WELLINGTON – Should we start to consider the annual Palm Beach Central-Wellington clashes as a bona fide rivalry?
After all, both teams have a true distaste for each other. And both teams seem to play their best when they square off against each other (at least in the beginning of the game), from the line of scrimmage all the way to even pregame rituals.
This rivalry has some potential to be one that stands out in Palm Beach County. But as everyone knows, it can’t be always one-sided and it can’t always result in a blowout.
We want to see instant classics.
Well, we didn’t get that in Week 4 of the regular season, when No. 3 Palm Beach Central (9-1) humiliated No. 6 Wellington (6-4) to claim the Wellington Cup and bragging rights in the process.
Can Wellington turn the tables tonight on Palm Beach Central with an upset victory in the first round of the Class 8A playoffs? Or will Palm Beach Central go on to win for the tenth time in a row and possibly go on its own revenge tour next week?
The winner of tonight’s game (Friday, Nov. 9; 7:30 p.m. kickoff) will likely face off against No. 2 seed Atlantic (10-0) in the second round for yet another rematch.
Atlantic took down both teams in the regular season (14-7 win over Palm Beach Central in Week 1; 42-3 win over Wellington in Week 11). So if there’s any incentive to win the all-Wellington playoff game tonight, it’s really nothing more than a chance to shock everyone by taking down a true powerhouse in Delray Beach a week from tonight.
As we all know by now, Palm Beach Central is stacked with talent on both sides of the ball. This team has the likes of All-American defensive back Akeem Dent, offensive lineman Renato Brown, running back Charles Stewart, defensive back Jesus Santiago, and University of Miami verbal commit/wide receiver Bryan Robinson, to name just a few.
As for Wellington, the unquestioned leader on this team is All-American athlete Mark Antony Richards, who may end up as Palm Beach County’s best overall player when this season is officially over with. He is the headliner of a closely knit unit that has not been afraid to overcome odds at any given time.
But if anyone really wants to know what can be the ultimate determining factor, it’s the coaching duel of Tino Ierulli (Palm Beach Central head coach) and Tom Abel (Wellington head coach). Both coaches have had experience with so much talent on their teams in the past and present. Both coaches want to win this game so much.
So there you have it, an all-out effort that’s expected to take place at Palm Beach Central. The team that wants it the most will move on to the Class 8A Region 3 semifinals next week.
Prediction: For this year, Palm Beach Central is clearly the better team on paper. I’m going to pick the home team to end Wellington’s season with a final score of 38-24.
