In a battle of European League of Football Central Conference expansion teams, the Munich Ravens took down the Milano Seamen on the road by a score of 50-29.
Munich received the opening kickoff, but their opening drive was cut short when Tomiwa Oyewo lost a fumble. However, Milano would give the ball right back, as quarterback Luke Zahradka was intercepted by Junior Nkembe. The Ravens then marched down the field with an Oyewo rushing touchdown. Milano responded with an impressive 19-play drive, but it ultimately resulted in no points, as the Ravens defense stopped them on 4th and goal. The Munich offense then took the ball the length of the field and doubled their lead with a Justin Rodney rushing touchdown.
The Ravens extended their lead when they forced a fumble on the first play of Milano’s ensuing drive and quickly found the end zone with a Marlon Malki receiving touchdown. The Seamen got on the scoreboard on their next drive, which was capped off by a Lorenzo Bassi touchdown reception, but Munich blocked the extra point attempt and returned it for two points. This gave the visitors a 23-6 lead going into halftime.
Munich TE Marlon Malki scoring on a 4 yard pass from Chad jeffries. Photo: Fabio Castelvetri
Milano began the second half with a field goal, and then intercepted Munich quarterback Chad Jeffries on the ensuing possession. They added six more points with an Ali Khalife rushing touchdown, but a blocked extra point kept the score at 23-15. The Seamen got the ball back early in the fourth quarter and cut the lead even closer with a touchdown pass from Zahradka to Devan Burrell (the two-point conversion attempt was unsuccessful).
Though it looked like the home team had all the momentum, the Ravens quickly put a stop to that and finished the game strong. On the first play of their next drive, Jeffries found league-leading receiver Markell Castle for a 72 yard touchdown. After forcing a Milano fumble, the visitors extended their lead as Oyewo exploded for a 64 yard score. Munich showed no intentions of running out the clock, scoring two additional touchdowns to put 50 points on the board. Milano did manage a late touchdown of their own, but the outcome had already been decided.
Milano WR Lorenzo Bassi had 10 catches for 93 yards and 1 TD. Photo: Fabio Castelvetri
There were nearly 1,100 yards of total offense in this game, including a whopping 640 from Munich. Chad Jeffries passed for 440 yards and three touchdowns, while Tomiwa Oyewo and Justin Rodney each had over 100 yards on the ground. Milano’s offense was also impressive, but their defense ultimately could not slow down the Ravens’ attack in the fourth quarter.
Munich QB Chad Jeffires threw for 440 yards and 3 TDs. Photo: Fabio Castelvetri
Though neither of these teams have any shot of making the playoffs, it was good to see both teams battle hard this late into the season. Munich improved their record to 6-5 and continue to show potential to become a top team in the league in the near future. The Ravens will look to finish their season strong next week against the Barcelona Dragons, while the Seamen will try to spoil the playoff hopes of the Raiders Tirol.