celebrates with teammates after rushing for a 29-yard touchdown with 6:29 remaining in the second quarter. (Nov. 11, 2011) Credit: James Escher
It's the newbies from Newfield against the perennials from the Garden (City).
When the Wolverines face the Trojans in the Class II Long Island Championship game, it will mark their first-ever appearance on Long Island football's biggest stage.
Garden City, meanwhile, will be making its 13th appearance in the LIC, which hasn't always been kind to venerable coach Tom Flatley. GC is 4-8, including last season's tough 26-21 loss to Bellport, a game that wasn't decided until the Clippers scored with 1:28 left to give outgoing coach Joe Cipp Jr. his Suffolk-record 211th victory.
The game is at noon, Friday at Hofstra.
Flatley has a record of 235-38-7 (.852) and there is speculation that this could be his final game. Of course, he'd love to go out with a championship and a perfect season. The Trojans (11-0) are the only unbeaten school in Nassau County for 2011 and, as usual, are the toughest to score upon. They have allowed a Long-Island best 4.5 points per game.
Garden City has the Island's best kicker, Division I prospect Ryan Norton, who has kicked five field goals, with a long of 49, nailed 48 of 50 extra points and delivered a touchback on kickoffs more than 80 percent of the time.
The defense features linemen Anton Dobrolezhin and Mike Gilbert, linebacker Eugene Berkery and safety Mark Ellis, who has returned interceptions for TDs in the last two games and is the team's leading rusher and scorer (972 yards, 17 TDs).
The Trojans' defense will be challenged by a punishing Wolverines offense that changed its look in Week 6. Coach Joe Piccininni switched to a full-house backfield and moved Mike Silva from under center to wingback, where he has flourished. Silva rushed for 102 yards on 12 carries in a thrilling come-from-behind victory over East Islip in the Suffolk II title game.
The whole team has flourished lately, having won five in a row, but Piccininni is wary of his opponent's track record. "They've been there 12 times. This is our first," he said. "It's obvious they know the ins and outs of playing in big games. They're disciplined and well-coached. They fly around like crazy defensively."
So do the Wolverine, especially their veteran linebackers, Ron Denig, Julian Santiago and Tom DiuBaldo. "This is the last time they'll be together on the same team," Piccininni said. "They grew up together, and their careers are culminating in the LIC. There's no better way it could end."
Except maybe with a victory on Friday. "What I love about our kids is that they are relentless. They just keep coming at you," Piccininni said. "We're not a finesse team. Our bread and butter has been our physicality this year. We'll come and play football."
For Garden City to be doing just that on Thanksgiving weekend is hardly big news. For Newfield, it's like having holiday celebrations on back-to-back days.
