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No Blues for United 0

Chicago United took a giant leap towards recapturing the MAAFL crown and returning it to its rightful place atop Burgmann Towers. Lead by a dominating backline and ruthless midfield, Chicago were able to turn the screws on an undermanned Blues outfit that battled hard all day against huge odds.

In 95 degree heat and 100% humidity, the two teams, playing 14 a side, locked horns once more in battle. St Louis were looking to continue their good form after beating Nashville and wanted a little revenge for the licking they received from Chicago in the windy city last year. Chicago, after a good recruiting off season came down with 18 players fit and ready but without their spiritual leaders in big Wazza Burgmann and the Outback Kid himself, both MIA.

St Louis were able to draw first blood when a Chicago turnover found an unmanned Blue forward in between 3 United players who duly slotted one through to get the game rolling. This was the spark the United boys needed and they dominated much of the first quarter but were unable to capitalise where it mattered most. A top heavy forward line wasn’t getting the delivery they craved and repeated forays forward were turned back by a stubborn Blue defence which was being helped by a classic midwestern downpour that made the ball harder to handle than a heated coat hanger bent into a gamma sign and brutally applied to the upper arm. Pat Hoyt was taken from the backline and asked to give the forward line some spark and within seconds he had slotted through a classic crumbers goal to get the scoreboard clicking.

Chicago was getting some great run from the backline with Jacko, Funky Miller and in particular Betty Palmer all having a case of minor leather poisoning. Pat’s brother Brian was popping up in unusual spots and was getting his share of the footy and he was able to make the most of his chances to kick his sides second. On the other flank, Ehlers and his opponent were having a great dual. The big fella was able to get a step on his opponent and before the siren bring up Chicago’s 3rd sending the United boys into the huddle a couple up on the Blues, 3.4: 22 v 1.2: 8.

The rain continued and turned the game into a tough slog. Betty Palmer was revelling in the conditions and between him and Funky Miller, were tormenting the Blue forwards. Big Roofy started to fire for the United forwards as Jagger and the St Louis boys continued to do a wonderful job of harassing Big Al who was unable to break the shackles at full forward. In a quarter of football that will be remembered by very few people, big Roofy was able to snag his first of the game and St. Louis added another to bring the score at half time to 4.8: 32 to 2.4: 16.

Chicago decided to go smaller at half time by sitting Big Aaron and taking a dominant Mustard out of the backline and putting him in the ruck. The move was initially a stinker as St Louis came out all guns blazing and enjoyed several center clearances that put the United backline under constant and sustained pressure. Betty Palmer, now joined by Deri Morgan repelled many but a mark and goal bought the game closer. After a poor goal line clearance from United, StLouis marked and banged on their second in as many minutes and all of a sudden the game took on a whole new demeanour as Chicago clung to a 4 point lead.

Mustard, Wolfe, Oscar and a fresh legged Billy started to lift in the middle and eventually Chicago was able to rest control of the game away from the Blues and back into their own Oscar Meyer, although not having one of his best games, at least by his lofty standards, managed to find himself with the ball in the forward pocket from where he went back and slotted through goal of the day to lift Chicago spirits. Ensuing goals to Roofy and ‘el presidente’ broke the St Louis shackles and in the presidents case, lost the game ball also as she was drilled into the jungle behind the goals. With the game still on the line, Chicago went into the orange break 22 points up, 7.10: 52 to a tiring StLouis 4.6: 30.

In an effort to spark the forward line, Coach Drake moved himself to full forward and dropped Drewbie back to full back. Tiny came into a pocket as the weather improved to do a bit of physical damage and Big Al went to center half forward for a run. The move proved effective as the coach bagged one of his rare goals and sent Chicago further in front. Chicago started to dominate as the heavy track took a toll on the StLouis boys who didn’t have the luxury of a fresh bench with fresh legs. They did manage to kick their fifth of the game to get Chicago fans looking at their watches but when Roofy goaled, the game was Chicagos and they eventually ran out 30 point victors over a very valiant StLouis outfit.

For Chicago, it was a win they deserved although they felt it could have been by more, particularly before the rain came. The most pleasing thing for the United coaching staff was that it was the American boys that led from the front in this one with Palmer, Miller, the brothers Hoyt, Wolfe, Ehlers and many others having wonderful games. The fact that Gordo got through the game was received with a huge sigh of relief from Burgmann Towers as they look confidently to the next all important game against their old foes in Nashville. With a few issues simmering from the last game these two teams played, look for a bruising affair on the shores of Lake Michigan in early August. For St Louis, they take away a great deal of heart from this game. With Jagger back in the line up their backline was a lot stronger but with no interchange and up against a much more experienced team, it was always going to be a struggle for the boys from Bud town. They played a hard, physical game and will walk away from this with heads up.

Next Round: V’s Nashville in Chicago. Playing host to the Great Aussie BBQ and a huge crowd expected.

Best On Ground: Betty Palmer
Best Off Ground: Betty Palmer
Beast On Ground: Brian Hoyt
Beast On Grog: Betty Palmer/ Biggsy/ Roofy
Presidents highlight: Jezza getting a free room but paying $80 to get to the pub in a cab.

Tigers Torment Rhinos 0

With the bad weather looming over the lakefront, numbers were not as good as previous weeks. This turned out to be somewhat of a blessing with some of the most free flowing and effective running play seen for a while at Burgmann Field. The extra space on the field encouraged the teams to lead hard and use the wings a little more than ususal.

The centre bounces were a classic duel between the height of new additions Rohan Ward and big Aaron for the Piranhas against a smaller yet very damaging Mustard for the Square. Tigers Oscar Meyer and Frankie B were getting plenty of the ball while Betty Palmer and triple bouncing Hayes were winning their fair share too. Frankie was playing the role of rover and key position all in one, looking like he was also enjoying himself.

The Lincoln Park forwards were getting a few opportunities but just couldn’t get the score on the board, the Square only slightly more damaging with a couple of goals early on. Byron Galbraith was doing his best presenting himself and creating a contest with Doug chipping in with a goal in assistance. Byron lead all day and with a little more support could have really broken the game open.

Lincoln Square on the other hand had a couple of good targets but inaccurate kicking and great pressure from the Piranhas’ backline kept the contest pretty close. Both backlines worked very hard, pushing out wide using the boundary well.

The Hoyts as always regularly popped up in the play with Brian keeping his head over the ball, OBK chipped in with a goal after some unselfish play from BOG Oscar Meyer. Mustard and Jacko were solid all day, the latter showing some dash with a few inspirational runs up the ground-the former directing play with his settled delivery.

Lincoln Park big men Rohan and Aaron were doing well against a faster yet smaller opposition. Aaron taking some strong grabs while Rohan just kept running and was enjoying the open ground. These two will be a task for any team to match up on.

The Tigers in the end finished up 5 goals ahead, both teams the victim of inaccuracy. The last quarter was shortened slightly due to a huge storm covering the field with the Lincoln Park Piranhas finishing the game with the final major.

Chicago's Big Win a Sign of Things to Come 0

The Cincinnati Dockers once again hosted the team from Chicago in what was near perfect conditions for footy. Chicago unveiled their new jumpers for the first time, a combination of the Sydney Swans and Southport Sharks designs. Looking like a team, the Chicago boys ended up easy winners against a persistent Cinci squad.

United kicked the first goal with Matt Palmer slotting one through early on. The Dockers quickly replied with their first major of the day but it would almost be another 3 quarters before they would score another.

The visiting team was doing well in the middle with ample supply to the forward line. United missed a few opportunities but were still able to open up a handy lead at quarter time, the forwards giving plenty of trouble to the Dockers defence.
Cinci: 1-0 (6) – Chicago 5-8 (38)

The second quarter was more of the same with Chicago starting to control the midfield and forward 50, poor kicking the only problem for United. The Dockers had a couple of chances but the tight Chicago defence did not give an inch. The highlight of the quarter was a great mark by “Best on Ground” Paul Meyer. The little bloke took a tough grab in the goal square with a great leap between 2 Dockers and then kicking truly. Half time had Chicago well in control on the score board.
Cinci: 1-0 (6) – Chicago 9-14(68)

The third quarter saw the Dockers come out strong and were unlucky not to kick a goal on a couple of occasions. The Chicago backline was under a bit more pressure and the running of the first half was starting to show with United legs beginning to tire. Chicago was still able to extend their lead but with many less scoring attempts than in the previous quarters.
Cinci: 1-2 (8) – Chicago 13-19(97)

Cincinnati came out all fired up for the last quarter with the ball spending the first half in their attacking zone. This persistence paid off with a great goal from the boundary line to the Dockers, Chicago looked a little shell shocked by the efforts of their opponents. United still managed to kick a goal but only had 3 scoring shots for the quarter, a far cry from the attempts earlier in the game.

The final result showed the dominance of the United team but as always the Cinci boys never gave up and showed that they could still play great footy with a fantastic effort to the end. Some great matchups were had with the rucks a tight contest and some great efforts on both wings.

MAAFL MVP
Oscar Meyer – 3, Al MacGlashan – 2, J. Dean (Cinci) – 1

Tigers claw their way to victory... 0

With the bad weather looming over the lakefront, numbers were not as good as previous weeks. This turned out to be somewhat of a blessing with some of the most free flowing and effective running play seen for a while at Burgmann Field. The extra space on the field encouraged the teams to lead hard and use the wings a little more than ususal.

The centre bounces were a classic duel between the height of new additions Rohan Ward and big Aaron for the Piranhas against a smaller yet very damaging Mustard for the Square. Tigers Oscar Meyer and Frankie B were getting plenty of the ball while Betty Palmer and triple bouncing Hayes were winning their fair share too. Frankie was playing the role of rover and key position all in one, looking like he was also enjoying himself.

The Lincoln Park forwards were getting a few opportunities but just couldn’t get the score on the board, the Square only slightly more damaging with a couple of goals early on. Byron Galbraith was doing his best presenting himself and creating a contest with Doug chipping in with a goal in assistance. Byron lead all day and with a little more support could have really broken the game open.

Lincoln Square on the other hand had a couple of good targets but inaccurate kicking and great pressure from the Piranhas’ backline kept the contest pretty close. Both backlines worked very hard, pushing out wide using the boundary well.

The Hoyts as always regularly popped up in the play with Brian keeping his head over the ball, OBK chipped in with a goal after some unselfish play from BOG Oscar Meyer. Mustard and Jacko were solid all day, the latter showing some dash with a few inspirational runs up the ground-the former directing play with his settled delivery.

Lincoln Park big men Rohan and Aaron were doing well against a faster yet smaller opposition. Aaron taking some strong grabs while Rohan just kept running and was enjoying the open ground. These two will be a task for any team to match up on.

The Tigers in the end finished up 5 goals ahead, both teams the victim of inaccuracy. The last quarter was shortened slightly due to a huge storm covering the field with the Lincoln Park Piranhas finishing the game with the final major.

Piranhas Take a Bite Out of Rhinos 0

While the Piranhas celebrated, the Rhinos were left to lick their wounds and count the cost of their first loss of the season. In a heart wrenching moment for all Rhino and Chicago fans in general, Gordon Ambrosino went down with an apparent knee injury in the last quarter, effectively killing any chance for a Rhino comeback and putting the United team in disarray as they set themselves to duke it out with a vastly improved Cincinatti in two weeks. While the extent of the injury wont be known for a few days, fingers are being crossed at Burgmann Towers.

From the opening bounce it was obvious this was going to be a cracker of a game. The star studded Piranhas kicked the first two through Hoyt and Beau before the Rhinos hit back through McCoombe who looked to be in terrific form again. The Piranhas dominated the quarter but were unable to convert with some desperate defending from Rhinos Fenton, Pat Hoyt and Case. Deri Morgan popped up late to score a major and at the first break, heads were being scratched in the Rhino huddle. The Piranhas had the momentum and Kastilahn demanded more out of his lads as he sniffed an upset.

At the break, LP 3.1: 19 v WV 1.3: 9

The Rhinos hit back in the second with some lovely passages of play. McClamroch continued his marvellous form on a flank that will one day be named after him. Ambrosino started to get a lot of the ball and managed to have 4 pings at goal, but unluckily for the rhinos, all were minors. Wolfe was starting to dominate both in the ruck and around the ground and it was all of a sudden looking very powder blue. The Piranhas however had other ideas and with Beau having a field day on the flank and the Piranha runners in Oscar Meyer, Deri Morgan, Betty Palmer and Ryan Hayes starting to get more of the ball the tide turned again. A bubbly Mustard was giving the Rhino defenders headaches and Hoyt started to find room in the wide open Piranha forward line. But like the Rhinos, Lincoln Park weren’t able to convert where it mattered most and at the long break it was LP 3.5: 23 v WV 1.8: 14.

The Rhinos sniffed a comeback and they took it right up to the Piranhas. Wolfe continued his domination in the center and Ambrosino was running riot but Kastilahn had a few tricks of his own. He moved a quiet MacGlashan to full forward and Mustard to center half back on first gamer Dave who was playing a great game for the Rhinos. Mustard was able to give the Piranhas the jolt they needed as his constant delivery to Beau, Betty, Oscar and one of the games best in Deri Morgan set up numerous forward thrusts where an overworked Rhino defense struggled to contain the Piranha numbers. Oscar Meyer broke free to kick a long bomb to extend the Piranha lead and Betty Palmer bagged himself one as the Piranhas threatened to blow the game apart before the Rhinos hit back. A busy Jezza Morgan who had his best game of the season started getting a lot of the ball and the ever impressive Ambrosino found a leading McCoombe who finally got the Rhinos second.

At the orange break it was LP 5.9: 39 to a terribly inaccurate WV 2.11: 23

With his charges tiring and the Piranhas threatening, the Rhinos threw an injured Miller up front to see if he could spark a revival but it was all in vain as the Piranhas dominated the last quarter. Against superior numbers, the Rhinos tried to hold out the inevitable but after Oscar Meyer kicked a beauty from 40, the game was over and the only thing that could make it worse was a major injury and low and behold, it came with the shocking knee injury suffered by Gordo. To rub salt into the Rhino wounds, a classic mongrel punt from Big Al fell into the arms of his captain and DK kicked one of his very rare goals, the perfect icing on the victorious cake for the embattled leader who will enjoy this victory for a long time.

Final scores in this one were LP 7.13: 55 to WV 2. 13: 25 meaning an incredible 26 points to 9 goals were kicked, possibly some sort of record.

For the Piranhas it was a well deserved victory as they look to kick start their season. The run they achieved out of the backline and their delivery to their forwards must have pleased Kastilahn. A return to form from Deri Morgan and Betty Palmer and the good form of himself brought a smile to the face of DK. New recruit Rohan played well and will be much better for the trot.

The Rhino hierachy though must be very concerned that their season just went down the toilet with the injury to Ambrosino. Drake will be pleased with the fight shown by his lads but in the end, a loss is a loss and this will be a bitter pill to swallow as the Rhinos go into the bye week.

Chicago Trumps Kings 0

In beautiful Rogers Park on a sun drenched day and with numerous United players swapping jumpers to help out the boys from Kentucky, interstate football came back to Chicago.  Chicago won the toss and Captain Kastilahn decided to kick with the aid of the 3 or 4 goal breeze.  Chicago started strong and repeated forays forward towards a lovely, open forward line where the two flankers in Hoyt and McClamroch were finding plenty of space resulted in numerous set shots with no result.  B. Hoyt was showing some rare form on what must be his favourite ground and was taking some big grabs but his kicking let him down as the points kept coming until McClamroch, the boy from Cinci and an old foe of the Kings swept on a losse ball 40 out, dodged one and went BANG from 30 to nail Chicago’s first.  All the Kings men in the center started to get more of the ball and their run was magnificent as they surged forward and brought up their first major of the day to go into the first break a mere 5 points down.

Louisville 1.2: 8 v a disappointed Chicago whose control of the game up to this point was not reflected on the scoreboard due to poor kicking with 1.7: 13

The second term was all Louisville with moments of champagne Brian Hoyt.  The Louisville midfield was in control and with the massive battle of Jacko at centre half back on Captain Coach Matt swinging the big King’s way, goals started raining for Louisville.  Burgmann (Louisville) was on fire in the ruck giving sleepy and sissy first use of the ball and despite their inexperience, the two lads used the ball wonderfully when going forward.  The Kings slammed on 5 of the best against Chicagos 2 against the breeze, both both of those booted by the irrepresible Brain Hoyt who was being a right pain in the rear end of the Louisville side.  With Hoyt finding room all over the middle and McClamroch being busy on the other flank, the two were able to keep Chicago in it at the half as Mustard De Jong and MacGlashan were being very well held with no thanks going to their midfield and half backers for some sloppy delivery.  At the half, the Kings leapt out to a handy lead 6.5: 41 to Chicagos 3.7: 25

Umpire, Coach, Commentator, Scorekeeper and Timer Drake had a few choice words at the half and swung some big moves that had an instant effect.  Mustard went into the ruck to face Burgmann, MacGlashan came out to center half forward and Ehlers went to full forward to see if the 3 big United fellas could impose their will on the game.

The Kings runners were still causing havoc all over the ground but slowly the United midfield started to get on top being ably led by new recruits Whitey and ‘Front’ Meyer.  Ambrosino started to find more of the ball as Mustards ruck work and strong marking around the ground gave the Chicago boys more of the Kangaroo skin.  Ambrosino, as he always does, popped up for his first of the game, a lovely kick from 40 odd out.  Minutes later he was able to find the ‘Front’ man in Meyer who went back and kicked truly and all of a sudden the boys from Americas best city started to get a sniff.  A quick kick out of the center by Gordo set a lively Biggs in motion and he collected the ball 30 out, weaved around one and slipped out a lovely handball (on his left hand if memory serves me?) to a galloping McClamroch who burst through a pack of Kings and went BANG to register goal of the day and bring the incredibly good looking crowd (am I wrong?) to life.

At the orange break, Chicago lead 7. 11: 53 to 6. 7: 43.

The last quarter promised to be a ripper and the boys from just below the Mason Dixon, although tiring threw everything at a United team whose tail was wagging at the moment.  They attacked constantly with the breeze, only to be thwarted time and again by Kastilahn who was amongst Chicagos best, Betty Palmer who is starting to run into form, the hard hitting little Case and a white hot Funky Miller who shrugged off a poor first half to dominate the second.  Louisville banged on one to get closer but there on in it was all Chicago.  Miller was running riot off the half back line with Kastilahn and Betty constantly feeding him.  Hoyt was being given far to much room and was able to expose the tiring Louisville backline.  McClamroch stepped up another gear and added another goal to put his hand up for best on ground.  Drew Ehlers, kept very quiet all day, hit his straps in the last and provided the marking power up forward that Chicago had so sorely missed and managed to bag himself 3 in the process which just quietly could have been 4 for the quarter as he very unselfishly and very surprisingly to all assembled, dished off a handball to the effervescent Biggs who kicked truly to put the game away.

For the Chicago brains trust it was a good win and they can be very happy with the second half, particularly the running and movement of the ball to space.  The form of the Hoyts, McClamroch and emergence of Case were all high points but the skills were worrying with MacGlashan most likely being very sore after being at the bottom of many a pack after healthy leads.  It’s not for this scribe to mention but i will of course, that when Big Al did get one out in front and with the lead out towards his adoring wife and beautiful little girl, daddy decided to show off and take the big grab with the old noggin instead of the two big mitts.  Funny stuff indeed but leave it up to Al to deliberately let a fast moving footy hit him in the honker for the amusement of all.  Always thinking of others is Big Al.

For the Kings, a great game and a welcome back to the big time of MAAFL football.  Matt’s boys equipped themselves extremely well and with a big recruiting campaign in process in the Derby city, we can expect a big showing from the mint julip crowd in future.