Week 12 of the Digicel League saw the Burger King Panthers and Maples Packers each come within one win of clinching a spot in the post-season. Both teams have put together solid campaigns in the Cayman Islands Flag Football Association competition and are poised to compete for the coveted championship.
For Burger King, they showed some resolve in a hard-fought upset over league powerhouse DMS Hellcats 9-6. Featuring a balanced offensive attack with heavy ball control, an aggressive pressure defence and some opportunistic special teams play, the Panthers dictated the flow of the game at the Ed Bush field in West Bay.
On their opening drive, Panthers quarterback Chris Lucas was judicious with his approach, taking what the Hellcats defence gave him, which ultimately led to a score. He made good savvy football decisions on when to pass and when to use his athleticism, tuck it and run for positive gains.
Team captain Brendon Malice was Lucas’ favourite target on the day with three receptions and one touchdown. Defensively, Jon Carter and the entire defensive front was disruptive sacking Hellcats Jacob ‘Frecko’ Ebanks a season-high five times. Carter led the way with four tackles and two sacks.
For the Hellcats, it’s been a bit of a shaky stretch the last few weeks as they’ve been pushed more than they have all season. Frecko and the Hellcats’ top offence have been slowed as teams have made a conscious effort to bog down their running attack; forcing them to become one dimensional.
This has led to a number of game-changing turnovers in crucial moments that were not occurring in the early part of the season. The Hellcats would still make a game of it late in the first half, when Frecko connected with Perry ‘BoyWonder’ Levy, bringing the game to a deadlock. The second half was relatively quiet from an offensive standpoint as neither team were able to score.
In overtime, the Hellcats failed to convert on their possession and the Panthers took full advantage of the moment. Simon Rivers kicked in the game-winning field goal to shock the Hellcats and ignite his team and bystanders in celebration. It doesn’t get any easier for the Hellcats, who face the Club House Bulldogs at 1.30pm this Saturday, 8 September.
In the first game of the day, the Maples Packers thumped the PWC Renegades 33-0, bringing their two-game snide to a halt. Barrett Edri brushed off his shaky play the last few weeks, where he was particularly turnover prone, to put together an excellent performance. On the day, he went 11 of 20 passing with four touchdown passes and no interceptions.
Leslie Harvey, Rupert Whittaker, Chris Bennett and Terry Ballard each caught one TD. Ballard rounded out the scoring kicking in three of four extra points. On defence, newbie Davanni James had a monster day filling out the stat sheet with three tackles, a sack and an interception in which he returned it for a TD. Edison Jackson chipped in with five tackles and Elroy Allen added three tackles and a sack.
For PWC, the result was the same old story. They were ineffective in maintaining possession of the ball and this kept their defence on the field far too long. Chris LeBeau was once again at the helm and completed seven of 26 passes. Unfortunately, the offence could not mount any serious drives. Playmaker Deepal Patel had a good game, catching three passes and helping out on defence with two tackles. Brandon Ure and Jeff Stower also played well, accounting for two tackles and two sacks and three tackles and one pick, respectively. PWC look to end their winless season when they face Burger King this Saturday at 4pm.
In the final game of the day, the Cayman Power Sports and Marine Hurricanes knocked off the Cox Colts 13-2, keeping their playoff potential alive for at least another week. QB Glenn Duran Jr led the charge for the Hurricanes offence and put together a solid outing. He went three for eight with one INT and two rushing TDs.
As always, Duran Jr did most of his damage with his legs, running for chunks of positive yards. Defensively, Neville Morgan was his normal disruptive self, shredding blockers on his way to four tackles and Ransfor Welcome took advantage of some errant throws that resulted in easy interceptions.
When purely focused on the game itself, the Hurricanes have played some tough hard-nosed football that can pose problems for any opponent. Whether they make the playoffs or not, if they can finish out the season strong without incident it would rehabilitate their image and garner some respect. The Hurricanes now play the Packers this Saturday at 2.45pm.
For Cox, it has been a disappointing year for the veteran bunch that had championship aspirations coming into the season. It’s fairly obvious that some roster moves will have to be made in order for this team to get back in playoff contention. QB Kevin Solomon is apparently mulling retirement as well as the notorious trash talking Rhys “RCapone” Ebanks.
Both have been staple faces of flag football in Cayman, whether on the field or through the executive committee, focusing on the growth and development of the sport. If this truly is the last time they’re caught roaming the field during summer, it wouldn’t be without notice. Both have had solid careers and at their pinnacle were centrepieces on a number of championship teams.
In game action, Richard Campbell took over QB duties for Solomon and was virtually ineffective. He was six for 16 with three INTs, which contributed to his team’s lackluster performance on offence.
Defensively, Jonny McLaughlin was a force accumulating two tackles and two sacks, of which one resulted in a safety. Jeff Wight chipped in with a pick. The Colts have a bye this week and look to finish out their season on a high note next week against the Panthers.
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