Weather: Windy
Gate: 34k
A test of the unknown took place in the game between the Ultimate Team and the Junior Wildmen. It marked the first cross-conference match for the team from the Southern Conference team and was opening encounter against the South for the side from the West. The two teams recent results were fairly similar, the Ultimate Team drawing with the Flatliners and the Wildmen finishing level against the Mugaz. With so little history between the two teams, interest was in existence around the league to see just how well the expansion conference teams would perform.
The visiting team won the coin toss and elected to receive. Against a light front but cover across the midfield and a short kick, the Wildmen hooked left. The player allocated responsibility for the ball was first time rusher, Lineman Mr Big Balls. Covered by a side screen, Balls moved cautiously down the sideline. The cover was not strong enough though. It repelled the first attack by High Elf Lineman Mr Darcy but was not able to cope with the second attack from Amazon Thrower Mina Murray. The attack was helped by the elimination of the Wildmen's own Amazon Thrower Lisa Furykup, a casualty of blocking from Orc Blitzer Doom. The removal of that piece of the screen gave Mina Murray the lane to hit Jeffrey and knock him off the field.
Jeffrey carried the ball off the field before being pummelled by the crowd who in turn tossed the ball back onto the field just in front of Ultimate's Goblin Bubble. The Goblin came to the attention of the whole league in the week one when he secured a game altering interception against the Tragedy. Bubble played it safe by rushing just a couple of yards and handing off to Lineman Hulk Hogan. As the Wildmen had been pushing into Ultimate's territory on attack, there was little cover against the counter attack. The home side had more players in better position, most of the Wildmen were on the wrong side of the ball. There is one player for whom such odds are nothing more than a minor inconvenience, Speedy McSpeedy. The High Elf Catcher and reigning Player of the Year dodged a series of tackles to blitz Hogan and knock the ball free.
The hit generated the time that the visitors needed to start regrouping. The loose ball was collected by the all action Mina Murray but her hold on it was brief. Lineman Mr Jeffrey followed his captain's lead with a successful blitz that tackled the ball away from the Amazon. Surprisingly though, the Wildmen were unable to capitalise. A couple of successful dodges were followed by a couple more unsuccessful ones and the iniative was handed right back to the Ultimate Team. Of the Ultimate Lineman flooding downfield, a combination of "The" Ultimate Warrior and Hacksaw Jim Duggan saw off what little resistance there was and secured the opening touchdown of the game for the appropriately named Ultimate Warrior.
The score came with a quarter of the first period remaining. It was clearly Speedy McSpeedy time. Resorting to the oft-seen Wildmen tactic of relying heavily on their star man, Speedy single-handedly led the charge into Ultimate's territory. Despite the lack of support, it was a tactic that looked as though it might bear some fruit until Speedy suddenly stopped in his tracks just a few yards from the endzone. For a moment, Speedy just stared blankly at the ball and at the floor in a mindless pause. It was a blow that was enough to delay Speedy long enough for the whistle to go to end the first half. Clearly, some foul magic was afoot.
Leading 1-0 at the break, Ultimate Team The Second must have been overjoyed at their first period performance against the more heavily favoured Wildmen. They had prevented the visitors from scoring and had taken the lead on the counter-attack. The game was also being played more in the manner of the hosts style, with large numbers of dodges and little direct conflict. The Wildmen will not have been happy with the manner of their struggles, their high powered offense had not delivered so far. It would have to do something in the second half to recover the game.
Their were clearly some harsh words from the coaching staff during the intermission. The Wildmen came out fired up in their highly aggressive full front defence. They began to turn on the physical pressure right from the get go. With the weather getting worse and stronger winds gusting across the field, the Wildmen pushed forward as soon as the kick off had landed. Amazon Thrower Mina Murray was the recipient of the kick-off but her possession did not last long. A high speed blitz from Speedy McSpeedy knocked her out cold on contact leaving the Ultimate's backfield team in trouble immediately. Wood Elf Catcher Rudolf Nureyev was the player charged with doing something about it under the pressure of an entire team running full pelt towards him.
Nureyev was able to collect the ball and line up a receiver but the pressure was enormous and it was in the form of Minotaur Horny Wildman who filled the passing lane with his sizable frame. Nureyev could not get the ball up high enough and Horny made him pay with a surprising show of agility. Despite being at full pace, he was able to lift his arms into line with the ball and made the Wildmen's first interception since Mr Jeffrey against the Mugaz last season. It was the second time in three games of existence that the Ultimate team had been intercepted after Mina Murray was picked off by Sunday of the Tragedy.
Horny Wildman had never previously seen possession of the ball so it was to be expected when he gave up after rushing a couple of yards, handing the rock over to Lineman Mr Small Balls. The counter-attack was well and truly on and just as in the first half, the team being countered were out of position and struggling to make an impact. An impact was made on Smoove B who had his interception compounded by some pain. Norse Blitzer Mr Large Horn reached the Wood Elf and hit the fragile Nureyev with such force that the Thrower was Badly Hurt in the collision. That strike removed the last real opposition and it was a straight forward run for Mr Small Balls to score his first touchdown since week 4 of 2003 and equalise at 1-1.
At one apiece, the Ultimate Team adopted a more cautious play. Without long range strike threat Rudolf Nureyev or ball handler Mina Murray, this was probably a sensible option so when the ball landed from the kick-off and once again up against the full front defence Smoove B the Wood Elf Thrower collected it and stepped backwards. Again the Wildmen surged forwards but they were unable to get their hands on Smoove B. The Ultimates were able to slip their tacklers and limit the damage that could be done by providing a series of moving targets and no static ones. It was only when they attempted to move the ball upfield that the hosts came to grief. Smoove B pushed up to hand-off to High Elf Lineman Mr Darcy who in turn was met by a ferocious blitz from Horny Wildman. The Minotaur added to his earlier game changing interception with a brutal hit that injured Darcy and ripped the ball free.
As in the first half though, the Wildmen were not able to capitalise thanks to slow second phase play. Smoove B dodged his way in and out with the ball, handing it on to the only player with a realistic shot at making it to the endzone before the final whistle, Lineman The Big Boss Man. Although he made a valiant effort, he just did not have the pace to get there before he was chased down by Speedy McSpeedy. The High Elf achieved his third successful tackle of the game, bringing Boss Man down from behind before scooping up the ball himself and turning back upfield. Showing some of that lightning speed, he ate up the yards but with good clock management, was able to recognise that even he could not make it in the few seconds remaining. The only option was to find someone else in a better position. Despite being at full pelt, McSpeedy locked on to his target of Lineman Mr Jeffrey and curved a decent spiral right into Jeffrey's arms. Those arms are not those of a scoring machine and he failed to secure the reception. The drop ended the game at 1-1.
The Ultimate Team are still undefeated, having picked up three successive draws. The Wildmen have now drawn two in a row and will feel that they should have turned this one into a win. They were outplayed in the first half and not really able to cope with the dodging of the Ultimates. When they brought their physical power into play in the second half, the game turned their way. For the teams of the South, this result will be heartening and does show that they are able to compete with the established Conferences.
Injuries: None
Key Stats
| Team | CAS
|
Rush
|
Blocks
|
Downs
|
Tackles
|
Dodges
|
Ultimate | 1
|
34
|
29
|
13
|
1
|
23
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flatliners | 2
|
39
|
42
|
24
|
5
|
22
|
MVPs: Mr Darcy, Lester Hayfriends
Best Players
Horny Wildman: 1 CAS, 1 Interception, 1 Rush for 3 yards, 8 Blocks, 5 Downs, 1 Tackle, 4 Dodges, 1 Fall, 2 Stands
Speedy McSpeedy: 2 Rushes for 23 yards, 1 Pass Attempt, 8 Blocks, 6 Downs, 3 Tackle, 9 Dodges
"The" Ultimate Warrior: 1 TD, 1 Rush for 7 yards, 5 Blocks, 4 Downs, 1 Fall, 2 Stands, 1 Fumble