Logan Phillips
Senior Editor
Although it’s a rivalry that has lasted decades, the New Canaan-Darien rivalry has never been bigger and more exciting than it’s been in the past four years. Across all varsity sports, there is a different atmosphere in the New Canaan-Darien game. With all of the hype surrounding the match ups, the games draw a lot of fans who wouldn’t normally attend. There’s a potential every time these two schools meet up for a classic, be it in a state championship, or even be it the season opener.
Lou Marinelli has been the head football coach of New Canaan since 1981, and can attest that the rivalry has existed long before he took over. Even after thirty years of coaching, the rivalry is still something special and nonetheless intense. “You know whenever you see a New Canaan Darien game,” Marinelli said, “It’s always going to be a good game just for the rivalry alone.”
It’s been a rivalry that has been defined by great moments. Who could forget that Thanksgiving Turkey Bowl of 2008? With 10,000 fans attending and both teams having perfect records going into the game, it was probably the most anticipated Connecticut football match in years. The Rams won in a classic, and later beat Darien in the state finals, meaning that the Blue Waves only two losses that season were to the Rams.
There was also the Turkey bowl of 2007, where the game was all defense in the scoreless first. As Coach Marinelli remembers, “The game started out where we kicked to Darien, and the Darien kid let it go,” Marinelli said. “We recovered it on the one yard line, then we fumbled it and Darien got it back. It just went back and forth and neither of us could do anything. I was furious after the first half because we played terrible.”
The next quarter, Darien would go up 12-7, and eventually 18-12 late in the fourth. Then, a moment that instantly became part of New Canaan Darien lore occurred. “Charlie Westfal was the Quarterback. There were about five seconds left, and Westfal threw a corner pattern to Kurt Ondash for the win.”
Football isn’t the only sport with great moments. There was the 2009 Girls Hockey nail biter where the Rams beat Darien 2-1, or in Boys Lacrosse in 2008 when the Blue Wave led 5-2 at the half, and the Rams almost game back but ultimately lost to Darien 7-6.
With all the great moments, it bags the question of which school has been the best at sports since ‘11 class has entered the high school. Surveying the accomplishments of the two schools, the accomplishments that New Canaan and Darien have accumulated over the past four years are remarkable. Across the 19 sports observed, the Rams and Blue wave have won a combined 34 state championships, which accounts for roughly 45 percent of all state championships in their division. That means of the 35 or so teams in the L division, 2 teams hold almost 50% of the championships.
New Canaan and Darien both have their sports where they’ve been unequivocally the best team. For New Canaan, it’s sports like Golf, Girls’ Hockey, Boy’s Swimming, and Boys’/Girls’ Tennis, where they have a combined 12 state championships to Darien’s zero (in those sports). Even in football, where the rivalry is often at its most heated, the Rams have dominated on the field with three state championships to zero for Darien. Darien likewise has dominated the Rams in Boy’s Lacrosse, Field Hockey and Girl’s Swimming, with 9 combined championships to New Canaan’s one.
Over the past season, the Rams have been better overall in the regular season, winning 74.5% of their games to Darien’s 69.8%. While the regular season matters, what it really comes down to is FCIAC and State Championships. In the FCIAC, its all evened up, as both Darien and the Rams have 9 FCIAC Championships. But, it’s in the States that New Canaan really shines. They’ve won an easily state leading 22 State Championships, or roughly 28%. Darien is no slouch with 13 Championships, but doesn’t come close to the Ram’s prowess in the States. Despite the fact that it is close, the Rams have outplayed Darien in the regular season and in the state championships. Which in turn makes New Canaan the better program of the rivalry, and likely the best sports program across the board in the state.
However it’s important to realize that the class of ‘11 rivalry and sports experiences are just a small chapter in a New Canaan Darien Rivalry that has transcended decades. In different eras both school have had the upper hand. The one constant is the passionate rivalry. As Coach Marinelli says, “Without a doubt, when I first came to New Canaan (in 1981), we were on a down cycle. Now its been the most successful period of four years I’ve ever had, in my career. No matter how bad or good the teams were, it’s always been a great rivalry.”
