Leeds Gryphons 12 - 7 Sheffield Sabres (08/12/19)

A blustery day at Norton Sports Park was the setting as the 0-4 Sheffield Sabres hosted the 4-0 Leeds Gryphons. The Sabres defence stepped onto the field first, looking to avenge their second half collapse against the UCLan Rams last week. They came out of the block fast, forcing the high-scoring Leeds offence to punt on their first drive of the game.

The Sabres were without QB Mark Price after going off with an injury at half time against UCLan, so it was the job of rookie QB Barney Thorpe to step up and take lead of the offence. While Thorpe was finding his feet, the defence took control, veteran DB Liam Pratt intercepting the Leeds QB, hit by DL Matt Graham as he threw. The Sabres defensive front forced immense pressure all game, the Leeds quarterback never feeling comfortable in the pocket and subsequently never able to find rhythm in the passing game. He took further big shots from LB Josh Clements early in the game.

Whilst the Sabres D was controlling the in the first half, Barney Thorpe and the offence were struggling to move the ball. The Gryphon’s run defence was coming out on top in the battle of the trenches, and the wind was making it difficult to move the ball through the air.

It was a similar story for the Leeds offence, who began to gain a few yards on the ground as the first half wore on, but still hadn’t put a long drive together. The QB’s struggles with pressure continued, as he tried to throw a deep ball, but got drilled by LB Alex Garcia as he threw, and the pass was intercepted by rookie CB Nick Larsen.

The wind was also strongly affecting the kicking game for both teams. On the ensuing drive after the interception, the Sabres offence was forced to punt. The momentum of the ball was taken away by the wind, giving the Gryphons offence excellent field position to start their drive. They scored with a 7-yard TD pass, a score that was heavily contested by the Sabres as the ball appeared to bounce as the receiver caught it. Despite the protests, the TD stood. The extra point was blocked by LB Alex Garcia to make the score 6-0 to the Gryphons at half time.

The Sabres offence began the first half in much the same vein as the first half, struggling to gain any momentum. It was on their second drive after the break that things sparked into life, highlighted by a 23-yard that put the Sabres into field goal range. A sack on the preceding play added extra yards to the attempt, which was missed by Liam Pratt after a bobbled snap.

As the fourth quarter approached, the Gryphons offence finally began to run the ball against the Sabres defensive front, after struggling for most the game. They brought a linebacker in at fullback to run out of the I-formation, the Sabres struggling to deal with the extra power at the point of attack.

Just as they drove into the redzone, the QB was intercepted once again by DB Liam Pratt, this time under pressure by rookie DL Henry Burton as the ball was released.

The Sabres were forced to punt into the wind again, which gave the Gryphons a short field. They scored again on a 20-yard screen pass, again protested by the Sabres who believed there should have been flags thrown for holding. They again missed the extra point, after pressure up the middle from LB Alex Garcia.

On the next drive, with the wind working in their favour, the Sabres drove the ball from their own 25-yard line to immediately answer back, scoring on an 18-yard TD pass. With the onside kick recovered by Leeds, if the Sabres defence could force a stop, the Sabres offence would have one last drive to win the game. They did just that, forcing the Gryphons to punt after a big play on 3rd-and-9.

That meant that the Sabres had one final drive from their own 29 to win the game. A 15-yard penalty on the defence and a 27-yard completion put them on the 8-yard line, but a sack on the final play of the game meant that they fell agonisingly short of their first win of the season.

The Sabres fall to 0-5, with the visit of the UCLan Rams next week in a game that could ultimately decide who remains in the division next season.