incompletion on the third down pass to send the Pirates three and out on their opening drive.  The Lions had just the start they were looking for after the Pirates' punt barely made it across the half-way line.   

Fullback Liam Erby got the offence rolling with a 20 yard reception out of the backfield and Dan Kelen hit Mathew Freeman for 15 yards on a slant to bring up first and goal.  When Matt Croasdaile powered into the endzone from 6 yards out, the Lions had the opening touchdown and the early advantage. 

The Pirates needed to answer back.  On the next drive, Quarterback David Ward looked to beat the Lions' pass rush with quick release timing patterns.  His receivers responded with precise patterns and great hands.  After chipping away underneath, a Pirate receiver held a tough, low catch over the middle for 17 yards to bring up first and goal on the 9.  Three plays for no yards later and it was fourth and decision time.  Going

for the touchdown, Ward bought time scrambling to his right and lofted a throw to wide receiver Todd Russell for the  score.  The Pirates' holder fumbled the long snap on the PAT, but somehow scrambled into the endzone for 2 points and a 8-7 Pirates' lead.  

The Lions were not behind for long.  The Pirates put the kick-off out of bounds to give up good starting field position.  Matt Croasdaile  then showed off what he had in store for the night, ripping off a 31 yard carry through the heart of the Pirates defence.  Croasdaile would end up with 211 yards for the game, surely a Waratah Bowl rushing record.  Tristan Cauhepe showed that the Lions' receivers could make the hard catch too - holding a pass over the middle despite being clocked by the Pirates' safety.  Freeman completed the 5 play drive with a 15 yard touchdown reception off a play-action pass.  Kelen missed on a 2 point pass attempt to James Gifford in the back corner of the endzone to leave the score at 13-8. 

The Uni defence held the Pirates to only 20 yards on their next possession.  Veteran Fady

Aoun and newcomer Ian Triganza built pressure with a run stop for no gain on a first down and Leigh Louey-Gung finished off the good work by tackling a third down back release pattern for a 2 yard loss. 

Tristan Cauhepe opened the next drive with a scampering 25 yard reception, but the drive stalled when Croasdaile was held for no gain on 3rd and 4.  A well-weighted punt by Erby left the ball on the Pirates' 10 yard line. 

The defence sensed an opportunity.  Fady Aoun broke through the line to make a tackle for loss.  On the next play, Leigh Louey-Gung blitzed through the line to take down David Ward in the endzone for a safety and a 15-8 lead.  The play also gave the Lions the ball back after the ensuing free kick and they set about making full use of the chance.

Cauhepe burned his coverage for another big gain on the first play of the drive - this

time for 38 yards down to the Pirates' 26 yard line.  From there, the varisty gave the Pirates a big dose of Croasdaile, the feature back carrying the ball on four straight plays for the Lions' third touchdown.  After Erby added the PAT, Sydney Uni had moved out to a 22-8 lead and looked to be taking control of the game.

But the Pirates had other ideas.  Ward started the next drive hitting 5 straight pass plays.  They were only short, but so long as Ward kept making them, the three step passes would keep the chains moving.  Two offside penalties against the Lions helped out and when Ward completed his sixth pass of the drive, the Pirates had picked up 1st and goal at the 5 yard line. 

Time for another stand.  The Lions defended three straight pass plays to again bring up fourth and go for it on the goal line.  But, again, Ward coolly found his receiver for a touchdown, this time Ivan Popovic on a slant pattern.  At 22-15, the Pirates were back to within seven points with only 46 seconds left

in the half. 

However, the Lions were not done.  A good return by Thomas Frazer got the ball into Pirates' territory.  Running and passing plays to Erby and Freeman, combined with effective use of their timeouts, got the Lions down to the 12 yard line with time left for a couple of plays.  But the Pirates chased Kelen out of bounds for a loss and mopped up the shuttle pass on the last play of the half to see off the danger. 

With the Lions to receive the ball to start the second half, it was crucial for the Pirates to stop them from jumping straight out to a two touchdown lead.  But the big plays came up sooner than expected.  In their first set of downs, Coach Dunne called for the Lions to go for it on 4th and 3 on their own 37 yard line.  The Pirates played strong and stopped Croasdaile one yard short of the first down for a turnover.

But barely two plays later and the Lions 

defence had landed a counter-blow.  Nick Baldwin and Leigh Louey-Gung combined to tackle a Pirates receiver trying to cross over the middle, the ball jarring loose and being recovered by Joe Lim. 

Again, the Lions offence was unable to pick up a first down, but this time punted the ball away.  Chady Aoun looked to have caused another fumble recovery for the Lions when he sacked David Ward on the first play of the next drive.  However, the officials called the play spearing and gave the ball back to the Pirates with 15 yards for good measure.  The call assumed even greater significance when just a few plays later Pirates' receiver Todd Russell outran the Lions' deep coverage to score a 28 yard touchdown on a perfectly judged throw from Ward to tie up the scores at 22-22. 

This is why you play football.  The Pirates had seized the momentum.  A shot at history was slipping away.  The Lions had to hit back. 

relief, were working overtime as Coach Dunne kept the ball on the ground.  Once more it came down to a 4th and goal play.  This time the Lions went for it, Dan Kelen hitting Liam Erby out of the backfield for the touchdown and a 32-22 lead. 

The game was now into the fourth quarter and the stakes were high.  A Joe Lim tackle for loss on the next series forced the Pirates to punt without picking up a first down.  This gave the Lions the ball on their own 20 with a chance to chew up some clock.  Kelen just missed with a long bomb to Cauhepe, but the ground game continued to roll, Croasdaile driving the Lions over half-way.  A holding penalty eventually forced a punt, but the Lions must have thought they had bought some breathing space after kicking the ball to the Pirates' 18 yard line.

Wrong.  On the very next play, Ivan Popovic turned a short hitch pattern into a runaway 72 yard touchdown.  However, the PAT was blocked to keep the Lions beyond the reach of a field goal at 32-28. 

With 6:01 left on the clock, there was no point in trying to just hang on for the win - the Lions had to grab it.  With the game on the line, Sydney Uni put the ball on the ground.  The championship drive covered 53 yards in 8 plays, all of them rushing plays.  The key play was a dive to Erby, which he turned into an 18 yard game-breaker by hurdling over a would-be tackler.  Croasdaile scored his third touchdown on a 2 yard run. 

There was now just 2:14 left, but time enough for the Pirates to engineer another scoring drive.  The Lions at least forced them to use eight plays and into yet another 4th and goal, but a wide-open Todd Russell held a touchdown pass over the middle to give the Pirates a glimmer of hope at 38-34 with 59 seconds left.

In the end, it was a bit of a let down.  The Pirates' on-side kick went out of bounds and the Kelen took a knee.  But for the Lions there was no hiding the excitement - and relief - at winning the 2008 Gridiron NSW championship and Six of the Best. 

time Tristan Cauhepe made the big play, running under a Kelen bomb for 46 yards to bring the Lions into range.  Mac Shine then one-handed a release pattern and milked his blocking for 15 yards down to the 1 yard line.  Matt Croasdaile scored on the next play through a gaping hole opened up by Aaron Carbury, David Kong and Liam Erby on the right side of the line.  Erby converted for a 14-0 lead. 

The Lions were just as effective on the other side of the ball.  On the first play of the Seahawks' next possession, outside linebacker Ian Triganza had such good containment on the sweep, the running back reversed his field looking for room in the opposite direction.  That only lead him into the arms of the Lions' backside pursuit, with Nick Baldwin ending his misery with a tackle for a 7 yard loss on the other side of the field.  When middle linebacker Joe Lim cleaned up the running back for no gain on another outside play with a colossal hit on third down, the Seahawks offence had again

been sent from the field without picking up a first down.

The Lions took even fewer plays to score on their next drive.  On first down, Dan Kelen threw a touch pass over Freeman's outside shoulder which was good for 45 yards.  On the second play of the drive, Erby used a block from David Thode to get outside the Seahawks' defence and into the endzone from 14 yards.  With the PAT, the score moved to 21-0.   

The defence got into the spirit of the two play drive, Chady Aoun recovering a fumble after the Seahawks' running back had dropped a pitch from the quarterback.  But the Lions gave the ball right back.  A Kelen pass was tipped at the line and fell into the arms of a Seahawks' linebacker.  The Seahawks would have had 6 points too, but ill discipline on the interception return to the endzone saw the ball brought back to mid-field for a block in the back.  The interception off the tipped pass was Kelen's

next drive, every yard of the 65 yard drive being made on the ground.  Croasdaile carried most of the load and finished off the drive with a 12 yard touchdown run to put the Lions up 35-0. 

The Lions then had to fight to hold the Seahawks out just before half-time.  A 15 yard personal foul and a well-executed shuttle pass got the Seahawks into the red zone.  Freshman cornerback Andrea Canepa then made two big plays - first, smother covering his receiver on an attempted pass into the endzone and, then, coming up to tackle a crossing receiver to hold the play to a 3 yard gain.  On fourth and goal, Lions pressure - lead by Nick Baldwin - forced another incompletion and the defence had held its line. 

The second half was run with a fast clock, limiting the Lions to just two offensive possessions.  The Seahawks had the ball first and, with the aid of another personal foul penalty, moved the ball to the Lions' 20

yard line.  On first down, Anthony Sinton made a timely tackle for a loss on a sweep play and, on third and long and under pressure from middle linebacker Joe Lim, the Seahawks' quarterback threw up a pass to be intercepted by Mark Mamo coming up from his deep zone.    

The offence did not waste its turn with the ball.  Again, every yard of the drive was picked up on the ground, but this time Liam Erby was the feature back.  Erby carried the ball six times and barged in for a touchdown from 2 yards out to put the score out to 42-0.

The Lions were unable to hold the shut-out, conceding a touchdown on the final drive.  This time the Seahawks sprung the fake punt for a first down and connected on four consecutive passes for a touchdown and a 2 point play.  However, the consolation points did nothing to tarnish the lustre of the performance of the Lions - one which earned them a berth in the 2008 Waratah Bowl and a shot at history.  The Lions are going bowling. 

Sydney Uni beat Bondi 34-24 at the St George Hockey Centre on Saturday afternoon to end the Raiders' playoff hopes and win the first game played between the teams for the Foundation Shovel.

At the suggestion of the head coaches, Paul Manera of Bondi and Stephen Dunne of Sydney Uni, the clubs commissioned the Foundation Shovel as a trophy to symbolise the role played by the teams as the last remaining foundation teams of the league - "digging the foundations together"- and to heighten the rivalry on gameday - "burying the opponent".  The inscription reads "The Foundation Shovel - To be held by the victors after each game played between the last remaining foundation clubs of Gridiron NSW".  The Shovel was brought out to the coin toss on behalf of the holders, Sydney Uni, by its most-capped active player for the game, Anthony Sinton, who was playing his 149th game for the club.  

The first game for the Foundation Shovel was played the day after the 25th Anniversary Dinner of Gridiron NSW and the occasion seemed to inspire the Raiders.  Bondi had plenty to play for besides a victory in the rivalry game, as they had to win to make the playoffs, and they took advantage of a series of mistakes by the Lions in the second quarter to take a 12-7 lead.   After driving methodically to score on their first possession with a 5 yard pass to Mathew Freeman on 4th down, the Lions then undid all that good work by coughing up a fumble on their own 16 yard line on their next possession.  The Raiders seized on the opportunity, running in for a touchdown on the first play of the drive.  The point after try was blocked to keep Sydney Uni ahead 7-6, but that quickly changed when the Raiders sent the Lions three and out on their next drive and then recovered a blocked punt in the endzone for a touchdown.  Mark Mamo intercepted the 2 point pass attempt, but the Raiders had snatched a 12-7 lead. 

The windy conditions were making life difficult for the quarterbacks and Dan Kelen continued the string of errors by throwing an interception early in the next drive to give the Raiders good field position on the Lions' 31 yard line.  This time the Lions' defence made a stand, cornerback David Bourke holding a third down interception in the endzone for a touchback. 

The Lions showed how to move the ball into the wind on the next drive, mixing high percentage completions to Mac Shine and Mathew Freeman with power running from the backfield of Liam Erby and Matthew Croasdaile.  Croasdaile ripped off a 22 yard run to get the Lions close and then finished off the drive with a touchdown from 2 yards out.  On the day, Croasdaile would shred the Raiders' defence with runs of 22, 32, 20 and 28 yards on his way to 261 rushing yards - the third highest total in Lions history.  However, he was held out on the 2 point run attempt for the Lions to go into half-time with a slender 13-12 lead. 

The Lions had the ball to start the second half and, as in the first, drove the length of the field  on their opening possession to score on a 2 yard Croasdaile run.  Croasdaile had his longest run of the game on this drive - 32 yards - and all but 1 of the 75 yards made on the drive were made on the ground.  Freeman kicked the PAT for a 20-12 lead.  But, again, as in the first half, the Lions then opened the door for the Raiders, fumbling the ball away on their own 13 yard line.  It took 6 plays and a conversion on 4th and 4, but the Raiders put the ball in the endzone to close the gap to 20-18.  Joe Lim stuffed the 2 point run attempt to keep the Lions ahead. 

The Lions hit back hard, going 65 yards for a touchdown in only 5 plays, the key gainers being a 31 yard pass to Freeman and a 20 yard rush to Croasdaile.  Croasdaile scored from 8 yards out and Freeman added the PAT to stretch the lead to 27-18.  

After an exchange of turnovers and the game now into the 4th quarter, the Raiders gambled

The Predators went for it on 4th down at the end of their next drive too.  This time a 15 yard personal foul and a 12 yard run on first down had got the Predators to the Lions' 21 yard line before Joe Lim slowed their progress with a sack on 3rd down.  Lim would make 4 backfield tackles in the game - 2 sacks and 2 tackles for loss - and the play put the Predators in a hole at 4th and 17.  Freshman Huw Grenfell and veteran Anthony Sinton had the play covered and the Predators' 4th down pass fell incomplete.  The Lions had another turnover on downs and took full advantage.

It took only three plays for the Lions to score.  On 3rd and 1, Croasdaile started a pitch right, cut upfield inside defensive penetration and found a lane behind a key block from centre, David Allen, back to the left and all the way up the sideline for a 39 yard touchdown.  Liam Erby added the extras for a 14-0 lead. 

None of this offensive firepower was possible without the work of the offensive line.  Ben Dodds, David Thode, David Allen, Piotr Milewski, Aaron Carbury and David Kong opened holes for the running backs all afternoon and did not allow a single sack.  Only one offensive play went for a loss - and that was due to a fumble on the handoff. 

The defence was also putting in a solid day's work.  Joe Lim and Leigh Louey-Gung lead the tackle count from their inside linebacker positions behind strong play from Fady Aoun, Tau Saipaia, Chady Aoun, Troy Carrick, James Tootell and Musa Ovalle on the defensive line.  Huw Grenfell started his first game at cornerback, while Andrea Canepa took an interception on just about his first play in the game.  The secondary kept a clean sheet, allowing only 8 completions of 23 attempts while picking off two passes. 

The defence sent the Predators three and out on their next drive and it looked like the Lions might go the same way after two successive holding penalties saw them looking at 3rd and 20 on their own 13 yard line.  Never fear, Gifford's here - the tight end hauling in a 39 yard pass for the first down and then completing the drive with a 16 yard touchdown reception at the corner post.  Gifford would lead all receivers on the day with 5 catches for 98 yards and 2 touchdowns.  

The offence did not muck around on their next drive either.  On the third play at midfield, Liam Erby took a counter play through a big hole in the left side of the line and into the Predators' secondary after David Thode had turned the middle linebacker past the play.  Erby used his speed and a change of direction to slice his way untouched through the defence and all the way for a 40 yard touchdown and a 28-0 lead. 

chance to take the ball 70 yards on the second play of the drive after burrowing through the line and into the clear.  However, he veered to take on his pursuers and was brought down after a 53 yard gain.  Liam Erby finished off the 78 yard drive from close range to move the score to 47-0. 

The final score came after Andrea Canepa had picked off the Predators' quarterback to give the Lions good field position once more.   Freshman running back, Harry Edwards, delivered on his training ground promise by heading off right tackle, cutting in behind a Mac Shine block and buffeting his way through two Predators defenders and into the endzone for a 23 yard touchdown. 

At 54-0, the Lions had scored the most points and had their biggest win in 4 games against the young Predators franchise.   Even in their 25th year, the Lions are still hungry.

Sydney Uni raced to a 41-0 half-time lead in its Round 9 match against Sutherland, before the Seahawks forfeited the game at the start of the fourth quarter with the score standing at 55-6.  

The game started with the Lions picking up where they had left off against the Raiders.  The defence sent the Seahawks three and out on their first possession and the offence drove the field for a touchdown with their first use of the ball.  Calling the plays in the absence of Head Coach Stephen Dunne, Dan Kelen balanced running plays to Matt Croasdaile with completions to Tristan Cauhepe and Mathew Freeman - the pass to Freeman good for 29 yards to the 11 yard line - to get the Lions in range.  Kelen got close himself on a bootleg, but it was Croasdaile who carried the ball in from 3 yards for the opening score. 

The defence then embarked on a takeaway

spree, forcing fumbles and picking off passes on three of the next four drives to hand the ball over to the offence with only a short field to the endzone.  Joe Lim got the ball rolling, sliding in from middle linebacker to recover a fumbled exchange between the Seahawks centre and quarterback to give the offence the ball on the Seahawks 34 yard line.  Kelen hit passes to Cauhepe and Erby before finding Freeman open on a slant pattern for a 5 yard touchdown on 3rd down.   The PAT was missed for a 13-0 lead.

Defence went one better on the next drive.  The Seahawks tried an end around on first down but ran into defensive tackle Fady Aoun at the exchange point.  Aoun disrupted the hand-off, the ball spilt into the backfield and outside linebacker Ian Triganza played it just right to dive on the ball at the Seahawks 4 yard line.  In the blink of an eye, Croasdaile was in the endzone and the score was 20-0.   

The defence sent the Seahawks three and out

on the next drive, Greg Wernecke taking the first down running play for a loss and Leigh Louey-Gung batting down a deep pass to force the punt.  Three plays later, after a poor Seahawks punt, Croasdaile was in again, this time from 15 yards out on a well executed power counter over the right side behind the lead blocking of Mac Shine, David Thode and Ben Dodds.  

When David Bourke picked off the first play of the next drive and returned the interception to the Seahawks' 23 yard line - with at least two of his patented spin moves on the runback - it was clear the Seahawks were in for a long night.  The offence was forced to convert from 4th and 7 on the drive - Liam Erby squeezing out 8 yards on the play - but would not be denied, Erby himself carrying the ball in from 4 yards and then converting the score for a 34-0 lead.   

The Lions were also seeing a much improved performance from their kick-off

coverage team.  None of the Seahawks kick-off returns crossed the halfway line, with the average starting position being the 29 yard line.  While the entire unit deserves credit, special mention must be made of James Gifford and John Tamanivalu, who could not be stopped - even by a collision with the metal down marker pole - from recording 3 solo tackles on kick-off coverage.  

Twenty five yards worth of penalties saw the Seahawks cross into Lions territory for the first time in the game on their next series.  However, the defence shut down the drive and the Seahawks opted to punt the ball away with less than 30 seconds left in the half.  Despite finally forcing the Lions to go the long field and giving them only 20 seconds to play with, the Seahawks were still unable to stop the Lions from scoring.  Tristan Cauhepe showcased his great speed to run under a well thrown long ball from Dan Kelen and run away from the pursuit for a 52 yard touchdown.  Erby's PAT finished the scoring for the half at 41-0. 

The Lions were not slowed down by the halftime break.  Returning the kick-off to halfway, the offence took just 5 plays to drive the ball in for a touchdown.  Mac Shine picked up 13 yards on a fullback dive and then Kelen found Cauhepe in a seam for a 17 yard touchdown pass.  Kelen would finish with 12 completions from 14 attempts for 182 yards with 4 touchdowns and 0 interceptions.  Clearly he enjoyed calling his own plays. 

After the next kick-off there was a wild sequence of three straight turnovers.  First, Joe Lim claimed his second fumble recovery, winning a wrestle for the ball at the line of scrimmage.  Then Matt Croasdaile lost the ball on his way down in the tackle.  Only an inadvertent whistle prevented an alert Seahawks defender from running the fumble in for a touchdown.  The next play saw the Seahawks throwing deep but being picked off by Anthony Sinton who, with the aid of a personal foul

Lions freshman running back, Harry Edwards, got his first career carry on the next series, but the Seahawks called it a night when they were no longer able to field an experienced centre as the fourth quarter started.

The win continued an impressive run for the Lions offence.  The unit did not have to rack up big yardage to score, but it moved the ball with deadly efficiency.  For the second game in a row, the punting unit did not take to the field. 

The defence was just as impressive.  The Lions forced 6 turnovers on the night and on two occasions gave the offence starting field position inside the Seahawks' 10 yard line.  The Sutherland quarterback did not complete a pass of over 10 yards and the Seahawks were taken for a loss of 16 yards on the ground. 

Just as pleasing was the blanket coverage provided by the kick-off coverage unit.  With the play-offs just around the corner, it is vital for the special teams units to play to the same high standard set by the rest of the team.  

the 19 yard line, and finished with 209 yards and 4 touchdowns. 

Kelen involved all of his receivers, with Mathew Freeman, Tristan Cauhepe, Liam Erby, James Gifford, Mac Shine and Thomas Frazer all holding receptions.  Freeman had 6 catches, including scoring on the opening drive with a toe-tapping effort at the endzone pylon on fourth down, while Cauhepe snared two touchdown receptions of his own.  The receivers brought down 231 passing yards on the day and complemented Kelen's accuracy with their precise routes.   

The ground game was also on track.  Matt Croasdaile and Liam Erby again shared the load, with Croasdaile rushing for 153 yards and 3 touchdowns and Erby rushing for 130 yards and 2 touchdowns.  So well matched are the backfield tandem that, at the end of the game, Croasdaile and Erby had both rushed for exactly 614 yards on the season.  

Veteran defensive tackle, Fady Aoun, was particularly strong in the first quarter, dominating the centre of the line and getting in on a couple of tackles for loss.  But all of the defensive linemen were playing their part.  Defensive co-ordinator, Ryan Wonser, was able to rotate Chady Aoun, Tau Saipaia, Troy Carrick, Musa Ovalle, Chris Fung and Jock Purtle onto the defensive line without any drop off in penetration or effort.  

The Raiders' first possession ended with a Nick Baldwin sack for a big loss.  It was a pattern that was to repeat itself all afternoon.  Nick Baldwin, Tau Saipaia, Ian Triganza and Joe Lim would combine to take down the Bondi quarterback for 4 sacks.  With the lost yardage on sacks included, the Lions defence threw the Raiders for a loss of 41 yards on the 12 plays attempted on the ground.  The Raiders had only 4 rushing plays which went for positive yardage. 

The results were only marginally better through the air.  The Raiders completed only

4 passes of 18 attempts, while throwing 3 interceptions - one each to Kiernan Dorney, Leigh Louey-Gung and Anthony Sinton.  Cornerback David Bourke had a couple of passes slip through his fingers; one of which ended up as a Raiders' completion after he had muffed the interception chance!

Holding together this outstanding defensive performance was the Lions outstanding group of linebackers.  Joe Lim shut down the run between the tackles and smashed the pocket from middle linebacker.  On the outside, Nick Baldwin, Ian Triganza, Tristan Rosen, Justin Woo and Kieran Deale snapped up big plays as the Raiders' quarterback was flushed out of the pocket.  Greg Wernecke at Rover and Leigh Louey-Gung at King were everywhere - supporting on the run and breaking up the pass.  Wernecke lead the tackle count with 8 tackles, one for loss. 

All of this great team play added up to one thing - or 61 things - a record winning margin over the Raiders. 

Dorney, David Garcia and John Tamanivalu kept the passing game in check, only allowing 10 completions of 30 attempts and restricting the Outlaws to just 51 passing yards. 

With the defence gaining the upper hand, it was not long before field position lead to another score.  The Lions defence pinned the Outlaws to their 6 yards line and the punt only made it to the 22 yard line.  Four run plays later and Liam Erby had scored and converted for a 19-0 lead. 

The Outlaws then put together their best drive of the half, converting on a 4th and 4 at mid-field, only to end up having to punt the ball away for a touchback.  With less than a minute left in the half, the Lions had the ball on their 15 yard line.  Erby started the play inside his left end, Mac Shine, and followed the block of left tackle, Ben Dodd, upfield.  Angling behind the downfield block of receiver, Mathew Freeman, Erby took the

The Outlaws fumbled away their next possession and the Lions again drove the field for a score.  Receiver Thomas Frazer got the drive under way with a 24 yard crossing pattern and Croasdaile tacked on 15 yards on the ground.  Kelen finished off the drive by finding Gifford open in the back corner of the endzone from 15 yards out.  Erby converted for a 46-8 lead. 

Andrew Frawley came in for Dan Kelen at quarterback as the fourth quarter started and proceeded to direct the offence with confidence.  Shrugging off a holding penalty on first down, Frawley made a key completion to Gifford on third down and followed it up by hitting Mathew Freeman on a slant play in the face of an all-out blitz for his first career touchdown pass.  A missed PAT kept the score at 52-8. 

The Outlaws engineered one last chance to score.  After holding penalties and a sack had marched the Lions' offence back to the goal line,  the Outlaws got the ball on the half way line after the punt.   The Outlaws patched together a drive but were faced with 4th and 6 

on the 23 yard line.  The Outlaws quarterback tried for a three step fly to his wide receiver, but cornerback David Bourke was in position to break up the pass and end the scoring threat. 

Frawley then lead the Lions on a 7 play, 57 yard drive to finish the scoring at 58-8 with a 6 yard plunge by Erby.  Frawley would end the day with 3 completions from 3 attempts, 50 yards, 1 touchdown and no interceptions, but the drive will probably best be remembered for the 11 yard gallop by Jay Bottom in a cameo appearance at running back.   

This was the second heavy loss handed to the Outlaws by the Lions.  At the first meeting, the Outlaws had been undefeated and seemingly on the rise.  However, they have not won a game since that contest and have now slumped to a record of 2-4.  It remains to be seen whether the Outlaws can rebound from another hard loss.    

After a couple of changes of possession, James Gifford turned a regulation out pattern into a big play, knocking over three would-be tacklers on a 39 yard run down the sideline.  But a few plays later he undid his good work, being stripped of the ball on a pass play at the 20 yard line. 

When Kelen threw his second interception - and the Lions' third turnover - on the next series, the Pirates had their best chance to level the score.  The Pirates defensive back returned the ball to the Lions' 23 yard line and two short completions gave the Pirates 1st and 10 from the 13 yard line.  Two plays later and the Pirates had 3rd and 1 on the 4 yard line and a chance to hit back before half-time.  But Greg Wernecke blitzed in from outside linebacker to take down the Pirates running back for a 2 yard loss on the play to bring up

4th and 3 from the 6.  Again the Pirates went with a running play and, again, the Lions took it for a loss; this time Fady Aoun, Nick Baldwin and Joe Lim combining to preserve the Lions' half time lead.  

The Lions started in positive fashion after the break with Tristan Cauhepe darting for a 33 yard kickoff return to the Pirates' 37 yard line.  The Lions drove into the red zone on their first possession - a completion to Freeman bringing up 1st and Goal from the 8 yard line - but then stalled on the goal line.  Kelen was sacked on first down and the fourth down run from Croasdaile was stopped well short of the endzone. 

On the next drive, the Pirates hit their biggest play of the night - a 42 yard pass to the Lions 20 yard line - but two plays later it was all over: Nick Baldwin stripping the ball for Chady Aoun to recover the fumble. 

After an exchange of possession, the Lions defence took matters into their own hands.  The Pirates started the drive on their own

to Cauhepe for the touchdown and then doubled up to Cauhepe on the 2 point pass to stretch the lead to 27-0. 

The Lions even engineered one last chance to score before the break.  Freshman cornerback David Garcia was in position on an overthrown pass to dive forward and snare an interception in his first career game.  A personal foul against UTS brought the ball into range for a 41 yard field goal attempt on the last play of the half, but Erby started the kick just right and it failed to come back. 

There was no let up from the Lions defence in the second half and plenty of good performances, particularly in the secondary as UTS put the ball in the air in an effort to launch a comeback.  Kiernan Dorney was solid in his first start at free safety, breaking up two passes and keeping the passing game in front of him.  Cornerback David Bourke had a career day, breaking up two passes and intercepting a third to snuff out the Gators' only serious scoring chance, while there were also important contributions

from Mark Mamo, John Tamanivalu and Leigh Louey-Gung. 

The Lions scored on their second possession of the half, driving the ball from their own 15 yard line to the endzone in 8 plays.  Kelen used all the resources available to him, completing passes to Gifford, Cauhepe and Freeman before finding Erby on a 16 yard pass for the touchdown.  Kelen finished the game with 16 completions from 24 attempts for 231 yards and 4 touchdowns - a fine day's work. 

The Lions final touchdown came after the Gators had turned the ball over on downs at midfield after failing to complete a fourth down pass attempt.  A 15 yard completion to Freeman on first down brought the Lions in range and then Kelen threw a beautiful pass off his back foot under pressure to Gifford in the back corner of the endzone for a 25 yard touchdown.  With the PAT, the play took the final score to 41-0. 

The blow-out in the score meant that freshman quarterback, Andrew Frawley, got

The new Lions D plays some old-fashioned D

into the game and promptly threw an interception on his first career pass attempt!  Frawley showed his poise to come back on the next series and complete his first pass to fellow freshman Thomas Frazer.  Do not be surprised if you hear a lot more of that combination into the future.

It was fitting for the defence to finish off the game with two big turnovers.  First, David Bourke preserved the shutout by picking off a pass at the 10 yard line after UTS had been given field position following the Frawley interception.  On the next drive, Leigh Louey-Gung stripped the ball in tackling a Gator's receiver for Dorney to pick up the fumble and return it 33 yards to the Gators' 15 yard line.  

The turnovers finished off an outstanding day for the defence - and the Lions.  The result was a tribute to the hard work put in by the players and coaches in the pre-season.  With the season now properly underway, the Lions can get on with the business of getting "Six of the Best".