After 81 years, one of the most competitive and heated rivalries in the history of local football is coming to an end tomorrow.

With North Catholic set to close at the end of this school year, tomorrow will be the final chapter of a storied Thanksgiving Day matchup.

Frankford owns the series over the last two decades; the Pioneers beat the Falcons 13 times in 19 meetings from 1990 to 2008. But two of North Catholic's six wins in that time came in '05 and '06. And North Catholic holds a 42-35-4 all-time advantage over Frankford.

The rivalry dates back to 1928, when Frankford beat North Catholic, 20-7. But North Catholic bounced back nicely over the next 20 years, winning 12 of the first 20 meetings while recording 10 shutouts.

The Falcons entered the 1950s with a 14-6-2 advantage over its neighborhood rival.

North Catholic continued that dominance throughout most of the next two decades, losing only three times between '50 and '65. The Falcons weren't just winning; they were feasting on their Thanksgiving Day foe. In '52, North Catholic won, 30-6; in '54, it won, 31-12. The year 1963 was more of the same, when North Catholic won, 30-14, and in '65, the Falcons blanked Frankford, 20-0.

Finally, in '66, Frankford's offense slowly started waking up from what seemed like a 40-year slumber.

The Pioneers started their reign slowly, beating the Falcons, 8-0, in '66 and, 14-8, in '68. Frankford dropped the next two contests before winning, 24-8, in '71, bringing its series record to 11-30-4 and catapulting the Pioneers to their strongest 10-year stretch in the history of the rivalry.

Frankford won the four contests from 1974 to '77 by a combined score of 77-7.

North Catholic came back to win in '78 and '79, but Frankford was quick to stake their claim in the 1980s, winning the decade's first four games, this time by a combined score of 94-30. North Catholic won four of the next six games, giving the Falcons a 36-22-4 series edge entering the '90s. But since '74, the Pioneers lead the series, 23-12.

Frankford won last year, 14-6.