Coach Flatley congratulates Joe Gentile after the Trojans won the Long Island Championship game. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com It turns out that winning the Long Island Class II football championship wasn’t the final chapter for Garden City High School’s undefeated football team. In the days that followed the Trojans’ stunning 9-6 victory over previously unbeaten Suffolk champ North Babylon, the honors have continued to mount up.

First, the Trojans (12-0) were named the number one large school team on Long Island in the final Newsday rankings ahead of Catholic school champion St. Anthony’s (10-1).

The following night at the annual Nassau Football Coaches Awards Dinner, Garden City was voted the winner of the sought-after Rutgers Cup, emblematic of the top team in Nassau County. The award dates back to 1937 and was won by the Trojans three prior times (1992, 1998 and 2005). In a close vote of the coaches, Garden City edged Seaford (12-0) which won the Conference IV title and was named Nassau’s top small school.

Billy Sweeney celebrates after a big tackle on Elmont’s Jaquan Smith. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com If all that wasn’t enough, the New York State Sportswriters Association came out with its final rankings and the Trojans were named the number one team in New York State Class A tied with Sweet Home (Section 6) which won the state playoffs at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse. Long Island teams have chosen not to compete in the state tournament because of the popularity of the season-ending Long Island Championships on Thanksgiving weekend. That view seemed vindicated by the crowd of almost 6,000 that watched Garden City best North Babylon. The Long Island finals often outdraw the games in Syracuse.

Coach of the Year Tom Flatley talks to Ryan Norton (#18) during one of the playoff games. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com Neil Kerr of the Syracuse Post Standard is the head of the Sportswriters Association and he explained Garden City’s selection by noting that the Trojans had outscored opponents 356-28 and had beaten a highly-ranked larger school in AA North Babylon which had been ranked fourth in the state in the larger group prior to the GC game. It was the fifth time that Garden City had been named number one or tied for the honor. The previous top-ranked Trojan squads were 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993 and 2003

Individual All-County honors went to senior tackles Connor Horl and Billy Sweeney, quarterback Matt Montgomery and middle guard Mike Giannone, as well as junior standouts Stephen Jahelka and Brian Fischer. Center Joe Gentile was named All-Conference. Several of the Trojans are expected to be named All-Long Island and All-State when those teams are announced.

Stephen Jahelka finds room to run during the playoffs. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com HORL WINS

MARTONE AWARD

Senior co-captain Connor Horl was named winner of the prestigious Martone Award which goes to the top lineman in Nassau County. He is the first Garden City lineman to win it and he had to edge out his teammate Billy Sweeney for the honor. It is very unusual for two players on the same line to be nominated but that is an indication of how good Garden City’s front wall was this season.

Coach Tom Flatley said “Connor’s a bit of a throwback who played hard every Saturday. Basically, he was relentless. He’s not one to take plays off and that’s tough when you play both ways.”

Brian Fischer in action during a quarterfinal playoff against Mepham. see this photo at www.Newsphoto.com Horl was very grateful for the selection but explained it in terms of the team “Our defense was special because we all had jobs,” he said. “Sometimes it was my job to take on two blockers so someone else could make the tackle. It was never about one person’s glory. It was about the team.” Horl, a 6-foot, 230 pounder who is a defending County wrestling champion, also was a mainstay on the Trojans’ offensive line which helped backs average 6.4 yards per carry and didn’t allow a sack all season.

Mike Giannone goes up against Elmont’s Diashawn Miller. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com Linebacker Stephen Jahelka, a junior, was named runner-up for the Piner Award which goes to Nassau’s best linebacker. One of the North Babylon coaches said’ “Jahelka is the best linebacker we have faced all year. He’s all over the field.”

FLATLEY NAMED

COACH OF THE YEAR

Veteran Garden City head coach Tom Flatley was named winner of the Bruce Gehrke Memorial Coach of the Year Award by the Nassau Football Coaches Association following his team’s 12-0, Long Island Championship season. It is the third time that he has been so honored.

Coach Flatley was generous in praise of his players who worked hard and unselfishly for months. He also thanked his outstanding assistant coaches Bob Defliese, Joe Baccarella, Steve Finnell Dave Ettinger and Pete Haeffner for their tremendous contributions.

Joe Gentile in action against New Hyde Park. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com In 25 seasons as Garden City’s head coach, Flatley has compiled an over-all record of 214-36-7 which is a remarkable winning percentage of .846. His teams have won 15 Conference Championships, four Long Island titles and four Rutgers Cups.

He is expected to be named Newsday’s Nassau Coach of the Year when the All-Long Island teams are named. That would make him the first four-time winner of that award which dates back to 1940 when Garden City’s Warren King was named the first winner.

Connor Horl leads the way for GC to run the ball against Long Beach. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com
QB Matt Montgomery in action. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com