The Massachusetts Pirates are setting sail into the playoffs for the 2nd time in as many years, and they look ready to face off with the best teams in the league.
The Pirates will take on the Carolina Cobras in the NAL Semifinal in Greensboro, North Carolina this Saturday, but before we get into the Playoff conversation, let’s review the Pirates season up to this point.
A Purrfect home and home sweep
The Pirates won a shootout against their southern rivals, the Columbus Lions, at the DCU Center back on June 22nd, 59-50. In a back and forth dispute between the two, the Pirates picked off Luke Collis late in the 3rd Quarter, and Lawrence Austin returned it 50 yards for his 3rd Pick Six of the year and 2nd vs Columbus. That would put the Pirates up for good and the Pirates would beat the Lions for the first time all season. The next week, the Pirates would pick up their first ever win in Georgia, 61-37 over the same Lions team. This one wasn’t back and forth like recent games. The Pirates jumped out to a seven point lead by halftime and rolled over Columbus in the second half. Thomas Owens proved to be that sneaky weapon in the home and home by scoring five total touchdowns in the two victories. Mardy Gilyard also recorded five touchdowns himself in the first game. With those two victories, the Pirates were lined up to record a playoff spot.
Late heroics get Pirates to the Playoffs
In an exciting game that featured twists and turns in every play, the Pirates and Streets played an instant classic that might’ve reminded you of those old Boston vs New York games that went back and forth and anyone had the chance to win. With the Pirates leading 51-49 late, they couldn’t escape their own 10 yard line and the Streets got the ball back. Using the clock to their advantage, the Streets set up Billy Deane with an easy chip shot field goal to take a 52-51 lead with five seconds on the clock. After Gilyard downed a squib kick at the Pirates 10 yard line with two seconds left, Head Coach Anthony Payton sent out his offense. But he took a timeout instead, and called kicker Mike Weaver to try and kick a 60 yard field goal. Weaver got set, Sean Brackett snapped the ball, set it down, Weaver kicked the ball, and after a judgement call because the ball hit an obstruction above the uprights, the kick was good. The Pirates knocked off the Streets, 54-52, and clinched a playoff spot for the 2nd consecutive year.
Sharks end the streak, but get a taste of a challenge
Well, all good things had to come to an end eventually. The Sharks ended the Pirates winning streak 59-42 in Worcester three weeks ago. Despite giving the Sharks a challenge, the Pirates could not stop a Jacksonville offensive barrage in the 2nd Quarter, falling behind at halftime 36-15. Every time the Pirates got close to mounting a comeback, Jacksonville found a way to keep their momentum going. And in the end, the Sharks locked up the top spot in the league and the Pirates secured the third spot for the playoffs. In the second game the next week, the Pirates defense recorded five interceptions against the Sharks. But costly mistakes allowed Jacksonville to force overtime. The Sharks scored on the opening possession of overtime and intercepted Brackett to end the game. The Pirates definitely showed that they can compete with the best team in the league and they can definitely change the result the next time they meet the Sharks.
Finishing the regular season by Sweeping the Streets
With the season coming to a close, the Pirates rested their starting Quarterback, Wide Receiver, and Defensive End to prepare for the postseason. Quarterback Alejandro Bennifield made his first career NAL start and led the Pirates to a 50-35 victory over the New York Streets. He threw for four touchdowns in the victory and Mike Weaver earned Special Teams Player of the Week by going 7/7 on PAT’s and knocking in four deuces. The defense recorded five total sacks in the victory. The Pirates finished their second season in the NAL at 8-6 and geared up for a postseason matchup in Carolina
Scouting the Cobras
Carolina was dominating the league during the second half of the season. Up until halftime in the New York game two weeks ago, they’ve outscored their opponents 248-28. But they have dropped their last two games by forfeiting the game in New York two weeks ago because of a security breach, and then dropping the regular season finale in Columbus. The Cobras have arguably the best two offensive starters in the National Arena League. I think Charles McCullum has put together an MVP caliber season by leading the league in passing yards (3007) and total offensive touchdowns (74) and I think Jordan Jolly is a great Wide Receiver. He leads the team with over 1200 total yards and 32 touchdowns. On defense, Mike Green leads the team with nine total interceptions and Steve Miller leads the Cobras with 10 total sacks. The Cobras won it all last year, and to do that, they’ll have to contend with a new Massachusetts Pirates team that has risen from the ashes and is ready to rumble with the defending champs.
Prediction: The Pirates are 1-4 all time against Carolina and 0-3 in Greensboro. In the first few weeks of the season, the Pirates couldn’t handle Carolina or any of these good teams. But they say that the third time is the charm. The third time will be the charm for the Pirates. They’ll take down the Cobras 67-49 in Greensboro to get to the NAL Championship.
The Pirates face off with the Carolina Cobras at 7pm from the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina this Saturday, August 3rd. The game can be streamed on YouTube, beginning at 7pm. If you can’t tune into the game on YouTube, be sure to follow the game on Twitter with live updates on the Pirates Twitter page. Let’s go Pirates!
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