This has been a strange season for rivals Staples and Greenwich.
The two teams ended up facing off three times and came awfully close to making it four. Their first meeting was a regular-season game which Staples won 28-16. Their next meeting was at HS National Championships, where Greenwich garnered revenge with a 30-12 result.
So their final clash, earlier this month, was a decider. Of course, it was also the Connecticut state final.
In this one, Staples rebounded to win the state title, and the series, 36-7. The National Championships for Staples wasn't exactly what they had hoped. Some players were coming off a bout with the flu and they weren't at their best. That manifested itself in a less-than-stellar showing against Greenwich, although they did beat Jesuit-Sacramento 23-21 on the final day to take 7th. Healthier for the state final, and on a roll after a really strong second half in the semifinal against Trumbull, Staples started well.
Holding and keeping possession throughout the game, Staples prevented Greenwich from getting much going. Greenwich was penalized early, which resulted in junior wing David Sedrak slotting three early goals to get the points flowing. When senior captain and starting hooker Jack Edwards went down early in the first half with an ankle injury, sophomore John Tyson stepped and produced a huge ruck clearout to show he wasn't going to let the standard slip.
