The Game to Watch this Weekend

​There has never been a better time to be an arena football fan. With the NAL, AFL, IFL, and CIF the competition for fans has never been more fierce. But if you can watch only one game this weekend it needs to be the Jacksonville Sharks vs. the Massachusetts Pirates. The National Arena League (NAL) defending champions have much to prove in this season's opening weeks and they won't disappoint. Their match-up in week one against a tough Carolina Cobras was a big sigh of relief in the Jacksonville locker room. But the Cobras put up a nasty fight against the favorite who were defiant to lose against an expansion team from a neighboring state.  Enter the Massachusetts Pirates who destroyed the Maine Mammoths in week one 51-24 at the DCU Center in Worcester, Massachusetts. 

But this begs the question: Are the Pirates the real deal, or are they just an okay team that beat a not-so-good team? I guess only time will tell. What I am confident about is an experienced Pirates gunslinger, Sean Brackett who threw for 169 yards and found (late pick-up) Devonn Brown in the end zone three times in week one. Also, I’m confident about Pirates offensive linemen Dashawn Johnson, who pounded his body through the Mammoths defensive line to pick up several first downs, two touchdowns and 23 total yards. Needless to say the peg-leg swashbucklers have a better than average chance at coming out of Jacksonville with a win. 

So, fire up the computer this Saturday, April 14th at 7pm and watch the Massachusetts Pirates prove they are a contender, not just in the NAL but in the sport of Arena Football.