round 2 Melbourne Royals Vs Croydon Stars

Week two of the Melbourne Royals Vic Bowl campaign was the first away game of the season, facing the Croydon Stars at Ranger Field. A big performance in week one against the Raiders had resulted in a win, a second would most likely put the Royals on top of the ladder. Despite some injuries from the previous week, most notably running back Victor Nguyen, the Royals were confident that they would prevail.

The Stars were the first team to put points on the board after a big run from running back Kit Ng, giving them the lead 0-6. The extra point however was blocked and picked up by linebacker Floyd Baragwanath, and despite a dodgy ankle was nearly returned, only being brought down on the Stars’ 20 yard line. The Royals offense was only able to muster three points in the first half, due to a touchdown thrown to wide receiver Chris Tuohy being brought back for a block in the back during the play. Chris Tuohy however did kick the field goal that brought the Royals back within a touchdown before half time 3-6.

Some words from coaches Dan Levin, Trevor Flory and Dom Macaluso however had the Royals fired up to return to the field in the second half. The Royals quickly took the lead with quarterback Blair Black connecting with wide receiver Bill Chislett, making the score 10-6 after kicking the extra point. The Royals defense this time returned with strength, creating a three and out situation for the Stars, forcing them to punt in their own end zone. Pressure created from the defensive line forced a poor snap with the Stars punter trying to hold onto the ball. This would prove ineffective, as defensive end Donal Stott and linebacker Andrew Rowse rushed to the ball, recovering the ball in the end zone for a touchdown. The Royals took the lead 17-6, making it a two score game. A balanced passing and rushing attack saw running back Robbie Hanrahan bring home his third touchdown of the year extending the lead 23-6.

Despite a strong defensive stance by the Royals, barely allowing first downs, Stars running back Kit Ng was able to break free again and give the Stars some hope again, the score 23-12. However, linebacker Floyd Baragwa-nath was able to pick Stars QB Owen Ziebell off for an interception. The ball given back to the Royals offense saw a strong revitalised offensive line return to the field creating massive lanes for running back Justin Matic to take his first touchdown of the season, extending the lead to 29-12. A staunch defense returned to the field, providing huge rushing pressure from the defensive line to stuff the Stars run-ning game. Floyd Baragwanath was able to intercept the Stars quarterback once more to give the ball back to the Royals offense. The offense returned in similar style, the offensive line proving too strong for the Stars defense and opening holes for Justin Matic to push in another touchdown, the Royals comfortably sitting at 36-12. The defense prevailed against Stars, denying them the chance to put any more points on the board in the fourth quarter, with defensive tackle Jeremy Edwards sacking the quarterback as he tried to drop back.

The Royals finished the game 36-12, taking home a big win and asserting their position at the top of the division two ladder with a 2-0 record for the season this far. The Royals will be playing at home again next week against the Gippsland Gladiators, 2011 Vic Bowl runner-ups. Be sure to get down to Royal Park, Sunday May 20th, 1.30pm to see all the action.

OFF THE FIELD

with ROBBIE HANRAHAN

Food

Whatevers for dinner.

Movie:

survive style 5

TV Show:

always sunny in Philadelphia

Actorsteven seagal & jean-claude van damme

Musicflaming lips

Heard about royalsGV website and fb page

An Interview with Royals Head Coach: Dan Levin.

How did you get involved with the Royals? Ahmed Arayne sent a letter to the league asking what the pro-cess would be to start a club. I was coaching the Warriors at the time, but always wanted to be a club’s Head Coach. I told him that if the club ever got legs that I would volunteer to be the coach. It almost didn’t happen, with mediocre player numbers and the club not showing up to present its case to the league, but eventually they figured it out and here I am.

What is your football philosophy?I try to keep football as fun as possible for guys, while at the same time making sure we’re there for a purpose. When practice stops being fun and starts being an obliga-tion, guys turn off and it gets harder to accomplish our goals. It’s a hard balance to strike all the time, but ultimately, if we have guys who want to show up for practice, they’re generally going to train hard, and that will show up on game day. What is the most rewarding part of coaching? Being a part of something bigger than yourself, and seeing all your hard work pay off when guys ‘get it’ What is the most challenging part of coaching?Donal (Just Kidding). What motivates you? This is actually a really good question. As a coach – I show up every day wanting to impart just that little bit more each practice, to see guys improve on a daily basis. I’m motivated by seeing others improve, which forces me to become a better coach. After all, I can’t make guys better unless I have the tools to make them better, so I’m always on the lookout for new techniques and ideas on how to do things. Where do you get your unique lingo from? I had a coach when I was a sophomore (10th grade) who was a devout Christian and never swore. Ever. He wouldn’t even use heck. So, I got used to hearing things like ‘Dadgummit!’ and ‘Mother of Pearl!’ instead of the other words one would expect to hear. I’m a bit more vulgar than he was – but I like to use my words for emphasis. Guys know when I’m upset if my language gets blue.

Contributors

Writers Photographers Designer

Jeremy Edwards Luke Markof Ahmed Araynecontact@@mroyals.com

28 Justin

Matic Melbourne VIC

1 year

175 CMS

90 KGS

Seperated at birth?

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