By Michael Letendre
BRISTOL – The football team from Bristol Central squares off against Fairfield Warde tonight in a Connecticut High School Football Alliance game in Bristol.
And this contest could see the Rams finally stash a ‘W’ in the win column.
Warde was a tremendous program last season, defeating Bristol Eastern 27-7 over a bit of a romp.
However, both Fairfield and Central are looking for that first elusive victory and by the completion of forty-eight grueling minutes, only one team will still be winless tonight.
This is a great way for the locals to open their home portion of the schedule and here’s what to expect tonight from the turf at BCHS:
Fairfield Warde (0-2) at Bristol Central (0-2)
Time: 6 p.m. (The turf field from BCHS)
The Series: This is the first ever showdown between the programs.
Last Season: Warde, a member of the FCIAC (Eastern region), who plays the likes of Wilton, Darien and New Canaan, went 5-5 last season.
Last Week: Central fell at New Britain (13-6) while Warde was absolutely blitzed by New Canaan (47-0).
What to expect: Here’s the real stat of the showdown: Fairfield Warde has yet to score a point this season – outscored 84-0 to date…This Mustangs’ program is extremely young and returned very few experienced players to the fold…Central’s Jack Hartley should be able to carve up the Warde defense as New Canaan racked up nearly 220 rushing yards against that undermanned defense…Warde trailed 38-0 at the half at New Canaan and never recovered…This is going to be an up-hill battle against the Rams who should truly get off the snide, especially if Jack Jones and the defense is churning early…Jones led another impressive defensive assault, squatting away a team best 10 tackles against New Britain while adding a tackle for a loss along the way…Tyler Ryan flipped in nine tackles, Aiden Lamarre nabbed eight while Anthony Paulino and Quincy Lawson (interception) had five tackles apiece…Lamarre and Paulino also added tackles for a loss while Tashwan Cauley, Ayden Pratt and Lawson combined for two sacks…Lance Archibald and Jones both made fumble recoveries for Central…Hartley was impressive against New Britain, as was Tristian Toussaint, and the offense was knocking at the door late in the showdown before time ran out. That’s all growth in the positive direction…Central nearly nabbed 250 in total yards with Hartley rushing all around the field…Bad luck and a couple costly gaffs did not allow the locals to tally one final score to force overtime…To date, the Rams have been outscored 56-6 but that number should look a lot better if the squad from Bristol can put together four full quarters.
