The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

Football season in the Bahamas is just days away from kickoff as teams begin their trek toward the 2014 Boil Fish Bowl.

The Commonwealth American Football League is scheduled to open its 2013-14 campaign 1:30pm Saturday, October 26, when the Orry J Sands Pros face the BaOilCo Jets at the DW Davis field.

In the last meeting between the two teams, the Pros took a 28-14 win, sparked by three rushing touchdowns from Philip Smith.

The league went away from the traditional format of the season opener which would feature a rematch of the previous year’s championship game.

The defending champion Pros are coming off a season where they reclaimed the CAFL title with a 30-18 win over the V-Fusion Stingrays.

Running back Charles Edwards was named the game’s most valuable player. They finished the regular season at 3-3 and dominated the post-season with consecutive 30 point performances en route to the title.

The Jets look to rebound and re-establish the rivalry with the Pros, following a winless 2012 season where they finished fourth in the standings.

In 2012, the CAFL welcomed the re-emergence of inter island play with the inclusion of the Freeport Hurricanes. It brought the league back to Grand Bahama after a six-year hiatus.

The Hurricanes finished the season at 2-4 and eventually lost to the Pros in the semifinals.

This year, Grand Bahama will add another team to the roster with the Eight Mile Crushers, a powerhouse of the 1980s and 90s, rejoining the league.

The league has solidified five teams at the moment, with a prospective sixth team out of Grand Bahama possibly joining the fold.

The Stingrays won last year’s CAFL pennant and entered the championship game with a spotless 7-0 record led by leading rusher, running back Jamaal Storr.

In the regular season, the Stingrays capped the pennant with a 58-0 blowout win over the Jets.

They also defeated the Hurricanes 40-14 at Independence Park in Grand Bahama and 38-14 in the second matchup between the two teams in New Providence.

Against the Pros, the Stingrays took a 28-14 win in the opening game of the season, and won 18-14 in the second match-up between the two.

The Pros scored a 20-18 win on the road over the Hurricanes in Grand Bahama in their only matchup of the season, while the Hurricanes were awarded the season finale by default.

After a dominating CAFL run of seven titles, the Pros were dethroned by the Stingrays in the 2012 Boil Fish Bowl, 24-14.

The rivalry between the two teams has intensified over the past few seasons as the Stingrays have gone 12-0 in the regular season, but the teams have split the last two championship games.

The Pros hold a 2-1 advantage over the Stingrays in the three times the teams have meet in the title game in recent years.

The CAFL has embarked on an improved marketing campaign, with its new Facebook fan page “Commonwealth American Football League - CAFL.”