Charm City (MD) vs. Hamden (CT)

"FIRST TIME'S THE CHARM FOR BUCCANEERS!"

This is our first trip to Disney and it couldn't have been better
results," said a beaming Charm City Head Coach Steven Custis through
his water-logged shirt, courtesy of his dosing by an enthusiastic bunch
of victorious Buccaneers. The Charm City Bucs had just proven their
worth with a convincing win over a hard-fighting bunch of Hurricanes
from Hamden, CT for a Pop Warner Division II Junior Midget National
Championship.

The first half of this contest was a back-and-forth struggle between
two solid defenses.
But at the start of the third quarter, the Bucs roll down field and
punched in a touchdown from close range. The PAT was no good and, with
6:37 to go in the third, the score stood Charm City 6- Hampden 0. The
quarter ended with both teams fighting to gain solid field position,
only to be thrown back by inspired defenses. Hampden, in particular,
was having trouble gaining ground against the Charm City's stonewall
line and its alert defensive backs.

In the fourth quarter, Charm City suddenly got the edge, hammering away
at a Hampden defense that had been out on the field for a long time.
With third down and goal to go from the Hurricanes' one yard line, the
Buccaneers blasted across with a quarterback keeper for their second
touchdown. This time the kick for a two point PAT was good , and with
8:49 to go in the game, the score was Buccaneers 14 - Hurricanes 0.

Taking the ensuing kickoff on their 40 yard line, the 'Canes again
tried to punch the ball up the middle. But to little avail. " At the
half, we knew they couldn't run on on us with any real success," said
Buccaneers Coach Custis. " So, I worked all my players in early in the
second half. And everybody rose to the challenge . We have a bunch of
hard-hitting kids. They've played this way all season, and today was a
great example of how we can hit."

But the Hurricanes never gave up. On a nifty slant pass over the
middle, they drove down into Charm City territory. A nice counter play
that gained 20 yards pushed the ball to the Charm City 28, and it
appeared the 'Canes were ready to put some points of their own on the
board. But then, with 3:24 left to play, the Hampden quarterback
rolled right and lofted a pass to his wide receiver who was battling
double coverage . One of the Charm City defenders leaped high in the
air, batted the ball away, caught it one-handed for the interception,
then raced along the left sideline all the way to the Hurricanes' 38
yard line. From there, the Buccaneers ran out the clock to preserve
their first ever Pop Warner National championship.

Congratulations are in order for both these talented teams. Each
celebrated its first ever appearance in a Pop Warner National
Championship game. Great work on a great season! We look forward to
seeing them both here again at Disney Wide World of Sports in years to
come!