Sports

By Richard Campbell According to various sources it’s official: The Boston Red Sox Triple A Paw Sox are moving to Worcester! Bill Ballou, sports writer for the Worcester Telegram & Gazette noted that the deal is sealed for 2021 season to open with the Red Sox minor league team in a brand-new stadium in downtown Worcester. Ballou, who has been following the progress of the deal stated in his article: “The ballpark will be named Polar Park. Construction is expected to cost in the range of $86 to $90 million dollars and will be one of the most technologically advanced in all of professional baseball. It is the centerpiece of a larger development plan that, according to Worcester Mayor Joseph M. Petty, approaches $240 million [...]

By Richard Campbell The 10th annual Boston Triathlon returned to Carson Beach generating its trademark excitement for spectators and participants alike, bringing thousands to South Boston.  In a reversal of last year’s event, the third annual Kid’s Day this past Saturday was blessed with sunny skies and almost ideal weather, whereas the adult main event on Sunday was forced to forgo the Olympic 1.5k Swim because of stormy weather and a small craft weather warning by harbor officials.  The choppy water aside, a little rain did not impede the Olympic run through Moakley Park or the Olympic cycle around Day Boulevard. Organized by ethos- the Boston Triathlon is primarily sponsored by the international Columbia Threadneedle Investments, with partnership support by Boston Medical Center.   Hosted at [...]

By Richard Campbell As the World Cup headed into the final elimination rounds this past weekend (July 6th to 8th) South Boston hosted the city’s own version in the inaugural Mayor’s Unity Cup Tournament.  Sixteen Boston based soccer teams were packed into Saunders Stadium representing their original home nations in three days of competitive soccer. The tournament, designed to showcase the cultural diversity and sportsmanship of American citizens from foreign lands who live in Boston, played on the stadium field gridded out in four smaller than regulation soccer fields. The tight fit made an interesting exhibit as teams were passionately pursuing the grand prize. Organized by the mayor’s office, it was sponsored by New England Revolution, Telemundo Boston, We Got Soccer, South End Soccer, Valeo [...]

by Rick Winterson The Boston Celtics occupy a solid second place in the NBA’s Eastern Conference. They were on a streak – six games in a row as of last weekend. They are in the top four of the entire NBA. They had been three games behind the Toronto Raptors. After Saturday’s 110-99 rapping of the Raptors at the TD Garden, the Celts were just two down in the East. This is with three injured starters out for long periods – Haywood, Irving, and Smart – along with bench backups Daniel Theis and Shane Larkin. Still, five of the remaining Celts hit double figured Saturday night, three of them making 20+ points – Marcus Morris (25), Jayson Tatum (24), and Terry Rozier (21). Led by [...]

By Bobby McGarrell This past weekend the South Boston bantams participated in the Can/Am Challenge Cup in Lake Placid, New York. Teams from various states such as Virginia, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Minnesota were all competing to take home the gold medal. Our South Boston team took to the ice in the opening-round to face the Exton Kings of Exton, PA. There wasn’t anything regal about this team as our boys totally dominated the game from start to finish with a 7-0 thumping. The next game proved to be a lot of the same as the local heroes thrashed the Valley Forge Colonials from Oaks, PA. 8-1. The following contest proved to be a very physical contest with the NJ Rhinos from Mahwah, NJ. [...]

  By Richard Campbell I always associated volleyball with gym class or beaches, but then in my generation the following of this sport was not what it is today. The Mizuno Volleyball Festival truly demonstrated the national and international popularity of the sport, filling the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center this past Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, with hundreds of teams playing on court after court. Teams in twenty-five divisions of multiple age groups, battled it out. Add the coaches, trainers, officials and their fans- and the attendance totalled well over 4,000 people. The whistles were blowing all over the place as balls were being served, passed, spiked, thrown, set, lobbed, bonking off spectators, and skimming across the matted floors. Besides tournament play there were clinics, [...]

by Richard Campbell The six city tour known as the Battle of the Badges of Police and Fire Hockey Clubs of Boston, New York, Chicago, Detroit, Toronto and Montreal started this past Friday the 2nd, in Dorchester and South Boston, and continued through the weekend. SBO was there to cover teams at Murphy Rink Saturday at noon for the mixed rounds of Police and Fire teams. Sponsored in part by the Boston Bruins, the Boston Police Hockey Club and the Boston Fire Hockey Club, the event involved a lot of travel and logistics. It was running on a tight schedule, as twelve first responder teams duked it out big time. Mayor Walsh and Rob Sweeney, Executive Director of the Bruins Foundation, were on hand with [...]