Phantoms look for support in title game

FLORENCE — The Pee Dee Pride couldn’t do it.
Neither could the Pee Dee Cyclones nor the Florence Flyers. The Florence RedWolves have come close, but have misfired as well.
Friday night, the Florence Phantoms will try to bring to Florence what so many teams have failed to do — a championship — when they take on the Wyoming Cavalry for the American Indoor Football Association title at the Florence Civic Center.
Should the Phantoms win, it will be the first title for a professional sports team in Florence since the Blue Jays defeated Greensboro for the South Atlantic League championship in 1985.
In order to reach that seemingly unattainable goal, the team says it needs support from a source that has been hit-or-miss at times this season, the fans.
“The fans that have come out (to the Civic Center) for our games have been great,” Florence coach Tavares Bowens said. “We would like to get more fans out here, of course. I’d like to see 5,000 fans pack the Civic Center.”
“Wyoming had 5,000 fans in Casper for the Western Conference championship game (last Friday). We should be able to that here,” Phantoms general manager Bennie King said. “If the fans won’t come out and support us with so much on the line, then they’ll never support this team.”
Despite a nine-game winning streak that has propelled the team to this position, Florence has only averaged around 1,500 fans per game. Conversely, a crowd of nearly three times that witnessed the Phantoms defeat the Reading Express at the Sovereign Center for the Eastern Conference title on July 12.

Frustrated fans
Several factors might contribute to the lukewarm reception the Phantoms have gotten this season.
Last year, indoor football fans saw a team that was in total disarray. Contention between players, management and the coaching staff translated into lackluster play on the field as Florence limped to a 4-9 record.
Changes were made at every level of the team shortly afterward. But the Phantoms stumbled to an 0-2 start, and the talk of “same old Phantoms” resurfaced.
“I believe the attendance could be better,” center Junior Louissaint said. “After what happened last year, you couldn’t blame the fans for not coming to our games earlier in the season.
“That was in the past. We’re trying to bring a title here and we want the fans to come out.”
But linebacker Eric Potochney said some of the problems arise from a simpler source — the fans are unaware of their existence.
“Since I’ve been here, I’ve definitely seen the fan support growing,” he said. “With all we’ve done on the field and in the community, a lot of people still don’t know we have a football team (in Florence).”

Ultimate betrayal
Some say the trouble with bringing fans to the Civic Center derives from the unceremonious exit of the Pee Dee Pride. After a decade of success in the East Coast Hockey League, the team’s owners saw greener pastures in Myrtle Beach and suspended operations in 2005 to move the team.
Fans felt betrayed by the sudden and calculated move, and every other team that has called the Civic Center home has paid the price. Yet the Phantoms are assuring those disgruntled fans the team isn’t going anywhere.
“This is an affordable sport. We have a winning team,” King said. “What happened with the Pride was unfortunate, but we’re two separate teams. (Phantoms owner) Barbara Spigner is committed to keeping the team in Florence, so we’re not going anywhere.”
“I can understand the fans’ frustration. There needs to be some consistency,” Bowens said. “Added with what happened last year with the Phantoms, I can see how that can put a bad taste in the fans’ mouths.
“But we have done our part to change the culture here.”

One final plea
With the team’s checkered past buried where it belongs, the Phantoms want the fans to pack the Civic Center for the final game of the 2008 season, one that has defied expectations.
“If I had a chance to talk to the fans, I would tell them that they have a chance to be a part of something,” Louissaint said. “This city has had a long championship drought. Hopefully, we can bring a championship (to Florence).”
“The proof is in our record. At this stage of the game, we’ve done all we can do.” King said. “We’ve put a competitive team on the field that is active in the community.
“This could be a once-in-a lifetime thing. The fans should come out and see it happen.”
Bowens agreed with his general manager, adding the people of the Pee Dee have a chance to witness history if they’re willing to put the past in its proper perspective.
“We have a chance to do what no team has done in 23 years and give these fans a chance to celebrate. That should be reason enough for me to come out,” he said. “I think we can even get support from the business community in Florence.
“If we could get that, we could have a very profitable team that the whole city would be proud of.”