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Colts too strong for Tomahawks |
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 Travelling two hours in a coach to Dinnington Rugby Club on the outskirts of Sheffield, the Colts continued their quest for an unbeaten season, facing a much improved Sheffield Tomahawks side, small in number but not lacking heart. The game opened with the Colts winning the toss and opting to kick off to the Tomahawks, causing the Colts defence, dominant so far this season, to open the game. The Colts defence opened up by forcing a turnover on the Tomahawks 3rd down, handing the ball to the offence in good field position just inside the Tomahawks half of the field. The offence, led by returning injured QB Jonny Glover, stalled on this drive, with Eden Quigley, arguably the most talented player on the field, struggling to hit the gaps opened for him by the offensive line and key drops by the Colts WRs and TEs resulting in a turnover on downs, giving the Tomahawks the ball about the 30 yard line.
On the following drive, the Colts defence stood up once more, forcing the Tomahawks to punt. However, this punt was dropped by the Tomahawks punter and on a scramble, nearly ran for a first down before being wrapped up by impressive linebacker Stephen Donaldson-Ellison just short of the first down marker, giving the offence the ball just inside their own half. On this drive, the Colts passing offence, led by Glover, clicked, with a key conversion on a long 3rd down by receiver Joel Wilson, who would eventually finish the drive with a 20 yard touchdown catch, his second of the season. The conversion kick, attempted by Chris Astley, was uncharacteristically wide, leaving the score at 6-0 to the Colts. The defence again held, forcing a punt again, which was fielded by returner Phil Hooper and returned 50 yards to give the offence brilliant field position once again.
 With this field position, the Colts once again converted. The drive was, however, not without hiccups, with Quigley coughing up the ball. This fumble was jumped on by alert lineman Kurt Delafield, saving the drive which would end with wide receiver Rihan Malik coming up with his first TD catch of the year in miraculous fashion, tracking the ball, out-jumping the Tomahawks defenders, bobbling the ball then corralling it, taking the score to 12-0 to the Colts. The Colts this time opted to try a different approach for the 2 points, trying to run the ball in through makeshift tailback John Varney, who was bottled up by the Tomahawks defence.
After another stop by the defence, forcing the Tomahawks to punt again, the punter again had trouble handling the snap. This time, the Colts reached him before he could run for extra yardage, downing him at the 15 yard line, handing the offence time to finish off the half with another score. On this drive, team captain Sam Bloomfield caught a one handed, highlight-reel touchdown pass from the impressive Glover, taking the score to 18-0. With the PAT failing once again, the Colts headed into half-time with the score at 18-0. An inspired team-talk from head coach Geoff Leigh and a selection of fruits riled up the Colts players, eager to continue the work started in the 2nd quarter.
 The 3rd quarter started with the offence making good progress, but a neck injury to fullback James Littler caused the game to be suspended for just under an hour while Littler received medical treatment. With both teams retuning to the field of play, the Colts pressed on, capitalising on their field position, scoring with a Glover pass to tight end Seb Kerridge, his first of the season and Glover’s fourth on the day. Astley this time slotted through the extra point, taking the score to 26-0 at the end of the 3rd quarter.
Heading into the 4th quarter, the Colts defence stood up, with rookie CB Ste Czarnecki picking off an errant pass by the Tomahawks QB and running it in from 15 yards out for the Colts second defensive TD of the season. The extra point was again knocked over by Chris Astley, taking the score to 34-0. The Colts rookie contingent again contributed, this time through tailback Alex Hodson, his third of the season, capping off his day of tough running by carrying a Tomahawks defender with him into the end zone, the final score of the day, ending the game with a score of 40-0.
 The MVPs on the day were Glover for the offence, his four touchdowns on the day causing him to have arguably his best game to date. The defensive MVP was Czarnecki for his interception return for a touchdown, the special teams MVP was Brad Callaghan for his infallible effort throughout the game and the team MVP was Chris Astley, who played and excelled at all three phases of the game. The recipient of the Brick award for the biggest hit was linebacker Stephen Donaldson-Ellison.
The Colts next game is away to the Leeds Rams at South Leeds Stadium, with the Rams having just beaten the Bolton Bulldogs 32-0. It promises to be a good game and a good advertisement for youth football, with plenty of action for spectators to enjoy.
Report by Ste Czarnecki |
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Last Updated on Monday, 13 July 2009 17:36 |
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Wolverines sting the Hornets |
 This weekend saw the Lancashire Wolverines travel to the Hull Hornets for the second match up between the two sides this season. The first encounter at Blackburn RUFC led to a closely contested 19-6 victory for the Lancashire side. The Wolverines were looking to get the win that would keep them chasing the Manchester Titans for the BAFL 2 North conference title, and a place in the playoffs.
The game started with Wolverines kicker Danny Morton kicking the ball to the Hornets. Hull started in a positive manner, driving down the field on the back of strong running and passing by quarterback Gaz Hughes. The Wolverines defence held firm however, and managed to turn the ball over to provide the offence with their first opportunity. The offence took their opportunity, with excellent running by rookie Lee Nelson capped off by a touchdown run by quarterback David Mead, who has been finding the end zone regularly this season. The point after attempt was successful through the ever reliable Danny Morton.
The two teams traded possession for the majority of the first half following this score, however the Wolverines looked for standout receiver Iain Pearson with the last play of the half, and Mead found Pearson with a deep pass down the left sideline which he took to the end zone. Morton had a rare miscue with the extra point attempt, and this left the score at 13-0 to the Wolverines at half time.
In the second half the Wolverines continued to apply pressure, although possession wasn’t converted into points until mid-way through the third quarter. The Wolverines were deep in their own half when running back Lee Nelson broke free on a run which didn’t end until he reached the Hornets end zone 60 yards later. This was one of many plays made on the day by Nelson, and he was awarded the Offensive MVP award after the game. Morton returned to his usual way to leave the score at 20-0.
L ater in the quarter the Wolverines extended their lead with a deep pass from quarterback Wayne Glover, this going 82yards to rookie wide receiver Brendan Simcox for his first touchdown as a Wolverine. With the game at 27-0 and firmly under control for the Wolverines, play settled down with the teams trading possession until early in the fourth quarter. The Wolverines were looking to record their second shutout of the season, but the Hornets weren’t ready to let this happen, and a big run from Chris Brown resulted in the Hornets putting their first points of the day on the board. Quarterback Gaz Hughes successfully converted the 2-point conversion attempt with a run round the outside to put the score at 27-8.
The resulting kick-off was put out of bounds by the Hull kicker, giving the Wolverines excellent starting position on their 40 yard line. Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator Paul Horsburgh caught the Hull defence flat footed, and Mead completed another long pass to Pearson going 60 yards for the final touchdown of the day. Morton again converted, and with quarterback Wayne Glover consistently able to run the ball to take time off the clock, the final score was at 34-8 at the end of the game.
After the game, Head Coach Paul Horsburgh said:
“I am pleased with the performance of the team today. After the disappointing result against Manchester two weeks ago I was keen for us to bounce straight back and we did that today. All phases of the game improved, with the defence setting the tone for the game, highlighted by defensive back Jim Mawson’s defensive MVP performance. Offensively we started quickly and created some big plays, and I was pleased to see Lee Nelson step up and he thoroughly deserves his Offensive MVP award.”
Due to the late cancellation of the refereeing crew the game was played using three team judges, two from the Wolverines and one from the Hornets, and Horsburgh dedicated the Wolverines Game MVP award to chairman Steve Norris and defensive backs coach Gary Burke for stepping in to ensure the game went ahead. Horsburgh said of this:
“It was unfortunate that we were unable to have a refereeing crew today, but the three volunteers did a superb job. I think both sets of players deserve credit for their conduct, as they all stuck to the spirit of the game and there were no issues all day.”
The Wolverines have two weeks to prepare for their next game, which sees the Highland Wildcats visit Blackburn RUFC on Sunday 21st June. The game is an early start with an 11am kick off. |
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Last Updated on Wednesday, 10 June 2009 08:12 |
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Chris Astley awarded for commitment |
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In a remarkable show of commitment and effort, Colts special teams captain and lineman Chris Astley has attended every training session for the current season, stretching back to the 11th of January when the Wolverines officially opened pre-season training until currently and has been awarded with a prize by Head Coach Geoff Leigh. The prize, which was a Minnesota Vikings hoody, is the first of what will be potentially many prizes awarded by the Colts coaching staff to help encourage attendance at both Sunday and Wednesday training sessions, which the staff hope will help them succeed in their bid to become the champions of Britain.
Coach Leigh said on the achievement "Chris’ attendance at training has been superb, being the only member of the team to have attended every Sunday and Wednesday session and as a staff, we hope that this, along with awards for attendance, will cause the rest of the team to try their best to attend every session. We know that this can sometimes be an issue due to transport problems, but we realise that every session attended is one step closer to becoming national champions" The Lancashire Wolverines Colts are a BAFL Youth (aged 16-19) team that is always on the lookout for new players and volunteers. Any potential players or volunteers should email Coach Leigh at
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for further information. Article by Ste Czarnecki |
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Last Updated on Friday, 05 June 2009 08:53 |
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Lancashire Academy shows commitment to youth |
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 On Saturday the Lancashire Academy of American Football held a tournament for the three member clubs of their junior setup. The tournament was hosted by the Chorley Buccaneers at their facilities at Southlands High School, and the visiting teams were the Standish Raiders and the Burnley Crusaders.
American Football has strong roots in Chorley, with the Buccaneers being established since 2000. The Buccaneers compete in national leagues at four levels, cadet flag (age 7-11), junior flag (11-14), youth flag (14-18) and junior kitted (14-16). In 2008 the junior kitted side reached the national final, narrowly missing out to Manchester for the title of best side in England.
 The tournament on Saturday involved teams at the three levels of flag (non-contact football). With all sides playing each other throughout the day, the supporters down to watch were treated to a feast of football. Although the day was primarily intended to prepare the teams for the season ahead, competitive games were held with all teams demonstrating their potential. At the cadet flag level the Chorley side led by Lee Taylor emerged victorious. At the junior level, the Buccaneers narrowly missed out to the Burnley Crusaders. The junior side were coached by former stand-out Buccaneers player Lawrence Quinn, from Chorley, who captained the junior kitted side to the national finals last year.
At the youth flag level club manager and principal head coach Ian Nicolson led the team to victory, with an outstanding display from the team. Coach Nicolson also plays for the Academy at the senior level, and has been involved in the Buccaneers for many years.
After the tournament, Coach Nicolson said:
“Today was a fantastic day to be involved with American Football in Lancashire. As someone involved in the sport for a long time, I’ve never known a time where the structure has been so solid in the county. We have a clear progression path for players to follow from age 7 upwards, and we are competing at a high level in all disciplines. Seeing the fun had by all of our players today made me very proud to be involved in the Buccaneers.”
If you are interested in getting involved with the Buccaneers, please contact Ian Nicolson via the website at http://www.wolverineden.com/
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Last Updated on Monday, 10 August 2009 15:02 |
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