Annual Malden-Medford football pregame Thanksgiving Feast held for Game #138

Hosted by Medford, stirring talk delivered by Mustang Hall of Famer Chris Murphy

By Steve Freker

Make no mistake about it. When Malden High and Medford High ripped it up on Thanksgiving morning in Game #138 of the ancient football series, it was most definitely “for keeps.” But at midday on Monday, November 24, before the big game, the two football teams, senior players and cheerleaders, along with the Golden Tornado and Mustang coaches, broke bread together at the Annual Malden-Medford Senior Football Luncheon. The event was hosted by Medford Public Schools at the Malden Moose Hall on Broadway in Malden.

So how important do both cities and the two schools view this game? Just witness the fact that both communities’ Mayors — Malden’s Gary Christenson and Medford’s Breanna Lungo-Koehn — were at the luncheon, as were the Superintendents of Schools: Dr. Timothy Sippel of Malden and Medford’s Dr. Suzanne B. Galusi. Included were Malden High School Principal Chris Mastrangelo and Medford High School Principal Marta Cabral as well as Malden Public Schools Director of Athletics Charlie Conefrey and Medford High AD Robert O’Leary and Assistant AD Rachel Perry. Malden High Football Head Coach Witche Exilhomme headed up the Tornado Football contingent as did Head Coach John Curley for the Mustangs at the luncheon.

Guest speaker was recent Mustang Hall of Fame inductee Chris Murphy, who described his lifelong love of Mustang football, beginning with his first game as an eight-year-old. “I fell absolutely in love with Medford football from the first Thanksgiving game my dad brought me to watch when I was eight years old. I wanted to play for Medford and beat Malden, too!”

“This game has so much history and so much meaning to these two communities,” Murphy told those gathered on Monday. “I have been in attendance for the past 32 consecutive Thanksgiving Day games between Medford and Malden, and I intend on keeping that streak going no matter what.”

“Before I got married, I told my wife-to-be, ‘One of things we will never be able to do is host Thanksgiving Dinner,” Murphy said with a smile, “because I will never be home that day!”

Murphy — a former Medford football standout, who was inducted into the Medford Mustang Hall of Fame as a “Distinguished Service Award” winner on Sunday at a fete held at the Irish American Hall in Malden — has served as President of the Mustang Football Boosters for the past 11 years and became a member of the football coaching staff this season.

Malden High’s Chris Mastrangelo, in his ninth year as Principal at MHS, extolled the “respect and spirit of the rivalry between these two schools on the football field.”

“I’ve been involved with high school sports all my life as a player, coach, educator and now a principal and I must say it has been a pleasure for the many years I have been at Malden High School to be a part of Malden versus Medford on Thanksgiving every year,” Mastrangelo said.

He recalled the exciting Thanksgiving Game played three years ago at Fenway Park. “We will never forget the excitement and joy that was created by the two teams that night. What a thrill when Kevin Exilhomme from Malden, the brother of our head coach, ran back the opening kick for a touchdown. Then, the Medford kid [Stevens Exateur] does the same thing to start the second half!”

“I can say it out loud now, if not that night, but good for him! I was happy to see that, regardless of the score, in the true spirit of the competition that night and in that venue at Fenway,” the Malden High Principal said.