Injuries are already taking their toll on the South Fork Cubs, who endured a tough season opener in football on Friday night, falling 68-12 to a strong Cornerstone Christian squad in Miranda.

The visitors, who returned 10 players from an undefeated team in 2018, took control of the game early and never looked in danger.

For a young Cubs team, which features a junior-heavy lineup, it was a baptism of fire, although injuries didn’t help matters with the team’s starting running back and quarterback both sidelined.

Junior running back Riley Gallagher broke his collarbone in practice earlier in the week, while QB Sean Hassall-Hoss was forced from Friday’s game with a mild concussion.

Alex Harding led the way in the loss on both sides of the ball.

The junior standout rushed for 143 yards on five carries and ran in both of his team’s touchdowns, while also pulling in five receptions for 45 yards and making 12 tackles on defense, eight of them solo.

Harding also stepped in at quarterback after Hassall-Hoss was sidelined.

“We’re going to learn from our mistakes,” South Fork head coach Karl Terrell said. “And that’s what we’ll be working on this week.”

Another bright spot for the Cubs was the play of freshman John Harding, Alex’s younger brother.

The freshman had a good game filling in at DB, where he made some key tackles, and also had two kick returns for 50 yards, while rushing five times for 45 yards.

The Cubs will travel to Laytonville next weekend to scrimmage with the home team and Potter Valley.

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Ray Hamill writes at humboldtsports.com, where you can read lots more about sports in Humboldt County.