Washington coach angry about Northeast advantage in Class AAAA final

Pads aren't the only things popping this week at George Washington High as the Eagles prepare for the Public League Class AAAA football final.

So are veins. Out of coach Ron Cohen's neck.

As in other years, Cohen is livid that Washington's opponent, Northeast, will be able to play on its home field.

The game is set for 3:30 Saturday at Charlie Martin Memorial Stadium, and will be preceded, noon start, by the AAA final featuring Simon Gratz and Murrell Dobbins Tech.

A $10 admission fee will allow you to see both games. And if you're a senior in high school or younger (any school, not just those involved), there's no charge. Just make sure to bring your ID, unless you look so young nobody could possibly doubt your age.

Just last week, Joe Stanley, the Pub football chairman, was saying the coaches had passed a rule barring schools from playing playoff games on their own field, if opponents so request.

He said he'd scheduled the semifinal doubleheader for the South Philly Super Site because Frankford coach Mike Capriotti had asked for the rule to be enforced; the Pioneers lost to Northeast in that semi. Washington beat John Bartram.

Robert Coleman, the Pub's sports czar, said yesterday that he had placed the AAAA semis doubleheader at South Philly because of Bartram's involvement.

"We wanted to shine a light on the Southwest Philly community," Coleman said. "All those years they've had to travel up the Boulevard. Now there's a super site close by. We wanted to take things to them."

Cohen scoffed at those comments.

"Total BS. Who's he kidding?" he said. "If he cares so much about Bartram, tell him to fix their scoreboard."

Coleman labeled the so-called Northeast Rule "a recommendation. We haven't acted on it." He said Washington-Northeast is being held at Northeast "because both schools are from that community. It makes perfect sense to those above me."

When asked for specifics, he said he made the decision in concert with John Frangipani, the district's chief of school operations.

When asked why Dobbins-Gratz, featuring two North Philly schools, was not being played at Gratz, Coleman said, "They only have bleachers on one side. With no admission for the kids, we're expecting a good crowd. Security would be a problem."

For the record, Northeast is 0-6 in title games at its stadium since triumphing there in 1983.

"I don't care," Cohen said. "This isn't right. Anyone who knows anything about sports knows that playing at home is an advantage. Their field is turf. They get to practice it on every day. They have lights. They can practice as long as they want. Ours is grass. It gets dark."

Coleman said District rules do not allow teams to practice past 6 p.m. He said he will make sure Northeast stops practicing at 5, if Cohen so requests. He also said he'll gladly schedule Washington for a practice at Northeast tomorrow, a day when school is not in session.

"I'll think about it," Cohen said. "Run it past my assistants. One practice. Big deal. What would it really mean?"