Mermaid Bowl XXIX: Danish championship pits Copenhagen Towers v. Søllerød Gold Diggers

For the first time in the history of Denmark’s Mermaid Bowl, the Copenhagen Towers and Søllerød Gold Diggers will square off to decide Danish American football supremacy Saturday, Oct. 7 at Slagelse Stadion in Slagelse on Denmark’s west coast.

Both teams enter the game with identical 9-1 regular season records. Their only losses came against each other. The Gold Diggers beat Copenhagen 30-26 in the first game of the season. The Towers returned the favor with a vengeance in late August trouncing Søllerød 48-18.

Both teams lost in the championship game to the Triangle Razorbacks in the last two years. The Towers lost to the Razorbacks in the 2016 Mermaid Bowl while Søllerød fell victim two years ago.

These are the numbers one and two offenses and defenses in Denmark. The Towers have averaged 39.9 points a game while Søllerød has scored 36. Copenhagen allowed opposition offenses 10 points per game and the Gold Diggers 13.9.

Although the Towers have split the playing time at the quarterback position between Patrick Hargett and Kasper Skyum, the offense, especially after the summer break, has improved and improved.  This was borne out with a convincing victory in the semifinal against Aarhus Tigers, 62-12.

The Gold Diggers were early favorites to win the title and so their appearance in the final was not a surprise. The addition of imports such as Robert Burton and Desmond Cooper  have really added strength on both sides of the ball.

Burton is also one of the players who Gold Diggers head coach Troels Vestergaard considers a key in the game:

“Robert Burton and the holes our offensive line makes for him led by Morten Forsbøl and Jonas Bo Hansen.”

Vestergaard also acknowledges the progress in Towers’ game after the summer break and explains part of the improvement:

“Their import RB (Dayton Winn, Red.) has performed well and they’ve really begun clicking on offense. “

The Gold Diggers beat the defending champions, Triangle Razorbacks, 17-15 in their semifinal. It was also the third time in the season that Gold Diggers had beaten the Razorbacks, but it was the first time that it really counted.

Latest showdowns between the two:

Aug. 25, 2017 – Copenhagen Towers – Søllerød Gold Diggers – 48-18
April 9, 2017 – Søllerød Gold Diggers – Copenhagen Towers – 30-26
Aug. 26, 2016 – Copenhagen Towers – Søllerød Gold Diggers – 11-6
May 28, 2016 – Søllerød Gold Diggers – Copenhagen Towers – 13-14
Sept. 25, 2015 – Søllerød Gold Diggers – Copenhagen Towers – 3-0