The war of words and animosity between these two teams will never subside and it will be no different and amped up even further in the B.C. Football Conference’s Cullen Cup championship game tonight.

The visiting Vancouver Island Raiders and defending-champion Westshore Rebels will, for the first time ever, battle for that coveted title at 7 p.m. at Westhills Stadium. This inaugural championship clash between the two Island teams — who carry plenty of dislike for each other — should be a physical affair, played in front of a large, boisterous crowd.

This particular matchup has always produced high levels of emotion and animosity, not just between the teams, but fans.

Will this one be different?

“Composure is a big thing in the championship game,” said Rebels head man Charly Cardilicchia, who was named BCFC coach of the year this week. “There are a lot of nerves with the extra added pressure of the Cullen Cup.

“Composure does go a long way in a big game like this so putting the bad blood aside and looking at the bigger picture of where we want to go next week is much bigger than the hatred. I honestly think you’ll see more respect this week and a high level of football. I think we all want the championship more than we want a fight.”

But make no mistake, it will still be a tug of war on the field, with trash-talking between the lines of scrimmage. There always is when the Raiders and Rebels meet head on. Composure and discipline will, however, go a long way to determining a winner.

“It’s definitely going to come down to the want to win more than putting on a show,” added talented Rebels defensive lineman Kent Hicks. “It’s come down to this — it’s now win or go home.

“We have to clean up everything — no penalties and help a man up when he’s down. Let them know what’s good and beat them by play,” he said. “It’s going to be a battle. Two teams don’t make it this far by luck and it’s going to be a good one.”

The Rebels have struggled with penalties this season, but it’s no different from last year when they defeated the Raiders 34-29 in the semifinal before downing the Okanagan Sun 32-21 in the championship game, both at Westhills Stadium.

Both teams are on rolls — the Rebels have won 10 straight games since losing the opener in Kelowna. The Raiders have now tallied four straight victories, including an upset of the Okanagan Sun in last week’s semifinal, also in Kelowna.

Both have talent on both sides of the ball — the Raiders with Brycen Mayoh, who collected four year-end awards this week on offence and special teams, and Quinton Bowles, who claimed two on defence.

Rebels running back Trey Campbell — who missed the first meeting of the year between these two teams — was also honoured for his work, along with Cardilicchia, but Westshore will be without the league’s top offensive lineman, Christian Krause, out with injury.

The Rebels have more weapons on offence and their depth on defence was overlooked by those who chose the award winners. The award snubs have left a bitter taste in their mouths, but the unit and entire team remains a confident bunch.

“We have to be,” said Hicks. “Confidence is not cockiness. We’re here, we’re confident in our skill and we feel that we have every piece in place to win it all. We do. If you’re not that type a team that’s going to come in with that type of mentality, then don’t bother. For real — don’t bother.”

Cardilicchia has, for weeks, been telling everyone that his team will be the last one standing at year’s end and his message isn’t changing now.

“I was telling the boys and letting them know that this is our goal,” he said. “To set goals and achievements in life is a pretty cool thing and when you start to achieve them it’s a pretty powerful thing.”

Now they have the chance to repeat as champions and at home, where they have lost just once the last two years and that was in the Canadian Bowl to the Saskatoon Hilltops late last year.

“It’s a great place to play football and it’s a great place to watch it. This is it. This is a great place where we can go back to back,” added Cardilicchia.

But Raiders coach Doug Hocking — who spent one season as Rebels defensive co-ordinator before returning to the Raiders organization — has a team on its own roll.

“Our preparation is more about what we want to do,” Hocking told Dom Abassi on the weekly BCFC Coaches Show. “We’re going to game plan to take advantage of some of the things they do on both sides of the ball.

“We don’t make this about anybody but ourselves. It’s about the Raiders and how we prepare and how we adjust at halftimes in games like this.”