Blanco: Guam pulls out again

The much-anticipated football game between the champions of the Commonwealth Football League and the All-Stars of the Miller Football League has been cancelled for the second straight year.

According to CFL chairman John Blanco, the head coach of the Guam team, Ray Souza, called him to cancel the contest last week, citing a lack of funds and an apparent lack of commitment from his players as the reason for pulling out of the game for the second year in a row.

“Well, at least they gave us three weeks notice this year. Last year they told us a couple of days before the game,” said Blanco.

While Blanco wouldn’t express his opinions about the cancellation on the record, running back Stanley Tapua’ialupe Iakopo of CFL champion Shell Chiefs said that this was supposed to be the year for the CNMI, and that he is disappointed that the game was nixed.

“From what I heard, they’re either not ready or they don’t have enough guys—which is ridiculous. They have been playing the game for a lot longer than we have, and it costs only like a hundred bucks for a ticket, so what’s the big deal?”

Iakopo said that he was getting ready for one of the practices when he heard the news about the cancelled game, and that he was looking forward to the game because of a quote he read attributed to Souza in the Saturday, Dec. 18 edition of the Pacific Daily News.

“Most players in the MFL do not see playing a Saipan team as much of a challenge since Guam has never lost to Saipan…But we are attempting to put together a team to travel to Saipan to keep the MFL’s no-loss streak alive,” said Souza

Iakopo said that he read the article and heard much of the same talk on the radio when he was in Guam, and took the time to offer a few of his own opinions.

“I heard them talking about us on the radio, and Guam is all mouth—you can quote me on that. They can do the talk, but they can’t do the walk. I think they’re just scared—that’s it. They know that the only thing waiting for them over here was hell,” he said.

“When they know that we are ready for them, they always pull out. We were ready—I was ready. Our offense wouldn’t even have to work because our defense could carry the team and dominate those guys.”

While the teams have had difficulty getting together for a friendly game of football in the last couple of years, Blanco believes he has a solution that will work for everyone.

“If they can’t make it over here, we’ll look to take a team over to Guam prior to the start of their 2005 season in July.”

Iakopo said that he will make the journey south to play Guam, and that the MFL’s defensive players will have something new to scheme for when he comes to town.

“They like to talk about the past, but I didn’t play against them in the past. This is now, and I’m ready to go. When the time comes to come together for an island thing, I know that the boys will be there—that’s what separates us from them.”

The 10-yard fight between Guam and the CNMI dates back to the first game played between the teams back on Mar. 11, 2000. The “Marianas Bowl” featured the first adult football team from the CNMI facing off against the Guam All-Stars from the Miller Football League.

Though the outcome wasn’t in favor of the CNMI Warriors, it generated a new level of interest for the sport among the islands.