At 5:15 p.m. on Sunday afternoon at the Am Kleinen Meer sports facility in Delmenhorst the time had come. While there was loud cheering on one side, there was initially disappointment on the other. It was the typical scene at the end of a knockout game. In this case, the American football players from the Delmenhorst Bulldogs had a good laugh. They won the playoff semi-finals of the North Regional League with 20:14 (13:7) against the Emhusen Windmills and thus made it into the final against the Flensburg Sealords, in which the title and promotion to the association league are at stake. The game is expected to take place on Sunday, October 27th.
It goes without saying that Bulldogs head coach Tyrus Morgan was proud of his protégés after the greatest success in team history. Morgan praised his men for fighting until the end and giving it their all. But he also paid respect to his losing opponent. “We knew it wouldn’t be easy,” emphasized Morgan. It actually didn’t happen, because the guests from Emtinghausen also left everything on the pitch, showed impressive morale and ultimately only narrowly had to admit defeat.
Bulldogs with an optimal start
In view of the strong performance, the Windmills were soon no longer disappointed with the result, but rather proud of what they had achieved. “The score is what it is. We learned a lot,” said head coach Will Arant. Overall, it was “just a great day.” “Football is a celebration,” Arant summed it up. The atmosphere at the Delmenhorster TB facility undoubtedly proved him right. Despite largely unpleasant autumnal weather conditions, a total of 530 spectators did not miss the spectacle on a side court – the main square was not playable due to the rain and poor drainage. Fans of both teams created an atmospheric backdrop, which the two head coaches also highlighted.
From a purely sporting perspective, only the Delmenhorst team had reason to celebrate in the early stages of the duel, as they got off to a perfect start. The game was only a few minutes old when Lukas Knichal intercepted a Windmills pass attempt and carried the interception into the end zone to make it 6-0 for the Bulldogs – a so-called pick-6. The hosts didn’t manage to score the extra point afterwards, but that didn’t change much from what they saw as an excellent start. For Tyrus Morgan, the early touchdown was extremely important. “I was very nervous,” the Bulldogs head coach admitted that the playoff premiere was special for him too. “Thank God he brought it home,” Morgan said, looking at Knichal.
Emhusen turns the match around
The Delmestadt team remained the better team in the first quarter and set more accents offensively. However, no further points were added. The Windmills had the first good drive of the second quarter. They worked their way deep into the Bulldogs’ half, but a penalty deprived themselves of their promising field position and so remained pointless. The hosts had more success with their next drive. With a good running game and further gaining space through an Emhus penalty, they made it to the 11-yard line. Quarterback René Post found his receiver Deandre Pendergrass, who secured the next six points. This time the extra point was also good – 13-0 for the Bulldogs.
The guests gradually came under pressure – and they withstood the pressure. After the kickoff, Felix Krause caught the egg and gained a lot of yards, so that after his run the Windmills were not far from reaching the Delmenhorst end zone. Quarterback Alexander Knasew personally scored the first Emhus touchdown. The extra point was successful – and the score was now only 7:13 from the Windmills’ perspective.
Bulldogs have the final say
Things got really loud for the guests at the beginning of the third quarter. In the first drive after the halftime break they showed a strong running game, in the end it was Knasew again who brought the egg into the end zone. The extra point was good again and the Windmills had turned the game around. However, the Bulldogs were not shocked by the first deficit of the encounter. In return, they put together a strong drive, at the end of which tight end Thierry Lübcke was served by Post and scored the next touchdown. Including the extra point, the score was now 20:14 for the hosts.
After no points were added on either side for a long time in the last quarter, things became confusing again in the final phase. The referees re-evaluated a supposed fumble situation and ultimately the Windmills kept the ball in the scene. However, they did not convert their attempt into anything countable. The Bulldogs then managed an important first down, the clock ran down – and the finals were perfect.
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