| Third Annual Summer Football Festival Sunday June 29th, 9am - 5pm Gillette Stadium, Foxboro, MA |
Sunday June 29th was a day that many parents and kids will never forget, it was the day that
the kids got to play flag football in Gillette stadium on the very same field that their hero's
play on. Over the past few years the league has accomplished a lot from sending teams to
the National Championships in Disney World to having 60 teams compete last fall, but
nothing was as unbelievable as playing in a tournament in Gillette stadium in front of
hundreds of family, friends and fans. On the day there were 32 teams from 6 states and 10
different leagues competing, in all 59 games were played in a great atmosphere!!!
The first games of the day were the highly talented and highly competitive 12-15 year olds.
Peabody sent 5 teams to the tournament along with 1 team from Westford, MA, 2 teams
from NH, 2 teams from NY and a team all the way from PA. Peabody teams faired well on
the day with 3 out of the 5 teams making it through to the second round of the play-offs and
the Peabody Patriots were just one TD away from making the semi-finals. CT Big Blue and
the Eastwood Bears both only had one loss on the day but due to single elimination it led to
an early exit from the tournament. The surprise team of the division was the NH Blitz who lost
both of their round robin games but turned it on in the play-offs to win two games and reach
the semi-finals. The championship game saw 2 time NFL youth National Champions the NY
Panthers go up against the highly talented CFFL All-stars from PA, both teams were
undefeated heading into the final game but something had to give and the NY Panthers
added another impressive win and tournament victory to their resume. Thank you and
congratulations to all the team attending in the 12-15 division and giving it their all.
In the 9-11 division, Peabody entered 3 teams in the competition along with 1 team from
Salisbury, MA, 3 teams from Pelham, NH, 2 teams from NY, 2 teams from Youngstown, OH
and one team from CT. In the round robin games CT Big Blue, Eastwood Bears,
NY Panthers and YYFFA Black all finished top of their group undefeated and only the NY
Panthers gave up one TD while the other 3 teams shut out all their opponents. The first
upset of the day was the NY Panthers falling in the second round of the play-offs to the NH
Red Storm. The Peabody Tanners almost pulled an upset by going into over time with the
Eastwood Bears but in the end could not seal the deal. In the semi-finals the Eastwood
Bears headed into another overtime game but this time the shoe was on the other foot as
CT Big Blue secured their spot in the championship after taking the game. YYFFA Black
drove 12 hours from Ohio to compete in their first ever tournament and represented the
YYFFA league very well as they did not give up one TD heading into the Championship
game. With time running out on the day it was the Big Blue defense that stepped up in the
final game and defeated the YYFFA black team 13-0.
The final games of the day saw the youngest division of players as 8 teams from 4 leagues
and three different states competed. For the most part the Peabody teams struggled with
the exception of the Peabody Lions that went 3-0 on the day and managed to reach the
semi-finals. The NHFFL entered three teams into the division for a second year in a row and
were rewarded this time around as the three teams finished in the top 4. The 5-8 Beverly
Cowboys and Eastwood Bears were new to the division and found things tough going the
first time around but still represented their leagues well with good sportsmanship and some
close games. Unfortunately due to time constraints and the tournament going a little over
the final 3 games could not be played. The NHFFL league offered their fields and refs to
complete the tournament, so the Peabody Lions made the trip north to face the NH Eagles
but could not come away with the win setting up an all NH final, in which the NH Colts put an
end to their perfect tournament by finishing 5-0 and claiming the first ever championship for
the NHFFL. Congratulations to all the teams that entered the tournament and we hope the
kids and parents enjoyed the opportunity of being part of the tournament and stepping out
on the field in Gillette stadium.
When it was all said and done the event was a great success, games were played in good
spirits and the opportunity to play in Gillette stadium on the same field as the New England
Patriots does not come along very often. Thank you to everyone that attended the event,
from the parents and players to the coaches and volunteers, it was a great success and we
are already trying to secure the stadium again for next years tournament.
There were a lot of people that contributed to the overall running of the event and we just
like to recognize those individuals for doing so. We would like to thank the Patriots
cheerleaders and mascot for signing autographs and adding something a little special to the
event. The Patriots community affairs coordinators for providing the stadium itself, the
security and all the water for the kids on a very hot day. All the refs, Mark, Jeff, Riley, Brad,
Cedrick, Anthony, Tony, Jillian, Katie and Brendan, my friends from the UK, Ade for filming
the days action, JP and Jocelyn for helping with registration, Butchi for helping with
everything from setting up to game day co-ordination, Erika, Tom and Peggy Weiser for
helping with the scoring table and clean up along with Deanna. One of my students and his
father from Peabody for taking photos all day, Sara for running the registration tent, Mark
Legere for doing all the announcing and Scotty Kline for assisting kids with stretching and
their general physical well being. The event would not have been possible without all of you,
thank you.
Thank you again to all those that participated in the event and made it a memory that will
last a lifetime!!!
Austin Bradshaw
League/Event Organizer
12-15 Division
Order of Finish
9-11 Division
12-15 Division
| 1. NY Panthers, Queens, NY 2. CFFL All-Stars, Lansdale, PA 3.Eastwood Bears, Syracuse, NY 4. NH Blitz, Pelham, NH 5. CT Big Blue, Naugatuck, CT 6.Peabody Patriots, Peabody, MA 7. Peabody Tanners, Peabody, MA 8. Peabody All-Stars, Peabody, MA 9.Peabody Eagles, Peabody, MA 10. Westford Patriots, Westford, MA 11. Peabody Predators, Peabody, MA 12. NH Blue Demons, Pelham, NH |
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| 1. CT Big Blue, Naugatuck, CT 2. YFFA Black, Youngstown, OH 3.Eastwood Bears, Syracuse, NY 4. NH Red Storm, Pelham, NH 5. NY Panthers, Queens, NY 6. Peabody Tanners, Peabody, MA 7.NH Razorbacks, Pelham, NH 8. Blue Demons, Pelham, NH 9.Peabody Eagles, Peabody, MA 10. Peabody Giants, Peabody, MA 11. YFFA Red, Youngstown, OH 12. Peabody Bills, Peabody, MA |
5-8 Division
| 1. NH Colts, Pelham, NH 2. NH Eagles, Pelham, NH 3.Peabody Lions, Peabody, MA 4. NH Eagles, Pelham, NH 5. Peabody Texans, Peabody, MA 6. Peabody Patriots, Peabody, MA 7.Eastwood Bears, Syracuse, NY 8. Beverly Cowboys, Beverly, MA |
