[tps_title]Around the Continent – Easter Weekend 2015[/tps_title]
Week Three and the Easter Weekend Edition of Around the Continent saw the Premiership in Great Britain kick off with one game. We intend to keep you abreast of all the news from around the European continent so make sure to check it out every week.
So far Spain, Portugal, France, Holland, Ireland, Belgium, Great Britain, Hungary, Italy, Austria, Poland, Romania, Serbia and Switzerland have kicked off their seasons. The Turkish league resumed two weekends ago after a three month hiatus.
We also want to hear from Estonia, Lativa, Croatia, Slovenia, Slovakia and any other country playing American football. Look for a story about the Eastern League of American Football this week with teams from Belarus, Estonia, Latvia and Russia.
Due to the Easter weekend, this was a fairly quiet week for game action as many countries observed the holiday and few games were scheduled in the top divisions. However, in Austria, the Swarco Raiders had a busy weekend winning one and losing one in back to back games. This won’t be the only time they play two games in two days this season as they are playing in their own Battle4Tirol as well as the Big6 in addition to Austrian league play.
We do everything we can to stay on top of developments in each country but cannot always keep up with it so this is where we need your help. Last week, we had a few more misses but again our readers helped us straighten things out. Please keep us informed of events when they happen in your country.
We have tried to do previews for each country but without input from the leagues, this becomes an almost impossible task at times. Please help us here by letting us know who to contact in your country. Don’t hesitate to let us know if we have missed something or made a mistake. If we don’t respond quickly, keep trying. We are a tiny staff and we will eventually get your information posted. Also, if you have a tournament or new league write to us at info@americanfootballinternational.com.
Finally, if you can share on Facebook or retweet we will spread the news even further.
Austria
The Danube Dragons made an emphatic statement as they downed the Swarco Raiders 42-23, handing Swarco their second straight Austrian league defeat. The Raiders lost the opening game of the Austrian season 26-21 to the Vienna Vikings.
However, the Raiders atoned for this poor result on Easter Sunday by dumping the visiting Stuttgart Scorpions 34-9 in the Battle4Tirol, scoring 28 points in the second half after a slow first half.
This coming weekend, the rest of the Austrian league hits the field as the Prague Black Panthers host Vienna and the Graz Giants visit Swarco in Innsbruck.
Belgium
The Flemish conference of the Belgian American Football League saw six of the eight teams in action. The league leading Ghent Gators (5-0) made no mistake trouncing the 1-3 Limburg Shotguns 52-0. Meanwhile the Brussels Black Angels (3-0) downed the Leuven Lions (0-5) 48-7 while the Antwerp Diamonds posted their second straight victory downing the winless Puur Titans 24-6.
The four team French conference was idle. The Brussels Tigers, finalists in the Belgian Bowl in 2014, are 3-0-1 in Group 1 although with the Liege Monarchs in second at 2-1.
[tps_title]Around the Continent[/tps_title]
CEFL
The Central European Football League kicks off its schedule on April 11. The four-team league involves teams from Serbia, Slovenia and Austria.
Croatia
The Croatian league kicks off in the fall.
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic season gets underway on April 11. Defending champions, the Prague Black Panthers will travel to Pribram to face the Bobcats on April 11.
Denmark
The Danish American Football League kicks off its 2015 season on April 11 as the defending champion Copenhagen Towers visit the AaB 89ers.
Finland
The Maple League starts in early June. The schedule is pending.
France
In the sixth weekend of action in the French league – FFFA – the Saint-Ouen-l’Aumône Cougars remain undefeated beating preseason favorite La Courneuve Flash 21-13. The Cougars may be the surprise of the French league this year, but the Aix-en-Provence Argonautes are not far behind boasting a 4-1 record after defeating the Nimes Centurions 48-27. The defending champion Thonon Black Panthers dropped another loss this time to the Nice Dauphins 21-9. And finally the Elancourt Templiers upended the Asnieres-sur-Seine Molosses 12-8.
The Cougars lead the league followed by the Argonautes in second with the Dauphins in third.
[tps_title]Around the Continent[/tps_title]
Germany
The GFL season starts on April 18 and will see defending champs the Braunschweig New Yorker Lions host the Kiel Baltic Hurricanes, quarter-finalists in 2014.
The bad news heading into the season is the folding of the Cologne Falcons after losing their main sponsor.
Great Britain
The Premiership of the British American Football League got underway as the defending champion London Warriors traveled to Bristol and handed the Aztecs a 43-0 defeat. Two more games in the Premiership are slated for April 12.
Holland
Only one game was played in the Dutch American Football League (AFBN) Easter Weekend. The Alphen Eagles exacted a measure of revenge after last week’s loss to the Arnhem Falcons by beating the Nijmegen Pirates 43-0. The Falcons are surprising leaders of Group A after defeating the Alphen Eagles two weeks ago. Meanwhile the Amsterdam Crusaders, perennial championship contenders, are also undefeated at 6-0 and lead Group B.
Hungary
The Hungarian season kicked off as the Budapest Wolves trounced the Nyiregyhaza Tigers 59-14. gets underway this weekend as the Budapest Wolves take on the Nyiregyhaza Tigers. The Bratislava Monarchs (Slovakia) were equally merciless pummeling the Ujpest Bulldogs 59-0. In the closest score the Budapest Cowbells doubled the Ujpest Bulldogs 42-21.
Ireland
No games were played Easter Weekend in Ireland. The University of Limerick Vikings continue to lead the South conference with a 3-0 record while in the North, the defending champion Belfast Trojans are also undefeated at 2-0. Action resumes on April 12.
[tps_title]Around the Continent[/tps_title]
Italy
North
Only one game was played in Italy over the Easter Weekend, as the Milano Rhinos traveled to Bergamo and handed the Lions a close 35-28 defeat after taking a 14-7 first half lead. The Bolzano Giants lead the North surprisingly with a 4-0 record. Parma remains close behind at 3-1 while third place belongs to the Milano Seamen, also at 3-1.
South
In the South, the Lazio Marines are dominating the conference sporting a 4-0 record and boasting the best offense in Italy having scored 172 points in four games. They outgunned the Ancona Dolphins in Rome two weeks ago whipping the Dolphins 58-34. They are followed in the standings by those very same Ancona Dolphins.
Norway
The Norwegian season gets underway on April 11. Look for previews this week.
Poland
The Polish league (PLFA) was idle over the Easter Weekend. After two games, the Wroclaw Panthers lead the league at 2-0 and boast the best offense (105 points scored) and best defense (seven points allowed). The defending champion Gydina Seahawks follow also at 2-0.
[tps_title]Around the Continent[/tps_title]
Portugal
South
No games were played in Portugal over Easter. The Lisboa Navigators remain undefeated in first place in the South at 7-0, followed by the Crusaders who are 5-2 on the season so far.
North
The Porto Mutts at 7-0 and with only one game to go will finish first in the conference. The Maximinos Warriors sit in second still with a 4-2 record, their two defeats suffered at the hands of the Mutts.
Romania
89ers vs Crusaders
Two games were played Easter weekend. The Bucharest Warriors and the Bucharest Rebels battled to a 12-12 tie in the South East conference. In the North West division, the Cluj Crusaders defeated the Timisoara 89ers 29-13 delighting their home fans.
Russia
The Russian league does not start until May.
Serbia
Bitter enemies lend a helping hand
A full slate of games were played in Serbia. In the game of the week, four time champion Vukovi did not have an easy time of it but finally defeated arch rivals the Kragujevac Wild Boars 23-0. The Novi Sad Dukes had no trouble with the Cacak Angel Warriors whipping them 63-0. Nis Imperatori outlasted the Indija Indians 34-28 while the Pancevo Panthers beat the Sirmium Legionaries 27-13. With this, Novi Sad tops the standings at 2-0, followed by Vukovi and Pancevo both also at 2-0.
The Vukovi game against the Wild Boars was interrupted by an injury. A player from each team helped to bring the stretcher out onto the field before returning to battle against each other.
[tps_title]Around the Continent[/tps_title]
Spain
The Spanish league was idle Easter Weekend. The Valencia Firebats still lead the league at 5-1, despite suffering a surprising defeat to the Valencia Giants in week 5 play. However, they apparently lost starting quarterback Chris Debowski who is reportedly out for the season. If he is not replaced, the rest of the season may look bleak for the Firebats.
With four games remaining in the Spanish league the Firebats still remain in first with a 5-1 record, but the Giants are now in second with their surprising win. Badalona and Osos Rivas are tied with the Giants also at 4-2 but the Giants have the second spot by virtue of the record between the three.
Sweden
The Swedish season gets underway on May 2 this year.
Switzerland
Only one game was played in the Swiss league over the Easter weekend. The Calanda Broncos handed the Bern Grizzlies their second defeat in as many games beating up on them 35-6. Standouts for the Broncos included Adrian Suenderhauf who caught two touchdown passes and ran another one in and Marco Mahrer who was the team’s leading tackler. Action resumes April 11 when the Calanda Broncos will face the Winterthur Warriors again.
Turkey
The Turkish league did not play over the Easter weekend but the teams get back on the field April 11.
Ukraine
The Ukrainian season starts April 18 when the Lviv Lions tangle with the Kiev Bandits.