The friendly rivalry between youth football teams in the Bronx and Harlem took a contentious turn thanks to one online petition.

Keith Spivey Jr., coach of the Bronx Buccaneers, a Norwood-based youth football program with players ranging in age from 8 to 14 years-old, created the petition to drum up support over the team’s removal from their usual Saturday practice time at Williamsbridge Oval Park. In the petition, Spivey claims the Buccaneers were pushed out by the field’s current permit holder, Richard Hernandez, for the sake of the Manhattan-based Harlem Jets.

Hernandez, once affiliated with the Buccaneers, left the team to partner with the Harlem Jets. Together the two formed the Bronx Jets. Hernandez attempted to negotiate with the Buccaneers by offering them to be absorbed by the Jets to maintain the same field access. Talks between the two teams fell apart, with the Buccaneers ultimately declining Hernandez’s offer.

“They feel that they are being removed, which isn’t the case,” Hernandez said. “I have access to a field that I once gave to the Buccaneers when I was affiliated with them. I am no longer affiliated with them.”

Much of the Buccaneers’ worries over the use of Oval Park stem largely from recruitment, which sustains their program.

The Buccaneers have practiced at Williamsbridge Oval Park for seven seasons, during the spring and summer months. Their usual Saturday practice time, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., is prime recruiting hours. They were offered the option of practicing at the Oval on Monday and Wednesday nights. Spivey declined, arguing school nights would be disorientating for their players and their families, who are accustomed to the Saturday morning fanfare at the Oval.

“The Williamsbridge Oval is a central location and it is essential to our recruiting efforts,” Spivey said. “We already share the field with another team and we recruit the same age groups. So we’re fighting for the same kids in the same area already.”

Spivey fears the impending Bronx Jets would attract more potential players, adding, “If you add a third team to that equation, somebody’s not going to survive that recruitment process.”

Jamel Wright, president of the Harlem Jets, says the move is not intended to displace Bronx footballers, arguing that a third of his players are from the Bronx. He says his primary goal is to expand a beneficial Harlem program further north.

“What you’ve done here has been okay, but things have evolved and you should be able to do a lot more for the kids in the community,” Wright said. “It’s actually very disheartening, because we at the Harlem Jets have no hidden agenda.”

Wright added that the Harlem Jets program offers team members ACT and SAT prep, grade monitoring, and critical resources that extend beyond the field. He explained, “We are absolutely in the business of trying to save lives, by helping boys turn into men,” said Wright. “I’m not saying that the other organizations don’t do that, but we put a point of emphasis on figuring out the needs of the children that we’re providing services for.”

The Buccaneers’ general manager, Tasha Andrews, also believes the stakes are higher than the game. “We teach these children about community, responsibility, having a family-orientated environment. So, it’s not just football,” she said.

Having been denied permits to practice at Allerton Ballfield, Frank Frisch Field and Harris Park, the Buccaneers’ next option would be DeWitt Clinton High School’s field, which they already utilize during the darker, fall months when Oval Park is under-lit. But according to Spivey, the high school is a recruiting nightmare for the Buccaneers.

“Clinton is closed off,” Spivey explained. “If you drive by Clinton, there’s a big gate [around the field]. You just can’t go in there, it’s on a dead street.”

The cost of using a field licensed by the Department of Education (DOE) would also be pricier for the Buccaneers. Spivey said, “I’ve been with the Bucs seven years coming, and the only place I know that the Buccaneers practice is the Williamsbridge Oval.”

“We just want to keep our home,” Andrews said. “We want the opportunity to affect the children in our community. We’ve rescued so many kids out there because we know them.

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Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.