“WIL Premiership Round VI

We're up against wietse's pro elves who with a full squad of 16 (except a lineelf who's MNG) + a wizzie look very powerful. We have hired the count, but he did little to sway the balance in our last game vs woodies. We get one handicap of smelling salts (ho hum.. unless the count gets KO'd!) and opt to receive.

They kick straight into the count's hands (remote hypno?) while their fans get the ref! We knock over then DP foul an elf into the KO box and then on T2 badly hurt their tackle catcher - their only tackler out leaves our ghouls a lot safer! T3 and we tackle over and MNG a lineelf. They've been dodging back and not going for the ball to avoid attrition but at this rate that won't work! We foul for the third turn in a row and finally one of our 2 DPs is sent off MNG'ing their strip ball catcher. T5 and we KO a blitzer so it's 6 elves vs 10 of us and they still haven't threatened the ball.

T6 and they finally go for it, seeing a way to get a 1d blitz, though it does need an awful lot of -1 dodges... though eventually they fail a normal dodge! We -MA injure a catcher prompting their APO to save, then KO their DP while putting the count in range of the endzone. We score on T8 without any more trouble, giving them one turn to try and counterscore- and they have an AGI5 strong arm thrower + an MA9 catcher to make things easier... but a first block that ensures a knockdown means no one-turner for them.

We set up to kick for the 2nd half vs 11 elves (that deep bench is useful!). The plan is surely a fast TD using the super thrower + their 2 remaining catchers, and then hope to turnover our attack with the wizard. And indeed, despite fumbling the pickup on T1, letting us rush players up to next to the ball, they coolly recover and score on T2. 1-1!

We collect the ball with the Count once again, and KO a lineelf on the LOS. They respond by KO'ing a ghoul and putting both catchers beside the count. T4 and the first foul of the half is by their DP who with just one assist -STR injures our +MA ghoul into retirement. With the clock advancing we need to move the count forwards, and we leave him open to a 2d blitz using a pile of elf players.. but he rolls double skulls and then misclicks when trying to reroll it, whoops! Lets just assume it would have been more skulls or at least not the POW they needed..

We foul back... and get our DP sent off for a KO. Once again they can surround the count despite our best efforts and go for a 2d blitz, this time rerolling it but without finding the crucial POW. The count blitzes out of the elf wall (badly hurting a blitzer on the way) and runs downfield, remaining safely out of range of the wizard's lightning bolt. They go for the fireball.... it's a 4+ to knock him over ... but he dodges!! That would almost certainly have won it for them. They then go for their plan B... a 1d blitz... that with their last reroll gets the POW!!

They just need to make a few 2+ dodges with their AGI5 thrower... but he trips up on a 1! The count is stunned so we put our two wights and last ghoul up beside the ball to stop them recovering and to give us our best chance on T8. They POW a ghoul into the ball and it scatters nicely away from our pile of players. Their catcher steals it on a 3+, dodges on and then goes for the winning pass... but fumbles! We knock him over with a mummy, hypno gaze an elf standing in the way of a wight near the endzone and then go for the 4+ pass with our other wight... but he drops the 3+ catch!!!

GG wietse!”