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Cubs Set Roster For Opener (10 February 2010)
The Cubs have named a 40 man roster for their 2010 Gridiron NSW Colts season opener against the Bondi Storm. The game will be a re-match of last year's Championship Game, won by the Cubs 48-44 in a thriller. However, much will have changed for both clubs. Bondi will be looking for a fresh start after losing their coach and core players to the newly formed UTS Spartans. Meanwhile, Sydney Uni will have a fresh look, with 24 first year players on the list and a new game jersey for 2010.
On offence, the Cubs will be guided at quarterback by returning senior Sam Darcy (#84). Darcy had a bumper year in 2009, winning the Championship Game MVP award and being honoured with State and National team selection. Darcy will be looking to cap off his stellar career at the Cubs with a repeat Colts championship. Darcy will be backed up at quarterback by freshman Krishan Dass (#6).
Also returning to the offensive backfield will be the versatile Harry Granger (#5). Granger was second in scoring for the Cubs in 2009 with 104 points (15 TDs, 7 2pts) and is likely to split time at running back, wingback and also quarterback. Joining him in the backfield will be second year junior Francis O'Neill (#38), first year senior Brady Olsson (#32) and first year sophomore Jacob Stevens (#30).
The receiving unit will be lead by returning senior Alex Klaric (#82) and second year junior Max Granger (#39). This will be Klaric's fifth season for the Cubs, having started with the club as a 14 year old in 2006. Klaric and Granger are likely to see action at both wingback and receiver. The receiving corps will include second year juniors Judd Fitzsimon (#34) and Tyrone Williams (#88) and four first year players, senior Vlad Matovic (#13), junior Richard Taylor (#85), sophomore Warwick Tomkins (#9) and freshman Oscar Mason (#2).
On the offensive line, the Cubs will be boosted by the return of junior Oscar Heidrich (#94). Heidrich won State selection in his first year of football last year and will be looking to build on his strong start. Heidrich will be joined by a strong group of first year players: seniors Jack Horgan (#97) and Trung Tran (#52), and juniors Angus Bishop (#58), Kendall Generoso (#60), Elvis Trompf (#67) and Alexander Panebianco (#77). Bishop follows his brother, Mathew, into the ranks of the Cubs.
On the other side of the ball, the Cubs will be spearheaded on the line by National team member Daniel Pearson (#55). Pearson is sure to pressure the opposing backfield, and will be joined in the attack by returning sophomores Alex Astafiev (#15) and Elliot Mills-Connolly (#37) and four first year players: seniors Jack Danielson (#74) and Jonathan Vavouris (#17), sophomore Hieu Nguyen (#91) and freshman Reuben Brien-Arnold (#99).
The Cubs welcome back junior Cameron Prentice (#42) and sophomore Andrew Shattuck (#31) to the linebacker corps. These players will be joined by first year seniors Nabeel Siddiqui (#21) and Hau Neo (#26) and first year sophomores Kevin Dizon (#24) and RJ Funtanilla (#47). All of these players have a great opportunity to step up this year, with none of the starting linebackers returning from 2009.
In the secondary, Chevy Abraham-Jacob (#14) is the lone returner from the 2009 squad, although senior Stanley Chin (#22) returns from the 2008 roster after a year's absence. This pair will lead a strong posse of first year seniors in Justin Chow (#8), Tim Zhong (#10) and David Chau (#12).
The full 2010 Cubs roster has been posted to the "Roster" link on the Cubs page.
The Cubs open the 2010 season against the Bondi Storm at the St George Hockey Centre, Mutch Ave, Kyeemagh, on Friday, 19 February 2010, kick-off at 7.00pm.
Cubs Blow Away Storm (19 February 2010)
Sydney Uni kicked off 2010 in style, blowing away the Bondi Storm 72-8 at the St George Hockey Centre in the season opener on Friday night. In the process, the Cubs registered the highest score (72 points) and largest winning margin (64 points) in their 17 year history, topping their previous best of 58-0 against the Northwestern Predators in 2006.
While the game was nominally a re-match of last season's grandfinal, off-season departures meant that the Storm were fielding a completely new side for 2010.
The Cubs got on top early and did not let up. The defence shut down Bondi's opening possession within the first set of downs, the starting front five of Daniel Pearson, Jack Danielson, Hau Neo, Cameron Prentice and Andrew Shattuck overpowering the Storm's running game. The defence secured a turnover at midfield after Bondi failed on a fourth down conversion attempt.
The offence took over and drove in for a score on its first possession. Sam Darcy led the offence with poise, dishing out a pitch to running back Francis O'Neill to score his first ever touchdown for the Cubs. O'Neill would lead the Cubs in scoring on the night with three rushing touchdowns, a fitting reward for a player who stuck by the game last year despite having to sit out the season with a broken leg.
The pattern established by the opening drives continued for most of the match. The defence controlled the Storm's running game, with first year linebacker Hau Neo making a strong debut for the Cubs. Neo showed sound technique and good hustle to make a number of key stops against the run. A number of other players also got in on the act, with Daniel Pearson, Reuben Brien-Arnold and Nabeel Siddiqui all recording important tackles for loss to put the Storm into long yardage situations. Once forced into long yardage, the Storm quarterback found that his receivers were well covered by the Cubs' secondary of Chevy Abraham-Jacob, Stanley Chin, Justin Chow, Tim Zhong and David Chow. Stanley Chin made an important pass break-up and picked off an interception late in the first half while Justin Chow forced and then recovered a fumble after one of the few completions to the Storm receivers. The defence were unlucky not to be rewarded for their strong showing with 6 points, middle linebacker Cameron Prentice holding a tipped pass over the middle and returning it up the sideline and into the endzone, only for a blocking penalty on the return to negate the score.
The offence scored on every possession. The offensive line laid a solid platform. Oscar Heidrich, Alexander Panebianco, Angus Bishop, Kendall Generoso, Elvis Trompf and Jack Horgan rotated onto the offensive line without missing a beat. The line can be seen opening the way for first year running back Brady Olsson to score on a two point conversion attempt. The Cubs running game was unstoppable, with Francis O'Neill (3), Harry Granger (2), Brady Olsson and Sam Darcy all rushing for touchdowns. The Cubs also showed their class through the air, Darcy hitting Max Granger with a long range touchdown with only seconds remaining in the first half and combining with Alex Klaric from short range for a couple of 2 point conversions. A measure of the dominance of the Cubs is that they succeeded on every one of their 9 two point conversion attempts. Mention must also be made of freshman quarterback Krishan Dass, who showed great poise to complete his first two career pass attempts for 2 point conversions.
The Cubs also had a good night on special teams, with Brady Olsson taking his first career kick-off return back for a touchdown and Max Granger and the kick-off coverage unit holding the Storm to minimal yards. Tyrone Williams contributed a number of key tackles on kick-off coverage and grabbed his first points as a Cub with a tough, low catch from Dass on a late two point conversion.
Scoring statistics from the game have been linked to the "Statistics" link on the Cubs page. The other results from round 1 and the league table have been posted to the "Gridiron NSW Colts Table & Results" link on the Cubs page.
The Cubs next face the UTS Titans at the St George Hockey Centre, Mutch Ave, Kyeemagh, on Friday, 26 February 2010, kick-off at 8.30pm. The game shapes up as an early match-up of two teams likely to feature in the playoffs this year. The Cubs will be looking to carry some momentum out of their opening win and establish a strong position at the top of the table.
Titans Hold Off Cubs (26 February 2010)
The Cubs were held out on a last ditch drive to fall 18-16 to the Titans at the St George Hockey Centre on Friday night. The Titans made the key plays when it mattered at the end to earn the win.
The Cubs received the opening kick-off and almost took it back for a score, Brady Olsson being brought down by the last defender with the line beckoning. Sydney Uni drove into scoring range but failed to capitalise, turning the ball over with a fumble on a shotgun snap. The Titans then seized the initiative, driving the length of the field for an opening score. Playing out of a three receiver set, the Titans ran off the coverage and found room for their quarterback to scramble for yardage. Andrew Shattuck was unlucky not to bring in an interception on the drive, after pouncing on a seam pass thrown for a receiver out of the backfield. But after driving to within 25 yards of the endzone, the Titans ran a jet sweep and caught out the containment of the Cubs defence, the receiver skirting up the sideline and in for a touchdown. The Cubs defence regathered to hold out the 2 point conversion attempt to keep the score to 0-6, Cameron Prentice and Jack Danielson making the tackle.
The Cubs then rebounded to take the lead on a touchdown run by quarterback Sam Darcy. Darcy settled the offence back into the groove, directing the option attack smoothly down the field and in for a score. Darcy found wingback Harry Granger in the flats with a smart completion to get the ball down close and then kept the ball on an option play for the score. Darcy doubled up on the 2 point conversion to put the Cubs into the lead at 8-6.
The ensuing Cubs kick-off struck the front row of the return team and was gathered in and returned to mid-field. This put the Cubs defence under immediate pressure, but they responded by driving the Titans backwards on the series. Cameron Prentice and Andrew Shattuck combined to tie up the Titans' quarterback on the run and pressure from Jack Danielson, Daniel Pearson and Hau Neo saw the quarterback taken for successive losses on pass plays. Neither team was able to make good use of the ball in the time remaining in the first half with the Cubs going to the break with a two point lead.
Max Granger kicked the kick-off for a touchback to open the second half to give the Cubs' defence good field position. But the Titans made a series of big plays on third downs to string together a telling drive. The Titans' scrambling quarterback was doing the damage and after running for a key third down conversion to get the ball into the Cubs' half, he scrambled out of the front of a collapsing pocket, stepped the spying linebacker and was gone through the middle of the secondary for a touchdown. Again the Cubs defence regrouped to stop the 2 point conversion attempt, but the Titans were back in the lead at 12-8.
The Cubs answered back on their next drive. Darcy and Granger teamed up again on a long completion to move to within 20 yards of the endzone, but the Cubs got behind in the count and faced third and long for the first down. Darcy was cool in the pocket, picking out Granger behind the coverage in the endzone for a touchdown. After Darcy had run in the 2 point conversion, the Cubs were back on top at 16-12.
Max Granger hit another deep kick-off, with the Titans' returner being brought down on the 16 yard line. The Cubs took advantage of a couple of dropped passes by the Titans to hold them short of a first down and force a punt. The Cubs then drove to mid-field and had run off much of the time in the half before facing 4th and 5. The Cubs went for the first down but Darcy was tackled short of the marker to give up the ball with a couple of minutes left in the half.
The Titans brought in an extra lineman at running back to provide more protection and blocking for their quarterback and drove to the 15 yard line to bring up 2nd and 2. With time running out, the Cubs made two big stops to bring up 4th and 3 and give themselves a chance to snuff out the drive. On one of the plays, Stanley Chin played perfect coverage to break up a pass in the endzone and deny a score. On the fourth down play, the Titans quarterback bought time in the backfield and then lured a Cubs' defensive back off his coverage by threatening to scramble for the first down. The QB pulled up and found the open man in the endzone for a touchdown. For the third time, the Cubs defence rallied to gang tackle the Titans' runner and deny the 2 point conversion.
With less than 60 seconds left on the clock, Jacob Stevens gave the Cubs life with a return to mid-field. Harry Granger then found room up the sideline on a wingback reverse to bring the Cubs into scoring range with time to get a touchdown and the win. However, a couple of dropped catches meant that the Cubs needed to pick up a first down and a fumbled hand-off on a wingback run saw the ball bounce free into the Titans' secondary. A Titans' defender won the race to the ball to seal the win.
There is no rest for the Cubs, as they next face the Sutherland Seahawks at the St George Hockey Centre, Mutch Ave, Kyeemagh, on Friday, 5 March 2010, kick-off at 8.30pm. The Seahawks sit on top of the Gridiron NSW Colts table with two wins in their opening matches, so it will be important for the Cubs to rebound from their loss to the Titans if they want to keep pace with the leading teams.
Cubs Topple Seahawks (5 March 2010)
Sydney Uni knocked the Seahawks off their undefeated perch in a nail-biting finish at the St George Hockey Centre on Friday night. With three touchdowns scored inside the last two minutes, there was no shortage of excitement at the end.
The Cubs started the last minute madness with Harry Granger breaking away for a 50 yard touchdown to put the Cubs ahead 32-28. Granger followed intelligent blocking from receiver Alex Klaric up the Cubs sideline, which celebrated like the game was won - much too early.
Indeed, the Seahawks must have thought they had won it after driving for a score with only 35 seconds left to take back the lead 34-32. The Cubs defence made the Seahawks earn it, but could not prevent the touchdown. As it turned out, the stops made by the defence only served to reduce the time left to the offence to get a winning score. However, the defence did rally to keep out the 2 point conversion.
But the Seahawks then gambled with an onside kick-off and the Cubs recovered the ball only 30 yards from the endzone. On the third play of the drive and with less than 15 seconds on the clock, Cubs Quarterback Sam Darcy threw a picture perfect pass to Wingback Harry Granger, who showed great technique and concentration to hold the slippery ball for a touchdown to put the Cubs ahead 38-34. Darcy and Granger then combined on an option play for 2 points to put the score out to 40-34.
Still, the drama was not over. The Cubs kick-off coverage team was stretched to the limit on the ensuing return and only a crucial tackle from kicker and last man standing Max Granger put the Seahawks returner safely over the sideline. There were 4 seconds left for one last play. The Cubs defence swarmed and eventually hunted down the Seahawks' halfback to preserve the win, new boy Sergan Isik making his first career tackle a memorable one.
Looking back to the start of the game, there should have been no surprise that it would end in an offensive shoot-out. On the very first play from scrimmage, Sutherland's impressive halfback took a hand-off going left, cut behind his fullback's block and sliced straight through the Cubs defence for a run away touchdown. He followed that up by beating the Cubs' defence to the corner pylon for a 2 point conversion and a 0-8 lead.
The Cubs started with freshman Krishan Dass at quarterback and he lead the offence with poise. After driving the Cubs into the red zone, Dass lined up at receiver to allow Harry Granger to handle the ball at quarterback. Granger took the running play in around right end for the first of his four touchdowns in the game. A bad snap on the conversion attempt saw the score remain at 8-6 to the Seahawks.
It looked as though it would be more of the same as the Seahawks bit off large chunks of yards with their running game on the next drive. But the Cubs made a stand on their 10 yard line, with Jack Danielson and Hau Neo making important tackles to bring up 4th and Goal on the 3 yard line. The Seahawks went with a play-action bootleg pass but outside linebacker Nabeel Siddiqui did enough to force an incompletion for a turnover on downs.
The Cubs then showed off their own long range strike capabilities, with Sam Darcy coming in at quarterback and ripping off a length of the field run for a touchdown. The two point conversion was stopped but the Cubs had the lead at 12-8.
But not for long. In another one play drive, the Seahawks' halfback turned on the afterburners to leave the Cubs defence in his wake on a sweep play for a touchdown from half way. Sutherland added a two point conversion to take the halftime lead at 16-12.
The Cubs took the opening possession of the second half in for a touchdown, Sam Darcy scoring on another long range run on the option. The Seahawks answered back with another long run of their own, this time their halfback escaped the clutches of several Cubs tacklers on a counter play. The Cubs returned serve with another long touchdown run from Harry Granger. This time Darcy hit Granger with a 2 point pass on the conversion to give the Cubs a 26-22 lead.
Someone had to make a stop on defence. Strong containment from Hau Neo and good pursuit from inside linebacker Andrew Shattuck combined to drop the Seahawks' halfback for a loss on the first down of the next drive. When Siddiqui tackled the runner for another big loss on third down, it looked as though the Cubs defence had finally made a crucial stop. However the Cubs were penalised for a push after the play to gift the Seahawks another first down. But the defence dug deeper and forced the Seahawks into 4th and 5 with strong run defence. On the key 4th down play, a number of Cubs players had a shot before Cameron Prentice made the tackle short of the marker to force the Seahawks to give up the ball on downs.
But the Cubs let the chance to extend the lead beyond a touchdown slip away. Darcy was tackled on a quarterback keeper and the wet ball squirted out to be recovered by the Seahawks in good field position. The defence could not hold the Seahawks again and they went in for a touchdown to take a 28-26 lead and set the stage for the frantic finale.
The last minute heroics underlined the offensive firepower of the Cubs but also demonstrated their "never say die" attitude. If the Cubs can continue to play every down as if it was their last then they will be very difficult to beat.
The Cubs now face the West Sydney Trojans at the St George Hockey Centre, Mutch Ave, Kyeemagh, on Friday, 12 March 2010, kick-off at 8.30pm. The Trojans is the only team to have an overall winning record against the Cubs, so Sydney Uni will be looking for some payback for past results as well as to consolidate its position on the table with a good win on Friday night.
Uni Takes Troy (12 March 2010)
The Cubs vanquished the Trojans 34-12 at the St George Hockey Centre in Round 4 action on Friday night.
Full story to follow soon.
Cubs Sack Sparta (19 March 2010)
Sydney Uni continued its campaign for domination of the ancient world by defeating the Spartans 36-18 at the St George Hockey Centre on Friday night. The game also doubled as a battle of the playing strips, with both clubs unveiling new game jerseys. The consensus on the Sydney Uni sideline was that the new Cubs jerseys had inflicted a heavy defeat over the new Spartans jersey. Club President, Liam Erby, was on hand for the occasion and is to be congratulated on overseeing a program which continues to set the benchmark for Gridiron in NSW at every level.
The Cubs started the game on defence and immediately imposed their will over the Spartans. The defence was more than ready for the full house backfield deployed by the Spartans and took the opening plays for heavy losses. Outside linebacker Nabeel Siddiqui (#21) swung the Spartans quarterback to the ground for a huge loss on third down, only to be penalised for roughing the passer to give the Spartans a new set of downs. Given that the tackle was entirely legitimate, the quarterback still had the ball and the whistle had not been blown by the officials, it was impossible to justify the call on any grounds other than sympathy for the quarterback, yet it merely gave the Cubs a further opportunity to ram home their advantage. The defensive line of Daniel Pearson (#55) and Sergan Isik (#50) and linebacking corps of Nabeel Siddiqui (#21), Cameron Prentice (#42) and Andrew Shattuck (#31) simply outmuscled their opponents at the line of scrimmage to hold the Spartan to no gain on their next series. Cornerback Vlad Matovic (#13) played with excellent containment on the edge to drop the wingback reverse for no gain on third down and then sack the quarterback on a bootleg keeper on fourth down to complete the rout for the Cubs' defence. The Cubs offence then drove down for an opening score to Harry Granger (#5) on its first possession to give the Cubs the early advantage 6-0.
That lead was short-lived, with the Spartans taking the ensuing kick-off through the Cubs coverage team for a score. The defence held out the two point conversion attempt to keep the scores level.
The Cubs had good field position on their next possession after the middle row of the kick-off return team handled a short kick and returned it over halfway. Quarterback Sam Darcy (#84) was having to rely on veterans Harry Granger (#5), Max Granger (#39) and Alex Klaric (#82) alternating their roles in the backfield to make up for the absence of three running backs. The offensive line was also called on to pick up the slack, with Angus Bishop (#58), Alex Panebianco (#77) and Oscar Heidrich (#74) in the Gold line and Kendall Generoso (#60), Elvis Trompf (#67) and Jack Horgan (#97) in the Blue line all delivering strong performances. The Cubs put Harry Granger in for another rushing touchdown and followed up with a two point conversion to Sam Darcy to take the lead out to 14-6.
The defence had a scare on its next drive, with the backside losing containment and allowing the Spartans halfback to escape from a likely loss, reverse his field and scamper for a long gain down to the Cubs' 8 yard line. Cornerback Justin Chow (#8) showed good hustle to make the open field tackle and prevent a score. From there, the defence got back on top. Jack Danielson (#94) made successive tackles for no gain and Chow played perfect coverage to break up a third down pass attempt. On fourth down, Siddiqui, Pearson and Shattuck combined to take the bootleg for a loss to snuff out the scoring threat.
In the short time remaining before the end of the half, the offence did everything but score. On the last play of the half, Darcy completed a pass to Klaric, who swept up the sideline but was ruled to have been bumped out of bounds at the 2 yard line as time expired. Sydney Uni went to the break with a 14-6 lead; but a lead which did not properly reflect its dominance of the first half play from scrimmage.
The opening kick-off of the second half immediately redressed the imbalance. Another short kick was fielded in the middle row by Alex Klaric and he followed the blocking scheme to punch a hole through the middle of the coverage and celebrate his birthday with a return for a touchdown. Key blocks were thrown by Siddiqui, Heidrich and Panebianco and all of the return team played with good discipline to avoid any blocking penalties on the return. Harry Granger ran in the 2 point conversion to extend the lead to 22-6.
The defence continued to cause havoc as the Spartans moved into a more expansive offence. On the next series, Siddiqui continued to torment the Spartans from the outside, recording two big sacks to put the Spartans into 4th and 21. Shattuck made the tackle from his spying role on 4th down to give the defence its third turnover on downs for the game. The offence cashed in on the good field position, with Darcy stepping a blitzing linebacker and cutting through the defence behind good blocking from Bishop and Panebianco to run in a touchdown (with a victory roll at the endzone for good measure!). The score put the lead out to 28-6.
Cornerback Chevy Abraham-Jacob was unfortunate not to pick off the Spartans' quarterback on the opening play of the next drive, Abraham-Jacob having the presence to leave his receiver to break on an underthrown pass. But the defence continued to roll the Spartans back, consecutive sacks involving Pearson, Danielson and Siddiqui forcing the Spartans back to their own 2 yard line. The Spartans finally decided that a punt was in order, which Justin Chow returned back to with 15 yards of the endzone (losing his shoe in a big collision at the end of the run!).
However, the offence finally faltered, giving up a fumble on its next possession with the endzone in sight. Middle linebacker, Cameron Prentice (#42) sacked the quarterback to force another punt, but the defence undid all its good work by gifting possession to the Spartans on their own 4 yard line after unnecessarily handling the punt. The defence forced the Spartans to earn it, but conceded its first score for the night to a bootleg pass play in the flats despite good coverage. The 2 point conversion was defended to leave the score at 28-12.
The offence got back on track on its next possession, driving in for another rushing score to Darcy. The Spartans defence unwisely bought heavily into the fake to the fullback on the option and were left with no reserves out wide when forced to account for the true market position. The offensive line of Generoso, Trompf and Horgan can be seen shunting the Spartans defensive line back into the endzone on the play. Harry Granger shifted into quarterback for the 2 point conversion and kept it a family affair, finding his brother Max in the flat for 2 points and a 36-12 lead.
The defence gave up a big play on a back release pattern on its next drive, with only great pursuit (and great contact!) from Matovic saving a touchdown. The Spartans got the ball into the endzone from close range to complete the scoring at 36-18, but nothing could alter the comprehensive defeat handed by the Cubs to its rivals.
The Cubs next face the Northwestern Predators at the Hockey Field at the UWS Nepean campus (O'Connell St, Kingswood - see the Contacts page for a map of the field) before the Easter Bye. The Cubs will be looking to continue the improvement shown on both sides of the ball as they move deeper into the season towards the playoffs.
| Cubs Take Down Predators (26 March 2010) | ||
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Sydney Uni found lots of different ways to score in defeating the Predators 58-14 at the UWS Nepean Hockey field on Friday night. The Cubs ran and passed for touchdowns as expected, but also returned a kick-off, a fumble recovery and two interceptions for touchdowns in a comprehensive display. Indeed, the Cubs defence outscored its opponents 18-14 to chalk up its own victory on the night. The Cubs were on the scoreboard first, but the Predators answered back, completing passes out of their three receiver set to get down close and then scrambling into the endzone on 4th down to level the scores. Max Granger got the Cubs straight back on top, taking the ensuing kick-off through the Predators' coverage team and all the way for a touchdown. With half-time approaching, the Cubs had a handy lead but decided to put their foot down. Defensive Captain, Daniel Pearson, beat his man and sacked the Predators quarterback, forcing the ball out in the process. Fellow |
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lineman Sergan Isik picked up the fumble and legged it into the endzone for the Cubs' first score on defence this season. It would not be the last. Barely seconds later, the Predators had the ball back after the kick-off and were still passing, looking to make something happen before the end of the half. Something happened all right, but not what they had in mind. Good coverage from the secondary forced the Predators' quarterback to dump a pass off to his running back. However, Cubs cornerback David Chau was ready and waiting, tackling the back as the ball arrived and forcing the ball out and into the arms of linebacker Hau Neo. Neo held the chance interception and cashed it in for points, returning the pick into the endzone for the second defensive score. The offence was not being left out of the scoring by any means. Hugh Tomkins stepped in at fullback to fill a void left by forced absences and injuries to the first three players on the depth chart and reminded us just what we had been |
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 Captain Daniel Pearson (55) lead from the front, forcing a fumble returned for a touchdown |
missing this year. On the game's biggest play, Tomkins took a hand-off just out of his own endzone and beat the entire Predators' defence for strength and speed to go the length of the field. But he was not the only one to impress. Darcy kept the offence on track, despite the personnel changes, and proved as elusive as ever with the ball. He teamed up with Max Granger for a long range touchdown pass that showed just what a deadly combination they have become. And the offensive line continued to impress with its consistent play for the league's top scoring offence. But the final word was back on defence. With the Predators back on their line and not long to go, the quarterback tried for a slant pass. Justin Chow had played well all night and pressured the receiver out of the catch. Cornerback Chevy Abraham-Jacob was in position to snare the ball and return it for his first career touchdown to seal the deal. |
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| Uni Wins Big On the Road (10 April 2010) | ||
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The Cubs came away from their Central Coast road trip with a commanding 66-12 victory over the Sharks. The win moved the Cubs into a three-way tie for top spot on the ladder after the Titans were beaten by the Seahawks on Friday night. The Cubs made light of the hot conditions and got off to a hot start. Cubs defensive lineman Sergan Isik recovered a fumble on the second play from scrimmage and the offence took over, quarterback Sam Darcy finding wingback Alex Klaric open for a touchdown to open the scoring. It would be a recurring theme, with Klaric holding 4 scoring receptions (2 TDs, 2 2pts) and even rushing a touchdown from fullback late in the game. While the Sharks scored on a long bomb on their next possession to bring the score back to 8-6, that was as close as they would get as the Cubs offence continued to roll. Darcy and Francis O'Neill ran in the next two touchdowns and Darcy converted both scores with passes to Klaric - the second on a 15 yard throw after having to double back to fetch a wayward snap. |
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Then the defence decided to join in on the scoring action. Captain Daniel Pearson had been shifted to linebacker for the day and showed great positional awareness to sniff out a Sharks trick play, with a receiver throwing for the quarterback after taking a hand-off. Pearson pounced on the pass and beat the cover to the endzone for a pick 6. After a conversion run from O'Neill, the Cubs had a 32-6 lead and the game in their control. Freshman Krishan Dass came in at quarterback and lead the offence with flair. The Cubs had all of their offensive linemen available and it did not matter which unit was in the game, the offence continued to roll. Dass drove the offence downfield and threw his first career touchdown pass to Alex Klaric, who did well to get open and take a great catch at the back of the endzone. With another O'Neill conversion run, the score was 40-6 at halftime. Dass opened the second half at quarterback and continued to drive the ball. |
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 Sam Darcy (84) about to put Max Granger (39) away for 2 points on the option |
He threw his second touchdown to Max Granger on a corner route and, with the help of a long Granger run on a trap play, drove the Cubs the length of the field for a touchdown to O'Neill on the ground. The Sharks were putting the ball in the air on offence, but the Cubs secondary of Chevy Abraham-Jacob, Vlad Matovic, Stanley Chin and Justin Chow were up to the task, breaking up 5 pass attempts and Chin bringing in his second pick for the year. Abraham-Jacob led the tackle count for the second game in a row, with Pearson and Chow just behind. With Darcy back at the helm, the Cubs ran in three more touchdowns - two to Darcy and one more to Klaric - to round out the scoring at 66-12. The Cubs played with real heart to get the result. No play showed this more than when Max Granger chased down a runaway Shark to stop a score after a fumbled conversion attempt. The Cubs now face the Chiefs at Craik Park in 2 weeks. |
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| Five Star Wolfpack (17 April 2010) | ||
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The NSW Wolfpack won their fifth straight senior nationals with a 28-7 victory over the Victoria Eagles in the Championship Game on Friday night. The Wolfpack roster was stacked with Lions players who made key contributions to the win. Starting at the top, the Lions contributed three of the four team captains, with David Thode, Kiernan Dorney and Joe Lim joining Shannon Lynch from the West Sydney Pirates to lead the side. On offence, Kiernan Dorney got the start at quarterback and took charge of a potent, no-huddle offence. Matt Croasdaile joined him in the backfield and the pair ran a shotgun spread offence based around the zone read play. The offence required good communication, good reads and clear heads, and the Wolfpack got all three from the starting backfield. Dan Kelen also got time at quarterback and threw the final touchdown in the Championship Game to seal the win. |
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 Louey-Gung (37) featured in the biggest play of the tournament - breaking up this pass into the endzone as time expired against the West Australia Raiders to preserve a 31-27 win |
Lions players filled four of the five spots on the offensive line, with David Thode, Aaron Carbury, James Gifford and David Allen being joined by the Pirates' Nathan D'Cunha in the starting roles. The line played with poise all tournament, sending Croasdaile over 100 yards in each game. In the receiving corps, Liam Erby and Tristan Cauhepe started, with Mac Shine seeing plenty of action in the rotation and taking on the key role of long-snapper on special teams. In all, the Lions provided 8 of the 11 starters on the top scoring offence in the tournament. And there was no shortage of Lions on the other side of the ball either. Fady Aoun started on the defensive line in his fifth campaign for the Wolfpack and Ian Triganza and Piotr Milewski both made big plays and contributed big minutes at defensive end. Chady Aoun and Tau Saipaia also got time on the line and on special teams. Joe Lim and Greg Wernecke started at |
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linebacker and gave their all in a typically committed performance. First year man, Chris Noble, also gained valuable experience in a back-up role. In the secondary, Leigh Louey-Gung had a huge tournament, taking two crucial interceptions in the Championship Game, while also breaking up the last gasp pass into the endzone by WA. Kevin Trinh got a start in the Championship Game, as the Wolfpack added an extra defensive back into the mix, while Anthony Sinton and Suren Wickramasinghe also saw action in the defensive backfield. The Wolfpack were guided by Stephen Dunne, in his first campaign as Head Coach, with assistance from Ryan Wonser as defensive line coach and Jamie Owers as a team manager. While this article has featured the Lions players and coaches, the club extends its congratulations to all of the Wolfpack players and coaches and wishes to stress that the Wolfpack was a true team which won the championship as a result of the effort put in by the whole of Gridiron NSW. |
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 Dorney (11) had a number of Lions receivers to go to, including Mac Shine (47) and Tristan Cauhape (83) |
 Louey-Gung (37) and Lim (56) shut down the run |
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 Fady Aoun (79) was a tower of strength in his fifth campaign for the Wolfpack |
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Cubs Scalp Chiefs (24 April 2010)
Sydney Uni came away from its top of the table clash against the Penrith City Chiefs with a strong 36-20 victory. The Cubs jumped on the Chiefs early and never lost control of the game.
The Cubs started on defence and sent the Chiefs out without picking up a first down. Cornerback Chevy Abraham-Jacob showed sound technique and timing to break up an early pass attempt and a tackle for loss on a third down option play saw the Chiefs punting from 4th and 14.
The offence wasted no time with quarterback Sam Darcy stretching out for a long range touchdown run, only to be brought back on a holding penalty. The Cubs got back to work and eventually fullback Francis O'Neill sliced through the defence with a well-timed cutback and into the endzone for the opening score. O'Neill doubled up on the two point conversion to have the Cubs in front 8-0.
The Cubs defence kept the Chiefs out of the endzone again, this time strong run defence from Nabeel Siddiqui and Cameron Prentice combined with opportunistic play from Siddiqui in scooping up a fumbled pitch to give the ball back to the offence at midfield. The offence grabbed the chance to put wingback Alex Klaric away for a touchdown run and a two point conversion to double the lead at 16-0.
The defence held firm for the third straight series, getting a turnover on downs after the Chiefs missed with a 4th and 14 pass attempt. Daniel Pearson, Jack Danielson, Sergen Isik, Elliot Mills-Connolly and Jon Vavouris were all getting good pressure from the defensive line while Abraham-Jacob, Vlad Matovic, Stanley Chin, Justin Chow and David Chau were all rotating in at defensive back without any drop in coverage. The offence kept the pressure on, with fullback Hugh Tomkins taking a pitch play the distance for a touchdown and O'Neill ramming the ball into the endzone on the two point conversion for a 24-0 lead.
The Chiefs managed to peg back a score before the end of the half, hitting a deep pass down the middle for a long range touchdown. They followed that up with a neat pass to the corner for two points to cut the lead to 24-8 at the half.
The Cubs came straight back out on offence and drove for a touchdown to open the second half. The offensive linemen of Oscar Heidrich, Angus Bishop, Alex Panebianco, Kendall Generoso and Jack Horgan copped a few penalty calls but were manhandling the tough Chiefs' defence. O'Neill continued his strong showing for the night with another long run on the dive play for a touchdown. O'Neill was showing real strength at the contact and had added an effective cutback into his running since his last outing. The two point conversion was stopped to leave the score at 30-8.
The Cubs defence was burned badly by a fullback draw on the next series, pushing the Chiefs into a passing down but then overrunning the play and losing their run fits to allow a long range rushing touchdown. They recovered to force an incompletion on the two point conversion to hold the score to 30-14.
The Cubs offence was methodical on its next drive, holding the ball and running time off the clock with ruthless efficiency. The Cubs drove down close before unleashing Max Granger on 4th down for a touchdown run to the corner. The two point pass attempt was incomplete, but the Cubs were out to a 36-14 lead with little time remaining.
The Chiefs drove in for a final score, completing a long pass down to the goalline and then throwing into the endzone on a crossing pattern for a touchdown. Good pursuit from Mills-Connolly saw the two point pass attempt fall incomplete to finish the scoring at 36-20.
The win was a strong result for the Cubs on the road against a team which had won its last six games and will obviously feature in the play-offs. The Cubs now have their final regular season game on the road against Wollongong this Saturday before heading into the playoffs.
Croasdaile Named IFAF "Player Of The Month" (1 May 2010)
Lions running back Matt Croasdaile was named "Player of the Month" for April by the International Federation of American Football following his strong performances for the victorious NSW Wolfpack in the recent Senior National Championships. Sydney Uni congratulates Matt on his well-deserved honour. Click here for the full article.
Cubs Finish On Top (1 May 2010)
The Cubs claimed the minor premiership with a 42-6 win over the Brumbies at Bulli High School and will play the Titans this Friday at the Square for a place in the Championship Game.
The Cubs had the win wrapped up by half time after a strong showing from Hugh Tomkins at fullback and the defensive secondary of Chevy Abraham-Jacob, Vlad Matovic, Stanley Chin and Justin Chow. Tomkins ran in three long range touchdowns in the first half, simply having too much pace for the Brumbies' defence. Quarterback Sam Darcy and wingback Harry Granger also ran in touchdowns in the first half behind an offensive line of Oscar Heidrich, Alex Panebianco and Kendall Generoso, which cleared the way on the ground. Granger was returning for his first game back after a hand injury and was straight back into the groove.
On defence, the lineman of Daniel Pearson, Jack Danielson and Sergen Isik and the linebacking corps of Cameron Prentice, Hau Neo and Andrew Shattuck quickly established control of the line of scrimmage. Prentice topped the tackle count for the game, with Shattuck not far behind, but it was a total team effort which shut down the Brumbies' ground game. With nowhere else to go, the Brumbies put the ball in the air, but the Cubs' secondary responded with their best showing of the season. The Cubs' defensive backs were in position to quickly tackle the receivers after any short completions and to attack the ball on longer pass plays. Vlad Matovic made a crucial pass break-up on a ball thrown into the endzone and pursued hard from the opposite side of the field to make a touchdown-saving tackle after a receiver threatened to go the distance. All of the secondary broke up passes, while Justin Chow held an interception coming up from a deep safety position to defuse a late Brumbies drive.
In the second half, the offence brought in some special guest stars to have a run in the backfield. Chevy Abraham-Jacob and Oscar Heidrich impressed in their cameo performances while for others it was a case of "don't give up your day job". However, the most impressive performances in the second half were from quarterback Krishan Dass and receiver Massi Omari, who teamed up for some well executed pass plays, including a two point conversion after wingback Max Granger had run in a touchdown. Unfortunately, Omari went down injured late in the game to spoil a good day for the receiver. The defence conceded a touchdown at the death after the offence had fumbled the ball away but, all in all, the Cubs had put on a strong showing to wrap up the first seeding in the playoffs.
The Cubs now meet the Titans in the playoffs, with the winner to move straight into the Championship Game. The game will be played at the Square, Science Road, Sydney Uni, at 8.30pm this Friday, with family, friends and supporters invited to join the team at the Camperdown Hotel, 138 Parramatta Rd, Camperdown (5 mins from the Square) after the game for a Homecoming celebration.
No Place Like Home (14 May 2010)
Sydney Uni surged to a 42-22 win over the UTS Titans in front of a good home crowd at the Square to book a place in the 2010 Gridiron NSW Colts Championship Game. The Cubs will face the Sutherland Seahawks this Friday in the decider at the St George Hockey Centre, with the kick-off at 8pm.
The Cubs started with the ball and started with purpose. The offence was required to go the length of the field after a blocking penalty on the opening kick-off return but moved the ball with confidence. Fullback Francis O'Neill continued his strong form with a long gain on a dive play to get the ball down close and wingback Harry Granger took an option pitch in for the opening touchdown. Quarterback Sam Darcy scored on the conversion to give the Cubs an early 8-0 lead.
The Cubs defence was also on the ball early. The Titans started with two backs in the backfield, but the Cubs defence stood firm against the run to force UTS straight into a 4th down situation. The Titans went for it, but linebacker Hugh Tomkins pressured the rolling UTS quarterback into an incompletion to force a turnover on downs.
The Cubs offence rammed home the advantage by driving down for another score. Quarterback Sam Darcy was picking his spots to attack out of the option and sliced through the UTS defence to score out wide. The conversion attempt failed to give the Cubs a handy lead at 14-0.
The Titans hit a long return off the next kick-off to get into immediate scoring range. The Cubs forced UTS into another 4th down, but this time they converted, hitting a slant pattern down to the goalline. The Cubs defence made two stops at the 1 yard line, but the Titans ran in for a score on 3rd down and then also scored on the conversion to bring the score back to 14-8.
The Cubs' response was quick and deadly. On the next kick-off, Tomkins fielded the kick, swung left and scorched past the UTS coverage team for a touchdown. Again, the Cubs were stopped on the conversion, but the quick strike had put the score out to 20-8.
Another long kick-off return had the Titans in good field position. A substitution error on the defence saw the Cubs fail to cover one of the Titans' receivers. The UTS quarterback was quick enough to spot the breakdown and fired a pass out to his unmarked man for an easy score. UTS ran in the conversion to close the score to 20-16.
The Cubs offence was not phased and continued its relentless play. Harry Granger, Sam Darcy and Francis O'Neill were all taking turns in picking up the hard yards, but it was O'Neill who hammered in from close range for the touchdown. Darcy passed to Max Granger for the conversion to give the Cubs a lead of 28-16.
The Cubs defence made an important stop before the half. Tomkins forced a sack on first down and the Cubs defended two pass plays to bring up 4th and 8. Defensive tackle Sergan Isik worked his way around the backside of the protection to claim the Titans' quarterback for a sack on the play to force another turnover on downs for the Cubs defence. The half ended with the Cubs ahead 28-16.
The Titans had the ball to start the second half and strung together a drive to get themselves back into the game. The Cubs missed a backfield release pattern on 3rd and long to let the Titans escape and they cashed in with a touchdown. Linebacker Nabeel Siddiqui took the quarterback for a big loss on the conversion to keep the score at 28-22 to the Cubs.
The Cubs offence finally faltered on their next drive, but only due to an exceptional play from the Titans. At mid-field, Darcy looked for Harry Granger on a crossing route but Granger was unable to gather in a ball thrown behind him. The covering Titans defender made a great play to bring in an interception on the tipped ball as he was falling to the ground.
With the Titans having the opportunity to score to take the lead, the pressure was back on the Cubs defence. On 2nd and long, two Cubs veterans stood up to make a game-breaking play. Defensive captain Daniel Pearson had been getting great pass rush pressure all night. His effort paid off by claiming the Titans quarterback for a blindside sack. Better than that, his good technique in attacking the ball forced a fumble. Tomkins was on the spot to scoop the ball and run it in for a decisive touchdown. Tomkins was in the throes of an outstanding game at linebacker and would finish with a team high 9 tackles and 3 tackles for loss. Darcy converted the touchdown with a throw to Harry Granger and the Cubs had surged away to a 36-22 lead.
The Cubs defence made another great stand on the next drive. Another long UTS kick off return had the defence backed up on their own 17 yard line. On 2nd down, the Titans quarterback took a shot to the endzone on a corner pattern to his wide receiver, but cornerback Stanley Chin stuck on his man and undercut the pass to take a crucial interception at the goal line. Chin had covered the UTS primary receiver all night and finished the game second on the Cubs' tackle count with 4 tackles.
The Cubs offence showed their explosive power by taking the ball the length of the field in a handful of plays. It looked like Harry Granger would go all the way with a breakout run down the Cubs sideline but was just done for condition to be claimed 20 yards out. Granger could be forgiven for lacking match fitness as he is only two games into his return from injury. Clearly he is not lacking for speed, power or play-making ability. The Cubs shifted Hugh Tomkins into fullback to give Granger a breather after his long run and he destroyed the Titans' defensive containment to rush for a touchdown. The score meant that Tomkins had scored touchdowns on offence, defence and special teams in the one game - so far as we can tell, the first time this has ever been done by a Sydney Uni player in 26 years of football. The conversion attempt failed, but the Cubs were now out of sight at 42-22.
The Cubs defence played hard to the end. The Titans had two more possessions, but turned the ball over on downs on both drives. In all, the Cubs defence forced 6 turnovers in the game. With their last shot, the Titans were 4th and 10 on the Cubs 13 yard line. They hit a wide receiver bubble screen but the Cubs secondary scrambled up to make the tackle short of the endzone and short of the first down marker. The hussle and commitment on the last play were indicative of the determination which had been shown all game.
The strong win sees the Cubs qualify for the Gridiron NSW Colts Championship Game and gives them a chance to go back-to-back as Colts champions. The Cubs will play the Sutherland Seahawks, who won through from fourth seed in the playoffs with a triple overtime win over the Titans and who played the Cubs to a standstill in an exciting regular season fixture.
The Cubs could not hope for more than chances fair - a chance to equal our strife, a chance to do or dare.
