Moncton Mustangs head coach Rob Weir sees more league parity


The Maritime Football League has downsized and that’s a good thing according to Moncton Mustangs head coach Rob Weir.

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It’s a six-team league this season – two less than a year ago. With the same talent pool spread over fewer clubs, that logically should make for stronger competitive balance in a league that has featured far too many blowout games over the years.

“I believe the league was too watered down with eight teams last season,” said Weir.

“I’m seeing better parity in the league this season. The gap between the clubs is narrowing and that’s good for the league.”

“The teams are tougher and the games are harder this season. With less teams, there’s more parity for sure. That’s going to make it more entertaining for the fans.”

Metro Moncton and Saint John both had two clubs in the MFL last season.

But the Moncton Marshals and Saint John Longhorns folded over the winter, leaving both cities with one club this season.

The Riverview Mustangs transferred and changed their name to Moncton Mustangs.
They’re the most dominant club in league history with a lifetime record of 43-5 in the regular season and playoffs combined – an .895 winning percentage.

The Mustangs and Saint John Wanderers lead the way with three Maritime Bowls each.

The Mustangs are 31-1 in the regular season and playoffs combined since 2007 and they’ve captured the past three championships.

“It’s good to add teams and have growth for the league, but I think we’re better off adding teams from another city,” said Weir. “I don’t think it’s good to have two teams from Moncton or two from Saint John.

“I’m happy with the way the league has worked out this season. I like having six teams from six different cities. I would like to see us maybe add one or two teams from Truro or somewhere else in Nova Scotia.”

Weir doesn’t see the possibility of the MFL expanding in New Brunswick.

“I don’t think football is played in any of the other cities in New Brunswick,” he said.

“They don’t play football in their high schools in Bathurst, Miramichi and those places up north so it would be very hard for them to start a senior team.”

Moncton and Saint John, both 2-0, are tied for first place. The Dartmouth Knights and Prince Edward Island Privateers are next at 1-1 and the Capital Area Gladiators of Fredericton and Halifax Shockers are in the basement at 0-2.

Moncton will visit Capital Area tomorrow at 8 p.m. at Chapman Field. Capital Area has struggled badly while getting outscored 61-0 in its first two games.

On Saturday, Saint John is on the road to meet Dartmouth and P.E.I. hosts Halifax.

Moncton won its first two games 16-6 over Dartmouth and 30-12 over Halifax. That extends the Mustangs winning streak to 17 games, something that dates back to July 4, 2008.

Moncton and Saint John appear to be the class of the league, but Weir doesn’t think they’re alone at the top.

He points out that P.E.I. and Dartmouth also must be taken seriously.

The Mustangs won their games by an average of 34-11 last season. They’ve won their first two games this season by a smaller average margin of 23-9.

“We’re winning year after year and we’re doing it with different personnel,” said Weir.

“We’ve won with a younger team. We’ve won with an older team. We’ve won with a
team that has multiple quarterbacks. We’ve won with a team that has one quarterback.

“We’ve managed to remain consistent and put it together year after year. That’s a testament to the commitment level of the players and coaching staff. We have people who work hard in practices and take it seriously.”

Published Thursday June 17th, 2010

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by Neil Hodge
Times & Transcript staff

Advocating for football prospects one story at a time.

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