FHS, Gardner set for 100th grid war
Wednesday, October 29, 2003 
Sullivan
On Friday evening, the Orange of Gardner High School will
step upon Crocker Field to face the 100th contest against
the Red and Gray of Fitchburg High School.

Raiders against the Wildcats has not been a major part of
north county football during the last 25 years, but if you
are over 40, you know the significance of this battle during
your youth.

From 1929 to 1979, FHS and GHS met in the mid-October
classic that would unite their communities as their young
athletes clashed upon the gridiron. The only season in which
the two schools did not play was in 1957 when a major flu
illness shut down both schools for a week.

Ken Rostedt who was the Raider's captain, but hailed from
Westminster, still has a bad taste in his mouth from that
postponement. FHS had not defeated Gardner in five seasons
and the Raiders were ready. Of course Ray Stuart and Bud
Smith who lived in Westminster, but played for the Wildcats,
would tell you that Gardner would have stomped FHS. Thus was
the Raider/Wildcat rivalry.

Before I continue my little tale, let's mention that the
Wildcats also had a tremendous rivalry with the Blue Devils
of Leominster. The clashes between the Charlie Broderick-led
Devils and the Wildcats of Walt Dubzinski Sr. were the stuff
of legends. These were truly clashes of the Titans. The
three north county communities with booming industrial bases
formed one of the great sports triangles of Massachusetts
schoolboy football history.

During the ancient years of the rivalry between 1895 and
1915, the Chair City boys played fairly even with the Red
and Gray, but then a giant stepped upon the stage at
Fitchburg High. His name was Clarence N. Amiott and FHS
began to dominate the series and some of the contests were
not very pretty. In 1916 Amiott's squad knocked off Gardner,
61-0, and 1920 the Red and Gray hammered GHS, 76-0, and so
the authorities in Gardner decided that Gardner should
discontinue its series against the Raiders. While the
Fitchburg squads rolled through the 1920's, Gardner rebuilt
its program so that they could once again challenge the big
guys.

A decision which would have huge consequences in Wildcat
gridiron history was reached in 1929. The rivalry was
resumed, and Phil Tarpey was hired as the Wildcat's
coach. Phil and his brother, Joe, had been standouts on some
of Amiott's squads so GHS decided to hire the master's best
student. The effects were immediate.

On Nov. 2, 1929, four days after the Stock Market crashed on
Wall Street, the black Model T Fords traveled down the old
Route 2 to Crocker Field to watch the student challenge the
teacher. The 1929 Wildcats whipped FHS, 31-0. It was one of
the most glorious days in Gardner High football
history. That '29 Wildcat squad was truly exceptional, and
they re-introduced Gardner as a north county powerhouse
along with Fitchburg and Leominster. These three schools
were true football powers during the terrible years of the
Great Depression, and their games were classics. The mighty
Red and Gray of 1933 led by Bill Mackie, John Chalmers, the
Esolonis brothers, Felix and Stanley, were 11-0 and an
official state champion. Arlington, Waltham and Brockton had
fallen to the mighty Raiders. Its two toughest contests were
Gardner, 13-0, and Leominster, 20-12.

In 1935 the faithful of Gardner High visited Crocker Field
on Friday evening and painted the town Orange. When the
Raider faithful streamed down Circle Street to their
favorite stadium, they were greeted with a colorful
display. Ten thousand people squeezed into Crocker Field to
watch a classic high school football game. Gardner was led
by two backfield stalwarts, Leo Lajoie and Frank Minchewicz,
while the Raiders had players named Glenny, Torceletti,
Schragle and Leo. But FHS also had a dynamo named "Ossie"
MacLean who was a 150-pound package of excellence.

When the dust had settled, the Raiders had a 19-18 victory
over GHS when MacLean hopped on a loose ball in the end zone
to give FHS their sweet triumph. Following the
spine-tingling victory, the Red and Gray faithful placed
Amiott upon their shoulders and marched victoriously off the
field.

Gardner and Fitchburg continued their series throughout the
late 1930s and into the difficult World War II years. From
1946 through 1952, the two schools were loaded with
excellent talent and Marty McDonough and Walt Dubzinski
Sr. fought classic battles. FHS loved to talk about 1947 and
1949 when two dynamic halfbacks named Joe Cushing and Dick
Erickson dazzled the Cats with their speed and
power. Cushing's sensational 65-yard burst along the
sidelines behind blocks from Hans Thoma and Alcide Martin is
still recalled today.

In 1949 Erickson simply ran wild as FHS easily won,
21-0. Gardner faithful remember the great 6-0 when the
Wildcats Frank Morse helped stop a powerful Raider squad at
old Stone Field. That victory seemed to raise Gardner High
to a new level.

The 1950's belonged to Gardner High and Coach Walter
Dubzinski's three yards and a cloud of dust single wing. All
fell before the Wildcats except for crafty Charlie Broderick
at Leominster. Names like Merkel, Dubzinski, Bagdonas, Dill,
Mimms and others rumbled through opponents. Maybe the Cats
reached their greatest heights in the fall of 1958. Led by a
watch-pocket guard named Ed Nobrega and a fierce end named
Bob Dill, the Wildcat backfield featuring Paul Hagan, Johnny
Mimms and Walt Dubzinski Jr. went 9-0 and whipped everyone
thoroughly. That squad scored more than 200 points and gave
up one touchdown.

Imagine that, eight shutouts in nine games. The Wildcats and
Coach Dubzinski continued their excellence into the 1960s
with guys like Lee Blanchard, Joe Sabulis and John
Dubzinski. Coach Dubzinski retired in the mid 1960s and the
series lost a little of its specialness. Gardner had lost
its players from towns like Westminster, Ashburnham,
Hubbardston and Baldwinville when the regional schools were
built. Fitchburg got bigger and began to dominate in the
1970s. The series was discontinued in 1979 after 93
contests. Four games from 1989 to 1992 and contests in 2001
and 2002 made it 99. Friday night will have the 100th game;
get to Crocker Field and recall the great old days.

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