Broadview Hawks Football Club

Hawks Show Bite Against Dingos June 3rd, 2008

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In their toughest game of the year yet, the Broadview Hawks went into Saturday's clash against the Toronto Downtown Dingos missing some of their biggest names. Already missing captain Stefan "Shining Light" Leyhane and Rob "Bob the Builder" Hillier to injury, the side was further weakened when two thirds of their patented 'Pretty Boy Attack' pulled out late. Neither Ian "Pipsqueak" Graham nor Danny "Empty under pressure" Walker were able to suit up. There were optimistic rumors that 2006 Rookie of the Year Paul "World Champion... of what?" Zuccato would make his return to the field and boost the team's defense, but a night on the town with Chris "Buchanan this" Phyland soon put an end to that.

In a constructive and highly insightful pre-game speech, Super Coach Martin Walter emphasized the importance of running away from the dots and kicking to the arrows which were leading into the circles. Unable to find the dots or the arrows on the field, the Hawks started slowly but managed to escape the first quarter with a small lead, nonetheless.

The second quarter again saw a close match with both teams splitting the control of the ball. The Hawks capitalized on a few more opportunities and had a 15 point lead by the end of the half. New ruckman Rob "Call me Vicki... try it" Vickers worked hard all day in the centre and, following up on his own work, made a great tackle on an unsuspecting Dingo rover. The second quarter also saw Mario "Latin Satin" Pareja come into the play as the new Northwind player provided some much needed physical presence and kept his man quiet before getting a run as a loose man across the half back.

With a sniff of a victory — or perhaps Marty's Friday night toxins being released — the premiership quarter was all Hawks and saw some of the best play so far this year. Literally kicking away from the Dingos, the Hawks' defense proved harder to get past than a bouncer at a fancy night club. Luke "Blue Balls" Walker provided more knockbacks than one would usually see him receive on a Saturday night and kept his opponent goalless. Andrew "VP Social" Hodd provided the other half of the wall across the back 50 and, with linking play from Nick "My Little Treasure" Shuttleworth, the Hawks went into the final break with a comfortable lead.

In an effort to improve our Canadian presence, Super Coach named an all Canadian midfield for the first time of the season. Given the chance to run down the wing, Adam "Cracky" Verdurmen finished off a fantastic game and cemented his spot in the votes with over 15 touches to his name. With the roving responsibilities falling to the Canadians, club treasurer Forbes "More money for baby shower gifts!" Gemmell found himself up forward and, despite some nice marks, struggled to add to his goal tally. Other mentions go to Jono "VP of early nights" Barlow, Sean "Scary Voice" Palin, and Ben "Would kick straighter with #21 on my back" Carter.

After the solid win, some of the Hawks enjoyed a live show provided by Brendan "Rockstar" Bell and his mates at the Friend Fest music festival. This reporter doesn't remember much of it but, by all accounts, it was a great night out.

The Hawks face the defending champion Toronto Eagles next Saturday at Humber North at 10 am in what shapes up to be the match of the season.