Blades @ Redhawks – 28/02/10
Sunday saw the Essex Blades make the long trip down to Southampton to take on the Solent Redhawks; looking for a win to end the season with a .500 record and qualify for the playoffs. Meanwhile Solent intended to complete their unbeaten season on home turf while also hoping to avoid a repeat of last years unexpected loss to the Blades; when they went under the name of the Southampton Stags.
The Blades started with the ball on their own 20 yard line after a touchback on the kickoff and were immediately under pressure from the Redhawk defence. A sack and a couple of tackles for loss/no gain resulted in Essex punting from within their own 5 yard line and they couldn’t have asked for a worse start when the snap was fumbled and downed at the 3. This brought the Essex defence onto the field to start the game in a goal line stand situation; a familiar situation against Southampton teams. However, Solent were not able to capitalise on this early opportunity as the defence held firm and kept the ball carriers out of the end zone. Solent elected to kick an early field goal but a fumbled snap resulted in a broken play that ended without a score. This early success encouraged the Blades and their offence returned to the field determined to make up for the 1st drive even if they were starting on their own goal line. The Solent defence had only conceded 12 points in 7 games before the visit from Essex and this strong unit flexed its muscles and was focused on opening the scoring with a safety or better. After two unsuccessful attempts to move the ball, the Essex offense opted to punt on 3rd down to try and catch out the defence. Unfortunately for Essex, the quick thinking returner realised that none of the Blades players around the ball had touched it to end the play and he proceeded to pick it up and run it back untouched for a score; 7-0 (XP Good). Encouraged by the unusual score; the Redhawk defence continued to stifle the Blades offense who, thanks to penalties and strong defence, were again trying to play within their own 10 yard line. This gave Solent another opportunity for a defensive score, which they achieved when a fumble was forced near the goal line and the ball recovered by the defence in the end zone for the score; 13-0 (XP Failed – Fumbled Snap). The Blades offense continued to struggle and were quickly off the field again after being forced to punt. Having to go further than just 3 yards this time, the Solent offense began to open up their play and managed to move the ball on the Essex defence despite some solid work from the Blades. On this occasion, however, the Redhawks were able to reach the end-zone and increase their lead; 20-0 (XP Good). The Blades offense came back onto the field and with, some tough words from the coaches ringing in their ears; began to gain confidence and move the ball against the talented Redhawk defence. After some hard fought rushing yards from FB Nathan Mueller and RB Derekke “Rico” Williams-Wint, QB Steve Dohse launched a perfect pass straight to Harry Gahagen Jnr 30 yards downfield who out-paced his coverage to put the Blades on the board in style; 20-6 (2-Point Conversion Failed). Buoyed by their offence getting into gear, the Blades defence returned to the field and instantly made an impact, forcing the Redhawks to punt after just 3 plays where the QB had been under constant pressure and the runners stopped in the backfield. Essex could now feel the momentum turning and their offense continued from where it left off in the previous series; gaining yards on the ground and through the air before Dohse rolled out of the pocket to hit Williams-Wint with another deep pass downfield which Rico caught and ran in for the score; 20-12 (2-Point Conversion failed). Knowing that they were right back in this contest, the Blades defence continued to do what they do best and hold Solent to a short drive to set their offense up with a chance to take the lead. Unfortunately for Essex, a good punt meant that they had to start with the ball from within their own 5 yard line and, again, the Solent defence made their presence felt as they burst through the blockers to sack Dohse in the end-zone for the safety; 22-12. Following the safety punt, the Redhawk offense ran down the clock to halftime while making some progress against the Blades defence; but not enough to put them in a scoring position. Score at halftime 22-12.
Both teams came into the 2nd half knowing that the game could still go either way and this was evident through the stalemate that was the 3rd period with neither team being able to break the other for a score. Both the Solent and Essex offenses were able to move the ball in the period but the majority of the play was in the middle of the field and out of scoring range for either team. Notable mentions on the Blades defence go to John Wamser who had an excellent game with numerous tackles and a fumble force/recovery as well as defensive line partner Dave Walton who also had several tackles and two sacks in the game. There were also interceptions for Gahagen, James Thornton and Raul Barclay. The 4th quarter began with the Blades still 10 points down and looking for a score to make it a tense finish. Unfortunately the score was not to come as the Redhawk defence kicked into life again and stopped the majority of the Blades advances in the period to deny them any scores towards the comeback. Solent, on the other hand, were not finished scoring. Mid-way through the 4th quarter, the Solent offence managed to string together a long, time-consuming, drive down the field to the Blades goal line where a designed QB keeper to the outside managed to put the score just out of Essex’s’ reach; 29-12 (XP Good). Determined to fight ‘till the end, the Blades offense continued to try everything in the Arsenal against the Redhawk defence, however, as is common when a team is chasing a game; one of the many Essex passes was intercepted by a Solent defender who ran the ball back 30 yards for a touchdown; 36-12 (XP Good). Both offences were held on their following drives as time wound down but there was just enough time for Solent to score again following an Essex punt. The Blades punted from within their own red-zone only for the returner to pick up a couple of blocks and reach the outside and score untouched to give Solent the win; 43-12 (XP Good).
Solent now have a week off as division champions to begin preparation for the playoffs and await confirmation of who they will face; as the second seed from the Conference 4 North Division is still undecided. Essex will go away from this game, knowing that this game could have had a very different ending if they had not “shot themselves in the foot” thanks to numerous mistakes and mental errors. The Blades now look forward to Derby Day where they hope to settle the score with local rivals UEA; with each team beating the other once this season already.
Blades Vs Stingers – 21/02/10
Sunday saw Essex host the Surrey Stingers in what would be a close and tense game. Essex were looking to secure a playoff spot with a win over the 2-3 Stingers while Surrey were hoping to pickup a win to help towards their qualification for the BUAFL Plate.
Several hours of torrential rain Sunday morning had turned the usually damp Blades pitch into a total swamp and it continued to rain for the majority of the game; not helping the situation. Surrey started with the ball and attempted to move the ball on the Essex defence with their power running game through the mud and water whilst most players were more focused on trying to keep their feet! The Blades defence quickly stopped the Stingers offence on a failed 4th down attempt to bring out their offence. However, this series was short-lived as Essex too, struggled to make any progress in the stodgy chaos that was the middle of the field. Not even the newly discovered passing game or their usual outside running style was able to help the Blades move the ball. The game continued in this stalemate for the rest of what was a very uneventful 1st half to send the teams in at halftime tied 0-0.
The two teams started the second half with barely any jerseys actually resembling their original colours courtesy of the muddy coatings that they had acquired. Essex started with the ball and began to move the some of the way up the field before being forced to punt in what was continuing to be a very defensive focused game. This brought the Stinger offence back onto the field and, aided by the late arrival of #3 at RB, were able to start moving the ball using all 4 downs on a 2/3 yards per carry basis. This approach continued to be quite successful for the rest of the game but Surrey never quite managed to make it all the way to the end-zone. Again, this stalemate continued all the way until the last 2 minutes of the game where things became very tense for all involved. Another stalling offensive drive from the Blades resulted in a punt from within their own red-zone. The Stingers defence continued their strong display and managed to break the line and block the punt, resulting in a mad scramble to recover the ball as it rolled its way towards the Blades end-zone. The ball was eventually downed at around the Essex 5 yard line; setting Surrey up with an excellent opportunity to take the win with less than a minute to go. For Essex, this situation was reminiscent of the numerous goal-line stands against the Southampton Stags last season and they knew that it was all or nothing for the result. Three successive runs through the middle of the line were stopped with important tackles made by Seb Doughty, James Thornton and Raul Barclay; inching the Stingers closer and closer to the goal-line. This brought up 4th down and the lack of a kicking game coupled with unsure footing caused Surrey to attempt a QB sneak from the 1 yard line; only for the Blades to hold firm and push the pile back away from their end-zone thanks to some hard work by the defensive tackles Adam Burrows and John Wamser. However, Essex were still not out of danger yet as their offence were being handed the ball within their own 1 yard line with under 20 seconds to go. Surrey were unable to capitalise on this excellent field position, however, as QB Steve Dohse scrambled for a few yards to give them some breathing room in order to run the clock out and play for overtime.
For those unaware of the overtime rules, BUAFL operates the American college style overtime whereby both teams are given a possession from the 25 yard line going in rather than the sudden death approach of the NFL. Surrey won the toss and elected to start with the ball. Fresh from their goal-line stand, the Blades defence were determined to keep their shutout and despite some effective running from #3, they were able to once again halt the Stinger offense at the goal-line; this time thanks to a fumble force and recovery by linebacker Josh LIvesley. On came the Essex offence, knowing that a score of any form would win them the game. The Surrey defence, however, had other ideas and were determined not to be outshone by their opposite number as they held the Blades offence relatively quickly to setup a nail biting field goal attempt for the win. Blades kicker Ash Ramsey struggled his way through the swamp to release a good kick, only for a Surrey defender to get a hand on the ball at the line to knock the ball to the ground. The failed field goal attempt meant another possession would be given to each team. Motivated by their field goal defence, the Surrey offence came onto the field and, after a couple of run attempts, completed a rare passing play to a receiver on the goal-line who caught the pass and fell into the end-zone to score and send their sideline into wild celebrations; 6-0 (2-point conversion failed). Essex now knew that anything short of a touchdown would give Surrey the win. This task was made harder by the strong Surrey defence, motivated by the score as well as the sideline counting down with chants of “4/3/2/1 more down” from the sideline. The Stingers defence managed to hassle Dohse not allowing him to settle in the pocket for the whole drive resulting in incomplete passes until 4th down when a pass to the sideline was knocked down by the Stingers CB to win the game.
Essex now slip to 3-4 and face the daunting trip to face the unbeaten Solent Redhawks next week to complete their regular season; ironically hoping for Surrey to do them a favour and beat playoff rivals the Kent Falcons to send the Blades into the playoffs regardless of the Solent result. Surrey improve to 3-3 and host the Imperial Immortals next week before the crucial game against the Falcons 7th March as they look to move ahead of Brighton and secure qualification to the plate competition.
Blades @ Phantoms – 14/02/10
The last time the Essex Blades visited Cambridge to play ARU spectators witnessed a very eventful game that included scoring, injuries and pretty much every type of weather imaginable; and today would be no different. Essex visited the Phantoms following a disappointing defeat to the league leading Greenwich Mariners meanwhile ARU were fresh from a bye week following their narrow victory over the Kent Falcons. Both teams knew that the last playoff place will go to one of them and were both looking to gain that crucial upper hand in the head to head tie-breaker.
The Blades started with the ball and were instantly dealt a blow as QB James Woodward was caught under a pile of would be tacklers as he made a pitch to the RB; resulting in a fractured collarbone for Woodward. Fortunately, the Blades were able to call upon newly recruited Steven Dohse who stepped into the position and made an instant impact. Powerful running from the ever present Blades quartet of running backs Ash Ramsay, Derekke “Rico” Williams-Wint, Chris Palmer and Rob Maher and some nice completions from Dohse to Harry Gahagen Jnr allowed the Essex offence to move down the field quickly and efficiently for Williams-Wint to score. This would be the start of a massive day for the running back that saw him touch the ball only 8 times for a combined yardage of just under 200 yards and 4 TD’s; 6-0 (XP No Good). This opening score brought the Blades defence onto the field fired up and looking for their first shutout of the season; and they did not disappoint. The ARU offence was quickly forced to punt without a 1st down that would allow the Essex offence to return to action. The Blades, determined to continue the momentum, came out firing with some big pass completions from Dohse and runs from the backs before Rico went in for his second score to give the Blades a two score lead early in the 2nd quarter; 12-0 (XP No Good). Each team was forced to punt on their next drive with the Phantoms punter landing the ball within the Blades 5 yard line. Sensing a defensive score, the Phantoms brought heavy pressure causing Dohse to release the ball in the direction of one of his receivers which was ruled intentional grounding from the end zone giving ARU a safety score; 12-2. This change in momentum brought the Phantom’s offence to life as they began to move the ball against Essex with their “ground and pound” offence leading to the running back finding a hole behind his blockers and escaping through the heart of the defence for a 40 yard score; 12-8 (2-point Conversion No Good). This quick fire double from the opposition stunned Essex but they did not have to wait long before they were back in control of the game as, on the 1st play of the next drive, Dohse found Williams-Wint wide open with the space to out-sprint the defence for the score; 18-8 (XP Blocked). Knowing that their offence was showing no signs of stopping, the Blades defence returned to the field determined to put the last drive out of their heads with a quick stop before the end of the half and in fact; they managed this so quickly that they were able to give their offence another opportunity to score before the half. Looking to take advantage of this chance, Dohse continued his impressive debut with another big 1st play completion, this time to veteran tight end Phil Casson who sprinted along the sideline, out-pacing all but one of the Phantom defence before being brought down within the ARU 5 yard line after a 68 yard run. This allowed Williams-Wint to score his 4th TD of the 1st half to send Essex into half-time 17 points ahead; 25-8 (XP Good).
The second half started in much the same way that the first had; both teams knew that a playoff spot was up for grabs and were determined to get the win. ARU started with the ball and, despite managing to move the ball, were eventually forced to punt. This brought Dohse and his offence back onto the field only for the Blades to suffer a little déjà vu when Dohse was hurt during a sack that caused him to leave the game. This forced Essex to turn to rookie running back Chris Palmer to see the game out as QB. Palmer was able to control the offence as it returned to its more familiar run based style; although there would be no more offensive scores for the Blades, it became more a case of seeing the game through without any more injuries and securing the victory than needing to score. This put the pressure on the defence to continue to produce and shutdown the powerful Phantom offence. Both of these strategies held true for the majority of the second half with only one offensive score on the final drive of the game for ARU. Before that, however, the Blades were not done scoring as Williams-Wint had his 5th score of the day called back for holding; resulting in a field goal attempt from the 10 yard line. Unfortunately for the Phantoms, the success of stopping the high scoring offense quickly turned to despair when the kick was tipped at the line and the ball recovered in the end zone for a score by quick thinking Blades linebacker Josh Livesley; 32-8 (XP Good). As already mentioned, the game continued as a stalemate between offence and defence until a timing mix-up with under a minute to go found the Blades needing to gain a first down from within their own 5 yard line to run the clock out. This mix-up was then exaggerated when the fumbled hand-off was recovered by the Phantoms giving their offence the ball on the 2 yard line with around 30 seconds left. Despite a valiant attempt by the Blades defence, the Phantoms did manage to score with an outside run when the defence was heavily stacked in the middle; 32-14 (2-point Conversion No Good). The game ended with an attempted onside kick that was recovered by Gahagen to give the Blades the win.
Essex now continue their run of 5 consecutive games with a visit from the Surrey Stingers next week, knowing that a win will put them in a very strong position for a playoff spot. ARU meanwhile, visit Brighton in the 1st of 3 consecutive road games where they know that anything less than 3 wins out of 3 will confirm Essex as the 2nd playoff seed from Conference 4 North.
Blades Vs Pirates – 31/01/10
Part two of this seasons Essex Vs UEA rivalry; the story continues. After suffering a close defeat at the hands of the Pirates before Christmas, Essex, beginning a streak of 5 games on the bounce; were looking to tie this season’s record against the local rivals with a win on home turf. UEA, on the other hand, had a busy pre-Christmas schedule that has left them with only 1 more game following this trip to Essex and realistically needing wins from both to stand a chance of playoff football. This rivalry game always produces great action and today was no different.
As expected, both teams began the game with a lot of energy and passion, resulting in a stalemate of a first quarter with both defences forcing punts on short offensive drives. The deadlock however, was broken at the turn of the quarter with an impressive drive from the Blades. A 50 yard punt return from Harry Gahagen Jnr gave Essex great field position which they quickly took advantage of. A short drive including an important 4th down conversion from running back Ash Ramsay resulted in Ramsay then breaking through the line for a 25 yard score on the following play; 7-0 (XP Good). Following the touchdown, the 2nd quarter returned to a state of stalemate with both defences stepping forward and forcing punts and turnovers. Notable mentions have to go to Essex debutant defensive lineman John Wasmer for multiple tackles and a sack, linebacker James Thornton for another solid performance and Gahagen, again, for an interception and several tackles whilst also helping out on the offense with some hard earned rushing yards. This sent the Pirates in at the half down by just one score and determined to come out firing in the second half.
The Blades started the 2nd half with the ball and came out firing; determined to increase the lead and come away with the win. Starting from their own 42, QB James Woodward confidently marched his offense down the field with some powerful running from the Blades running back quartet of Ramsay, Rico Williams-Wint, Chris Palmer and Rob Maher; all of which finished the day with over 40 yards. The drive ended with Wint bouncing a run out to the edge for a 5 yard score on the end-zone pylon to double the lead and send a message to UEA that Essex wanted this win; 14-0 (XP Good). This message was then driven home immediately when UEA were forced to punt on the following drive without gaining a 1st down. Spurred on by a the confident performance of all aspects of the Blades team, Woodward took to the field again and caught the Pirates defence off-guard with a 35 yard completion to receiver Tommy Clarke who was brought down immediately to put Essex well inside Pirate territory. However, the Blades could not build on this great start and were held on the next 3 plays to setup Ramsay for a consolation 30 yard field goal; pushing Essex just that little bit further ahead; 17-0 (FG Good). UEA now needed to do something to stay in touch with Essex; and the combination of a short kick and good return put then in a great position to do so. The Pirates quickly capitalised on this with some tough running from running back Joseph Chiri and then with a 20 yard completion on 3rd & 15 into the end-zone to finally get on the board; 17-7 (XP Good). The UEA defence came onto the field encouraged by this score and, after a couple of first downs, stopped the Blades Offense to give their offense another opportunity to close the gap. Gahagen had other ideas, however, as he intercepted a pass on the fifth play of the drive and returned it 25 yards for a TD only for it to be called back for a block in the back penalty during the return. Despite this disappointment, the Blades offense still started in the Pirates red-zone and quickly got to work with Palmer scoring round the outside from 6 yards out after just two plays to potentially put Essex out of reach with 5 minutes remaining; 24-7 (XP Good). UEA, however, did not believe they were out of the game and came onto the field to take advantage of a blown coverage and score on the first play from scrimmage with a 50 yard pass completion for the score; 24-14 (XP Good). A hopeful Pirate onside kick was recovered by Blades safety Raul Barclay and the Essex offense successfully ran down the clock and put the game beyond doubt when Gahagen broke through the heart of the defence on 4th down to score from 25 yards out and secure a winning start to 2010 for the Essex Blades; 31-14 (XP Good).
Essex progress to a 2-2 record and look forward to hosting the currently undefeated Greenwich Mariners next weekend; hoping for a repeat of the last time an undefeated team visited Essex when they toppled the Southampton Stags last season in an epic battle. UEA now have a week off ahead of a trip to the Mariners where they hope to end the season with a .500 record and then prepare for a return to Colchester for Derby Day; the decider for this seasons East Anglia rivalry.
Blades @ Pirates – 06/12/09
Essex Blades Vs UEA Pirates; the rivalry continues. In the first of three meetings this season, the Blades went to Norwich looking to continue the good feeling following their win over Canterbury and also to avenge last years loss; which ended up costing them a playoff spot. UEA were playing their 5th game of an action packed pre-Christmas schedule and were looking to bounce back after a close loss to the Kent Falcons the previous week. These games always have a special place in the hearts of the players thanks to the intense rivalry; leading to some fierce competition and hard-hitting action on the field.
Essex kicked off and their defense continued to show the strength that we had seen against Canterbury by forcing a short drive and punt from the home team. This brought out the Blades offense, lead by rookie quarterback James Woodward who was looking to build on a solid debut against the Chargers. Unfortunately this did not go to plan as he was intercepted, following a few run plays, on a pass to receiver Tommy Clarke who immediately tackled the interceptor. This allowed the Pirates offense to return to the field but again, the drive was short-lived after a freak play where a screen pass got caught in the wind and was blown 5/10 yards behind the receiver resulting in a fumble. Blades safety Raul Barclay was the only person on the field to realise this and picked up the fumble and returned it for a score, only for the officials to blow the play dead in the confusion, meaning that the Blades would still get the ball, but the touchdown would not stand; much to Barclay’s frustration. This did, however, set Essex up with great field position at the Pirates 20 yard line; but the UEA defense continued the very defensive game by forcing and recovering a fumble soon after the original turnover. The Pirates offense returned to the field and began moving the ball with lots of short runs; most of which were handed to their elusive running back #31. This resulted in an 11 play drive during which Blades linebacker James Thornton made 6 tackles en route to his Team MVP performance, however Thornton was unable to prevent the drive ending in a touchdown to break the deadlock; 6-0 (XP Blocked). The game continued to be a very defensive affair until well into the 2nd quarter when Blades kicker (and running back) Ash Ramsey completed a successful drive from Woodward and full back Rob Maher with a 20 yard field goal to bring the score back to 6-3. Both teams had short drives before Blades defensive end Dave Walton finished the half with a sack on the Pirates QB as time expired; fellow defensive lineman Adam Burrows with the fumble recovery on the play. Half time score UEA 6 – 3 Essex.
Essex started the 2nd half with the ball, determined to make a bigger impact on both the game and the scoreboard. They certainly managed to increase the tempo with some solid running from rookie running back, and Offensive MVP, Rico Williams-Wint and usual suspects Ramsey and Maher. Unfortunately the scoreboard would remain relatively untroubled for now as the UEA defense regrouped and forced a punt. The Blades defense returned to the field, looking to bring their offense back on as quickly as possible and this was achieved on the 3rd play from scrimmage when Walton, on his way to Defensive MVP, tackled the ball carrier at the line of scrimmage forcing a fumble for Barclay to recover. This gave the Essex offense good field position which they took advantage of, gaining a quick first down to set them up in the redzone until the UEA defense, again, held strong and forced a field goal which was then blocked. This did, however, put the Pirates offense in dangerous territory; within their own 10 yard line. Unfortunately for Essex, this did not prove helpful as #31 found a hole in the line and scampered away, untouched, for a 95 yard score; 14-3 (2-point conversion good). The game continued with the Blades offense struggling to make progress while their defense continued to cause problems with Thornton and Walton making plays along with linebacker Jack Becht, playing his final game before returning to the USA, until early 4th quarter when an outside run from the Pirates managed to break a tackle and reach the corner of the endzone from 40 yards out to potentially put the game out of reach; 22-3 (2-point conversion good). Motivated by this score, the Pirates defense continued their impressive display with another quick stop on the following drive only for Thornton and Walton to combine as soon as they returned to the field with a forced and recovered fumble respectively to bring the Essex offense back onto the field. This quick turnover seemed to spark the offense into life with some big runs from Rico and a couple of completions from Woodward to Clarke before Maher went into the endzone for a short yardage score and 2-point conversion to give Essex a glimmer of hope; 22-11. With time pressing, the Blades elected to try an onside kick, which UEA did not seem prepared for, and a good bouncing kick from Ramsey was recovered by Blades corner Tom Chapman to set up an exciting finish. This left the Blades with less than a minute to score twice and Woodward came out positively with some big completions to Clarke before the timeouts ran out along with the clock to award UEA the 22-11 win.
Essex are now finished for 2009 and will begin preparations for their next game which happens to be the return leg of this fixture on January 31st. UEA progress to 3-2 and will be looking to go into the Christmas break with a win over Brighton next weekend before looking to do a regular season double over the Blades in January.
Blades Vs Chargers – 29/11/09
Yesterday saw the Essex Blades host the Canterbury Chargers, the fixture being reversed as a result of a waterlogged pitch in Canterbury. Essex were looking to get their season back on track after the opening day loss to Hertfordshire and the postponement of the Greenwich game. Canterbury, in their 1st season, were also looking for their 1st win after suffering defeats to Royal Holloway, Kent and UEA.
The opening kickoff was received by Canterbury to set up their offense who were looking to start with the initiative and put the first points on the board. The Blades defense, however, had other ideas and held the Charger to a three and out series to bring out the their offense in good field position at the half way line. Essex instantly made an impact with a 12 yard pass from rookie QB James Woodward to Ant Haynes. This bright start, however, would stall over the next few plays with 3rd and 4th down passes to the endzone falling incomplete. The Essex defense was determined to make it a long day for the Chargers and this was re-enforced when safety Harry Gahagen blitzed round the line untouched to lay a devastating hit on the QB and force a fumble on the second play of the drive; Gahagen also recovered the fumble to bring the offense onto the field inside the Chargers half. Essex then wasted little time in taking advantage of the good field position with a short run from rookie FB Rob Mayer before Ant Haynes reached the outside and showed a burst of speed to score his first Blades touchdown from 25 yards out; 7-0 (XP Good). Canterbury continued to struggle on offense despite a first down catch from #85, who was a constant passing threat from the tight end position, and were forced to punt. This brought on Woodward and his offense who acted fast and scored on their 3rd play with a hand off to Tommy Clarke, which had been setup by a 35 yard pass to the same player; 13-0 (XP No-Good). Canterbury’s day went from bad to worse when their QB, under heavy defensive line pressure, threw a looping pass that was intercepted by Gahagen who managed to return the ball to the Chargers 20 yard line to end the 1st quarter. This then seemed to spark the Canterbury defense into life as they stood firm and forced a three and out thanks largely to a 20 yard sack by #62; only for them to be caught out by a fake punt which Ash Ramsey ran for 30 yards to get the 1st down by measurement. Mayer then scored his first Blades touchdown on the following play running untouched up the middle for 10 yards; 19-0 (XP No-Good). Things continued to go badly for Canterbury when Justin Tanega forced a fumble on the kick return, which was recovered by Blades linebacker James Thornton. The Chargers defense continued on from their last defensive stand with an impressive four down stop on the 1 yard line and their hard work was then rewarded when their QB escaped a heavy blitz in the endzone to connect with #85 for a 100 yard score; 19-6 (2-Point Failed). This would remain the score at the half following a short possession for each side.
The Canterbury defense picked up where they left off on the 2nd play of the half when they forced and recovered a fumble to bring their offense on in great field position. Determined to capitalise on this momentum shift, the offense got straight to work and in two plays were at the Blades 1 yard line. However, the defense held strong and resisted on all four downs thanks to notable contributions from James Thornton, Raul Barclay and Adam Burrows. The 3rd quarter continued to be dominated by the defences with both teams punting before Rob Maher scored for the 2nd time following good runs from rookies Chris Palmer and Rico Williams-Wint; 25-6 (XP Missed). Both defences then finished the game strong with Canterbury being forced to go three and out twice and Essex being forced to punt and then fumble as time expired.
Canterbury now have a week off before a visit from the ARU Phantoms where they will continue to look for the first win of the campaign. Meanwhile Essex will want to take this momentum into their rivalry game away at the UEA Pirates next week for the first of two meetings this season between them. The Essex Blades would like to thank their supporters and cheerleaders (Essex Flames) for another bumper crowd in poor conditions and hope that this will continue through the season.
Blades Vs Hurricanes – 08/11/09
Well its that time of year again; when all the summer talking stops and we start to get an idea of who has recruited well and who is going to be in for a long season. The Essex Blades opened the season in front of a bumper crowd on their home field against the ever impressive Hertfordshire Hurricanes; both teams wanting to put the past months training into action and to start the season with a win.
The game started very evenly, with both defences stopping the opposition relatively quickly; a pattern which continued for most of the 1st quarter until the Blades were pinned within their own 5 yard line thanks to some accurate Hertfordshire punting. On the second attempt to get out of the single yardage zone, the Blades running back was brought down in the endzone by a Hurricanes linebacker who broke through the line to record the 1st points of the season; 2-0. This gave the Hurricanes a boost, which helped them to drive the field on their next offensive series for the score courtesy of their powerful yet fast backs and able receivers; 9-0. The 2nd quarter continued in much the same fashion with both offenses finding their feet and becoming more and more confident. However, it was to remain a tight defensive battle with just the one score before the half. Now in the lead, the Hertfordshire offense really started to pick up the pace and test the hard working Blades defence until mid-quarter when another impressive drive was capped with a score. The kicker slotted the extra point through the posts to send the Blades in at the half down 16-0.
Essex started the 2nd half with the ball, and after a good return, the offense took to the field and seemed to have the upper edge on their opponents for a while as they drove most of the field behind some powerful running by fullback John Hunt. Unfortunately this progress was halted just short of field goal range and the resulting 4th down conversion attempt was stopped. Determined to make up for their defences slow start to the half, the Hertfordshire offense took to the field and wasted no time in stamping their authority on the game with the running back breaking through the line for a 40 yard score on the 1st play from scrimmage; 21-0 (XP Missed). The Blades offense continued to improve as the game went on and had a strong second half in terms of moving the ball but they were unable to find that final, killer touch to break open the Hurricanes defence for the score. The game ended with Hertfordshire, keeping with consistency, and driving 40 yards following an interception to record their fourth offensive score in as many quarters (XP Blocked) to open their season with an away win of 28-0.
The Hurricanes will take this win and look to build on it on Sunday when they host the UEA pirates. Essex will now be looking to build on the many encouraging signs that they showed against the Hurricanes whilst also looking to smooth out any wrinkles before hosting the Greenwich Mariners this Sunday. This will be Greenwichs season opener so the Blades will hoping to take advantage of the game that they already have under their belt to capitalise on any rustiness shown by the Mariners.
Welcome to the new Essex Blades Blog
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