One point has been the difference in both of those playoff matchups, so both coaches (Lisbon’s Dick Mynahan and Oak Hill’s Stacen Doucette) will be stressing details to their respective teams.

The Raiders (3-1) enter the contest having just suffered their first loss of the season, which came last Friday at Winthrop/Monmouth. That was Oak Hill’s first road game after starting the season by with three-consecutive home games where they outscored opponents 85-32.

The Greyhounds’ first four games have seen them take an alternate route than the Raiders. Lisbon (3-1) opened its season with a big home loss to Winthrop/Monmouth, but the Greyhounds have since won three straight on the road by outscoring those hosts 108-12.

Lisbon’s players will be happy to get back to Thompson Field and their normal 1:30 p.m. time slot on a Saturday afternoon. It’s the same time of day that Oak Hill’s players are used to playing home games, and just a 20-minute drive from Wales. Saturday’s game will have an “only game in town” feel to it, with most games taking place on Friday night.

This matchup deserves the spotlight. It’s football at its best. Two hard-hitting teams with dynamic players and coaches who know each other very well in teacher (Mynahan) and apprentice (Doucette).

Both teams feature senior quarterbacks — Lisbon’s Tyler Halls and Oak Hill’s Matthew Strout. Halls in his second season as the starter, and every time he tucks the ball away he can take it to the house. Strout is the new Raiders’ starter, and brings his former time as a fullback to the QB position, not afraid to put his head down and barrel through the line. Both can sling the ball to some adept backs and receivers, as well.

Halls has bruisers to hand the ball off to, in brothers Noah and Lucas Francis. They’ll be looking forward to running some Oak Hill players over, which would only fuel the home fans’ fire. Jared Glover also will get some touches and will look to make some plays with those, while Tyrese Joseph is a favorite target of Halls.

Strout makes up a backfield with runners Steven Gilbert and Cruz Poirier. Darryn Bailey can both run and catch, and Doucette also has a handful of other skill-position players whose number he can call.

Each team has sturdy line play (would either coach have it any other way?). Adam Mooney anchors the Raiders’ trenches, while Tanton Mattson leads the Lisbon line. Creating running room — as well as time to pass — will be paramount in a game where points could be at a premium.

And let’s not forget about defense. Lisbon had pitched a pair of shutouts before allowing 12 points to Traip last week. Oak Hill didn’t allow a point to Medomak Valley two weeks ago before Winthrop/Monmouth put up 29 on the Raiders. Every turnover becomes a momentum-shifter in this matchup.

Saturday’s clash will put the victor in the driver’s seat for the No. 2 seed in the Class D South playoffs, behind the undefeated Ramblers. A slip-up by Winthrop/Monmouth could mean the No. 1 seed for Saturday’s winner. Yet if the No. 2 seed is up for grabs, the loser of this matchup still has hope for the No. 3 seed, which means a potential rematch in the Class D South semifinals.

These two teams seem to always find a way to meet twice in a season. For fans, that means twice the fun.

wkramlich@sunjournal.com

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