Thursday, November 17, 2005

The Road to the Championship Comes to an End

The undefeated story of the 2005 Albany Metro Mallers came to an abrupt end in the Quarterfinal round of the Harvest Bowl Tournament, as the Buffalo Gladiators' aerial assault bombed the Empire Football League Champs into a 44 - 19 season end.

The Gladiators took advantage of the Maller's heretofore smothering defense right from the opening kick off as they drove for the opening score by Matt O'Malley on a 5 yard pass reception just 1:27 into the game. The Mallers, playing without EFL Defensive Player of the Year Middle Linebacker Greg Woodward, had no answer for the passing attack of Gladiator Player-Coach John Augustine, who threw for 320 yards and 4 touchdowns in a 24 for 31 performance. O'Malley and former Syracuse Orange Quarterback Kevin Mason each hauled in 8 passes. The Buffalo entry in the NYAFL balanced their attack with a running game that gained 135 yards on 17 carries and accounted for 2 scores as well.

The Gladiator defense stalled the Maller big play offense holding QB Scott Lawson to his worst performance of the season at 9-19 and a dismal 85 yards and 2 interceptions in just under 3 quarters of play. The Maller power backfield of Sylvester Cooperwood, Jadel Whitfield and Matty Holmes were held to a mere 43 yards on 11 total carries. Reserve QB Ken Schaefer led the team in rushing in his 4th quarter performance gaining 32 yards on 3 carries while throwing 5-14 and 70 yards while engineering  Albany's  2  fourth quarter scoring drives. Whitfield scored on a 3 yard run with 5:17 left and Cooperwood pulled down a 5 yard pass from Schaeffer with just 3 ticks left in the game. Albany converted for 2 following both scores. The Mallers scoring was rounded out by a 26 yard field goal by Vinnie Cirrincione as the first half came to a close.

The Gladiators (13-3) advance to the Semi Final Round of the Harvest Bowl traveling to bean town to take on the AAA Champs of the New England Football League, the (15-0) Boston Bandits on Saturday. In the other Semi-Final, the Middleboro (MA) Cobras (11-1) of the Eastern Football League, travel to the Big Apple to take on the champs of the Garden State Football League (11-1) Brookyn Mariners.

The Albany Metro Mallers finish their season with a record of 16-1, and 28-3 overall since their return to the Capital District last season after a 13 year absence, and look forward to another great season in 2006.

The Metro Mallers wish to extend our thanks for the help and support that you have given us this season. We'll be back for another run in 2006.


Sunday, November 13, 2005

2005 HARVEST BOWL IX 2nd Round Results

Saturday, November 12th, 2005

Buffalo Gladiators (NYAFL) 44   Albany Metro-Mallers (EMFL) 19  

Charlestown Townies (EAFL) 6   Boston Bandits (NEFL) 28
 
Brooklyn Mariners (GSFL) 28  CNY Express (NYAFL) 14

Middleboro Cobras (EAFL) 35   Monroe County Sting (NYAFL) 7


Saturday, November 12, 2005

Metro Mallers facing Buffalo at Knox Field

By The Leader-Herald

JOHNSTOWN - The Albany Metro Mallers and the Harvest Bowl Tournament committee have announced that the Empire Football League champions will face the Buffalo Gladiators in the quarterfinal round of the ninth annual Harvest Bowl tournament Saturday.

Due to necessary renovations previously scheduled for Albany's Bleecker Stadium, the game will be played as a Maller home contest at 7:30 p.m. at Knox Field, home of the Glove Cities Colonials, and the site of numerous Maller-Colonial match-ups in the 1970's and 80's.

Several former Glove Cities Colonials are part of the Metro Mallers organization.

That group includes defensive coordinator Niall Howard as well as players J.P. Howard, Craig Parker, Chip Everett, Akili Abdul Dunkin, Corey Anderson.

The unbeaten and top-seeded Metro Mallers defeated the Seacoast Hawks, 33-6, in the opening round last Saturday at Bleeker Stadium.

The Metro Mallers are 16-0 and come into Saturday's game with a squad that includes 24 players tht were named to the EFL All-Star team, including 17 first team selections.

Albany also board the Empire Football League's Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, Sylvester Cooperwood and Greg Woodward.

The Mallers have outscored opponents by a 471-75 margin this season and amassed more than 4,000 yards of total Offense.

The Buffalo Gladiators, from the New York Amateur Football League, feature a high-powered offense which racked up 29 aerial scores to go with 14 more on the ground under the direction of Quarterback John

Augustine in the regular season. His favorite targets are Matt O'Malley

who hauled in 46 receptions and nine touchdowns, and Kevin Mason who caught 25 passes and scored 10 times. The Gladiators' leading rusher in the regular season was Shawn Capolla who gained 444 yards to go along with five scores.

The Gladiators are 10-3 overall this season and finished in third place in the NYAFL. All three of the Buffalo losses came at the hands of the Central NY Express of Syracuse.

The winner of tonight's contest moves on to the Harvest Bowl semifinals.

This game will be webcast through TEAMLINE.For more information, go to www.metromallers.com or www.harvestbowl.com.


Friday, November 11, 2005

Metro Mallers

Metro Mallers: The 16-0 Albany Metro Mallers of the Empire Football League will play the Buffalo Gladiators at Knox Field in Johnstown in a quarterfinal game of the ninth annual Harvest Bowl football tournament Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

The game was moved from Bleecker Stadium because renovation work is being done at the Albany field.

Wednesday, November 09, 2005

Mallers Quarter Final Foe Set

The Albany Metro Mallers and the Harvest Bowl Tournament committee have announced that the Empire Football League Champion will face The Buffalo Gladiators in the Quarterfinal Round of the 9th annual Harvest Bowl Tournament this Saturday Night. Due to necessary renovations previously scheduled for Albany's Bleecker Stadium, the game will be played as a Maller home contest at 7:30 pm at Knox Field in Johnstown, NY, home of the Glove City Colonials, and the site of numerous great Maller-Colonial match ups in the 1970's and 80's.

The Buffalo Gladiators, from the New York Amateur  Football League, feature a high powered offense which racked up 29 aerial scores to go with 14 more on the ground under the direction of Quarterback John Augustine in the regular season. His favorite targets are Matt O'Malley who hauled in 46 receptions and 9 Touchdowns, and Kevin Mason who caught
25 passes and scored 10 times. Leading rusher in the regular season was Shawn Capolla who gained 444 yards to go along with 5  TD's. The Gladiators are 10 - 3 overall this season and finished in third place in the NYAFL. All three of the Buffalo losses came at the hands of the Central NY Express of Syracuse.

The Albany Metro Mallers are 16 - 0, in 2005, while becoming the Champions of the Empire Football League. They go into Johnstown with a deep experienced squad that includes an incredible 24 players being named to the EFL All Star Team, including 17 First Team Selections, led by the Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year Sylvester Cooperwood
and Greg Woodward. The Mallers this year have out scored opponents by 396 points 471 - 75 and amassed over 4000 yards of total Offense.

The 9th annual Harvest Bowl Tournament has 3 other Quarterfinal match ups this weekend:
Brooklyn (NY) Mariners at Central NY Express, Charlestown (MA) Townies at Boston  Bandits, and the Middleboro (MA) Cobra's taking on the Monroe County (NY) Sting: all leading up to the Harvest Bowl Championship game on Saturday, November 26th.

This game will be webcast through TEAMLINE. http://www.teamline.cc/sportpages.html?teamcode=4150&eventcode=0035


 

Sunday, November 06, 2005

Metro Mallers Pass the First Harvest Hurdle

The Metro Mallers 2005 quest for an Undefeated National Semipro Football Championship Season became 1 step closer tonight as the Albany powerhouse (16-0) came away with a 34 - 6 victory over the Seacoast Hawks in the opening round of the ninth annual Harvest Bowl Tournament.

The Mallers came out of the gates like a triple crown 3 year old stifeling the Hawks, three and out on their first possession before a bad center snap on a fourth down punt was recovered by linebacker Sean Hardy to set up the Mallers in Hawks territory. Following a Scott Lawson to Collis Martin 22 yard catch & run, Empire Football League Offensive Player of the Year Sylvester Cooperwood hit the center of the line into the endzone for Albany's first score at the 10:44 mark of the first period. Add in a Vinnie Cirrincione PAT and the Mallers were up 7- 0.
After the ensuing Kickoff, the NEFL AA Champs from New Hampshire were again stopped in their tracks by the Maller's powerhouse defense but this time they managed to get the punt up in the air. When it came down into the hands of Farid Baaklini, he took off down the left side line and scampered 54 yard downfield for another Albany score, putting the EFL Champs up 13-0 just 6:29 into the contest. Even when faced with a Seacoast first and goal at the three yard line following an Albany bad snap, the Mallers gained strength from the Defense, and held on four downs, taking the ball back, and marching down field, setting up Jadel Whitfield, as he punched in another score at with 9:25 left in the first half, the team cruised into the locker room with a 20-0 half time lead.

But there was no doubt that the Hawks traveled from New Hampshire to play a full 60 minutes, despite being continually shut down by the Albany Defense, the Hawks came out in after the break & kept pounding away at the heart of the Albany defense until it finally gave way. Running Back Mike Craig, broke 2 tackles and sped downfield 80 yards before Albany Safety Damon Walker caught him from behind at the two yard line. Two plays later, Craig found the end zone and put The Hawks up on the board with six.

Then up stepped the veteran EFL All stars Bo Gaudreau and Matt Holmes. Gaudreau on a crucial third quarter third and 16, sliced across the middle with a 18 yard catch and carry (carrying 4 Hawks on his back that is) for the first down to keep the drive alive and then Holmes followed up a 17 yard completion from QB Ken Schaeffer to Collis Martin with a 12
yard catch and run of his own from Schaeffer and a 4 yard off tackle run into the endzone to stretch the lead back up to 21 points at 27 - 6 with just under 5 minutes left in the third quarter; and he wasn't done yet. As the final stanza got under way , QB J. P. Howard led yet another Albany drive down field with passes of 11 acrobatic yards to Akili Dunkin and 16 yards to Sylvester Cooperwood. Holmes capped the drive with a 12 yard outside-in run off left tackle to ice the game at 34 - 6.

In other Harvest Bowl action the #2 seed 10-0 Lowell (MA) Nor'easter of the New England Football League was upset by the 14th seeded Charlestown (MA) Townies (4-4) of the Eastern Football league.

Albany moves on to the Harvest Bowl Classics' Quarterfinal round next Saturday November 12th, in a game to be played at Knox Field in Johnstown, NY at the home of the Glove City Colonials. Opponent to be Announced.


Saturday, November 05, 2005

Dragons to begin national playoffs against formidable New England foe

 
BY BRIAN MORITZ
Press & Sun-Bulletin

More than a month after their last game, the Broome County Dragons will return to the field tonight.

The Dragons (6-4) are scheduled to take on the Boston Bandits (13-0) in the first-round of the Harvest Bowl National Championship tournament at 7 p.m. at East Boston Stadium.

The Harvest Bowl is a 16-team tournament featuring semi-pro teams from four leagues, including the Empire Football League. Last season, the CNY Express out of Syracuse won the Harvest Bowl.

The Dragons (6-4) lost to Lake City on Oct. 1 in the first round of the EFL playoffs. However, in rankings compiled by the Harvest Bowl that take strength of schedule into account, the Dragons were the second-highest team in the EFL behind Albany and earned a spot in the tournament.

The Dragons relied heavily on their passing attack. Quarterback Ty Fish threw for an EFL-best 1,800 yards this season and had 16 touchdown passes. Three Broome County receivers were among the league's top 10 in receiving yards. Jonathan Bechy led the league with 553 yards receiving.

The Bandits won the New England Football League championship. They outscored their opponents, 342-68.


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