Report written by
James Dunstan (Oxford Saints)
Photos courtesy of
Chris Janes/Jamo's Pics
On Sunday 21st June the Oxford
Saints travelled to Bristol to
take on the Apache, in what was
built up to be a thrilling rematch… it did not disappoint.
Although the Apache came out winners, an extremely close and
exciting game was a testament to American Football in the UK.
Earlier in the season the Apache visited Oxford and were
defeated in a nail-biting 35-34 finish, which saw Oxford come back from behind
against all odds to snatch victory. This time the game was just as close and no
less intense.
With home field advantage and coming off a 3 game winning
streak, Bristol were riding high. Confidence and morale was up following a 57-0
thrashing of the Torbay Trojans and
the Apache were excited for the opportunity to replay the Saints.
1st Quarter
Oxford received the kick off to begin the game and first
year quarterback Ben Denton led the
Saints offense onto the field. Strong running from Grant Tebb and Kev Brooks
moved the ball well against the Apache defense and they were nearing the end zone.
A 16 yard reception by tight end James
Walter who charged across the goal line opened the scoring within just a
few minutes. Spencer Duffy kicked
the extra point, 7-0 Oxford.
Bristol looked to answer back quickly and picked up good
yards on the ground whilst picking up first downs, approaching the Saints end zone.
A completed pass from Apache quarterback over the middle for 11 yards gave the
Apache a first down and showcased their dangerous ability for precision
passing. Carter went to the air again but his pass was intercepted by a diving
Oxford safety Martin Fitzpatrick,
bringing an end to the aggressive drive.
The offense took over from the 19 yard line and struggled to
get the ball moving after a 10 yard penalty flag and then a 9 yard sack on
Denton. Fullback Ryan Kingshott
charged through and recovered some of the lost yards, but the offense were
forced to punt the ball away on 4th down.
Taking over on the Oxford half of the field, Bristol
continued to find success on the ground by running the ball, aided further by a
damaging 15 yard penalty against the Saints, pushing them further back against
their own end zone. Apache’s powerful running back Jon Walters took the ball
and crossed the goal line, putting his team onto the scoreboard. Royce kicked
the extra point, tied game 7-7.
With Oxford back in possession, running from Grant Tebb and Mike Oluwole picked up another Saints
first down, before a fumbled ball during a handoff was recovered by the Bristol
defense. The Apache capitalised on the momentum swing by continuing to move the
ball on the ground, with Jon Walters quickly smashing into the end zone for his
second score of the game. Royce
kicked the extra point, 14-7 Bristol.
With the Saints offense back on the field, James Walter
lined up at running back and was on his usual excellent form. With strong
running and his ability to evade would-be tacklers, Walter picked up huge
yardage and helped move Oxford down the field.
2nd Quarter
With the Saints knocking on the door of Bristol’s end zone,
the first quarter came to a close and the teams switched sides before the
impressive drive was capped off with a Grant Tebb touchdown, running into the
end zone for another 6 points. Duffy kicked the extra point and the game was
tied again, 14-14.
the Apache looked to retaliate swiftly and returned to their
air attack, picking up a first down. With the Saints defense adding pressure,
rookie defensive end Conor Whitehouse
landed a big hit on the Bristol QB in the backfield, costing Bristol 5 yards.
On the following play, what looked like a run play from Alex DeCaro quickly turned into a pass,
as he launched the ball deep down field. With the ball sailing through the air,
wide receiver Frederick Marshall was
able to catch the uncontested pass and strode into the end zone for a shock
touchdown. The extra point by Royce was good, and Bristol took the lead again
21-14.
When Oxford and Bristol last met earlier in the season, the
Saints were down 28-6 as the 2nd quarter came to a close, but it was clear to
all involved that today was a completely different ball game.
In true Saints style, Ben
Denton led a relentless march downfield with more strong running from
Brooks, Tebb and Walter. Although no break out runs, the offense continued to
move the ball a few yards at a time and were picking up first downs against a
struggling defense. To mix up the long drive, Denton targeted tight end Rich
Bloomer who caught a 9 yard pass, picking up another much needed first down.
With the end zone in front of them, the 18 play drive ended
with a touchdown from James Walter as he charged in from the 1 yard line.
Duffy’s kick was good and the game was tied once again, 21-21.
3rd Quarter
Coming back onto the field following the half time break, a
revitalised Apache offense put together a fast and brutal drive. After picking
up nearly 30 yards on the ground in two plays, Apache looked to the air and a
jump ball was hauled in by a Bristol receiver for a 24 yard gain. The Bristol
QB threw the ball again over the middle of the end zone and DeCaro caught the touchdown pass.
Royce’s kick was good, 28-21 Bristol.
Desperate to end the game of cat and mouse and wanting to
hold on to a lead, Bristol’s defense stood firm and stopped the Oxford ground
attack on the following drive, forcing another punt.
Bristol pressed their advantage and their QB continued to
pass the ball with precision. With memories still fresh in their minds of how
Oxford came from behind to claim victory last time, the Apache would not take their
foot off the gas at all.
A series of completed passes and penalties against the
Oxford defense took the Apache into the end zone, with another connection
between from the QB and DeCaro for the score. Royce remained on form and kicked
the extra point, extending the lead 35-21 Bristol.
With plenty of football still to play, Denton handed the
ball to Brooks who stormed up field for 28 yards on two plays. The ball was
then given to Tebb who demonstrated his excellent ability to outrun pursuers
and get into space, as he sprinted clear for a 58 yard touchdown, giving the
Oxford sideline a huge morale boost. Duffy attempted the extra point kick but
it leaned to the left and missed its target, depriving the Saints of an
additional point which would prove crucial in the later stages of the game.
The next drive for Bristol was cut short when a fumbled ball
was hastily recovered by Saints linebacker Dean
Bryan, presenting an opportunity for a momentum swing and granting the
Oxford offense access to the field. With the ball in the capable hands of
Walter, he picked up a first down on three carries before Tebb broke out for
another big run, picking up 27 yards.
Fast becoming a deadly duo combination, Walter and Tebb’s
powerful running had quickly brought the end zone within their sights. Denton
handed the ball off to Walter who ran into the end zone for a 15 yard score.
Looking to go for a two point conversion, the ball was given to Walter but he
was unable to cross the line, 35-33 Bristol.
With the score too close for comfort, Bristol’s offense were
desperate to recover a safer lead. With strong running the Apache continued to
find success by moving the ball on the ground up the middle, meanwhile Oxford’s
defense continued to draw penalty flags and give up additional yards to the
aggressors. The Apache QB continued to target his Bristolian teammates in the
air with success and found his favoured receiver DeCaro for a 5 yard score.
Royce remained perfect with his extra point kick, 42-33 Bristol.
In the final minutes of the 3rd quarter, Denton and the
Saints were marching across the field with determination as Walter broke out
for a big 40 yard run. Denton then targeted tight end Toby Durant in the corner of the end zone but the Bristol defense
kept him covered and the ball fell incomplete. On 4th down, Denton dropped back
to pass again and hit veteran receiver Sam
Armstrong in stride, picking up the 10 yard touchdown. The ball was then
handed off to Walter who broke through the Bristol line and claimed the much
needed 2 extra points. 42-41 Bristol.
4th Quarter
Entering the final quarter of this fast paced shoot out,
both teams continued to fight hard and strived to deal a finishing blow to the
other. Bristol had established their dangerous passing game with multiple
scores from receiver DeCaro. On the ground, the Apache would routinely call on
the services of their power running back Jon Walters, who the Saints often
struggled to contain.
Meanwhile for Oxford, the discipline from Denton under
centre and destructive running from Tebb and Walter continued to keep the
Apache on edge, knowing either player could break out for another big run at
any time.
On their next drive Bristol kept the ball on the ground but
the Oxford defense held strong and forced the punt, aided by some key tackles
from Spencer Duffy in at linebacker.
Taking over from their own 19 yard line, Walter and Tebb
tried to find space to work but a steadfast Apache defense kept them short of
the first down. Attempting to punt the ball away and create some breathing
room, Walter’s punt was deflected by an Apache player and the ball rolled into
the backfield, before being secured by Walter.
With Oxford’s defense having to make a stand from their own
5 yard line, a Bristol score seemed inevitable. Carter first looked to pass but
it fell incomplete. On the following play the ball came loose and defensive end
Conor Whitehouse dived to recover
the fumble, ending the dangerous Apache drive. The Saints offense took over
from the 7 yard line and determined running from the Walter/Tebb duo moved the
ball well but a 15 yard penalty struck a damaging blow and Oxford were forced
to punt again. As Walter looked to punt, an Apache linebacker pushed through
the line and added pressure resulting in another deflected punt, granting
Bristol excellent field position from the Oxford 24 yard line.
Requiring another strong stand, the Saints defense kept it together
as the Bristol QB attempted two passes and only managed to pick up a 3 yard
completion. A 6 yard run then brought Bristol just 1 yard short of a
potentially game-ending first down, but a fumbled ball on 4th down forced the
turnover and brought the Oxford offense out.
Denton handed the ball off to Brooks who swiftly picked up a
first down and then a further 8 yards on his next two carries. Still deep in
Oxford’s own territory and time running out, Denton looked to pass and targeted
rookie receiver Tom Swift, narrowly
missing out on what could have been a touchdown reception. On 4th down Denton
dropped back and targeted receiver Devon
Powell on the same route and once again the ball fell incomplete just
inches away from the intended receiver’s hands.
The Apache came out for their final drive of the game
knowing that a single first down would likely seal the deal. Giving the ball to
their running back, he picked up 5 yards before being gang tackled to the
ground by the Oxford defense. Another handoff gained the Apache a further 4
yards before being tackled by defensive end Adam Baker, just short of a first down. On 3rd down with just a
single yard needed, Duffy stopped the runner in his tracks for no gain.
Faced with a 4th and 1 yard situation, the defining moment
of the game was here. Bristol needed just a single yard to effectively bring
the nerve-racking contest to an end and Oxford needed one more stop to give Denton
and his offense one last chance. The ball was snapped to Carter and with a
Saints linebacker wrapping up his legs, he lunged forward in an attempt to earn
the solitary yard they needed.
With the call too close to judge, the game officials
summoned the chain crew so the distance could be measured, with both teams
eagerly watching and waiting. The officials carefully assessed the ball
position and declared that the ball had reached its target by just a matter of
inches, with the tip crossing the invisible line. With the game all but over,
the Apache offense took a knee on the remaining plays to run out the clock and
bring the game to a close.
Summary
With another thrilling game in the books, the Saints and the
Apache have fought two unrivalled games which were both decided by just a
single point. Combined, the score between the two teams currently stands as
76-76 and there is every chance of the two sides meeting for a third time in
the playoffs.
The Saints next game is on Sunday 5th July when they host
nearest rivals the Swindon Storm, at
Abingdon
Rugby Club. Full details available at www.oxfordsaints.com
Statistics
A battle of two different philosophies as Oxford’s ground
and pound attack faced off against Bristol’s precision aerial assault.
With huge plays and exceptional talent on both teams, the
statistics show that Oxford and Bristol combined for just short of 1,000
offensive yards, creating a high scoring and explosive game for the watching
supporters.
The Saints powerful offense picked up 450 yards on the
ground but only 44 in the air. The Apache meanwhile claimed an even spread of
235 rushing yards and a further 206 through passing.
Both teams remained remarkably close throughout the game
with 6 TD’s each and an average gain of 6.06 yards per play for Oxford versus
6.61 for Bristol.
QB VS QB
Oxford’s Ben Denton attempted 12 passes with 4 completions,
throwing 2 TD’s.
Bristol’s James Carter favoured the pass, 23 attempts with
13 completions, throwing 4 TD’s and 1 Interception.
Oxford stat leaders -
Offense
Tight end/running back James Walter had another stunning
performance picking up 170 yards on 26 carries for an average of 6.5 yards per
play and 2 TD’s on the ground. Walter also hauled in 1 pass for 16 yards and a
further TD.
Tight end/running Grant Tebb also excelled in his first year
with the Saints, picking up 156 yards on 16 carries for an average of 9.8 yards
per play and 2 TD’s on the ground. Tebb also caught 1 pass for 9 yards.
Running back Kev Brooks continues to deliver the goods after
a strong performance in his 2014 rookie year. He picked up 109 yards on 17
carries for an average of 6.4 yards per play.
Wide receiver Sam Armstrong was the other scorer catching a
vital 10 yard TD pass in the endzone.
Oxford stat leaders -
Defense
On the defense it was the secondary unit who saw plenty of
action, with cornerback Michael Turner
claiming 8 tackles, free safety Michael
Bearman with 7 and Chris Fox with 5.
Rookie defensive end Conor Whitehouse landed 1 sack on the
QB and also recovered a fumble. A further fumble recovery came from linebacker Dean Bryan.
Martin Fitzpatrick
claimed the single interception of the game with a diving grab.
Awards
Team MVP – Tight
end/running back Grant Tebb for exceptional running and dedication to the team.
Offensive MVP -
Full back Ryan Kingshott for explosive blocking throughout the game.
Defensive MVP –
No award from the coaches for the defensive unit. It was recognised as a
collective effort with every member of the defense stepping up, making their
mark on the game and making a single players performance irrelevant.
Special teams MVP
– No award from the coaches for the special teams unit. Performance was deemed
below standards across the board.
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