They're not called the Shockers for nothing.

Halifax Shockers upset the two-time defending champion Saint John Wanderers 9-2 in a Maritime Football League semifinal game Saturday in Saint John and no one was more surprised than the Riverview Mustangs.

"We heard the score and we didn't believe it at first,'' said Mustangs chief executive officer and fullback Mark Crandall.

"We had to call some people in Saint John just to make sure it was true. Halifax has a strong team, but it's still quite a shock for everyone around the league.''

Mustangs will host the Shockers in the league final after they beat the Fredericton Gladiators 43-15 in the other semifinal game Saturday afternoon at Dobson Field in Riverview.

The championship game is scheduled for this Saturday at 4 p.m. at Dobson Field.

"We were not expecting this,'' Crandall admitted. "Now, we have to prepare in a different way because we were expecting to face the Wanderers.

"Halifax has a strong quarterback (Chris Livingston), who has a great arm and he can scramble as well as anyone. They also have a former CFLer in Alan Wetmore, who controls the play defensively as an oustanding linebacker. It's going to be a great final.''

Riverview and Saint John had met in the final three years in a row and the Wanderers had won twice. This will be the first time in five years the Wanderers have not played in the Maritime final.

Mustangs finished first during the regular season with an 8-0 record and the Wanderers were 7-1. The Shockers and Gladiators tied for fourth spot with 4-4 records.

In Saturday's game in Riverview, Steve Cormier, A.J. Gallant and Francis Best each had two touchdowns for the Mustangs.

Jordan Beyea caught a 60-yard pass for a major from Gallant while Donovan Boucher added a two-point convert and Olivier Eddy kicked six converts.

Derek Madsen and Andrew Hubbard each had touchdowns for the Gladiators, who trailed 21-1 at halftime.

Riverview blanked Halifax 44-0 in the only meeting earlier this season.

"That score doesn't mean anything now,'' Crandall said.

"Obviously, they have improved themselves a lot over the course of the season. They've got a lot of talent.''

Meanwhile, the Moncton Vipers and Fredericton Gladiators will play for the Maritime Women's Football League title on Sunday at 4 p.m. at Rocky Stone Memorial Field. Both teams had 4-2 records during the regular season.

SAINT JOHN - In a game that featured plenty of offence, it was a defensive play that made the difference in the Saint John Longhorns' 34-26 victory over the University of New Brunswick at Saint John Wolves in Maritime Football League playoff action.

With the win, the Longhorns advance to the Mariner Bowl championship against the Dartmouth Knights, who pounded the Prince Edward Island Privateers 61-20 in the other AA semifinal. The title game goes Saturday at 4 p.m. at Simonds High School Field.

The MFL's AAA semifinal saw the Halifax Shockers post a 9-2 win over the Saint John Wanderers, while the Riverview Mustangs humbled the Capital Area Gladiators 43-15. Consequently, Halifax and Riverview will meet in the Maritime Bowl championship.

With the Longhorns up 27-20 in the fourth quarter, a fumble by UNBSJ was pounced on by Longhorns linebacker Alex Boyle. From there, Longhorns quarterback Reece Roche took over, throwing a touchdown pass to Phil Couturier for a 34-20 lead.

The TD pass capped 26 straight points scored by the Longhorns after trailing 20-7 in the second quarter. Roche said part of the reason for the offence's slow start was the Wolves' attacking defence.

"They were doing some stuff on defence we hadn't seen them do before," he said. "We had to adjust and pick up their blitzing linebackers and once we did that we knew the passing game would be there with receivers like Jim Mather and Dave Morrell."

The Longhorns struggled late into the first half. Wolves quarterback Jeff Gillies ran a bootleg into the end zone with less than a minute to go in the second to give UNBSJ a 20-7 lead.

Roche responded just before the quarter ended, firing a 40-yard bomb to Mather in the back of the end zone to go into halftime down seven.

Roche connected with Mather on a 25-yard TD pass to open the third and running back Peter Shea found the end zone in the fourth to put the Longhorns ahead 27-20.

The Wolves didn't back down despite the 14-point deficit late in the fourth quarter. Gillies scrambled for key first downs before finding Andrew Hamilton in the end zone for a TD to cut the lead to six. That was as close as the Wolves would come, but wide receiver Justin Cavan said the team came a long way during the season.

"It's only our second year in the league and we weren't getting much respect in the first half of the season," Cavan said. "We were playing for respect and I think we really developed over the season."

The quest for a Maritime Football League championship has ended for the Capital Area DQ Gladiators,

The fourth seed was knocked out of further post season play Saturday at Riverview when they lost 43-15 to top seed Riverview Mustangs in one of two league semifinal games. Third seed Halifax Shockers upset second seed Saint John Wanderers 9-2 in the other matchup in Saint John. Mustangs now host Halifax in the sixth Maritime Bowl scheduled Saturday.

Mustangs, who allowed just 22 points all season in going undefeated at 7-0, took an early 14-0 lead and never looked back against the Glads, who finished the regular season at 4-4 after losing their first three games including a 49-7 rout at the hands of Mustangs in their season opener.

Steve Cormier on a one-yard plunge and QB Andrew Gallant hooking up with fullback Ben

Best on a 25-yard play plus a pair of Oliiver Eddie converts accounted for the early lead.

Glads punter Aldin Pezerovic booted a 60-yard punt going for a single to put the visitors on the board but the Mustangs responded with a Gallant scamper from 25 yards out. Eddie's convert made it 21-1.

Glads did get a little closer as the half came to an end when QB Jeff Taylor hooked up with Tyler Hooper from five outs for the major just as the half ended. Pezerovic added the convert making it 21-8.

Mustangs took command early in the third quarter when Gallant hooked up with Jordan Beyea on a scoring place covering 50 yards to make it 28-8. Glads responded with running back Derek Madsen taking off on a 70-yard gallop. With the convert, it was now 28-15.

But that was to be the extent of the Gladiators scoring on this day. Mustangs finished off a late drive in the third when Gallant scampered in from a yard out to make it 35-15. Glads had another scoring threat in the fourth but a fourth down play from the Mustangs five went for naught. Final tally was late in the fourth when backup QB Paul Guimond found Mike Cochrane in the end zone from 20 yards out for the major. Donovan Boucher added a two-point convert for the eventual margin of victory.

The Maritime loop also named its all-stars for the season with six of the Gladiators making the grade. Making the first team offence were lineman Trevor O'Leary and wide receiver Andrew Hubbard while named to the first team defensive squad were lineman Jamie Edwards and cornerback Bobby McIntyre. Linebacker Martin Rioux and defensive back Bruce Canning earned second team all-star berths.

All is not lost for senior football in the area, however, On Saturday, the Capital Area Curves Lady Gladiators will attempt to win their second straight Maritime women's title when they take on the Moncton Vipers at Rocky Stone Field in Moncton. Lady Glads earned their way to the final with a 46-6 rout over Saint John Storm in semifinal play two weekends ago.

When Mark Crandall started the Riverview Molson Mustangs from scratch a few years back, one of his first tasks was to find the team's first head coach.

Crandall, the team's chief executive officer, wanted to make a splash and land a big name he could build the Maritime Football League expansion club around.

Bringing in legendary Harrison Trimble Trojans head coach Woody Hayes was a no-brainer.

And now in its third season and with help from Hayes, Riverview has quickly become one of the top organizations in the league.

The Mustangs will be thinking of their head coach when they take to the field today in a Maritime Bowl semifinal against the Capital Area Gladiators of Fredericton at 4 p.m. at Dobson Field.

Hayes has been sidelined this season after he was diagnosed with cancer of the rectum. He will be inducted into the Mustangs Hall of Fame today and proceeds from the game will go to the Canadian Cancer Society in his name.

"Woody Hayes has been our head coach from Day 1 and will be until he tells us otherwise. He's a very strong person, one of the strongest men I've ever met and we're hoping he gets through this and gets back on the sidelines," Crandall said this week.

"He's been such a big part of what we've done with our organization from the coaching side of things. He's really helped our players as football players, but also as young men."

Riverview rolled through the regular season in first place with a perfect 8-0 record, outscoring its opponents 342-22.

The top four teams in the nine-team league moved into the upper bracket for the playoffs to compete for the Maritime Bowl league championship. The other Maritime Bowl semifinal today will see the two-time defending league champion Saint John Wanderers (7-1) host the third-place Halifax Shockers (4-4).

The winners will meet in the Maritime Bowl championship game next Saturday.

The fifth through eighth-place teams also qualified for the playoffs and will compete for the Mariner Bowl consolation championship trophy.

The Moncton Marshals (1-7) failed to make the playoffs.

The Mustangs didn't replace Hayes when he fell ill. The assistant coaches have stepped up to overcome his absence.

"But it's still been hard on the team not seeing him on the sidelines, especially for the veterans. They know him well and he gives the best pre-game speeches I've ever seen. He gets you so fired up," said Crandall, who also plays fullback for Riverview.

"He's made it out to a couple games this season and just seeing him on the sidelines, you could see guys stepping it up another level. There's a little more effort, a little more pride just because Woody is there."

The Mustangs met the Gladiators once in the regular season and came up with a 49-7 win in Week 1. Capital Area finished in fourth place with a 4-4 record.

"Fredericton has a gritty team and some talented players, like Jeff Taylor who can hurt you at wide out and quarterback," said Crandall. "After us, they have the second best offensive line in the league, a nice fullback and some good linebackers. They are a top four team in a nine-team league."

That said, Crandall fully expects his team to defeat the Gladiators and advance to its first league championship game next Saturday.

"I hate to say any team doesn't have a chance in the playoffs because it's a brand new season, but I don't think they have the depth to keep up with us for four quarters," the CEO said.

"Like I said before, this is our year. I've never seen a team gel on and off the field like this one has since I've been playing. This will be a good opportunity to fine tune and work on some things to get ready for Saint John next weekend."

SAINT JOHN - Three Saint John teams will battle for berths in bowl games this weekend.

The Saint John Wanderers host the Halifax Shockers Saturday at 4 p.m. at Canada Games Stadium, while the Saint John Longhorns welcome the University of New Brunswick at Saint John Wolves Sunday at 4 p.m. at Simonds High School.

The Wanderers are looking to earn a spot in the Maritime Bowl, the championship game on Aug. 11 that will determine the Maritime Football League's best AAA team. The other AAA matchup has the Capital Area Gladiators visiting the Riverview Mustangs Saturday at 4 p.m.

The all-Saint John semifinal between the Wolves and Longhorns is for an appearance in the Mariner Bowl, which will decide the MFL's top AA team on Aug. 11. The other AA semifinal has the Prince Edward Island Privateers visiting the Dartmouth Knights Saturday at 4 p.m.

This year's playoff format saw the teams separated into two groups. The Moncton Marshals, who finished ninth and last overall in the standings, failed to clinch a post-season berth. The top four went to the AAA division and fifth through eighth went into the AA pool.

"We're three different teams, but basically we're one family,'' said UNBSJ head coach Mike Upward, whose players improved steadily this season. "It's a great accomplishment for the kids.

"A lot of our kids are still young, but the playoff experience will be invaluable. It's been a team effort and every week somebody else steps up. They're a really good bunch of kids.''

The Wolves are led by the passing combination of quarterback Jeff Gillies and receiver Justin Cavan, both of whom hail from Hampton High School. That school also produced UNBSJ tailback Corey Collins, who didn't play high school football but is holding his own on the gridiron due to athletic ability. The Wolves' key defensive player is linebacker Justin Mousek.

No matter what happens this weekend, Upward is pleased with his club's progress, adding the long-term goal is to field a team that competes in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport ranks. Until then, he's hoping players from his program can at least have opportunities to attend and compete for spots on CIS campuses such as Mount Allison in Sackville.

"As time goes by, we would like to see them compete (at CIS schools),'' Upward said.

The Wolves, who finished 2-6 this season, dropped a 28-0 decision to the Longhorns back on June 9.

"It's a little bit deceiving,'' Longhorns head coach Eric Sabean said about that Week 2 win. "They're a different team now. They've fixed a lot of the issues they had earlier on.

"If we underestimate these guys, we're going to be sorry. The two teams they beat were teams that beat us.''

That said, the Wolves won't be able to use the element of surprise. At this point, other coaches know they're a capable crew. And Sabean is especially aware of Cavan's talent.

"I coached him when he was in peewee and then watched him come up through the ranks,'' Sabean said. "In my opinion, he's one of the top three receivers in the league. He's a phenomenal athlete.''

The Longhorns, who finished with a 4-4 ledger in 2007, will look for big games out of quarterback Reece Roche and receiver Jim Mather. When those two are going well, so is the Longhorns' offence.

"He outruns kids that are 10 years younger than him and sometimes makes them look pretty bad,'' Sabean said about the 35-year-old Mather.

Sabean is also quick to praise a beefy offensive line that creates space for running backs Peter Shea and Gary Brown.

"I think the biggest thing we've been preaching is mistake-free football,'' the coach said. "Penalties have to be minimal to nonexistent. We also have to control the ball offensively.''

Sabean said finishing at .500 was a slight disappointment, but noted the overall progress of the MFL.

"There's all kinds of parity in our league. I'm really excited to see how evenly matched some of the teams are.''

The Wanderers finished 7-1 this season, second to Riverview (8-0). Even though the Saint John squad has dealt with its share of injuries, those woes have allowed others to step up.

That list includes quarterback Tanner McDevitt, who's played well in the absence of the injured Jon Hachey. McDevitt was especially strong in the Wanderers' 28-26 victory in Dartmouth last weekend, avenging a home loss to Riverview the week before.

"He played great,'' Wanderers head coach Mark Gallagher said about the young pivot. "That last game was really big for us.

"We were coming off a loss to Riverview and we weren't 100 per cent. I'm not making excuses, though, because Riverview played a great game.''

Gallagher said kicker Chris Chesworth was also a key factor in last weekend's win.

"Without him, we might have fallen a little short,'' the coach admitted. "It's been a tough year. We've just been piecing our lineup together and putting guys in different positions.''