Category Archives: Sports

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Twenty-Five takeaways from Sunday’s Patriots Super Bowl sendoff rally, Sunday January 28, 2019

By Robert Gillis
Published in the Foxboro Reporter 1/2019 and the Boston City Paper 2/2019

1. I am SO glad the weather wasn’t what we had last Sunday; no way this event would have been held in those icy storm conditions – it was cold (28) but no wind, just seasonable for January – nothing we’re not used to. We bundle up, we’re ready! Some folks have been here since 4:00 AM!

2. Susan and I go in and head toward the “Foxboro Resident” tent, we get a special VIP lanyard and we’re ON THE FIELD.

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We Are All Patriots — Thank you Pats for an amazing 2015-2016 season!

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By Robert Gillis
Published in the Foxboro Reporter and the Boston City Paper, 2/2016

A year ago, in 2015, before the AFC game, I wrote a column in this space saying thank you to the New England Patriots and their organization for a great season and for all they do for us.

I deliberately published the piece BEFORE the game – I wanted to emphasize that regardless of that outcome, we are so proud of our Patriots.

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Win or lose, THANK YOU New England Patriots!

By Robert Gillis
Published in the Foxboro Reporter and Boston City Paper, 1/2013

Before our New England Patriots go to Denver this weekend, before we are either anticipating another Super Bowl or looking toward next season, I would like to say this to the Pats, a sentiment I think most of us share:

THANK YOU.

I’ve proposed before that football has replaced baseball as the favorite American sport, and while baseball may certainly continue to be the great American pastime and will always remain beloved and well attended, NOTHING compares to the intense debates, discussions, fights, celebrations, and sheer love of the game of football — especially here in Foxboro, the only town in America to host a professional franchise.

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Boston Red Sox prove we are BOSTON STRONG with World Series win at Fenway

by Robert Gillis
Published in the Foxboro Reporter and Boston City Paper 11/2013

“This is for you, Boston. You guys deserve it… We’ve been through a lot this year and this is for all of you and all those families who struggled.” — David Ortiz, MVP 2013 after the Red Sox World Series win.

The story goes that a few days after the September 11 attacks, singer/songwriter (and my personal hero) Bruce Springsteen walked along a bridge in New York City and stared where the twin towers had stood.

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Reevaluating what makes a hero and a role model

George Washington Statueby Robert Gillis
Published in the Foxboro Reporter and The Boston City Paper, 6/2013

Last week, in light of the events in the Aaron Hernandez case, the New England Patriots organization announced that anyone who wanted to return their Hernandez jersey for another jersey would be welcome to do so. The reasoning is sound and it’s a nice thing for the organization to do. I applaud it.

And it got me thinking — as a culture we love wearing team jerseys with our favorite players on them — I have a few myself — And yet, isn’t it strange that we wear jerseys of these sports “role models” and “heroes,” and want to be just like them, then disassociate immediately when they do something unspeakably evil, or illegal, or immoral.

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Unruly Boston sports fans are a disgrace

 

By Robert Gillis
Published in the Boston City Paper 6/2008

Boston sports fans: What the hell is the matter with you people?

The Red Sox / Patriots / Your College Team / Celtics win a championship and you see that as a license to go out rioting, setting fires and doing malicious damage to property?

In the latest me lee, over 20 people were arrested after the Celtics win. The Celtics — a team you couldn’t GIVE AWAY tickets to a year ago — are suddenly on everyone’s mind and the unruly chaotic mob floods into the street.

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Thank you New England Patriots!

by Robert Gillis
Published in the Foxboro Reporter and the Boston City Paper, 1/2007

After weeks of almost spring-like conditions, winter had returned with a vengeance, and most of us were already used to the change to more seasonal weather.

But the morning of Monday January 22 felt particularly bitter. Yes, it was another winter Monday with grey skies and unforgiving cold, but this was different.

The commuter station was so quiet — the train even more so.

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Red Sox Win the World Series

 

by Robert Gillis Published in The Foxboro Reporter 11/2004

“I can’t believe it,” Sue said.

“I can’t believe it either,” I said.

The Boston Red Sox had just won the World Series.

Under a blood-red lunar eclipse, surely a sign of divine providence, the Red Sox had just swept the Cardinals in four straight games.

The announcer was reminiscing about all the famous Sox players who never saw the series win, and then wondered how many of us have lost family members who were lifelong Sox fans who wanted to see just one series win?

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That’s Entertainment? The Wardrobe Malfunction at the Super Bowl

by Robert Gillis
Published in the Foxboro Reporter 2/2004

It’s taken me a little while to collect my thoughts about the alleged “wardrobe malfunction” incident during the Superbowl half-time show. But I finally figured out what needs to be done. It’s a baby step, but one in the right direction.

First of all, let’s dispense with the obvious rhetoric. Yeah, the line has been crossed. This is a sex-saturated culture. The act was reprehensible. Something must be done.

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New England Patriots make us proud during winter of our discontent

by Robert Gillis
Published in The Foxboro Reporter 1/2004

In “City Streets” Carole King sings, “River wind is icy / Chills run through my bones / Tides of life are ebbing out / between the cobblestones … winter colored morning / Gray and dirty brown / Reflecting the mood I’m in / Despair is all around.”

King’s song seems sadly applicable to the artic tundra our town has become this month. The temperature in Foxboro fell to around minus thirteen a week ago.

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Even angels in the outfield couldn’t help the Red Sox – 2003

Published in the Foxboro Reporter, 10/2003

My dad, God bless him — was the sports fanatic in my family and a true die hard Red Sox fan. While winter nights were often peppered with him shouting “SCORE!” whenever the Boston Bruins got a goal, it was the Red Sox that was his true sports passion and most dear to his heart.

Some of my earliest memories of Dad are him watching the Red Sox, the cool summer breeze blowing in, or the old exhaust fan desperately trying to stifle the blazing August heat.

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1997 – Keep the Patriots in Foxboro — the open letter I wrote to Mr. Kraft

by Robert Gillis
Published in the Foxboro Reporter, 1/1997

Note: I’d  been writing for the Reporter for only a year or so when I wrote this one — keeping the New England Patriots in Foxboro was BIG news back then. And this, my open letter to Mr. Bob Kraft, was very well received by folks in town. To this day (2014) I am so grateful that the Patriots call Foxboro home, and all that the Kraft family has done for our town. 

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