– Gdynia, Poland
[su_dropcap]T[/su_dropcap]he Gdynia Seahawks defeated the favored Wroclaw Panthers 41-32 in Polish SuperFinal IX for their second title in three years. Although Wroclaw was favored to win, the game was played in Gdynia so the Seahawks had massive support from the home town fans. In the end though, it was the Tunde Ogun show, as the 6″1 22o lb running back and game MVP powered his way to score four of the Seahawks six touchdowns. The Panthers knew they had to keep him under control but simply could not do it.
The first half was a struggle for both teams. Neither squad could mount a serious drive until Ogun finally broke out midway through the second quarter, scampering 30 yards for the game’s first touchdown.
Wroclaw responded though, as quarterback Bartosz Dziedzic found a rhythm and he hit his brother Tomas Dziedzic for a 55 yard touchdown pass late in the second quarter. After the missed PAT the score at the half was 7-6 Gdynia.
In the third quarter, the Seahawks pulled away scoring three straight touchdowns. Quarterback Lance Kriesen took the team’s second touchdown in himself from seven yards out to extend Gdynia’s lead to 14-6. Then Ogun really stepped up, first scoring on a 16 yard run, and then two series later from 24 yards out to give the Seahawks an almost insurmountable 28-6 lead.
But Wroclaw came back as Dziedzic began finding his receivers. Late in the quarter, always-dangerous receiver Grzegorz Mazur hauled in a 24 yard touchdown pass to close the gap to 28-12.
The fourth quarter opened dismally for Wroclaw as Gdynia pounced on a fumble in the Panthers’ end zone extending their lead to 35-12. The game was still not over however. The Panthers mounted a furious comeback as Mark Philmore hauled in a nine yard touchdown pass from Bartosz Dziedzic and the score was 35-18. Tunde Ogun scored his fourth touchdown extending the lead to 41-18, but Wroclaw kept coming as running back Jamal Schulters, who had been kept in check by the Seahawks, finally found the end zone for a 13 yard touchdown. Then Tomasz Dziedzic caught a 17 yard touchdown pass from Bartosz Dziedzic and the score was now 42-31 with time left on the clock.
The Seahawks stymied the Panthers comeback the rest of the way though and took home the trophy. As mentioned, with his 213 yards rushing and four touchdowns Tunde Ogun was deservedly named game MVP.
Gdynia Seahawk head coach Maciej Cetnerowski:
“We managed to execute our game plan perfectly. I am proud of my team. We stepped up when we needed to, especially in the fourth quarter. And our offense was our dagger.”
Photo source: mmtrojmiasto.pl