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Wolverines fall short in titanic struggle |
 This weekend the Lancashire Wolverines welcomed their old rivals the Manchester Titans to Blackburn RUFC. This first match up of 2009 was widely anticipated, as recent history has shown the two teams to be evenly matched, and both teams were undefeated going into the game.
The game started with the Wolverines kicking the ball to the Titans, and forcing them to start deep from within their own half. This brought the Wolverines strong defence to the field. Things did not go to plan however, and the Manchester Quarterback went deep to his wide receiver who raced the length of the field to score on the opening play. To add insult to injury, the extra point snap was inaccurate, but the kicker calmly collected the ball and threw to an open receiver in the end zone to leave the score at 0-8 with very little time elapsed.
The poor start by the Wolverines was compounded when the offence proceeded to fumble the ball on consecutive drives giving possession to Manchester deep in Wolverines territory. On the first of these drives Manchester managed to punch the ball into the end zone and converted the extra point, taking the score to 0-15. On the second drive the Wolverines defence made a stand, forcing Manchester to attempt a field goal, which the Wolverines successfully blocked.
The second quarter of the game started in the same fashion as the first, with Manchester again managing to score a touchdown, with a successful conversion taking the score to 0-22. The Wolverines finally roused their offence, who to this point had been completely nullified by their own errors. The awakening of the offence was down to the strong leadership of offensive captain, quarterback David Mead, from Chorley, who picked up the team through a display of accurate passing and strong running, capped with a touchdown run from five yards out. Kicker Danny Morton converted the extra point, taking the score to 7-22.
This score spurred on the defence, who proceeded to hold the Manchester offence giving the ball back to the Wolverines who were looking to close the gap before half time. Again Mead was the catalyst, with a helping hand from offensive MVP Nick Russell and wide receiver Iain Pearson, from Leyland. A solid drive down the field took Mead into the end zone again with a run from three yards out. The Titans managed to block the extra point attempt, leaving the score at half time at 13-22.
 Following the terrible start by the Wolverines, they had managed to claw themselves back into the game, with David Mead being the main influence on the offence, and defensive MVP Paul Mather spurring on the defence. The second half started with the Wolverines looking confident and managing to drive down the field and bring the game even closer with a touchdown pass from Mead to ex-Titan, Nick Russell. With a successful extra point from Morton, the game was now finely balanced with the score at 20-22 to the Titans.
The Wolverines had managed to drag themselves back into the game with an excellent show of resilient football, but the heat of the day was starting to show through, and the Wolverines defence who had spent a lot of time on the field was starting to tire. Manchester’s large squad was showing, as they rotated their players to stay fresh, and managed to grind out another score through their powerful ground game. Another successful two point conversion left the score at 20-30 in the Titans favour, and the Wolverines were starting to struggle to stay in the game. The game was closed out with the Wolverines showing promise but not making it to the end zone, and Manchester managed to get one more score, leaving the final score at 20-36. The result was disappointing for the Wolverines, but a lot of character was on display to mount a comeback from 22 points down so early in the game.
After the game, MVP David Mead said:
“We can hold our heads high today after this loss. Manchester are a very good team, and we put ourselves in trouble with a very slow start, but I’m proud of the way we rallied to bring the game back in touching distance. If we can show that character for the rest of the season I am confident we can go on to great things. We’ll get back to work this week and look to improve for our visit to Hull in two weeks time.”
The Wolverines now have a week off, before heading to Hull to play the Hornets on the 7th June. In the reverse fixture earlier this season the Wolverines triumphed 19-6. The next game at home is on the 21st June against the Highland Wildcats at Blackburn RUFC. For more information, please visit the Wolverines website at http://www.wolverineden.com/
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Wolverines and Romans too close to call |
 This Sunday the Lancashire Wolverines returned to their home at Blackburn Rugby Club following their victory against the Highland Wildcats on the road in Inverness which took them to a record of 2-0 for the season. The opponents for this game would be the Chester Romans, a team who didn’t manage to record a victory in the league last season, including two defeats at the hands of the Wolverines. This meant that the Wolverines were going into the game as favourites; however the Lancashire side certainly didn’t underestimate the Romans, who also recently returned from Inverness with a victory to start their 2009 season.
The first quarter started off as a tight and cagey affair, with both sides able to gain enough yards to move the chains a couple of times before punting without threatening the end zone. It wasn’t until midway through the quarter that the first blow was landed, with the Chester Romans breaking a long run down the sideline through wide receiver Glyn Chadwick, narrowly avoiding the Wolverines defensive backs to run 76 yards untouched into the end zone. The point after attempt was good, leaving the score at 7-0 to Chester. Possession continued to be traded for the rest of the quarter, including a pair of interceptions, one for either side to close out the first quarter.
 The second quarter started with the Wolverines driving down the field on the back of strong running by Chris Littler and quarterback David Mead. The drive was capped with a three yard touchdown run from rookie tailback Anatoly Kulikov. The ever reliable Danny Morton kicked the extra point taking the score to 7-7.
On the next Romans drive, the Chester offence drove the ball down deep into Wolverines territory, but an excellent stand led by Defensive MVP Dean Fitzpatrick forced the Romans to attempt a field goal. Excellent Wolverines pressure led to the field goal attempt being unsuccessful.
Later in the quarter the Romans were again driving, and when down close to the Wolverines goal line, a well executed quarterback sneak by Jason Wilcock took them into the end zone once again. Another successful point after attempt left the score at 14-7 to the Romans, and this is how it remained until the half.
The second half started like the first with the teams trading possession, and it was well into the third quarter when the Wolverines drove down the field and drew level with a fourteen yard touchdown pass to tight end Rick Cole thrown by quarterback David Mead converted once more by Danny Morton. With the score tied at 14-14 both teams traded possession deep into the fourth quarter, and the last drive of the game saw the Wolverines driving down the field looking to get close enough to bring Danny Morton out to attempt a late game winning field goal. Strong defence by Chester managed to hold the Wolverines out though, and the game finished with an incomplete pass leaving the game tied at 14-14.
After the game, Wolverines Head Coach Paul Horsburgh said:
“This was a hard fought game that really could have gone either way. I’m proud of the way my team battled today, and Chester are certainly a different team to the one we played last season. We have a lot of positives to take from the game today, and we’ll look to build on these and improve for the visit of Manchester in two weeks time.”
Following the game, Horsburgh presented the game MVP award to Paul Mather who excelled on both the defensive and offensive lines, with an honourable mention going to middle linebacker Martin Williams.
The Wolverines go into a bye week where they will look to prepare for the visit of local rivals the Manchester Titans on the 24th May at Blackburn RUFC. Kick-off time is 2.30pm and further details can be found on the Wolverines website at http://www.wolverineden.com/.
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 Following the success of two weeks ago when the Colts turned in an impressive outing against the Sheffield Tomahawks, the Bolton Bulldogs travelled to Blackburn RUFC to play the Colts. The Bulldogs were hoping to score a win to open their season, beating their local rival on their home turf while the Colts were trying to capitalise on the momentum generated by their win against the Tomahawks. The Colts, winners of the opening coin toss, elected to defer their choice until the 2nd half, delegating the Bulldogs the opening decision who chose to receive the ball, being tackled around the 30, allowing the Colts defence to follow up their dominating performance of 2 weeks prior. Much akin to the last game, the Colts forced a turnover on the first drive, this time from a leaping interception by FS Phil Hooper, his first of 2 picks on the day. Returning this turnover to around the 25 yard line, Hooper gave the reigns to rookie QB Lawrence Quinn, making his first start at Youth level after a successful Junior career. It is, as it was 2 weeks ago, on this first drive that the Colts open the scoring, running it in this time with offensive captain Eden Quigely, opening his account for the day. The conversion was kicked through by Chris Astley, taking the score to 8-0.
The next Bulldogs drive, Phil Hooper once again picked off the Bolton QB, this time in spectacular fashion, out leaping the Bulldogs receiver and the Colts cornerback to collect his 2nd turnover of the day, capping off his impressive outing. With good field position once again, the offence started out well, but stuttered following a fumble which the Bulldogs recovered. This, however, made the defence more fired up, forcing a fumble for their 3rd consecutive turnover in as many drives, this time with new recruit John Varney recovering a Bulldogs fumble. Benefiting from the field position, the Colts offence converted their chance, leaving the score 14-0 with the conversion to come. With WR Joel Wilson taking over as holder, he not only fielded a high snap, but calmly stood up and passed to Sam Bloomfield for a 2 point conversion.
 As the game progressed, Quigley scored twice more, taking his tally on the day to 4 touchdowns and just under 200 yards. Rookie TB Alex Hodson scored from close in again. This was, however, not Hodson’s first trip to the endzone in this game, having a 70 yard touchdown run called back due to a holding call. It was on this score that Astley missed his only PAT attempt of the afternoon, with the kick being blocked by the Bolton defensive line. The defence did, however, atone for Astley’s miscue by scoring a safety, with stand-in defensive lineman Christian Facchin sacking the Bulldogs QB for the score. The Colts defence closed out the scoring with Lee Hilton picking off a pass at around the 30 yard line and running it back for a touchdown, the first time in the 3 year history of the current Colts setup that a defensive player has scored a touchdown, with Astley again slotting over the PAT in order to finish the scoring at 48-0.
The offensive MVP on the day was Lawrence Quinn, who stepped up in only his 2nd game as a rookie to start and lead the Colts offence to a 40 point rout of the Bulldogs defence, the defensive MVP was linebacker Stephen Donaldson-Ellison who never took a play off and was around every tackle made, the special teams MVP was Chris Astley for his near perfect PAT kicking display and the team MVP was Christian Facchin, who’s effort level was difficult to match. A final mention is required for the recipient of the Brick Award, the award for the biggest hit of the game, which went to rookie LB Bradley Callaghan.
The Colts next game is at home to Leeds Varsity on the 17th May at Blackburn RUFC. Check www.wolverineden.com for more details or email Colts head coach, Geoff Leigh at
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Report by Ste Czarnecki |
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Last Updated on Tuesday, 05 May 2009 19:31 |
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Wolverines return from the Highlands victorious |
 This weekend the Lancashire Wolverines travelled the long road to Inverness to play the inexperienced Highland Wildcats. This was the first home league fixture for the Wildcats, and was the second game of their debut British American Football League season. The Wolverines were coming off a hard-fought win in their first 2009 fixture against the Hull Hornets, and were looking to keep their winning record intact.
The game started with the Lancashire side kicking the ball to the Wildcats, hoping that their defence could set the tone for the afternoon following an excellent outing against Hull. The defence rose to the occasion under the experienced guidance of defensive coordinator Darren Carr, stopping the Wildcats offence before they managed to get going, forcing a three and out on their first drive, leading to a punt. This brought the Wolverines offence on to the field, looking to improve on their slow start in the previous game. Things started well, with the Wolverines driving down the field, but the drive stalled when deep in Wildcat territory through a Highland interception of a David Mead pass.
Once more the Wolverines solid defence held up, with the defensive line snuffing out the Wildcats offence on the ground with some excellent work. Another punt followed, with the Wolverines offence gaining the ball on their 30 yard line. There was no stopping the Wolverines on this drive, with a powerful running game led by Offensive MVP and team captain Danny Bowles taking the Wolverines all the way down the field. Fittingly it was Bowles who capped the drive, taking the ball into the end zone on the ground from six yards out. Phil Gregory was in charge of kicking duties for the day, and he completed the extra point to give the Wolverines a 7-0 lead in the first quarter.
 The two teams traded field position for the rest of the quarter, and it was mid-way through the second quarter when the Wolverines defence put the next points on the board. Pinned back in their half of the field, the Wildcats were forced into passing situations, and on one of these attempts the ball was thrown in the direction of Wolverines defensive captain, Ian Nicolson. Nicolson managed to intercept the ball, and run it back all the way, avoiding the Wildcats offence to give the Wolverines a 13-0 lead. The extra point was unsuccessful. Late in the half the Wolverines defence was again pinning the Wildcats deep, and when the quarterback dropped back into his end zone to look for an open receiver, defensive lineman Paul Mather broke through the line to sack the quarterback for a safety to take the score to 15-0. A second David Mead interception gave the Wildcats hope in the dying seconds of the first half, but once more the defensive line held up the Wildcats, and the score remained 15-0 at the interval.
The second half started with a rookie tailback Anatoly Kulikov kick return setting the Wolverines offence up midway into their half. Danny Bowles then stepped up with a huge play, taking the ball 59 yards into the Wildcats end zone from the first play of the second half. The extra point was good, giving the Wolverines a 22-0 lead.
With the game firmly in control, the Wolverines continued to apply the pressure. This resulted in the defence causing another safety, with the pressure being applied by linebacker Damien Szabo, who after the game was awarded with the defensive MVP award.
In the fourth quarter the Wolverines closed out the game, first through a touchdown from Anatoly Kulikov, and capped off with quarterback David Mead taking the ball in from 12 yards out. The final score in the game was 37-0.
This result took the Wolverines’ record to 2-0 for the season. Speaking after the game, defensive coordinator Darren Carr said:
“I’m very proud of the whole team today. It’s never easy to have a long trip before a game, but the team is focused and looking to make an impression on Division 2 this season. The defence performed superbly well today again, and I’m especially proud of the defensive line who were collectively awarded the Team MVP award. We’ll look to go into a week off now, and rest up those injuries we’re currently carrying, and we’ll be ready for Chester in two weeks time.”
The Wolverines next game is against the Chester Romans on Sunday the 10th May at Blackburn RUFC. Kick-off is at 2.30pm. |
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Last Updated on Tuesday, 28 April 2009 12:20 |
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Wolverines survive Hornet attack |
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 The Lancashire Wolverines opened their 2009 season on Sunday by welcoming the Hull Hornets to Blackburn RUFC for a BAFL Division 2 North clash. On a beautifully sunny day in Lancashire, the Wolverines and Hornets kicked off following a top notch youth game between the Lancashire Wolverine Colts and Sheffield Tomahawks, an excellent game showcasing the high quality of youth football in this country, and a game in which the Wolverine Colts emerged victorious, 26-0.
Eager to match the Colts result, the Lancashire Wolverines kicked-off to the Hornets, but from the off it was the Hornets applying the pressure, and although the Wolverines defence managed to put the Hornets at fourth down several times, Hull managed to convert to keep driving. The first drive came to an end with the Wolverines defence managing a critical stop to take over on downs.
The Wolverines offence was unable to move the ball in the first half either through the running game or through the air, however the Hornets continued to make ground with a very strong running game, although the Wolverines managed to hold them out with some excellent play, led by linebacker Carl Rimmer. Finally the Hornets made the pressure count, and managed to get in to the endzone through a sneak by quarterback, Rich Brookesby. The point after attempt was unsuccessful. Throughout the rest of the first half the Wolverines offence struggled to find any fluency, and as the half drew to a close the Hornets were driving close to the Wolverines endzone. Again the Wolverines defence stood strong and the game went into half time with the score remaining at 6-0 to Hull.
The Wolverines coaching staff took the opportunity to regroup during the interval, and the team came out with a renewed sense of purpose. Things started to click in the second half, and although never really finding a steady rhythm, the offence started to gain yards under the guidance of quarterback David Mead. The Wolverines eventually managed to get on the scoreboard through a pass to tight end, Rich Cole, making his senior football debut. The extra point attempt by Danny Morton was good to give the Wolverines a slender lead. The two teams exchanged drives before David Mead again connected on a pass allowing Rich Cole into the Hull endzone for his second touchdown of the day.
 The Wolverines now started to sense victory, and although the Hornets carried on fighting hard, it was the side from Lancashire to score the next critical touchdown. Quarterback David Mead connected with veteran wide receiver Iain Pearson to confirm victory for the Wolverines. The final minutes of the game ticked away, and the Wolverines came away with a hard fought win, 19-6.
Following the victory, Wolverines Head Coach, Paul Horsburgh had the following to say:
“I’d like to thank Hull for travelling across to us today for the curtain raiser to our 2009 season. We’re very pleased to come away with a win from the game. Hull were excellent opponents on the day, and if it wasn’t for the outstanding performance from our defence the score could have been quite different.
Individually I’d like to congratulate our game MVP, Carl Rimmer, for an outstanding performance at linebacker. He caused Hull’s offence problems from the very start of the game until the last seconds, and really set the tone for the rest of the team.
We’ll move on from here and start our preparations for our game at Inverness next week. We had some good performances on the day, but we’ll need to improve in all areas to ensure we continue our winning start to the season.”
Also receiving MVP awards for the Wolverines were Rich Cole (Offensive MVP) and Adam Purcell (Defensive MVP). The Lancashire Wolverines travel to Inverness next week to take on the rookie Highland Wildcats, and will look to improve their record to 2-0. The next home game will be on May 10th, when the Wolverines welcome the Chester Romans to Blackburn RUFC, with a 2.30 kick-off. |
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Last Updated on Tuesday, 21 April 2009 09:36 |
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