Townsville Ultimate Disc League Round 2

Here's Week 2's review of the games!

Game 1 - Robust Fawn VS Cockwalas

Cockwalas VS Robust Fawn was an interesting game, with three players fatigued but fresh with new experience from Northern Regionals going head to head. Both teams have extremely athletic players and this match was always going to be fast-paced from start to finish.

Robust Fawn started strongly and raced to a two-point lead within the first ten minutes with backhand specialist Zane Quinn dictating the play but Cockwalas rallied which led to a long and grueling third point. Cockwalas then picked up momentum with captain Dave Dehollander utilising the wind to huck the disc which was chased down by speedsters Mitchell and David Phang; a tactic which worked well for the Cockwalas and saw them take the first half 7-4.

The second half saw a much closer contest as Robust Fawn began to play with more spirit and confidence. Cockwalas, not surprisingly, decided to run the same play that helped them take the first half, employing Dehollander's strong throwing hand and the speed of Mitchell and Phangbang. However, Robust Fawn were ready for this and had their own bunch of speedsters in Andy, Nathan, and Red. Captain Michael Kramer closed down Dehollander's long looks with tight marks which forced Cockwalas to play a shorter game.


Final score: After a hard fought game, Cockwalas took the game 13-9. Both teams displayed their physical prowess and it will be interesting to see where their potential takes them.

Game 2 - Blue Crush VS Fluro Fantasy

Game 2 of this week saw a match-up between the Blue Crush and Fluro Fantasy. Fluro Fantasy have a strong lineup featuring the superior handling skills of captain Ashley O'Sullivan and Andy Gosbee, and the strong physical presence of Riley. However, Blue Crush have their own big man in the form of Timmy Roland. They also have agility and speed of Rob Davies on their side as well as some hardworking, ass-busting female players!

The whole match was evenly matched and the first half was taken by Fluro Fantasy through two break points. However Blue Crush started the second half strong and managed to take two break points of their own to tie the game 7-7. Both teams then went point for point and during this exchange the match saw both captains look for long options. However, the wind proved to be an obstacle as hucks were misthrown and discs were dropped. Wind or no wind though, let us not take anything away from Wes Monts who ran down and caught a full-field Hammer with a glorious dive at the scoreline. At 10-10, Fluro Fantasy rallied and strategically took down the last three points to race to a victory.

Final score: In a very closely fought game, Fluro Fantasy managed to edge out Blue Crush to a 13-10 victory. Side note; Aggie Dehollander needs to start catching the disc and stop flirting with Riley!

Game 3 - Seagulls VS Grapists

Talk about a shutdown! Only one team turned up for this match and no prizes for guessing which. Seagulls, high on last week's victory over Django Unchained, looked to make it two in a row with a victory over Grapists. With experienced handlers such as Deanna Finn and Robert Dehollander, Grapists would've found it difficult to stop Seagulls working the disc up the field and they did. Seagulls looked dangerous as they swung the disc back and forth among the team and up the field with fluid and precise efficiency.

Not only did the Seagulls bring the heat in offense, they set up an ice wall of a defense. A tight man-marking defensive play saw Seagulls limit Grapists to only two points in the whole match. To be fair to the Grapists, they managed to work the disc up the field a number of times but just couldn't find that last pass. Or they would have the disc and get too hasty and throw it away.

Final score: Seagulls with an overwhelming 13-2 victory over Grapists. It will be exciting to see the Deanna-Rob partnership develop over this season. Grapists definitely have great potential and all they need is a little more practice and patience on the field and I dare say they'll be a force to be reckoned with!

Game 4 - Django Unchained VS Purple Haze

To be honest I wasn't expecting Purple Haze to put up a fight in this one, which was why it surprised me when they went point for point with Django Unchained. Captains Liss "Swan" Bowden and Ryan Miller kept Purple Haze tight and organised and surprised the pundits even more by snatching two quick points at the end of the first half to seal it 7-6.

Now for those of you who aren't aware, James David's black team has always been imposing throughout the seasons. With their inspiring all black kit and formidable field presence, some have compared the All Blacks to James' teams and have said that's how the Kiwis got inspired. Thus when Purple Haze took the lead at half-time, most neutrals were salivating for an upset.

But alas, tonight was not the night Django Unchained would be denied. They came out steamrolling in the second half and scored a couple of quick points right off the bat. Maybe that had a psychological impact on Purple Haze because it appeared as if they switched off for the second half which allowed Django Unchained to completely neutralise the Purple Haze offense and power to a victory.

Final score: In a game that held so much promise for Purple Haze, Django Unchained managed to hold on and emerge as 13-7 victors.

Game 5 - Tie Dynosaurs VS Mitey Discs

A meeting of two friends turned into a battle of two enemies in the Ultimate arena. Long time friends and captains of their respective teams Matthew "Finny" Finn and Matt Hamilton went up against each other in Round 2 of Townsville Ultimate League.

The first half saw an efficient Tie Dynosaur side methodically picking apart a careless Mitey Discs side. Finny used his incredible handling abilities to swing the disc back and forth between his team and this allowed the Dynosaurs to quickly work their way up the field and score some quick points to take the first half 7-3. Mitey Discs were dispirited and thought that the first half was the beginning of the end of their game, and the Dynosaurs thought they had the game in the bag.

How wrong they were! Mitey Discs came out firing on all cylinders in the second half and we soon had a game on our hands. With 10 minutes left on the clock, Mitey Discs managed to tie the game up at 11-11 and two subsequent quickfire points ensured victory for Mitey Discs. What a day it was for the Mitey Discs and what a great victory it was for captain Matt Hamilton to be able to put one over Finny!

Final score: Mitey Disc came back miraculously to beat Tie Dynosaurs 13-11. A high intensity game was played by both teams all the way to the finish and rock solid performances were put in by all the players. In the words of Mattie Hamilton: "The Huddle stank but that's when you know everyone gave it their all!".

It was great to see the spirit everyone brought with them and the heart they put into training and playing. We will be introducing the zone offense and defense next week and it should be interesting to see the teams adapt and adopt the strategies which suit them best. That's all we have for you for this week's games. Check this space for fixtures and pundits' predictions of Round 3 of the Townsville Ultimate League. Until next time, see ya!