By TENAJH SWEETING

Tribune Sports Reporter

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

THE 2023 Bahamas Youth Flag Football League (BYFFL) playoffs and championships are set to begin this Saturday across the various age divisions on the playing fields opposite the original Thomas A Robinson national stadium.

After five competitive weeks of flag football action, coaches and players will have a chance to reap the benefits of their efforts this weekend.

The playoffs kick off at 11am and championships at 2:30pm for the 6-9, 10-13 and 14-17 age groups and will be exciting, according to BYFFL programme director Jayson Clarke.

In his brief reflection of the BYFFL regular season, he said this has been one of the most successful ones since their start in 2015.

“This has been our largest, most successful and definitely the most competitive season we have ever hosted since our inception in 2015. I am very pleased with what I have seen throughout this season as it seems as if the league has kind of caught fire. The word has gotten out and flag football is definitely taking off,” Clarke said.

With regards to playoff matchups, the games get underway with the 10-13 division up first on the schedule.

Team Munroe, who finished fourth in the standings with a 2-6-0 (win/ loss/draw record), are set to take on the 0-8-0 Team Allen at 11:30am.

The winner of this game will face Team Kevin, who ended the regular season atop the standings with a 6-0-2 record.

At noon, the third-seeded Team Moss will battle against the second-seeded Team Dawkins.

The next age group up on the schedule is the 6-9 division, the youngest group of players, who Clarke offered high praises to for their progression during the regular season. “There has been significant growth in the play styles, particularly in that 6-9 age bracket. Their grasp of the concept of the game has grown significantly to the point where we have already identified a 9U travelling competition team which is something we have never done before,” he said.

For the 9U division, the 3-5-2 Team Sheldeen will prepare for the lower seeded Team Dawkins, who finished with a 2-5-3 record, at 12:30pm.

The winner of this round will have their work cut out for them against Team Inne, who finished atop the division’s standings with a 6-1-3 record.

The programme director said the younger competitors are up to par and can compete at the international level which makes for great matchups on Saturday.

“We are really excited and happy about them being in the playoffs. The 6-9 age group will be the featured championship game this weekend, that shows how much we think about that group and how much we pride ourselves on the younger kids,” he said.

Team D’Angelo, the top squad in the 14-17 division, will look to take care of business against the last ranked Team Allen at 1:00pm.

The match is followed by competition between the 2-3-1 Team Chavar and 3-2-1 Team Munroe.

Overall, the BYFFL programme director said he is ready to see the competition level in the playoffs and after the championships wrap up they have future plans to develop the skills of younger players going into the 2024 calendar year.

As previously mentioned, the playoffs begin at 11am and the championship games at 2:30pm.

Tickets are priced at $5 for adults and kids under 12 are free.