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| Warriors celebrate their third straight Brit Bowl success |
Hard hits and
tenacious tackling were the defensive orders of the day in the Brit Bowl - the final of the BAFA Adult National League. It was just what you would expect from the two times defending champions
London Warriors and a team making their tenth straight appearance in the final,
the London Blitz.
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| Dwayne Watson runs in the first score of the day |
The Blitz won the toss
and elected to receive. Disaster struck early for them when they turned the
ball over in their first series giving the Warriors good field position. One
run later from Dwayne Watson and the Warriors were in front by his touchdown
and the extra point.
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| Warriors add to their lead |
Throughout the sixty
minutes, both defenses did a good job of stifling their opposing offenses and
scoring opportunities were rare. The Blitz couldn’t contribute any worthwhile offense
in the first quarter, including a missed field goal, while the Warriors moved
the ball enough to add a field goal to their score.
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| Blitz celebrate their first TD |
As the game moved into
the second quarter, the Blitz began to put some offense together and moved the
ball into the red zone. Despite some tenacious Warrior defending when it was
goal to go, Jack Daley hauled in a Josh Adamson pass for a Blitz touchdown with
the extra point good.
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| Blitz tie the game up at the half |
Before the half
expired, the Blitz added a field goal to make it a tied game at 10-10 and as
the game moved through the third quarter with no further score, the fans were
grateful for the scoring highlights of the first three periods.
As the tight game
appeared to be heading to an overtime shootout, midway through the final
period, the game awoke from its defensive slumber and burst into offensive
life.
From good field
position, the Blitz put together a series that enabled Luke
Naughton to kick a field goal that
saw them take the lead for the first time. In a game void of offensive
opportunities, and with just 6:03 remaining, the signs appeared good for the
Blitz to close out the game as champions.
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| Luc Benjamin hails in the Warriors go ahead score |
The Warriors were now
chasing the game with time against them. On a crucial fourth and one, they
gambled on breaching the solid Blitz defense. When Dwayne Watson burst through
to keep their drive going, the Warriors reaped the reward of their risk with a
superb Nick Jacquet touchdown completion to Luc Benjamin.
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| Deji Alli puts the Blitz back on top - but the failed PAT was crucial |
With 2:42 remaining, the Warriors were
17-13 ahead, but having thrown caution to the wind, the offenses now controlled
the game. The Blitz came back with a touchdown from Deji Alli, but the extra
point missed became decisive in deciding where the winners’ medals went.
19-17 ahead and with less than a minute
left on the clock, the Blitz also decided to gamble. They tried an onside kick,
but unlike the Warriors risk, this one failed. The Warriors took possession and
with a cavalier attitude, they fired from the hip.
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| Ian Jacquet kicks the game winner |
Their boldness paid off as Nick Jacquet led
his team into field goal position allowing Ian Jacquet to kick a 46-yard field
goal that sealed the Warriors victory 20-19.
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| Warriors' Ian Jacquet claims his MVP award |
Ian Jacquet was named the MVP for his
contribution in making this game an outstanding advertisement for football in
Britain. With the defenses prevailing, the result was always in doubt until the
final play and a one point victory appropriate for two top class teams that
gave their all.
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