Boy 'o boy, the weekend comes around so quickly. We've closed the door on round one already, as we look ahead to this weekend's set of matches spanning three different grounds across Ontario. The Ottawa Swans play host to the High Park Demons; Guelph Gargoyles take on Etobicoke Roos at Margaret Greene Reserve and the remaining three games are at Humber South.
A big congratulations and well done goes to James Duggan from the Toronto Dingos Football Club who will take the field this weekend against the Central Blues to play his 50th game for the club. The speedy midfielder claimed his first best and fairest at the club last year and started training with the Dingos as a 16-year-old. Apparently the club miscalculated the feat, and celebrated his 50th game last year, so Duggan will raise the bat for the second time -- for real. Great effort mate!
The OAFL Twitter campaign was a success during round one. We had plenty of tweets to sfit through. Some players reported scores, play by plays and match results. Judging by the tweets, there were a lot of sunburnt and sore players by Tuesday. Anyway, here's some of the more memorable tweets from round one. ( For you twitterers, this week's hashtag is : #oaflr2 )
@Rooscoach Awake already on a saturday! Can't wait for round 1 of the season. Too bad we have to wait until tomorrow.
@Toronto_Eagles Round 1 starts tomorrow... 10 teams, 5 months, 1 premiership... The journey begins!
@CanadDave After 8 seasons, I still get stoked about Round 1.
@mjgoldhawk The have taken to the wheel - setting off for ! &white
@Guelphgargoyles , great effort - game could have gone either way. Unfortunate melee - we've got tons of respect for you boys
@codyroyle Wayne Carey ate Coco Pops before every game, which makes me feel better about having before every game.
@Dingostewy12 Siren sounds! Roos 11.10.76 to Dees 8.5.53. Great game!
@b_j_mckenzie feeling sore and sunburnt but happy with a win yesterday!
So, round two. Shall we?
Round two: Saturday May.12
1.Central Blues (0-1) vs Toronto Dingos (0-1) (Humber South)
Both teams suffered near defeats last week, therefore, both teams will be striving to their claim their first scalp of 2012. The Blues led for parts of the game and were over run in the end; the Dingos, similarly, were up by 18pts at one stage and lost by two pts.
On paper, the Dingos look to have firepower in key positions, but it counts for zero if players don't fire. But, let's not forget, the Blues have been the Dingos bogey team since 2009, after losing the elimination final, then the 2010 Grand Final and, their two season meetings last year. I think this trend will continue this week and the Blues will notch up a win based on previous year's performances. Will the Dingos break the hoodoo? Can the Blues extend their winning streak against the red and black?
Tip: Central Blues by 8pts
**MATCH OF THE ROUND**
2.Guelph Gargoyles (1-0) vs Etobicoke Roos (1-0) (Guelph)
Should be a cracking game at Margaret Greene Reserve on Saturday. Are Guelph the real deal this year, or much the same as last year? One thing is for sure, they are a different proposition at home, on that oddly-shaped green patch of grass. It's quite a unique ground to play on, and, hard to plan for. Etobicoke, impressed in the second half last week against High Park, but it took them a while to get going. Guelph played a defensive, "clog-and-run" style last week which worked well. The same game plan would definitely make scores close this week on the small field. Etobicoke, though, have too many stars in their squad to let this slide, although it won't be a slaughter. Expect a tight affair, but the champs are champs for a reason; they showed that last week.
Tip: Etobicoke Roos by 24pts
3.Broadview Hawks (1-0) vs Hamilton Wildcats (1-0) (Humber South)
I was impressed by the Broadview Hawks' 11-pt win last week; likewise with the Hamilton Wildcats' 38-pt demolition of the Eagles. The Hawks showed fight; the Wildcats showed top three potential. Both sides have damaging forwards. You have Shuttleworth (four goals last week) for the Hawks and for the Wildcats, there is Major (7) and Crouch (4) who combined for 11 goals last week, which is a massive contribution. Can the Wildcats sustain that type of output from those two players each week? And who else from the Hawks can kick goals? I think these teams will break even in the middle, it's just a matter of who can hold their nerve at the backend and get their match ups right. I'm going with the Wildcats this week, based on their round one form against the Eagles. They looked sharp and clean.
Tip: Hamilton Wildcats by 18pts
4.Ottawa Swans (0-1) vs High Park Demons (0-1) (Ottawa)
It was a great effort by the Swans last week. They were right in it at three-quarter time, but fell away in the last term. The Demons played a great first half, but ran out of juice in the second. The trip to O'town is always a fun "roadie", but, like Guelph in Guelph, the Swans are a different cup of tea to deal with.Each time someone travels to Ottawa, there's always a whiff of an upset. Perhaps the smallish ground, that sits in the middle of a racetrack, plays into the hands of the Swans -- too many distractions for visiting teams. Perhaps, the young fellas from the Demons might be thinking about that Saturday night drink as they enter the racing complex, just enough to throw them off their game? I'm sure Marty Walter will have them court martialed for even thinking such thoughts.The Demons, though, will come highly skilled and quick. Let's not forget they took it right up to the Roos last weekend. The Swans will have their hands full this week.
Tip: High Park Demons by 45pts
5. Toronto Rebels (0-1) vs Toronto Eagles (0-1) (Humber South)
Tough match to call this one. Neither team impressed last week. I thought the Rebels would have won by a little bit more, but, perhaps that's saying something more about the Swans and their improvement, than the Rebel's ability in 2012. Also, I didn't expect the Eagles to lose by as much as they did. Their match report said they were undermanned, but,would have thought they had the cover? I guess not. One thing I know, the Eagles don't like to lose. Well, no team likes to lose, but, the Eagles especially. Expect them to come back hard this week. They love playing finals and will get there anyway they know how, and that's to win games. The Rebels, on the other hand have an opportunity here to land a big scalp. It's a big match for them; they generally don't fare too well against the Eagles. By the looks of their list this season, they look undermanned, but, determination and grit counts for a lot in this league. And they showed a lot of that last week in the last quarter during their come from behind win. Can they sustain that for four quarters? it's a real flip of the coin for this one folks, but I'm going with the Eagles -- too many ball winners for the Rebels to compete with.
Tip: Toronto Eagles by 17pts
If you have any questions, ideas or feedback for weekly posts, drop me an email.
Justin Robertson (justinrobertson79@gmail.com/ @robbodingo)
Last Modified on 28/05/2013 09:16