The Tribune

By TENAJH SWEETING

Tribune Sports Reporter

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas won its first exhibition game 21-20 against the National Football League (NFL) Flag Miami Dolphins adult tournament team at the Roscow A L Davies soccer field on Saturday.

The scrimmage took place at the NFL Flag Bahamas Family Fun Day and talent showcase.

The one-day event also saw the coaches and women compete at the family-friendly affair.

Tito Bethel, head coach of the home team, said the win felt pretty good against the Dolphins.

“It was a pretty good win. Most important for us was holding our composure and trying to show the world that we can compete at a high level,” Bethel said.

He added that the win was major in proving to NFL Flag that they can go on the world stage and compete with the best on another level.

Mckell Bethel, who plays wide receiver, scored the first touchdown for the home team to help The Bahamas get on the scoreboard.

The team was unable to follow it up with an extra two points.

The Dolphins quickly tied the score six apiece following a touchdown. The visiting team was then successful on the one-point conversion and led the game by one (7-6). They maintained the one-point advantage going into the halftime break.

The Miami team looked poised to take over the game after they executed a touchdown and secured the extra point to add seven points to their total to start the second half. The score favoured the visiting squad 14-6.

Following the play, the Dolphins were beginning to run away with the game.

However, the Bahamas’ NFL Flag team showed their resilience and prowess, scoring a timely touchdown to pair with two points to even the score (14-14).

Both the Dolphins and The Bahamas scored on consecutive plays as time winded down in the nail-biter flag football exhibition game.

However, the difference maker was the home team was successful on their one-point conversion making the score 21-20.

With 10 seconds remaining on the game clock, the Dolphins tried to make a last minute attempt at scoring but were unable to.

Brandon Peña, wide receiver for the Dolphins, was happy about the competition between the teams despite the one-point loss.

“It was a good experience.

“We came out here and saw some of the talent, we did not come out with the outcome that we wanted, which was to win but overall it was a great experience and we got to meet some great people in The Bahamas,” Peña said.

The wide receiver spoke highly of his competitors and said the future is bright for the sport in The Bahamas.

“They are pretty competitive. They have a lot of size and athleticism…the team has a lot of potential. You guys are in good hands. The future is bright over here in The Bahamas,” he said.

For The Bahamas, the home team was composed of players from New Providence, Abaco and Freeport. Bethel, the team’s wide receiver and Freeport native, said it was a good experience playing against their opponents and they just went into the game with the mindset of believing in themselves.

NFL Flag Bahamas continues to bring and raise more awareness for flag football in The Bahamas.