The debut of the first Vineyard football team, under the guidance of Coaches John Kelley, Daniel McCarthy and Stanley Whitman, will take place tomorrow afternoon on the newly laid-out field at t
They came, they saw, they squished.
Using their clumsy "Squish the Grapes" battle cry, the Nantucket Whalers rumbled into Oak Bluffs Saturday and pounded the Martha's Vineyard high school football team 30-13 in a predictable, impressive triumph. The victory before 2,500 Island fans marked the third consecutive Island Cup win for the Super Bowl-bound Whalers.
NANTUCKET - The Vineyard football team wasn't even supposed to be here, the gridiron gods tell us. They weren't supposed to be playing for the Island Cup, the Mayflower League conference title and a Super Bowl berth versus Nantucket. Heck, they were supposed to be playing for third place.
But here the Vineyard was, on a warm Saturday in Whaler country, and they ran smack into an oncoming train. Nantucket powered its way to a 23-7 win, providing a dose of reality to the Vineyarders' overachieving 7-3 season.
Depending on whom you talk to, what happened on Nantucket in November of 1992 is like a pleasant dream or a recurring nightmare.
"It was my worst loss ever in 31 years," exclaims Nantucket head football coach Vito Capizzo.
"It was my biggest win," says Vineyard coach Donald Herman.
Things looked bleak for Martha's Vineyard when Aaron Fox's one-yard touchdown plunge spotted Nantucket a 12-0 lead with 4:46 left. The Whalers had controlled the game from the opening drive, pounding the Vineyard with a balanced running and passing attack. Once again Nantucket attempted a two-point conversion; they were foiled by Mike Dowd's crunching hit on the goal line. The Whalers' inability to score extra points left a window for the Comeback, albeit a very small one.
