Magicians Prevail in Barn Burner 35-33

Fans saw a dramatic football game with wild swings Friday night at Piper Field.
The Marblehead coach saw a cautionary tale, a tale of two halves and a performance he would rather not see repeated.
Marblehead notched their fifth victory of the season, 35-33, over the Fishermen of Gloucester.
Coach Jim Rudloff was happy and surprised with the way the team played in the first two quarters.
The Magicians took a 21-7 halftime lead into the locker room.
The second half was different: a rollercoaster ride for fans; a frustrating two quarters for the Marblehead coach.
"We were physically beaten down," he said.
The players were tired. They made too many mistakes and passed too much, he said.
The team needs to play strong throughout the game, not just a single half, he said. 
Gloucester hung tough in the second half and got back into the game.
They capitalized on a recovered fumble. They made big offensive plays including a 69-yard pass and runs that covered about half the distance of the football field.
Marblehead made big offensive plays, too, including long TD passes, one of them a pivotal 70-yard bomb from Matt Millet to Dylan Cresta.
Brooks Tyrrell sliced through the Gloucester defense for some long runs, as well.
Over the course of the game Brian Daly caught two touchdown passes.
Coach Rudloff thinks the team was resting on its laurels after defeating Swampscott handily last week, 35-7.
The silver lining in Friday's game was it let the players know they are not as good as they think they are, the coach said, and they will have to work hard and maintain focus in the games to come.
In the second half Friday they got beat up a little bit, he said.
He hopes the reality check benefits the team in the long run.
The next game is Oct. 12 against Beverly, 1 p.m., at Hurd Stadium.