Another week of Irish football is upon us! How quick is this season rolling by?
Shamrock Bowl Conference
Craigavon Cowboys vs. Trinity College Dublin
It seems insane that the 3&0 Trinity side will be playing its fourth game in what has been a congested opening 5 weeks for the team. This will be their first game of 2014 away from their fortress home ground at Santry though, as they head North to face a Craigavon Cowboys side that has played just one game, a 28-0 loss to the Belfast Trojans.
It’s no secret that TCD are playing out of their skin right now. The offence is putting up points and the defence is breaking down teams. Can they keep it up?
The Cowboys are a tough team. They may have languished in mediocrity in terms of wins and position in the tables in recent years but the experience on the side will always mean they are dangerous to any side. With a coaching staff who have been in the Irish game for years and with athletic talent on the side look for the Cowboys to cause some upsets this year. But can they do it against Trinity?
Dublin Dragons vs. North Kildare Reapers
Another IAFL-1 graduate match-up! The Dragons and Reapers fought out a defensive battle of a game last year, which resulted in a 2-0 win for the North Kildare side that ultimately led the team to win the division in 2013 on the head-to-head tiebreaker. Look for a similarly close match-up in this one that could easily swing either way.
The Reapers have improved since their 2013 IAFL-1 title, picking up some of the former Tullamore Phoenix players as well as several linemen with SBC experience. This experience helped them overcome the Waterford Wolves 13-0 in their opening game.
The Dragons also beat the Wolves in their opener, a 6-12 win in Waterford. On paper this looks like the Reapers are the stronger side, beating the same team by more points whilst conceding less. However the Dragons had to travel to Waterford whilst the Reapers welcomed the Wolves to North Kildare. Furthermore NKR hosted the Wolves a week after the Dublin side had beat up on the Waterford side. This game will be a close battle.
The implications could be huge come the end of the season though. As the IAFL-1 graduates will now branch out and begin to face off against more experienced Shamrock Bowl Conference competition a win in this game could be massive. Whoever wins will go 2&0 and it’s doubtful that a team with two wins will be relegated come season’s end.
Dublin Rebels vs. Waterford Wolves
Experience vs. inexperience. The Wolves are in their debut Shamrock Bowl Conference season whilst the Dublin Rebels have been a mainstay of the League for years.
The Waterford side will no doubt give this game their all, as they always do, but it has the potential to get a little bit uncomfortable if the Rebels click the way we know they can. Led by quarterback Andrew Dennehy and dynamic running back Simon Mackey, the Rebels have combined the experience of players who have been to, and won, Shamrock Bowls in the past with the youth and athleticism of rookies to create a squad that is capable of anything in this League.
The Wolves meanwhile are struggling with squad depth, particularly after their season opener against the Dublin Dragons, which saw them lose a few players to injury including starting quarterback Eoin Reinhardt.
IAFL-1
Meath Bulldogs vs. UCD
UCD are enjoying a rich vein of form to start the season, scoring 79 points in their opening two fixtures and conceding none. Their defence, in particular their linebacker corps, is on a hot streak, racking up the tackles, the turnovers and the shut outs.
But the offence is clicking too. Usual target receiver Paul Geraghty has four touchdowns already whilst quarterback Dave Murphy has passed for six TDs and rushed for two more. They’re going to be hard to stop.
The Meath Bulldogs meanwhile will be itching to get going. They’re the last team to get their season underway in the IAFL-1 and will be dying to improve on last year’s record.
Led by the McMahon brothers, Pete and Eddie, the team had no problems in scoring points last year, but have they faced a defence of SBC-calibre like they’re about to this weekend? It will be Meath’s biggest challenge of their competitive lives as they face a UCD team that is not only in top form right now under Head Coach Eoin Cunningham but a team that was in the Shamrock Bowl Conference playoffs last year.
However this game is far from a forgone conclusion. This Bulldogs side doesn’t lie down for anybody and definitely have the potential to upset the UCD applecart.
This article has been syndicated from Double Coverage and any opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the opinion of IAFA. Any references to non-IAFA websites are provided for convenience only and do not in any manner serve as an endorsement of those websites.