For decades Derby and Shelton High Schools played each other in football and continuously on Thanksgiving from 1922 to 2019.  And for most of those years the Derby Shelton Rotary Club hosted the senior members of the football team – and later the cheerleaders at a Thanksgiving luncheon as couple of days before the game. As the saying goes, “All good things must end”.  Both schools size and athletics had changed drastically as the student population had dwindled, and they had switched to the Naugatuck Valley while Shelton continued to excel in the Souther Connecticut Conference. The 2020 season was lost to Covid including the Thanksgiving game and luncheon and when the numbers finally caught up to Derby, they were forced to suspend their season and forfeit their remaining games including the Shelton game. The luncheon was held but the schools announced that they would no longer play football. Derby did start to rebuild their program and adopted another Valley high school, Oxford, as a Thanksgiving opponent. Shelton will be playing Amity Regional this year as a new tradition begins for them.

However, when Lucy Andrade was club president, she brought the luncheon back as a way to honor the players and cheerleaders of both schools even though they no longer play each other. The first luncheon was held in 2024 and this year it was held on October 15 during a bye week at the incredible J. R. Payden Field House. The history of the luncheon and the achievements of both schools were told and head coaches Jeremy Clarke of Derby and Mike Defelice of Shelton spoke briefly about their seasons so far and what they hope to accomplish the rest of the season.

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Lucy decided to bring the luncheon back, but since the game is no longer played, the event was held on March 20. As always, the speakers included coaches, players, and alums from both schools, and we will have a full video soon.

Here are a few more pictures from the event, but you can see many more on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1921840808227222

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Derby and Shelton High Schools have been playing football against each other from either 1904 or 1905 depending on which town you ask and which game they want to count. Since 1922 all of the games have been scheduled for Thanksgiving even though weather has postponed a few by a day or two. COVID put an end to that streak last year when the high school football season was canceled in Connecticut. Things were set to return to normal this year when the season started but Derby struggled with numbers and injuries through their first five games while Shelton was stamping itself as another Top Ten team headed for the post-season state playoffs. For Derby, the season came to a screeching halt after five games when they were forced to cancel and forfeit their remaining five games in the interest of the safety of their student-athletes – and that included the traditional game with Shelton.

The Derby-Shelton Rotary Club decided that even if the game were not to be played, they would continue a tradition of honoring the players as has been done as far back as the 1930s. Even if there was not to be a game, the Club would still hold the annual luncheon tradition which the Club has done on its own since 1967 even though other groups had also been involved in earlier years. So, on Tuesday, Nov. 23, two days before Thanksgiving they gathered at Derby’s spectacular J. R. Payden Field House with senior members of the football and cheerleading squads from both schools to carry on the tradition and celebrate a great community event. We want to offer a special thanks to the Derby Food Service staff for an excellent meal!

The audience heard from head coaches Steve Bainer of Derby and Mike DeFelice of Shelton who also introduced their captains for a few words about their seasons and the importance of the game. Mike played on the 1995 Shelton state championship team, and was also the alumni speaker for Shelton in 2008. The highlight of the day was the introduction and remarks by alumni of both schools who had played in the game during their high school years.

Rob Romano of Derby spoke about the lessons that he learned during the time he spent playing at Derby and how they made a difference in his life. He went on to play college football and became a sports agent, lawyer and professor at St. John’s University in New York.

Bill Manion of Shelton inspired the audience when he spoke of his own experiences while at Shelton and how an exceptionally tough loss to a 2-8 Derby team on Thanksgiving Day cost his 8-2 team a playoff spot and how that loss turned into a positive because of relationships that he has developed through the years not only with his Shelton teammates but his newfound friends from Derby in the years since.

This year, the Club also asked the captains of the teams to say a few words. Michael Hyder did the job for Derby while Jake Villalobos, one of Shelton’s tri-captains, did the honors for Shelton. Michael’s father Rob Hyder was the alumni speaker for Derby back in 2015 making Rob and Michael probably the first father/son duo to speak at the luncheon.

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Rotary President Tom Wilson with players, coaches, and cheerleaders from Derby and Shelton High Schools in 2019 with the Derby-Shelton Rotary Trophy.

One of Derby-Shelton Rotary Club’s longest-running traditions will not take this place this year due to the Covid-19 Pandemic.  One of the major casualties of the pandemic was the cancellation of high school football in CT. That has meant that the traditional Derby/Shelton game on Thanksgiving Day will not be played this year. The Valley rivals have been playing each other since 1905, and the game has been scheduled on Thanksgiving every year since 1922. On a couple of occasions, the game has been postponed a day or two because of foul weather, but it hasn’t been canceled.

You can read all about the history of the game and how the Derby-Shelton Rotary Club helped to make it the special game that it had become here.

The 2019 Thanksgiving Football Luncheon will go into the books as one of the most memorable in the history of the event whose origins date back to the late 1920s. This year’s luncheon for senior football players and cheerleaders from Derby and Shelton High Schools was held in the Great Room at the spectacular new J. R. Payden Field House in Derby. The field house is the centerpiece of Derby’s incredible new athletic complex at the Ryan Athletic Complex. Earlier this year Derby completed work on the field house and new synthetic football/track & field and baseball/softball fields thanks to a state grant and an exceptionally generous donation by Joan Payden in honor of her father J. R. Payden – a 1915 graduate of Derby High School who also played in the first-ever Thanksgiving Day football game between Derby  and Shelton way back in 1914.

Opening remarks from Tom Wilson and Ed Sheehy.

Ed Sheehy served as master of ceremonies for the event and regaled the audience with stories of games between the ancient rivals spanning more than 100 years. Before the program started and during lunch, the attendees saw a slideshow of highlights from luncheons and football games over the last twenty years. Coaches Jeff Roy of Shelton and George French of Derby introduced the seniors from their schools and spoke briefly about their seasons. However, the real highlight of the luncheon was the introduction of the guest speakers from each of the schools. Eric Dripchak, a 2006 graduate, was the Shelton speaker and Mike Kreiger, a 2015 graduate, was Derby’s speaker. Ironically, the were both successful quarterbacks for their respective teams who went on to college and entered the finance field.

The buffet luncheon was catered by the food service for the Derby schools and there were a lot of smiling faces and full stomachs! Thank you.

The two teams met on Derby’s new field for the first time on Thanksgiving morning and Shelton won 35-0.

Rotary President Tom Wilson presented the Rotary trophy to coach Jeff Roy and his captains following the game. With the win, Shelton now has 10 wins and will retain permanent possession of the trophy.

The Annual Thanksgiving Luncheon for senior members of the Derby and Shelton football and cheerleading teams will have a new twist this year as it will be held in the spectacular new J. R. Payden Field House in the Ryan Athletic Complex in Derby. The event is traditionally held on the Tuesday before the annual Thanksgiving Day game between the teams. This year’s luncheon is scheduled for November 26. Speakers for the event include the coaches of both schools as well as a past graduate from each school who played in the game. This year’s game will also mark the first Thanksgiving day game played on the new turf field that is part of this amazing complex which may be the finest in the state of Connecticut. Guests will also have an opportunity to visit the William Payden Memorabilia Room which is filled with football memorabilia from college and NFL teams that were collected by William Payden and added to this magnificent structure.

A Rotary Thanksgiving tradition was renewed on Tuesday, November 20 when the Derby-Shelton Rotary club hosted senior members of the Derby and Shelton High School football and cheerleading teams for the annual Thanksgiving football luncheon. The event, which is held two days prior to the game, has a long and interesting history with this year’s luncheon being the first one held at Brownson Country Club. Past President Ed Sheehy served as the emcee for the event. Ed is also an alumnus of Derby High School and played in the game himself when a student at Derby High School. He regaled the audience with stories of games going back more than 100 years.

Besides the players, other dignitaries in attendance included the mayors, superintendents of schools, athletic directors and coaches. Derby High Coach George French and Shelton High Coach spoke of their seasons and introduced their players. Both coaches are also graduates of their respective schools and played in the game as well.

As always, the highlight of the event was the remarks made by alumni of the two schools who talked about their experiences as players as well as what the game has meant to them for the rest of their lives. Mike Manzo was the speaker from Shelton and he highlighted what he learned from the motivational term “EARN IT” that was more than a slogan to him and his teammates at Shelton High School. Andrew Baklik spoke about what motivated him to be successful during his career and how his love for the Valley brought him back to the Valley after early career moves had seen him living elsewhere. Click on the videos below to listen to their remarks.

The game will be played on Thanksgiving at Finn Stadium in Shelton at 10:30 am. The winner will be presented with the Derby-Shelton Rotary trophy which goes to the winning team to hold until the next Thanksgiving game. Once a school accumulates 10 wins, it gets to retain the trophy permanently and a new one is put in play. Shelton has currently won the 8 games played since the trophy was put into play, though there have been many others down through the years. The current trophy was designed and built by Tony Branca, former head coach at Shelton High School. It is the second time he has done so, and the Gaels have permanent possession of the first one that he designed and built! For a complete history of all the games, click here.

Another post-game highlight will be the presentation of the Silver Turkey Award to the outstanding player in the game. This award was originally presented by the Suburban News in 1967 and Valley Publishing has carried on the tradition. For a complete list of past winners, click here.

Past President Jack Walsh presented the Derby-Shelton Rotary trophy to winning coach Jeff Roy and the Shelton captains following Shelton’s 62-6 win.

The annual Thanksgiving Football luncheon was another success on Tuesday, November 20 at the Russian Lodge in Shelton. Ed Sheehy once again served as the master of ceremony at the even which honors the senior members of the Derby and Shelton High School football and cheer leading squads. Sheehy kept the action moving quickly, but interspersed the speakers with bits of history dating back to the very first game in the early 1900’s. (See a complete list here.) Both Shelton’s Jeff Roy and Derby’s George French spoke about their teams and introduced the senior members of their squads, but the real highlight of the luncheon was the part played by the alumni speakers. Each coach brings along a former player to talk about their experience playing in the game and the impact that it has had on their lives. Dr. Jeffrey Klauser spoke of his experiences playing football at Shelton High School that influenced him to specialize in sports medicine. He now assists both teams with their football injuries. He and Coach French played against each other while in high school.

Ray Kreiger was Derby’s speaker. A 2012 Derby High graduate, he went on to play baseball at Central CT State University and the University of Bridgeport, and is currently working on his masters degree as a physician’s assistant. He spoke about the impact that football had on him as well. He became a starter at Derby as a freshman and went on to earn All Naugatuck Valley League and All State honors for his performance. Ironically, his team never beat Shelton on Thanksgiving, though he enjoyed great individual success himself. In fact, he was given the prestigious Silver Turkey Award for his stellar performance in the 2011 game that most often goes to a member of the winning team!

One of the oldest traditions of the Derby-Shelton Rotary Club continues on Tuesday, November 21 at the Russian Lodge in Shelton when the Club hosts its annual luncheon for senior members of the Derby and Shelton High School football and cheer-leading teams prior to the Thanksgiving Day game between the two schools. Club member Ed Sheehy will once again serve as Master of Ceremonies and speakers will include the coaches of both teams. Our special alumni speakers this year will be Ray Kreiger from Derby and Dr. Jeffrey Klauser from Shelton.  Other invited guests include the mayors, superintendents of school and high school principal (Head Master in Shelton). The luncheon begins at 11:45. Steve Balog is coordinating the event for the Club. In addition to the luncheon, the Club will also be presenting the Rotary trophy to the winner of the game on the field immediately following the game which will be held in Shelton this year. Click here to learn more about the long history of the rivalry and the luncheon.