This Saturday, the premier team in the French D1 Elite Championship league, the La Courneuve Flash have a home clash with the Amiens Spartiates.
The Flash, who are undefeated at 8-0 in league play this year, have proven themselves to be a must-watch team, dominating every team they have faced this year. Overall, they have outscored their opponents by a combined total of 403-70 over eight games, for an average of approximately 50-9 per game. Their opponents this week will be a 3-5 Spartiates team looking to finish their season on a positive note and they could do that by staying competitive with La Courneuve this weekend.
Fresh off a huge victory in the Central European Football League playoffs over the Thonon Black Panthers by a score of 45-27, the Flash now return to league play as they host the Spartiates. If there were any doubts that the Flash were the best team in Conference A by far, La Courneuve silenced them as they knocked off the second-place team in the conference with ease. As for this matchup, these teams played each other back in week 3 and the Flash won in dominating fashion, shutting out the Spartiates 63-0. There were several key contributors in that game for La Courneuve, including quarterback Conor Miller, who completed 8 of 15 passes for 255 yards and three touchdowns, receiver Stephane Fortes, who caught six passes for 153 yards and three touchdowns, and defensive back Wadjihe Said, who registered 3.5 tackles and returned an interception for a touchdown.
Miller has had a fantastic season in his first campaign with the Flash. The American import got off to an impressive start to the season, recording 935 yards passing and 11 touchdowns through his first five games despite leaving several games early, as the score would often get so out of hand that his coach would put in backup Leo Cremades in the second half. His top two targets are Fortes and Ryan Smith, both of whom rank in the top 10 in the league in receiving yards (the Flash are the only team in the conference to have this honor). The Flash ground game is led by Jason Bofunda, who ranks second in the league in both rushing yards (481) and rushing touchdowns (7). Defensively, the Flash defense has a knack for making big plays, as two defenders rank in the top 10 for sacks (Ange Kamgan with six and Averdie Mizius with five) and two members of the secondary rank in the top 10 for interceptions (Junior Smith and Wadjie Said with two each). All throughout the roster, La Courneuve is loaded with outstanding players, which has made them an unstoppable force this season.
As the team tasked with competing with the Flash this week, the Spartiates will need incredible performances out of their key players. This includes quarterback Cornelius Kinchen, who, in his
first year with the team, has had an up-and-down season. He ranks in the top five in the league in passing yards (1,135) but has not recorded as many touchdowns as the other top quarterbacks and has also been prone to turning the ball over. In week 3 against the Flash, Kinchen could not find his groove, completing 11 of 25 passes for 77 yards while throwing two interceptions and taking two sacks. Top target D’Angelo Chesson, who ranks 7th in the league in receiving with 430 yards, was held to just one catch for one yard in that outing. The Spartiates offensive line will have to step up to make Kinchen feel comfortable in the pocket and to allow time for the receivers to get open if they want a chance to compete in this game. The key to a competitive game for Amiens will be limiting mistakes on offense and controlling the time of possession.
Watch the game live here.
Amiens Spartiates @ La Courneuve Flash, May 21, 19:00 CET (7 pm, 1 pm ET)
