World Footy News

Here is the latest wrap up of football in Norway with a report about the fourth round of the Kenguru Cup. A huge final round has now been assured as the 2013 winner will be decided. Our thanks to the team at AFL Norway for this article. 

  A pulsating fourth round of the 2013 Kenguru Cup at Ekeberg saw each team walk away with a win, setting up a huge final round to decide the cup. 

The sun was shining at Ekeberg, on yet another perfect day for football. Oslo West, the league’s cellar dwellers, came into round four needing to win both games to be a mathematical chance of winning the title, and faced the UMBI Ås Battlers in Game One. 

The Battlers sported several exciting new players to cover the absence of some experienced faces, and predictably, it took them some time to adjust to the game. West pushed forward regularly, but as has been their trademark, failed to capitalize on their ascendency. A late goal to Ås made scores almost level at the half. 

In the second half, Ås’s young runners pushed forward repeatedly, daring their opponents to go with them. West didn’t have the fitness to keep up, and with Adam O’Toole intercepting and rebounding most of West’s long kicks into the forward line, West were out of answers. Ås comfortably outscored the Westsiders in the second half, running away 5.4 (34) to 2.6 (18).

Suddenly one game clear on top of the table, Ås faced off against Oslo East in game two to try to stretch their lead in the Kenguru Cup race.  

In form and warmed up from game one against West, Ås started positively, adding two goals in the first half to East’s one.  

However, in a reversal of what they did to West, it was Ås that wilted in the second half, letting through four Oslo East goals, while only managing one of their own.  

East’s 5.5.35 to 3.8.26 win moved them level win Ås with five wins for the season, with the night’s final game, Oslo East v Oslo West, to determine who would lead the table heading into the final round. Could Oslo East overcome their crosstown rivals?  

Oslo West has had a frustrating year. The team is filled with good players, yet there has been a consistent trend of not being able to put it all together and actually win games. The team won its very first game of the year, and had been on a losing streak ever since.  

As the carbon copy losses (playing well against East but not scoring when they were on top, then playing poorly against Ås) piled up, West’s players and coaching staff had started to wonder what it was going to take to break through for that second win.  

In round four against East, they found out what it took. Increased running and short ball movement, better team work and a more balanced team structure allowed West to finally click into gear. They outplayed East in the first half, and piled on ever increasing pressure in the second. In the end they recorded an emphatic 6.9.45 to 4.2.26 triumph over their crosstown rivals, ensuring East stayed stranded on five wins heading into the final round.  

Round 5 at Ekeberg is the culmination of a great Kenguru Cup season, and it promises a cracking contest to decide whether East or Ås will take home the Kenguru Cup for 2013. The final round is on Thursday 5th September.  

AFL Norway is also encouraging support of their new website. Please click on the link and have a look at Australsk Fotbol Norsk at: http://www.australskfotball.no/