The Wolverhampton Wolverines have to be considered extremely unlucky to lose last weekend. It is not often that a team can kick a score of 24 21 (165) and still be beaten…by a mere 7 points to the undefeated Sheffield Thunder which kicked 25 22 (172). Whilst losing is never a palatable result at the best of times, the Wolverines will take heart that they pushed the league leaders to the limit and found 45 ways to score against them.

But the high scoring wasn’t just confined to the Wolverhampton match. Up at Huddersfield the goal spree continued unabated.

The home team, Huddersfield Rams, scored their best win of the season with a 72 point victory against the Nottingham Scorpions. The result keeps the Rams in finals contention, but certainly places pressure on the Scorpions to fight for a finals berth. In another high scoring match, a combined 40 goals were kicked.

The four finalists to contest this season’s CNFA finals series have been decided, but not before some teams decided to put fairly large exclamation marks next to their home and away season performances with some big wins.

Played over the past two weekends, the final four matches were played out, each having a potential impact of the final makeup of the top four. By the end the finalists were decided and will be played as follows:


Paris Cockerels v Cergy-Pontoise Coyotes – 13th June
Toulouse Hawks v Montpellier Firesharks – 13th June

The semi-finals both have a regional taste with the battle of Paris teams the Cockerels and the Coyotes from the satellite suburbs to the north-west of the French capital. Meanwhile, the battle of the south makes the other semi-final with the Toulouse Hawks hosting the Montpellier Firesharks. The respective winners will face each other in the grand-final on June 27th in Paris.

 

The anticipated top of the table clash between the Sheffield Thunder and Manchester Mosquitoes was expected by many to be a shootout between two sides gunning for top spot and would likely come down to a “last man standing” affair.

 

Sheffield Thunder, however, had other ideas and hammered the Mozzies to the tune of 74 points to remain the only undefeated team after six rounds of the AFLCNE season.

 

 

The performance underlines how well Sheffield has travelled so far this season. They have almost flown under the radar by sitting in the slipstream of the Manchester crew, but when push came to shove the Thunder produced a huge performance which will now have them outright flag favourites. No longer are they under the radar. Their performance effectively said “here we are, come and get us!”

 

The Birmingham Bears’ rocky start to the season took a solid turn for the better on the weekend when they scored an impressive victory over the Tyne Tees Tigers by 108 points.  After their rollercoaster start to the season which had seen one on-field win over the first four rounds, the victory might well mark a turning point for the Bears in season 2015.

 

In other results, Sheffield Thunder continued their impressive start to the season with a 102 point thrashing of the Nottingham Scorpions whilst the Manchester Mozzies were forced to work hard for their victory over the Wolverhampton Wolverines with accuracy separating the sides on the scoreboard. Both teams had 23 scoring shots, yet the Mozzies recorded a comfortable 35 point win.

 

 

The West London Wildcats sounded an ominous warning to the rest of the AFL London Premiership Division teams with a resounding 124 point demolition of the Wimbledon Hawks. A new season always brings hope and all teams would have fancied their chances at the start of the season to roll the mighty Wildcats after successive flags in the past two seasons.

But the Wildcats relentless brand of footy hammered home the reality that it will take a super effort to stop them achieving a three-peat this year and what would be their 11th flag since 2000.

In other Premiership Division results, the Wandsworth Demons held the London Swans at arm’s length to record a 32 point win whilst the North London Lions recorded a big 61 point win over the Putney Magpies.

The next two weekends will see the French Home and away season wind up with all eight teams playing their final matches prior to the start of the finals series. The final round will have an impact of the finals makeup for some teams, whilst others are assured of their finish already.

After a fascinating season, the curtain will close in June with the playing of the semi-finals and grand-final. Other teams not involved in finals action will turn their attention towards the 2015/16 season and prepare for the future.

Both the Strasbourg Kangourous and the Perpignan Tigers have been competitive this season but cannot reach the finals regardless of final round results. Strasbourg have their own unique situations which impact on their overall performance Strasbourg Kangourous - 2015 Snapshot ,whilst for the Tigers it has been a season of readjustment to being back in the national league after a period of absence.

 

 

With four rounds down in the AFLCNE season there are now some very clear patterns emerging as teams begin the jostling process for finals action later in the year. With almost a third of the season gone, the next few weeks will see some teams strengthening their positions of power, others fighting off challengers and some building for the future.

 

Round Four results saw the Mozzie powerhouse continues its reign of terror by hammering the Scorpions. Sheffield Thunder remained undefeated also by downing a gallant Rams outfit whilst the Wolverines squared their leger for the season by downing the Bears. Tyne tees Tigers had the bye.

 

Weekend Results:

 

Manchester Mozzies  21.22 (148) def Nottingham Scorpions 5.11 (41) at Manchester

Huddersfield Rams  15.17 (107) def. by Sheffield Thunder  19.16 (130) at Huddersfield

Wolverhampton Wolverines 16.21 (117) def Birmingham Bears 10.12 (72) at Wolverhampton

Since I have arrived in Strasbourg the Kangourous have been comprehensively beaten by Montpelier at Haute Pierre, forfeited to Toulouse and again been solidly beaten by Lyon.
So how are the Kangourous travelling?



Having attented the 2010 Coupe de France I was interested to compare the situation with that of today. The Strasbourg Kangaroos were the second team in France after Paris but had to play in the AFLG for competition. With the addition of more French teams they changed to playing in the CNFA and were a strong team.

Round Three of the AFL Central and Northern England competition has been completed last weekend. The key stories to come from the round were Manchester Mozzies taking a stronger stranglehold on top spot with a comprehensive win against Tyne Tees Tigers and Sheffield Thunder moving into outright second after the Wolverhampton Wolverines were forced to forfeit.

In the other game, the Nottingham Scorpions defeated the Huddersfield Rams by 32 points to secure their grasp on third place. Final scores for the round were:

Tyne 22.23 (155) def. by Manc 7.11 (53)
Notts 14.13 (97) def Hudds 9.11 (65)
Sheff def. Wolves by default (Wolves unable to field a team)

The Birmingham Bears had the bye this round.

If you fancy yourself as a coach capable of changing the fortunes of a growing club in Europe - Denmark, to be exact - then the Odense Lions are looking for you.

According to club president Morten Merhoj “the Odense Lions footy club from Denmark is looking for a new coach from Australia to come and help us improve our club. “

Certainly this presents a fantastic opportunity for anyone with a coaching background and a desire to travel. The Odense Lions have grown steadily since their introduction to the DAFL a couple of years ago. Danish footy holds a special place on the European stage, winning last year’s Euro Cup in London and being a regular powerhouse on the bigger stage. The opportunity to be part of a successful club in a successful league in a country that has embraced the game would be highly attractive to many.