ELF: Raiders Tirol host Cologne Centurions as playoff race heats up

| American Football | 08/21/2022

Today, the Raiders Tirol will host the Cologne Centurions in an attempt to secure one of four playoffs spots down the homestretch of the regular season.

For the Centurions, this week 12 matchup means little more than an attempt to regain some pride after a woeful season. 

For the Raiders on the other hand, the game has enormous implications. Not only due to the fact that a loss here could potentially mean they are out of the playoff race, but also that they lost to the Centurions in week 2.

That week 2 encounter was anything but one sided and provided fans with possibly the most thrilling game of the year ending with a 49-46 nail biter in favor of the Centurions.

The two sides traded aerial blows, showing off the impressive passing attacks each side had, before the game came down to a game-winning drive by the then unstoppable Centurions quarterback Jan Weinrich.

The Centurions since then however have trended directly down. The one boisterous passing attack has now lemented with Cologne losing every game since.

The Raiders have hardly skyrocketed since then either but have consistently trended upwards, outside of two pitiful performances against their Austrian rivals, the Vienna Vikings.

The Raiders enter week 12 with the most productive offense in the league, with only the Hamburg Sea Devils scoring more points than them – due to the fact that Hamburg have run the score up on both the Istanbul Rams and Leipzig Kings.

We should expect a similar scoreline from the Raiders the second time round but it’s hard to imagine a scenario where the Centurions come close to putting up 50 on the Raiders.

Daniel Mackenzie is a Press Association graduate who works in journalism and communications in the third sector. Daniel began playing football for the London Warriors and Team Great Britain and has since played across Europe.