Dublin Rebels roll over Belfast Trojans in the sun – American Football Ireland Round Up
By Jimmy English
The final week of the Irish American Football regular season brought some drama, as the South Dublin Panthers were stripped of their recent win against the Belfast Trojans due to fielding ineligible players. Despite an appeal being lodged, it was a forgone conclusion that the Trojans would claim the last semifinal spot. And so they did, despite being absolutely rollicked by the Rebels at home to end their home slate of fixtures. Elsewhere, the Mavericks just about held out in their semifinal against Cill Dara while the Vikings and Giants also claimed victory to advance to their respective bowl games. Our full American Football Ireland round up is below!
Dublin Rebels 60 – Belfast Trojans 0
Yes, you read that scoreline correctly! A 60 burger in Belfast as the Rebels showed no mercy to their hosts in the blistering sunshine on Saturday. Ty Henry and Co. were firing on all cylinders from the first drive. Henry connected with Dan Johnson twice through the air, tossed another to Jack Basquile and ran in three himself. Just because he could. Wello Omorion also had a fantastic rushing TD from about 40 yards out, skipping past half hearted Trojan tackles. Belfast must go on the road once more to face the Rebels in the semi final and one can only wonder if they will suffer a defeat repeat or if they will pull something special out of the bag in a week’s time.
Cork Admirals 42 – South Dublin Panthers 0
Perhaps seeking retribution for their previous defeat at the hand of the Rebels or for their lacklustre performance in Week 1, Cork blew past a depleted Panther side at MTU Stadium and will be hoping to be back on July 16th as the home team in the Shamrock Bowl. Declan Maye had himself a day, catching 3 TD’s from Stephen Hayes, who also connected with Ryan Price. Hayes was eventually pulled and his back up Jake Kennedy managed to get on the board with a rushing TD of his own. Cork’s defense held the Panthers to 4 first downs all game, adding an interception for good measure. Next up for the Leesiders is UCD at home in the semi final who should prove to be much stiffer competition.
UL Vikings 35 – Dublin Rhinos 0
Nobody expected the Rhinos to be in a semi final at the start of the season. The fact alone that they made it this far is testament to their belief and mettle. But those traits can only get you so far. UL’s offense proved to be too strong for the Rhino’s as Fin O’Donovan hit Danny Quilter for 2 TD’s and rushed for another. Adam O’Mahony and Ger Raleigh added rushing scores on the ground. The Rhinos suffered on the ground as well, giving up two interceptions to Kurt Mackey and Adam Keane as well as a pair of sacks. UL’s dominant offense and Louth’s stout defense is going to prove quite the matchup when they clash again next weekend in the Division One bowl game.
Louth Mavericks 9 – Cill Dara Crusaders 8
A nail biter in Dundalk RFC as the Crusaders almost pulled off a massive upset against the Mavericks. Nathan Hearty earned the home side’s only offensive score in the first quarter, carrying it in himself for 6. The missed extra point didn’t give Louth much breathing room and they were forced to contend with Jordan Farrell in fine form. Gerry Lawless subsequently kicked a field goal to make it 9-0. Farrell fired back with a long passing TD to Sidney Pindey to even the score, before an attritional defensive battle in the second half delivered multiple interceptions for both sides. The Superlative Simms Brothers combined for a strip sack and 2 picks, and were surely the X factor in deciding the outcome. Cill Dara Head Coach commented after how it was an “Extremely hard fought and fairly played game. Both sides struggled to move the ball.” And it sure sounded like it!
Causeway Giants 22 – North Dublin Pirates 6
It’s a sad state of affairs when a team with a losing record and a forfeit to end the season ends up in the playoffs by default. But that’s a rant for a different day. The Giants handled the Pirates with relative ease on Sunday. Quarterback Nate Wilson struck Kevin Yiminyi and Nathan Chapman for passing TD’s while Jig McCoy rushed for the 3rd. The Pirates did manage a late pick 6 from Casey Nannery, but it was too little too late. The league need to give serious consideration to merging Division One & Two next year, and do more to deter teams from folding or indeed forfeiting games in the middle of a season!
Read the original article in Gaelic Gridiron.
