Blues 14. 7. (91)
def. Hawks 9. 8. (62)
Hawks beaten black and Blue. Hawks sing the Blues. Broadview feeling Blue. All possible headlines full of the usual puns and yet not quite right. I’ve been hearing time and time again about how good the Blues have been looking this year. How they will be in the Grand Final against the Eagles as if it was set in stone. If the Hawks, last week, were not predicted to win against a team that has yet to win a game this season, you’d definitely think that the Broadview Hawks were not up to par against the heavily touted Blues.
The first bounce. A fight for the ball. Hawks score the first goal from Benny “Deathball” Carter. Blues answer in kind with their own goal but then Broadview knocks another one between the center uprights. At the end of the quarter, it was Broadview up by one goal. Grippingly mad good footy to watch.
The second quarter had echoes of the game against the Swans. Intensity was let up and the Blues took advantage of it, with them wanting the ball more and getting the ball more. From this reporter’s vantage, it seemed that the Blues have a signature technique that proves to work for them time and time again: whenever a Canadian makes a mark, another Blue (preferably an Aussie) is nearby for the quick handpass and clear kick. They take advantage of those scant seconds when the whistle is blown for the mark and people let up on their coverage for a moment.
One of the OAFL bloggers mentioned the Blues’ dependence on their non-Canadians. There is definitely some merit to that assertion as two little Aussies, one brunette and one blonde, seemed to have a heavy hand in scoring or assisting many of their goals. Those two must be hard to cover but if the Hawks had the ability to clone Pablo “Taz” Willis, I think they would. The Australian Blues player that he was covering was left impotent for most of the game. In frustration at one point, that Blues player threatened, “If you don’t leave me alone, I’m gonna $@>%# ^%&@&!!!” to a nonchalant Pablo. It’s rare to hear such sweet music on the field.
Continued...
Hawks 13. 15. (93)
def. Swans 7. 3. (45)
Both OAFL bloggers last week predicted that the Hawks would lose to Ottawa in what would be a close game. Guess what buckoes, you were wrong. Broadview was out scores of their best players due to various injuries, unfortunate game suspensions or simple unavailability. It was argued that without these key players, the Hawks would fold under the up-and-coming Ottawa Swans starting to get into their rhythm. I guess the team of Hawkers who woke up early and drove the 450 some kilometers were not a factor in their equations because they’re all just for show.
The first quarter saw the Hawks dominate the ball with 5 goals to Ottawa’s one. The Brad Brothers were wreaking havoc in the centre, owning the ball while Tom “Collo” Cruise made a surprise cameo appearance as Full Forward and also fought for the ball well. It echoed previous matchups with Ottawa with goals being made with more precision less mess.
The second quarter was another story. All of a sudden Ottawa was scoring goals, leaving Broadview in its dust. Fears started to surface that the Phantom and Jean Grey’s predictions would come true. It also showed this reporter how easy it is to forget how dangerous these short fields are: if you let up even for a moment, the other team will come and bowl you over… no matter who you are and who they are.
Hanging on to a slim lead into the half, the third quarter saw a more muzzled Swan side but yet still a mostly impotent Hawk side. Was the first quarter a fluke? Can the cast of the Broadview Hawks not carry the play onwards without some of their stars? The fourth quarter answered that question with Hawk goal after Hawk goal. Even playing with a man down, after Ian “Metro” Graham (who showed up with force this game) had back problems and came off through the interchange, the Hawks still came out with a resounding win. Pictures of Ian’s physio treatment are bound to show up time and time again. I’d criticize a certain player’s overzealous goal celebration of air guitar on his flute followed by a sexy-time-explosion-knockout as a little much but that would prove mild when compared to the night to come.
Continued...
Demons 16. 14. (110)
def. Hawks 10. 0. (60)
On July 5th 2010, the Broadview Hawks lost to the High Park Demons. Surprised? I am,
thus the title of this article. And you know exactly what meaning of shocker I’m talking about.
Perhaps the Hawks thought they only had to show up and the Demons would just keel over
and hand over victory. Maybe we depend too greatly on too few. Maybe our roster is a bit thin
with several half-injured players going against all the advice of their respective physiotherapists.
Maybe it was that freak power outage that disrupted people’s chi. Maybe it was that pigeon that
crashed into my window today while I was writing last week’s report on our tremendous win over
Hamilton that made me accidentally close program without saving. (Not kidding: the little dude
left his faceprint on my window and it looks like he shat and pissed on collision too. That would
explain the liquid and turded streak beside the faceplant.)
I don’t really know what to write here because I’m at a loss for words as virtually all the Hawks
were after this devastating defeat. What’s gonna hurt more? Losing in a premiership game or
losing to a team that most people have counted out? Like Phil Collins once said, there is a hole
in my heart.
Credit is due to the Demons: they played very well and SuperCoach has not lost
his talent for recruitment. Strange how fortunes can shift so easily. It should be noted that after
losing two great players to yellow/red cards, the Hawks were able to minimize what should have
been an all-you-can-kick goal buffet in the 4th quarter. Instead of giving you a play by play of
how we were not winning the game, I’m just going to give you a variation of the poem that was
stuck in my head the whole way on the long ride home.
Remember, remember the fifth of that July,
The Monday so Humid so Hot,
I see no reason
Why this Game this Season
Should ever be forgot.
Go Hawks! Go Hawks! Twas the intent
To blow up Demons and complement
Three goals at 1st quarter below,
Hawks under old Coach's toe;
By God's providence we were catch'd
With our pants down for the whole match.
Oi Oi, boys! Oi Oi, boys! Let the sirens sing.
This game for some reason was not ours to win.
Oi Oi, boys! Oi Oi, boys! Take this one on the chin.
And what should we do? D e s t r o y O t t a w a.
And every other Mah Thir Pha King team here on end.
Eagles 14. 6. (90)
def. Hawks 7. 5. (47)
It is a refrain in a song that has been overplayed by the radio stations: Eagles Victorious Again. Does it bug you? It bugs me. The Hawks battled it out on their U of T Scarborough home ground against last year’s champs. From the opening bounce, Broadview looked good: they got the ball out of the centre and funneled it into the forward line right away. For a team that has not lost a game this season yet, the Eagles didn’t seem so invincible with the Hawks seemingly having more possession of the ball in the opening few minutes of the game and first on the scoreboard.
The tides turned early. All of a sudden it was as if all the players on the field switched jumpers. It was the Eagles winning the ball more than the Hawks. Just because the Toronto Eagles had the ball doesn’t mean that it was an all-you-can-kick goal buffet at the Hawks’ end. Again, Broadview’s stellar backline stepped up to the plate and foiled many an attempt. However, like the walls of Troy, they couldn’t stop everything.
The more field time this reporter sees played on this ground, the more he sees how dangerous this field is. Here an umpy’s calls can easily translate into a goal. Let’s face it, in the heat of the moment with no instant replay to go by, one cannot always be perfect in how you tackle or play nor can the umpy’s calls be similarly perfect. One thing is for sure though, an umpy never changes his call. Unless, of course, his arm accidentally pointed in the opposite direction than intended. Broadview had several fiftys called on them throughout the game that turned into Eagle goals. One fifty was done right after an Eagle goal so that the ball didn’t even go to the centre bounce. Do not pass go, do not collect $200, go directly to jail. I applaud the fierce intense passion of our Hawkers, but back chatter to the umpire never results in the Hawks’ favour, quite the opposite.
Continued...
Kangaroos 12. 4. (76)
def. Hawks 7. 5. (47)
The Broadview Hawks took on the Etobicoke Kangaroos on what would be in the end, the best weather conditions for Round 5: a sunny Friday after work special vs. the thunderstorms or threat of thunderstorms on the Saturday. The start of the horn had the Hawks looking good: seemingly keeping the ball mostly in the Roos’ half of the field. Broadview was first on the scoreboard with a behind. Then, in what would be a repeated event throughout the game, Etobicoke came back moving the ball down the field to two or three open men and was in range to score a goal… which they did. But the Hawks would not go silently into that good night and answered in kind with a goal of their own. Hawks up by 1 point.
At approximately the 10 minute mark, there was what looked like a normal crash of bodies trying to get a mark in the Roos’s end. Two players went down and stayed down for awhile, one did not get up. In a bad collision and subsequent landing, Richie “Cyborg” Mintz received a compound fracture to his right leg. Yes, the good leg; he’ll be composed mostly of a hyper-alloy combat chassis underneath living human tissue if he keeps adding more metal to his body. As usual, the firefighters were on the scene first in case Mintzy needed to hydrate. After what seemed like an eternity, the ambulance arrived and whisked him away. By the images that were disseminated through the Hawks’ ever-flowing digital grapevine, just imagine a toy Gumby with the metal wire taken out of one of its legs. The latest report has him already recovering from the required operation and doing well. Not perhaps the best way to celebrate his 10 years with the Hawks, but I bet he’s got some great meds to go with his tinnies.
Continued...
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