Story by Lawrence Phillips 

The Manchester Youth Football League Division 2 Red Raiders received a police escort from the Manchester Police Department on their way out of town heading to their first ever SMTYFA Super Bowl appearance.

Shelbyville won the toss and elected to receive.

On the third play of the game Steven Bobo of Shelbyville sliced through the Raiders defense for a touchdown which was the beginning of a career day for Bobo. The extra point run was good and Shelbyville lead 7-0.

Manchester answered with a reverse that resulted in a long toss from AJ Whitman to Matthew White for the touchdown. White added an extra point kick for an additional 3 points and Manchester lead 9-7.

Shelbyville fumbled on the next possession and Manchester drove down the field and scored again when White escaped from the Shelbyville defense. White added another extra point kick making the score 18-7.

After that it became the Steven Bobo show as he scored on long runs in back to back possessions making it Shelbyville 21 Manchester 18 at halftime.

In the second half it was all Shelbyville with a stingy defense which throttled the Red Raider offense and Bobo running for 3 additional touch downs. Shelbyville added another score in the 4th to make the final score Shelbyville 40 Manchester 18.

Congratulations to the MYFL Division 2 Red Raiders on their second place finish in the SMTYFA 2018 season.

The Titans lost a heartstopper — and a heartbreaker — here on Sunday.

Instead of leaving the United Kingdom in jubilation, the Titans left facing a long flight home following a 20-19 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers before 84,301 fans at Wembley Stadium.

“It hurts. It hurts a lot,” Titans receiver Taywan Taylor said. “We came here to win, and we thought we were going to win all the way to the very end. Unfortunately, it didn’t happen.”

Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota connected with tight end Luke Stocker for a one-yard touchdown with just 31 seconds left, which capped off a gutsy, 13-play, 89-yard drive in the closing minutes.

But the ensuing two-point try – a pass into the end zone to Taylor — failed.

“We wanted to win the game,” Titans coach Mike Vrabel said of the decision. “I am not going to second-guess the call. It just didn’t work out. … I am just trying to do what is best for the team, and trying to find a way to win a football game. I haven’t done a very good job the last few weeks. I have a lot of faith in our players. Faced with the same situation, I’d like to think I’d do it the same way.”

Players liked the decision to go for two. The result was the only thing that bothered them.

On the two-point try, Mariota’s pass to Taylor was tipped, and it sailed over his head. The two-point play originated from the Chargers one-yard line after a penalty on the first two-point try.

“We came all this way to win,” running back Dion Lewis said. “If you said before the game, ‘You have one play, and a yard to win the game.’ You’d sign up for that before the game even started. We’ve been aggressive in the past, so why wouldn’t we do it this time? It’s just unfortunate it didn’t work out.”

The Titans dropped to 3-4.

Mariota completed 24-of-32 passes for 237 yards and a touchdown in the game. With pressure on him, Mariota orchestrated the final drive, and put the Titans in a position to win.

But as the tipped ball sailed over Taylor’s head, Mariota and the rest of his teammates left disappointed.

“I loved the call, and I love (Vrabel) has the confidence in us,” Mariota said. “We just didn’t execute. They did a great job covering it, and I probably should have done a better job extending the play.

“There’s definitely more I wish I could have done. … It doesn’t feel good.”

The Titans took a 3-0 lead on their first possession on a 28-yard field goal by kicker Ryan Succop.

But the Chargers answered back quickly on a 75-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Philip Rivers to receiver Tyrell Williams, who got behind Titans cornerback Logan Ryan. The Chargers stretched the lead to 10-3 on a field goal by kicker Michael Badgley, before another field goal by Succop made it 10-6 with 12:51 in the first half.

The Titans put together a great drive late in the first half, moving the ball from their own five-yard line to the Chargers 10 in the final minutes of the first half. But a tipped Mariota pass was intercepted by Chargers linebacker Melvin Ingram near the goal line, and the Titans ended up with no points.

It was the first interception in the red zone in Mariota’s career.

The Titans had another defensive lapse early in the third quarter, and it cost them. Rivers found receiver Mike Williams on a 55-yard touchdown, which made it 17-6. Titans safety Kendrick Lewis let Williams get behind him for the score.

But the Titans got off the mat.

The Titans cut the lead to 17-13 on a one-yard touchdown run by running back Derrick Henry, which capped off a seven-play, 42-yard drive that was set up by a nice return by Darius Jennings. The Chargers made it 20-13 on another Badgley field goal with 12:29 left. A missed field goal by Succop from 51 yards out kept the score unchanged with 8:21 left.

Then came the dramatic finish.

The Titans return to action on November 5 – a Monday Night Football game against the Cowboys in Arlington, Texans.

“If we’d made that play, people would have said it was the best call ever,” Titans center Ben Jones said. “We were one play away, and if we’d won, it would have been amazing. But it didn’t work out. We didn’t execute on the last play.

“We have plenty of games left to get hot, and get on a roll. Now we just have to find a way to do it.”

Juuse Saros of the Nashville Predators

They swept Alberta – no bull.

P.K. Subban potted a shorthanded goal and Juuse Saros stopped all 31 shots he faced, as the Nashville Predators shut out the Edmonton Oilers, 3-0, on Saturday night at Rogers Place.

The result give the Preds a sweep of Alberta, Canada, during their first back-to-back set of games this season, including a win over the Flames in Calgary on Friday. It’s Nashville’s fifth consecutive victory overall, as well as their 13th-straight triumph against the Oilers.

“We knew before the game they have lots of talent, so we tried to be solid in the defensive zone,” Saros said. “We were today, and our penalty kill was great today, too.”

Nashville scored at least three goals for the fifth consecutive contest, but it was the defensive effort from the visitors to keep Connor McDavid and the Oilers off the scoresheet that was equally impressive.

“We’ll count our blessings,” Subban said of holding McDavid at bay. “He’s an explosive player… What else can you say about him? All you have to do is just watch him out there. He’s so fast and he makes quick plays but I thought we [were able to manage him].”

After a scoreless opening period, Subban called his own number during a shorthanded 2-on-1 rush to put Nashville ahead 1-0 midway through the second. The defenseman fired a low wrister far side for the first shorthanded goal of his career, and things finally got going for the visitors.

Roughly 90 seconds later, Viktor Arvidsson hit Nick Bonino with a pass and the center went right back to Arvidsson, who beat Oilers netminder Cam Talbot with a quick shot. After a quiet 33 minutes for both clubs, the Predators pounced on the momentum boost from Subban’s play and exited the second period up two goals to none.

Edmonton had their best offensive chances in the final frame, but Saros and the Preds combined to give the young netminder his fifth career shutout, and Roman Josi sealed it with an empty-netter in the final minute.

Just moments after the final horn sounded and the Preds retreated to their locker room, their head coach emerged sporting a bull head for his postgame media availability.

You see, Peter Laviolette made a bet with his players that if they swept the back-to-back trip through Calgary and Edmonton, he would make good on his end of the bargain. Challenge accepted.

Preds Head Coach Peter Laviolette sports a bull mask for his postgame media availability in Edmonton after his club won back-to-back games in Alberta.
Preds Head Coach Peter Laviolette sports a bull mask for his postgame media availability in Edmonton after his club won back-to-back games in Alberta. Nashville Predators

“I’ve said it before, Lavi is an amazing person and a fun person to work with every day,” Subban said of his coach. “Good on him to hold up his end of the bet. For us as a team, it’s an 82-game season, and it can be a long season. But when you’re coming on the road on a back-to-back with a 5-1-0 record, it’s a little extra motivation and we’re having some fun, but good on him.”

Shorty Get Down:

Even just seeing P.K. Subban charging up the ice with the puck and open space ahead of him felt a little out of place for the offensively gifted defenseman. Perhaps, in the moment, the blueliner felt like he was a child again skating in the outdoor rinks of Canada.

Positional discrepancy or not, Subban did it all himself during his second period, 2-on-1 rush, with the Predators down a man, and registered the first shorthanded goal of his career.

He had to shoot, right? When would he ever have a chance like that again?

“I have to be honest, I felt like [NHL legend and two-time, 50-goal scorer] Peter Bondra coming down the wing there, just high stepping, quick snap,” Subban joked. “Probably don’t look for me to do that too much, but I tired to work on my footwork and my speed this summer and it was a perfect opportunity to get up there. I just jumped in and tried to make a play and luckily it went in for me.”

Notes:

Prior to the game, Preds goaltender Pekka Rinne was placed on Injured Reserve. Miroslav Svoboda was recalled from the ECHL to serve as the backup netminder to Juuse Saros.

Frederick Gaudreau entered the Predators’ lineup in favor of Miikka Salomaki, who was a healthy scratch, and played his third game of the season.

Nashville has won 13 consecutive games against Edmonton, its longest active winning streak against an opponent. Nashville’s streak began with a 4-1 win over Edmonton on Oct. 29, 2014. During the streak, the Preds have outscored the Oilers 40-15 and limited them to two-or-fewer goals 12 times, including five shutouts.

P.K. Subban has tallied 18 points (3g-15a) in 17 career games against Edmonton, including five points in his last five games (1g-4a).

Pete Weber’s Postgame Report

Nashville SC was equal to the best team in USL history, FC Cincinnati for 120 minutes in Cincinnati on Saturday night, but fell in penalty kicks in a gut-wrenching loss in the opening round of the USL Cup Playoffs.

120 in a Nutshell

With everything on the line, FC Cincinnati came out of the gate with an immediate offensive mindset. In the 10’ Cincy earned the first corner kick of the match before forcing Nashville keeper Matt Pickens to make a key swat in the 17’ minute to stop a potential Cincinnati break-away situation.

After settling in, Nashville’s best opportunity in the first half came in the 24’ on a free kick from 30 yards out. After the initial header, Ropapa Mensah put what was the first shot on frame for either side. His header forced the Cincinnati keeper to make a save to keep SC off the board. Mensah continued to give Cincinnati’s back line issues in the first half, putting another shot on frame in the 40’, forcing another save by FCC keeper Spencer Richey.

After the halftime break, Nashville came out itching to score the first goal of the evening. In the 48’ minute, Winn nearly netted the go-ahead goal after taking a shot from point blank range just in front of the goal, but the Cincinnati keeper made an impressive save to keep things scoreless.

Mensah continued to be an offensive threat throughout the second half, putting dangerous shots toward Cincinnati’s goal. He nearly bent in a shot from outside the 18 in the 74’ that hit the crossbar before firing another shot in the 80’ that forced Cincy’s fourth save of the night. Neither team was able to find a game-winning goal in the final 10 minutes of regulation, sending the sides into extra time.

Five minutes into extra time, Cincinnati broke the deadlock to take a 1-0 lead. After possessing the ball in the FC Cincy attacking third, Kenney Walker played a ball to Corben Bone in space who struck the ball into the back of the Nashville net.

Nashville kept its poise and found the equalizer in the 114’. After a free kick deflected to set up a Nashville corner, Bradley Bourgeois struck the ball beautifully and it deflected just over the Cincy keeper into the back of the net.

Brandon Allen nearly put the game away in the 117’ but another great save kept the game tied. Ultimately 120 minutes wasn’t enough to decide it and the game went to PKs.

Both teams had all five PK takers score, but SC’s sixth PK taker of the night, Justin Davis, missed the net. Cincinnati’s Kenny Walker then scored to advance Cincinnati to the next round

Goals

95’ FCC – Corben Bone (assisted by Kenney Walker)

114’ NSH – Bradley Bourgeois (assisted Kris Tyrpak)

Quotable

“They still have not beaten us in regular time. That is a tremendous feat given what they have at their disposal. To go down in extra time and equalize is phenomenal.”

Up Next

Nashville’s season comes to an end and the team will head into its first offseason. Stay tuned to NashvilleSC.com for all the latest news and updates from the club.

Zac Rinaldo tallied the game-winner and Juuse Saros was perfect in relief as the Nashville Predators defeated the Calgary Flames by a 5-3 final on Friday night at the Scotiabank Saddledome. It’s Nashville’s fourth-consecutive victory, giving them a bit of revenge after being shut out by the Flames last week.

The two clubs went back and forth all night, but Calgary never had the lead, and the Preds kept finding ways to outlast their opponents throughout.

“That’s just hockey,” Rinaldo said. “That’s the way it goes sometimes, and the teams that are going to come out on top of those games are the teams that stick with the game plan and are patient in their system.”

“We did some good things, they did some good things, but it was a tie game there and we needed a big play,” Preds Center Ryan Johansen said. “It came from a guy who probably deserved it the most at that time, so we were pumped for [Rinaldo] to get on the board there with our club and make a huge impact like that.”

Saros entered the game in the third period after goaltender Pekka Rinne left the contest upon chatting with Predators Head Athletic Trainer Andy Hosler at the bench. Rinne was involved in an inadvertent collision with forward Kevin Fiala minutes before exiting.

Predators Head Coach Peter Laviolette did not have an update on Rinne’s condition following the game.

Less than a minute into the night, Johansen’s path to the net was clear, as was Filip Forsberg’s lane to hit him with a pass, and the center converted to put Nashville ahead 1-0. Johansen extended his point streak to four consecutive games with his second goal of the year.

The visitors’ defense limited the Flames to three shots in the opening period, but winger Elias Lindholm fired home his fifth of the campaign to even the score at 18:43 of the first frame.

In the second, the Predators second line broke through, featuring Fiala’s first point of the season. The Swiss winger collected the puck in the corner and sent a pass to Kyle Turris, who used a slap pass over to Craig Smith all alone in the slot for Nashville’s second tally. Smith waited out Flames netminder Mike Smith, to sneak a backhander inside the post.

Shortly after the Flames knotted the score, 2-2, Nashville acquired a four-minute power play thanks to a James Neal high stick. Twenty-nine seconds into the man advantage, a Ryan Ellis shot created a scramble in front and the puck found Fiala, who put an exclamation point on ending his early-season slump by scoring his first goal.

After Calgary tied the game once more in the third on a goal from Sam Bennett, it was none other than Rinaldo who kept the puck and sniped off a 2-on-1 to give Nashville the last lead they needed on the night.

“The bench was fired up,” Laviolette said. “It was just a great play. We ended up catching numbers going the other way… and it was a big goal.”

Forsberg iced it into an empty net with his fifth of the season and Saros stopped all nine shots he faced to become the goaltender of record and collect his third win on the campaign.

It’s a quick turnaround for the Predators as they jet off to Edmonton to face the Oilers on Saturday night, but there is certainly momentum to ride in the Nashville room as they search for a fifth-straight triumph.

“We’re really confident,” Rinaldo said. “We have that swag, we have attitude every single game, we bring speed every single game, but the thing about this group is we don’t get comfortable. We know every game is going to be a hard-working game. We’re confident, but not comfortable.”

Cold-Pressed Juice:

It’s one thing for a goaltender to make a point-blank save on the doorstep at any point in a hockey game.

But, to do so after sitting on the bench for the first 45 minutes of the evening? Take a bow, Juuse Saros.

It was the first shot Saros faced – a bang-bang chance from Elias Lindholm – after coming on in relief of Pekka Rinne who left the game five minutes into the third period that made the highlight reel. The stop kept the game tied at the moment, paving the way for Zac Rinaldo and Filip Forsberg to give Nashville their fourth-straight win.

“We wanted to test him early and make sure he got into it,” Johansen joked of an early test for Saros. “We just let him do his thing. It’s tough on a goalie like that, but he was ready to go and made a huge save as soon as he got in there.”

“There’s a lot of confidence in both goaltenders, but that’s a tough situation,” Laviolette said. “His first save might’ve been his best save. It happened right away, a point-blank, backdoor chance, and there was one or two more of those, but that’s the life of a goaltender. When you’re not starting, you have to be ready at any moment, and he came in and did his job really well.”

Finally for Fiala:

Kevin Fiala has been his own harshest critic during a six-game stretch without a point to open the 2018-19 season. Head coach Peter Laviolette said he’d chatted with the 22-year-old Fiala. Associate captain Ryan Ellis offered advice when the forward asked for some.

In short, all parties involved kept saying Fiala’s approach to the game and chances generated were on the right path, which meant only time was needed to be added to the mixture.

“Kevin had a couple more looks that were really dangerous, and [Flames goaltender Mike Smith] made some nice saves on him,” Laviolette said. “But you could tell it was going to come, so it’s nice to get him going.”

In game No. 7 of the year, Fiala started a quick cycle with his linemates, leading to the Preds’ second goal of the game and his first assist. In the second period, Fiala sent a loose puck into the net, with Nashville on the power play, for his first goal of the season.

In one game, the slump was definitely finished.

Notes:

The Preds have now earned at least six wins through their first seven games in a season for the third time in franchise history (also went 7-0-0 in 2005-06 and 6-1-0 in 2015-16).

Rinaldo’s goal was his first point as a member of the Predators.