Game of the Week, VMFL Football

Sunday October 18, 2009

Cloverdale Athletic Park


CLOVERDALE BENGALS (5-1) VS. LANGLEY STAMPEDERS (5-1)


This game features two contenders who are aiming to remain in 2nd place in the VMFL standings behind the North Delta Longhorns.

The 2 teams are quite different in composition and history. The Bengals are a more experienced team with a long history of being top contenders in the league. The Stampeders are coming off a last place finish in 2008 and are perhaps the overall youngest Midget team in the league. The Stampeders feature some of the finest rising stars in the league.

At home one can expect the Bengals to be particularly ornery and wishing to make amends for their lop-sided loss to the Longhorns last week. Starbowl player Josh Dunks leads the Bengals, with a supporting cast which includes Robbie Gallaugher (Lord Tweedmuir grad), Victor Trot (Holy Cross grad), and QB Chris Alliston.

The Stampeders have shown a balanced offense with a fine mix of passing and rushing directed by QB Cody Nelson. Leading the way for the Stampeders include RB/DB Starbowler Charles Scott, MacKenzie Buchanan, Jeremy Filipek, and Matt Berg.

To close to call.

Sunday, October 25, 2009
Pioneer Park, Nanaimo


NANAIMO REDMEN VS. COQUITLAM FALCONS


There's an old overused saying in football that "defense wins championships." The problem with this saying is that without offensive support, no team is going to win the championship, and will have difficulty winning important games. This is the case with the Coquitlam Falcons, who are near the bottom of the VMFL standings, yet rank 3rd in Points Against (84). The Nanaimo Redmen suffered a similar fate last year where they placed 1st overall in the league in Points Against, yet poor offensive strategy did not allow them to score enough in crucial games against tough teams, denying them a shot at the championship.

The Falcons must get their offensive act together if they are to have any chance against the Redmen. RB Jeff Cornwall will be key to their offensive success on Sunday. But the entire squad must step up.

Similarly, the Falcon defense faces a formidable task in attempting to stop RB Jimi Parmar behind a strong Redmen offensive line anchored by Ricky Keen and Brandon Hathaway. In action last weekend against North Surrey, Parmar ran for over 200 yards on over 35 carries and scored 4 TDs. Falcon linemen Doug Pannell and Brandon Mise, along with DBs Drae Lewis-Azak and Brandon Hombrebueno will have their work cut out for them.

If the Falcons come to the Island to play, look for a very entertaining game.

Sunday November 1, 2009
Cloverdale Athletic Park


CLOVERDALE BENGALS (7-1) vs. NORTH SURREY BEARS (5-2-1)

This is a match-up between 2 established teams who every year seem to be near the top of the VMFL standings. Both teams are vying to place ahead of the other in the final standings in 2 weeks time. The Bears will need some help though, as a win over the Bengals will still leave them half a game behind the Bengals as a result of a tie against Victoria earlier in the season.

Both offenses are good. QB James Dekker of the Bears has shown considerable improvement as the year has unfolded, having taken over from 2008 MVP Jon Ellingson. On the Bengals side, QB Chris Alliston has been more than adequate. Both teams feature Starbowl backs, Derrek Halicki for the Bears and Josh Dunks for the Bengals. At he receiver position, Starbowler Tyrone Van Horne and Darian Fung lead the way for the Bears. On the other hand, the Bengals have effectively utilized ex-high school QBs Robbie Gallaugher and Victor Trot as receivers.

Both defenses are solid, but have from time to time been susceptible to being scored on for quite a few points.

Look for close, relatively high scoring game.

WEEK 10: GAME OF THE WEEK

LAST WEEK OF THE REGULAR SHEDULE

LOCATION:
John Oliver Park, North Delta
Sunday, November 8, 2009

NORTH DELTA LONGHORNS (9-0) VS. RICHMOND RAIDERS (0-8-1)

All eyes are focused on the North Delta Longhorns this weekend as they anticipate becoming the first team in the league since 2005 to complete the regular season undefeated, and continue their quest to win 3 Provincial Championships in a row.

The Raiders have steadily improved this year and their future is looking brighter. Their struggle this weekend however, will be akin to a David vs. Goliath. The Longhorns have amassed 339 points in 9 games (tied for top ranking offensively) and have only given up 42 points (Ranked #1), while the Raiders have scored only 62 points and have been scored upon for 239 points in 9 games.

Can the Raiders win?

Anything can happen - the underdog AFL defeated the highly favoured NFL for the first time in Super Bowl III (NY Jets 16 Baltimore Colts 7).

It's not over 'till its over.

To be completely grammatically correct that should read

IT AIN'T OVER TILL ITS OVER !!

Im callin it now.... it's over haha. I heard North Delta already beat Richmond 64-0 in preseason..... Also Nanaimo and North Delta are tied for most points scored, but ND had a forfeit win so they only got 10 points for against Cowichan. They are a much better offense IMO.