The Moncton Mustangs are used to having a bull’s-eye on their back and head coach Rob Weir wouldn’t have it any other way.
The Moncton Mustangs will open the 2010 season this weekend with a game on Saturday against Dartmouth. Here, lineman Greg Smith tosses a medicine ball during practice last night at Riverview High School field
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They begin their quest for a fourth consecutive Maritime Football League championship Saturday, when they square off against the Dartmouth Knights at 1 p.m. at Rocky Stone Memorial Field.
“Every year,” Weir said before practice last night in Riverview, “we know that teams are going to be coming after us and every year we prove that we are ready for the challenge.
“Sometimes, you think that bull’s-eye might fade away, but every year the league gets tougher and tougher. This year, it looks like there is going to be a lot of parity in the league so we’ll have to be ready to play hard every game.”
Saturday’s game is part of the league’s 10th anniversary kickoff weekend, which will feature three league games, giveaways, contests, barbecues, live music, beer gardens and fund-raising activities for the Canadian Cancer Society. League officials hope to raise $40,000 for the cancer society.
Following the Mustangs-Knights game, the Saint John Wanderers and Halifax Shockers will clash at 4 p.m. then the Prince Edward Island Privateers will tangle with the Capital Area Gladiators of Fredericton at 7 p.m.
Weir said the Mustangs are well-prepared for their season-opener.
“We’ve had a great camp with more than 40 guys on the roster,” the head coach said. “We’ve had full practices and there have been 40 players at all of our practices so we are able to run all of the drills.
“We’ve got about 30 guys back from last year’s team so they know what it takes to get ready for a long, tough season.”
The Mustangs have also attracted several young players, who are also members of the Junior Raiders, who compete in the Atlantic Football League in the fall.
“We’ve got young players who may not play much with us because we have so many veterans and the league has so much parity,” Weir said.
All League teams will play a six-game regular season.
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