After fairly short notice we were able to pull together a nice, cheap and easy Scratch Match (‘scrimmage’ for those not yet educated into Aussie folklore) against Houston, as a warm up for the upcoming Austin tournament. Several of the Houston guys showed up Friday night to grab a few beers and kip on the floor at Footy Central and a few more made their own arrangements.
By Saturday morning we all assembled for a good 9 on 9 match with a couple of subs on a regular sized American Football field. It worked out well with everyone getting a good run and Nick showing off his manliness by first breaking his nose on Chris’s head and then getting me to set it straight. As they say 3rd times a charm and by the 3rd attempt we had it straighter than before he’d broken it.
The teams were picked at random to mix up Houston and Baton Rouge players in an effort to get both teams to work together and highlight strengths and weaknesses. A lot of really good game experience came out of the 4x 15 min game with good numbers of friends and family on the sideline cheering us on, even if ½ of them still didn’t fully understand what was happening.
After the game, a few refreshments and a small photo shoot occured where the Hair Hat made its appearance. Some of the Houston Guys were then treated to a quick tour of Downtown BR and LSU (including Mike the Tiger), before heading back to Footy Central for a shower and some grub put on by the host. By early afternoon the Houston guys were clean and fed and on their way either down to New Orleans for the Red Dress Run or back to Houston.
All in all an easy, cheap and fun road trip for a good bit of Footy. Basically a blueprint for some future scratch matches with the Houston crowd.
Saturday Morning July 31st @ 10 am, half a dozen guys and girls + dogs etc from the Tigers met at Footy Central for the 45 minute trek up to Tunica Hills national park to hike and run the trails and then on to an afternoon of BBQing by the pool. Our departure was delayed by calls from Joey and Big Dave saying that they were on their way and by 11 we were on the road with plans to meet the stragglers en route. Full marks to Big Dave for tracking us down on the drive up, but then we lost him at a pit stop and the game of hide and seek started that would last most of the rest of the day, first spotting his car at Tunica then him finally meeting us at Flea’s place 4 hours later. As anyone who’s ever been up to the hiking trails at “Clark Creek Nature area” knows, there is no cell coverage for miles, so once you’re lost, you’re on your own.
After a little difficulty actually finding the start of the hiking trail we were off for a run down into the shade but increasing heat of a very beautiful but different landscape for Louisiana.
What followed after the miraculous appearance of the Mighty Joey was a 90 minute run down trails, through 3 waterfalls, along creek beds and finally a run/walk back up to the top. All in all a good hard run with some great guys and girls through a really pretty, but challenging landscape not far from Baton Rouge.
Then it was off to try to find Flea’s country retreat and settle in for the arvo by the pool with the smells of BBQ in the background and cold beers in the cooler. More Tigers met us there including Flea and Aaron on crutches from his summer soccer escapades.
All in all a good run, pretty scenery and a nice way to spend a Saturday arvo, and a good change to the training schedule. Thanks to Flea for having us over, good on ya to all that showed, especially nice to see Dazza, Dara, Spider, Minnesota, ROTC Mike, Neil and Kyle and again good effort to Joey and Big Dave for tracking us down as well as all the others that showed.
Good times were had by all and definitely something to do again next year.
Back on June 5th, the boys from Baton Rouge took one of their biggest traveling groups ever west on the I-10 for the third leg of their season series with the Houston Lonestars.
Conditions on the AC-less team bus were good for the majority of the trip, until Houston’s ugly traffic snarl reared its head and the Tigers got a light baking while slowly navigating construction. Conditions at the field weren’t much better than in the bus as an unrelenting sun poured down on Houston’s bite-sized pitch.
The small field and adjusted quarter lengths did help prevent any heat illnesses from striking players down on the afternoon. As usual, gunfire from the three surrounding firing ranges providing the atmosphere.
With each team fielding nearly 20 players and therefore enough subs to keep energy from flagging too much, the Tigers and Lonestars locked into a spirited affair.
Houston’s big ruckman displayed his continuing improvement by winning the majority of the hit-outs. While he provided good delivery to his on-ballers, the weight of the Tigers’ relative experience across the field was revealed as they collected most of the hard possessions and were able to find outlets quickly.
For the first time this season, Baton Rouge got a balanced contribution across the field. It showed on the scorecard with seven different Tigers notching goals. Despite passages of skanky play, the Tigers showed an improved ability to be patient and hit targets with kicking.
Big Daz Duhnke provided a compelling target at center half forward, using his height to mark over the smaller opposition and booting three to lead the scoring for the Old Blue and Gold. Jeff Horn had a quiet day in recording a solitary goal while his partner at full forward, Jeff “Peepers” Phillips played his best game of the season and put two between the big sticks.
Unfortunately, the Tigers experienced deja vu with their goal-kicking accuracy. Reminiscent to their first encounter with the Lonestars this season, Baton Rouge peppered the goal but turned in an awful conversion rate of 13 goals from 33 scoring shots.
Despite their scoring woes, the Tigers turned in good performances across the board, notably Duhnke and captain Kenny “Dragon Junior” DeLucca. Mickey Kleinhenz, who now leads the UsFootyNews.com MVP board, managed a quiet-ish but effective Best On Ground display.
For the Lonestars, coach Dan Holwerda proved irresistible in reeling in mark after mark, many of them contested, but he too was afflicted by sour boots in gathering more behinds than goals.
These two teams meet again this weekend, on June 19th at Clark Park in Baton Rouge for their fourth and final meeting of the season before making the stretch run together at Nationals.
Heat index: 95 degrees. Breeze: light. Sun: unfiltered and scorching. The grounds: large and fast. The sides: due to no-shows and injuries, just 15-a-side. The subs: one, for Baton Rouge.
Not the best conditions for a full-length footy match, but this past Saturday in Baton Rouge, the Tigers and the Houston Lonestars duked it out in the second of their four-match series this season. Umpire Chris Liddy delayed the start of the match for a few minutes to wait for more players to appear. When none did, the Tigers dealt Houston promising recruit Kenny Delucca along with Jonathon Morrill and recent LSU grad Finky Finkelstein to even the sides.
Despite a pre-match demand to tear the game from Houston and pile it on early, it was the Lonestars that grabbed the match by the balls in the opening minutes and put up two quick goals before the Tigers could snap their lackadaisical funk. Houston’s redwood-like ruckman controlled the taps and the Lonestar rovers, led by coach Dan Holwerda, led the charge deep into Tiger territory.
A quick position change saw Baton Rouge coach Tyler Smith swap with club president Roberto Montanaro. With Smith’s mobility now in the half-back lines, and Montanaro’s hard physicality putting a charge in the half-forward line, the Tigers started to get a grip on the match.
Perennial match-winner Mickey Kleinhenz settled the midfielders, a fast and skilled unit featuring Daz Dunhke and Nate Lane roving along with captain Flea Braud and Aaron “I love Lost” LaRose on the wings, and the Scales of Victory quickly tipped back in Baton Rouge’s favor and stayed there.
A collision on the half-forward line between Montanaro, Lindy Dentinger, and Houston’s tough-nut half-back Matt Stevens saw the Lonestar stalwart leave the field with a skull-revealing gash. Although he would return later, bandaged-up and game for more action, Houston lost two other players to injury almost simultaneously and their fast start disappeared under the Tigers’ onslaught.
Led by center halfback Irish James Morris, the Tigers backlines featuring Dozer Cantrelle, Pele Bruckner, Smith, and a recuperating James Kavanaugh repelled nearly all of Houston’s forays toward goal. After drawing first and second blood, the Lonestars would be stuck at two goals for the remainder of the match–a long 75 minutes.
But the key to match for the Tigers was their midfield play, particularly along the wings. Sensing favorable match-ups, LaRose and Braud demanded the ball and began a relentless assault on Houston’s defense from both sides.
In typical Tiger fashion, the midfield chipped in a few goals with Duhnke, LaRose, and Kleinhenz (two goals) peppering the big posts.
The best revelation of the match was the play of Baton Rouge’s forwards. Half-forward Joe Roy and full-forward Jeff Horn rewarded the coach’s faith in their offensive abilities by booting identical 4.2’s on the day. Roy, fresh from a stint in the desert (the half-back line), lined up his booming kick from 40 meters and earned some long-distance majors. Horn, working mainly in the goal square, showed strong hands and some smooth maneuvers to pick up his haul.
With Montanaro and Dentinger showing their typical hardness at the ball, Peepers Phillips selflessly dragging his defender out of play to free space for his fellow hot forwards, and Mason Adams providing drive across the ground, the Tigers comprehensively outplayed their counterparts.
As the day wore on, with the match in-hand, the Tigers softened a bit and the hard-working Houston quartet of Holwerda, Justin Vaughn, Sean Whitehouse, and Whitney Altenhoff began to get traction in the match. Luckily the shrill shriek of the final whistle pierced the smothering air and the Tigers were able to sing the club song after putting up 16 unanswered goals.
Notes:
This is the first match since 2006 that the Tigers have scored 100+.
Mickey Kleinhenz’s BOG performance puts him atop the usfootynews.com MVP list.
Jeff Horn’s season tally of 6 goals puts him equal-third on the usfootynews.com Goalkickers list.
Tomorrow afternoon at 1pm, the Baton Rouge Tigers take on the Houston Lonestars in the second of four matches this season. The Tigers took the first match on the Houston gun ranges, but both teams are sure to have improved both their personnel and skills.
Baton Rouge welcomes back key player James Kavanaugh, who’ll see a reduced workload as he recovers from a torn calf muscle, and Nathan Lane, who rejoins the squad after a successful refereeing stint. Also returning is second-year player Ruben Nambo.
Assistant coach Neil Stebbing will roam the sidelines due to a foot injury sustained in the Tigers’ recent loss to the Austin Crows.
Baton Rouge Tigers Australian Rules Football Club 