Townsville Ultimate Disc League Round 6

This week the league served up yet another exciting round of frisbee. All teams have found their groove and synergy and are starting to play some really high level Ultimate. Without further ado, here's this week's wrap up!

Game 1 - Blue Crush VS Grapists

The game that went for the longest this week was also the most spirited. This game featured two teams that were pretty evenly matched in terms of skill level and physical ability but it was Blue Crush that managed to race to a 7-1 lead at half-time. Things looked over for Grapists but they refused to give up and came out firing in the second half. Blue Crush took their foot off the pedal and started making unforced turnovers such as dropping easy catches and throwing away easy passes. Bobby Jackson of Grapists was being an absolute beast on defense and shutting down all of Blue Crush's long puts with huge sky grabs and layout swats. Grapists turned the tide as Blue Crush continued to slip up and managed to wrestle victory away from the blue team.

Final score: Grapists put another W on the board as they beat Blue Crush 13-10 to make it three in a row.

Game 2 - Django Unchained VS Tie Dynosaurs

Talk about a blowout! A Tie Dynosaur team playing without captain Finny AND Damo is like a bunch of babies trying to drive an M1 Abrams tank. Tie Dynosaurs were hopelessly lost and Django Unchained wasted no time taking them apart.

The Dynosaurs played well but the lack of handlers meant that they couldn't complete passes despite their receivers getting into good positions. Josh Phipps had the opportunity to lead the team this week which provided him with a good learning experience.

Final score: Django Unchained sweeps Tie Dynosaurs aside 13-2. I am honestly surprised the Dynosaurs even managed two so I guess they can take this as a moral victory.

Game 3 - Cockwalas VS Seagulls

Cockwalas come back from the break ready to play some frisbee and Dave's boombox busting out war tunes is a sure sign of their seriousness. The game, however, did not start in Cockwalas' favour. Seagulls raced to a 2-0 lead within minutes as Cockwalas struggled to keep up. Even without Deanna, Genge and Rob manage to work the disc well. Seagulls also have an extremely athletic breed of players. Cooper and Renee were catching everything thrown to them which made it extremely difficult for Cockwalas to shut down long puts. Cockwalas managed to put up a fight in the second half but the massive lead established by Seagulls proved too great an obstacle for Cockwalas to overcome.

Final score: Seagulls defeat Cockwalas 13-7 as they maintain their place in second.

Game 4 - Robust Fawn VS Purple Haze

The most exciting game this week saw Purple Haze go up against Robust Fawn. Missing various key players such as James, Ryan, and Swan, Purple Haze did not look ready to play during the warm-up. Stand-in captain Tyson was lamenting his lack of players during the pre-game session. Robust Fawn started the game with a vertical stack offense and the lack of a gust meant that they could work the disc easily up the field. On defense, they played a mongrel man defense which shut down Purple Haze's offense and allowed them to easily race to a 7-1 lead at half-time.

The second half started a little differently; Purple Haze, now warmed up, put on an organised zone defense which forced several turnovers from Robust Fawn and allowed them to score five points in succession to bring the game to 7-6. Tyson found a perfect offensive partner in Bevo and his sweet handling skills combined with Bevo's ridiculous disc-reading helped Purple Haze keep up with Robust Fawn. Purple Haze managed to pull away at 11-11 by scoring to make it 12-11, but Robust Fawn refused to give up what could have been their win and scored a point of their own to make it universe point at 12-12. 

The game winner came when Tyson threw a long bomb which looked like it was going out until Bevo jumped up and caught it above and behind his head to the eruption of cheers from the sideline.

Final score: In the greatest comeback this week, Purple Haze beat Robust Fawn in a hotly-contested match 13-12.

Game 5 - Mitey Discs VS Fluro Fantasy

League leaders Fluro Fantasy take on fourth-placed Mitey Discs in a highly-charged match which saw its fair share of collisions. It was surprising to see Ash and Andy on handling duties because I would have expected the super awesome Riley to be taking up the role. The match started out pretty evenly matched and both teams matched each other point for point throughout some long rallies.

Fluro Fantasy then started being more scrupulous on calling fouls and that gave them the edge in many turnovers. This might have thrown off Mitey Discs a little and disrupted their momentum. However, Mitey Discs dug in and played some sick man-marking defense which forced a Fluro Fantasy to make a fair few incompletions.

The game started to slip away when Mitey Discs started to look disheartened and Fluro Fantasy took full advantage of that as they raced away to yet another victory.

Final score: Fluro Fantasy maintain their unbeaten record with a 12-7 victory over Mitey Discs.

That's all for this week! Stay tuned for more updates on the league; will Purple Haze mount a late season comeback? Will Fluro Fantasy stay unbeaten and win the league this semester? Only time will tell!

Round 6 Preview

Hey ho frisbee flingers! I hope everyone had a lovely and relaxing lecture recess because Ultimate action is set to resume this week. All the teams look really strong and it will be a very close race to the end of the season.

Game 1 - Blue Crush VS Grapists

Both teams in game 1 of this week have enjoyed a good run of late. Blue Crush are really starting to come together as a solid team and the players are improving in terms of skill level. Grapists won their first two games in the previous week and they are hungry for more.

Both teams are capable of working the disc but Blue Crush throw more hucks; a strategy which works well for them because they have many players capable of running down the disc and making the completion. Grapists, on the other hand, prefer to play the short game and like to "walk the disc in".

Grapists, however, need to find the elusive final pass. As a team they work the disc up the field well, but the final catch in the end-zone has always been their Achilles' heel. With only three games to go, they have to make better completions if they want to make it to the Grand-finals. 

Prediction: Blue Crush to win 13-10.

Game 2 - Django Unchained VS Tie Dynosaurs

I hate to say it but the Dynosaurs are going to have their work cut out for them. Captain Finny will be away "chasing Nationals glory" with Slamtown which means Tie Dynosaurs won't have an experienced handler. Will Damo be able to step up to the plate, or can Josh Phipps fill in in the absence of Finny? As far as receivers go, Dynosaurs have a pretty solid lineup featuring the likes of Lucas, Jessup, Corrie, and the super beastly Julianna who will catch everything thrown to her. 

Django Unchained currently lie eighth in the table, which is surprising. However, their current position belies the true abilities of the team. The absence of Dynosaurs captain Finny means that this is the perfect time for Django to mount a comeback in their season.

Prediction: Django Unchained to sweep aside Tie Dynosaurs 13-6.

Game 3 - Cockwalas VS Seagulls

Cockwalas have suffered a slip in form recently when they lost both of their games last week. What started off as a promising season has slowed down for the green marsupials. The loss of Phangbang through injury was just too much for the team as they were cut down to just one handler. There have been rumours of a Cockwalas training camp being held over lecture recess but nobody knows for sure. What is certain is that if Cockwalas don't pick up the pace soon they'll be out of running for a shot at the Grand-finals.

Seagulls were defeated in the last round by Fluro Fantasy and this will be their first match after the loss. Will they be able to bounce back or will the season slip away from them? Interestingly, the captains of both teams happen to be brothers; will Dave prevail or will Rob be able to put one over his older brother?

Prediction: Cockwalas will struggle against a fully-fit Seagulls team. I think Seagulls will take this one 13-7.

Game 4 - Robust Fawn VS Purple Haze

Last place Purple Haze take on Robust Fawn in this one. Purple Haze will be missing one of their captains Swan as she heads to the Nationals but the team will be helmed by the other co-captain Ryan and Tyson. The wind and rain might have affected Purple Haze's performance in the last round but if conditions are good, expect them to come out firing and looking to get out of the last place.

Robust Fawn is one of the teams that is really starting to come together this season. Led by Chris Palazzi, Kramer, and Zane, the team has an incredible throwing and catching game. Definitely one of the speediest teams in the league at the moment, Robust Fawn will look to go deep if they can. 

Prediction: If conditions are right, Purple Haze will be able to put up a strong fight against a well-synergised Robust Fawn side. However, I think this game will ultimately go in Robust Fawn's favour 13-9.

Game 5 - Mitey Discs VS Fluro Fantasy

What can I say about this game other than the fact that Riley will dominate? With new experience from Division 2 Nationals, Riley is now super confident in his abilities as a handler. But he is still unproven on the fields and his ability to stick it in the hole is still very questionable. Will he be able to extend Fluro Fantasy's winning run or will Fluro suffer their first defeat this week under the hands of Mitey Discs?

Not a team that really attracts a ton of attention, Mitey Discs have been somewhat consistent in their performances and now sit comfortably in fourth. Teams that don't take them seriously will be in for a big surprise because Mitey Discs work hard and they will make you pay if you are complacent.

Prediction: Fluro Fantasy to extend their winning run with a 13-9 victory over Mitey Discs.

Remember that the day after this week's games is ANZAC day. So don't be in a hurry to go home; hang around, chill out, talk to people from other teams, and get your party on!!!

True Round 1 Results and Round 6 Scoreboard

*this is the fixed version

The very first game everyone played with their teams will now be added to the tally. The results of these first matches are below.

The Savages defeated The Last Surviving Dragons
The Fraternal Order of Red defeated Racist Dropbears
Pink Panthers defeated Hammerheads