David and Goliath to battle tomorrow

Hundreds of people showed up at the CPA Airport Field last Saturday as the Commonwealth Football League kicked off the season with four teams on a mission for the title, and tomorrow’s battles will feature some interesting match-ups all over the field.

Just like the opener, fans who trek to the field will be treated to a power-packed doubleheader that gets underway when the Shell Lightning (1-0) look to storm through the nearly impenetrable Tinian Typhoon (1-0) defense at 10am.

After opening the season with a win over the Barbarians (0-1), the Typhoon established that their team is for real and that their defense is no joke. The Tinian minions boast the league’s leading tackler in imposing linebacker Keith Nabors (3.5), the load-leveling Philip Long, and interception machine Blake Manibusan.

Manibusan picked off three passes from quarterback Plasido Tagabuel, taking one 60 yards the other way, while Long grabbed one near the end of the game and delivered a punishing lick on Eugene Sablan, termed a slobber knocker by CFL chairman Clyde Lemons.

Nabors patrolled the line of scrimmage with a menacing scowl and inspired his team on both sides of the ball with his punt return that left would-be tacklers on the ground like crumpled up pieces of paper.

The trio provided plenty of sparks for the white, green, and yellow fellows who allowed a total of 163 yards of offense by game’s end, and dropped the opposing quarterback for three sacks.

All that the Typhoon need is for their offense to shift into the next gear—forward. Quarterback Juanis King managed just one completion in 14 attempts, but it was a 40-yard bomb to Ringo Reyes for their first offensive touchdown of the season. Though their ground game was not what they would have liked, the Typhoon at least got consistent gains from Steve Mendiola who gained 23 yards on six carries. Other than Mark Mendiola’s six yards on two carries, the Typhoon rushers gained either zero or negative yardage on the day.

That doesn’t bode well for the cross-channel boys as the Lightning defenders gobbled up the Express Electronics’ running attack and the league’s top back in Stanley Iakopo. Thought the conditions were not identical as the opener, the Lightning held the Eagles to just 31 yards in the mud and yielded only 29 through the air.

The stormy conditions had plenty to do with the lack of production from both offensive squads, but the league’s lowest-producing offense will be facing an uphill battle when they face the Shell pell-mell.

According to player-coach John Blanco, it’s no secret that the Lightning plan to attack from the air with league-leading quarterback Brian Hahn and a stable of receivers that includes the leaping George Lieto, Clas Ngeskebei, and the near perfect Oscar Sablan.

Ngeskebei and Lieto are capable of separating from the best defensive backs in the league, and Hahn will probably look to hook up with the dynamic duo while keeping in mind that every pass thrown in the vicinity of Sablan’s glue-hands was as good as caught last week in the rain.

In the late game, the Eagles will try to avenge last week’s loss when they battle the Barbarians at 1pm. Quarterback Dane Lizama was running for his life during most of the game and was only able to complete two of his 14 attempts for a total of 24 yards. He has a capable hand in Mark Wallace and could make things happen if Luka Tapua’ialupe can break free from coverage.

The green machine also has one heck of an ace up its sleeve with Iakopo, who can power his way through the smallest gaps and sprint through one-arm tackles with ease. With 42 yards on the ground, Iakopo is atop the league’s rushing list, but second place is only four yards away.

One of the most versatile players in the CFL roams the defensive backfield of the Barbarians and makes play on offense as well, as Syl Teregeyo amassed 38 yards on the ground, nine through the air, and a tackle. Were it not for a pair of untimely illegal blocking penalties, the explosive Teregeyo would have had more than twice as many yards a touchdown for the black and gold.

Teregeyo isn’t the only game-breaker on the team as “Plas Pass” always seems to find Alison Kaipat for a big gain down the field. Last week it was a 41-yard touchdown strike down the sidelines in front of the Typhoon bench, and tomorrow could be more of the same if they take advantage of multi-threat Asterio Tawanpiy and the size and strength of Kelvin Fitial.

Whether or not they can overcome the mountain of a lineman Faea Talalemotu, linemate Faasefulu Tigilau, and the ever potent Charleston Aiken will determine if the Barbarians will have a running game at all, as the Eagles held the Lightning to minus-two yards on the ground.