After an overall disappointing week of practice during the BYE week, it was nice to see some rejuvenated players for practice against Lugi. We still have never had 100% practice attendance, which was one of the goals I set for the team when I first arrived, but our attendance is usually decent. The flip side of that, of course, is that guys are failing to see practice as a means to better themselves and their team not just for the upcoming game, but for the long run (possible playoffs, next season, and five years from now). The group I have is so young (compared to the other teams in our division, we are probably have the youngest average age), that if they put in the work now they will be so much better in two or three years when the majority of the team is in their prime.
In any case, practices were better attended on this game week to prepare for a very physical Lugi Vikings team. After a rather nondescript week of getting back into the regular grind coming off the BYE week, Saturday could not come soon enough.
This game was our first try at an away game, and brought us to Lund. Lund is, by all accounts, a really nice town. My only time spent in town was a rather rainy hour or so one afternoon with George and Laurie Contreras on our way home from the Djurpark last summer. The field we were to play on was slightly less even than the field turf of our home field. It also featured pink lines.
The Vikings, loosening up in maroon, didn't look very intimidating due to their small numbers and somewhat scattered warm up. But they came with a lot more once the game started.
Lugi lived up to their billing is a very spirited, physical, and scrappy group. They certainly did not appear to be intimidated by the scores of our first two games and played VERY hard.
Sebbe Schön (LT) tries to maintain leverage while Nik Petersson tries to get to the edge.
Ben Hörnquist had another good game as he hauled in two receiving touchdowns, including this ball he bobbled and finally brought down. Unfortunately, he also sustained a concussion at some point in the game (nobody is sure exactly when), and sat out the majority of the second half.
Our receivers continue to improve on the less selfish aspects of the game, like perimeter run blocking. Ben and Marcus Johnsson (#3) seal the edge for Hampus Linde on this run.
Gustav Svensson (DE, center of frame, above) had a great game, making a number of tackles, including a few tackles for loss and two sacks.
Despite our point total, our defense proved that they are the strength of our team by dominating our third opponent. Lugi stayed with their downhill running attack and despite being undersized, the defense played really well, forced turnovers when Lugi did try to throw, and swarmed the football.
We started quickly offensively, leading 20-0 early in the second quarter for the third straight game. However, our effort, particularly on offense, after that point was, to put it nicely, sub-par. We were only able to muster one more score the remainder of the game.
Final score: Kristianstad Predators (3-0) 26, Lugi Vikings (0-2) 2.
The biggest disappointment for me had very little to do with football. Our effort, body language, and sportsmanship was embarrassing, especially for the caliber of players that we have. We have good guys and good players, but we haven't figured out how to be a great team yet.
The next three weeks we play Ystad (projected to be the #1 finisher in our division), Limhamn (projected to be the #2 finisher in our division), and Ystad again. Ystad beat Limhamn 6-0 in week 1, and both teams have beat up on their other opponents thus far. We will need to be much sharper in our execution and much more supportive over each other on the field if we want to come out of the next three weeks with hope for the playoffs.
It is WAY past time to post an update.
ReplyDelete