Barbarians: Best is yet to come

The only remaining team from the inaugural season of the Commonwealth Football League is on the ropes in 2005 with a 0-3 record, as the Barbarians are facing playoff elimination as they ready for their battle with the Tinian Typhoon (1-2) this Saturday at the CPA Airport Field.

After taking one on the chin to the undefeated Shell Lightning over the weekend, the Barbarians took some time to reflect upon what has gotten them to this point early on in the season.

“We still need some more guys now. When we started to play in the first quarter we were alright, but a few plays some of our players sat out because they were too tired,” said two-way player Asterio Tawanpiy.

It doesn’t take the trained football eye to notice that the Black and Gold are lining up with half as many players on their sidelines as their competitors every week, and the lack of fresh bodies is taking it’s toll on the ruff and tumble squad.

Last season the Barbarians had big men strapping on the pads on the defensive side of the ball, but a rash of injuries, players joining the military, and people leaving island has sapped the once intimidating unit.

“We lost Ambrose [Ogomuro], Sid [Tebuteb] and John [Ogomuro] to the military, and Jack Barcinas moved to States—there’s four guys right there. We just got Jay Tilipao back and now we’ve got a thing without quarterback. We just can’t get in synch. We’re making a lot of missed tackles on defense and when our offense looks like it’s starting to move, it stalls,” said Barbarians coach Chong Won.

Their record is not an accurate indicator of the heart of the Barbarians, as the undermanned team has the league’s second-rated passing attack and are only 36 yards behind the Lightning for the second best rushing game at 180 yards.

Despite the big totals, their chances don’t get much better this weekend as they will most likely be without the services of starting quarterback Plasido Tagabuel when they face Keith Nabors, Blake Manibusan, and the Typhoon. The light at the end of the tunnel gets dimmer as they may have even lost back-up quarterback and utility player Owen Tagabuel for the season as he may be out for the final three games with an injury as well

Rather than dwell on the losses on the field and in the record books, Won said that he may be joining his players on the field this Saturday in order to take a final shot at the post season.

The Barbarians might also regain the multitalented Alison Kaipat to their arsenal this weekend, and they’ll need him. If the Barbarians lose to the Typhoon, they would have to score successive wins against the Eagles and Lightning in their final two games and hope for Tinian to lose. Both teams know this, and Tawanpiy said that his team will be ready to go on Saturday.

“We need more practice. We need the boys to show up. We need more wins so we can make it to the playoffs. I know that we have a chance to beat all of these teams. I know our players are good. We just need to work hard,” he said.

Tawanpiy’s was just a block away from helping his team put points on the board from the defensive side of the ball by busting an interception for a touchdown last week, and said that he could almost taste the score.

“That’s the only guy. If one of my guys blocked him I guarantee I’m taking it all the way to the end zone. That’s a touchdown right there,” he said.

Tawanpiy knows that his team still has a shot at the postseason, but he will have to get a solid showing from all of his mates to do so.

“The guys never stopped playing hard but sometimes we’re short. We just need more players, because most of us are playing both [offense and defense]. Especially our defense, since they stayed on the field really long,” he said.