My oh my. SHC has made a move, and is now ready for their part of the playoff. Everything went well, and every game was played within deadline. This is the story of a strong community, and very dedicated coaches. But! Lets get to it. In front of us we have a couple of very interesting games. First we look at this one.
Barboza Bruisers vs
Irrana Avalanche
This is a special matchup. These teams both come from SHC South. So they know eachother well. Very well indeed. Bruisers are in the playoff for the first time ever. Congratulations on this performance. Yet another coach that shows how very competitive this league is. And even more impressive, the Bruisers won the division title and have the homefield(not that it matters in our format) advantage. Bruisers ended up with a 9/5/2 season. Very good. How did they end there, and how will they do in the first ever playoff run? The players that need to shine for this team to be succesfull is Catcher Fast Eddie (+MA/+MA/Dauntless/Sprint/Sure Feet/Catch/Dodge) and Thrower Jameis Winston (+AG/Block/Sure Hands/Dodge/Strong Arm/Pass). Eddie got 36 TDs to his name during his career, and is not to be taken lightly. But having an AG4 thrower like Winston to feed Eddie is also important. Those two need to connect to make the magic of the Bruiser continue. Beside those two the usual Killer blitzer must do his with a fellow blitzer out with MNG. The team has a couple of rookies with them, and that is the downside, but the upside is a couple of Guard linemen and some Ag4 catchers to make life hard for anybody on the other side of the ball.
Irrana Avalanche on the other hand made the playoff by claiming one of the 2 wildcards in SHC. Their record was 8/6/2, so only a draw behind Bruiser. It was this close with the 2 teams in the division. Avalanche is no stranger to the playoff, and their last run was in season 4, where they made it all the way to the SuperBowl. This team should be taken very serious! Avalanche also have their great players. Today I will bring forth 2 of the players that have been with the team the longest, and must be considered carrier of the Irrana culture. That is Blitzer Bruce Irvn(maybe Irvin - who knows, +AG/+ST/Block/Mighty Blow/Tackle/Dodge) and catcher Dan Herron (+AG/Catch/Dodge/Block/Guard/Sure Feet). They pack 121 and 118 SPP before this playoff. They know what they do around here. Avalanche is also on 15 players as top fouler Malcombe Bunche II is out. So no DP and a weapon less. But Avalanche also got a couple og guard linos, but a weaker shape than Bruisers. On the other side, they also got a natural oneturner, so this game can end up with who fails the oneturn attempt?
In newer divisional history these 2 teams really fight it out. Their record says 2/5/2, so you pick who is what. They are very even. Both got natural oneturner, both got guard, both got 1 player out, both got a nasty killer. This game really comes down to dice of the day. I say this game points towards overtime, but I must make a call, and I say due to more experience in the playoff...
Irrana Avalanche wins
The other wildcardgame is between two seasoned teams. Both well known in the playoff. This is also a divisional brawl. We bring you!
Bilbali Rangers vs
Grenzburg Greenskins
The Rangers won the division and got homefield. They took the divisional title with a 10/4/2 record. Very impressive. Not much to say about this powerhouse of a team. This is their time to shine. Rangers comes with a smashmouth style of play, and are not afraid of using the boot, when the killers doesn't get the job done. But the team is slowly but safely in decline. Several players has gotten slower with age, and doesn't hit as hard anymore as they did before. In order for the Rangers to bring this one home I look to two of their big stars. Lineman Kony Ealy (+ST/+AG/Sure Hands/Wrestle/Dodge) and Blitzer Ramiro Maextu (Block, Tackle, Jump Up, Juggernaut, Mighty Blow, Piling On). Rangers tend to split out their running game on a 3-headed monster, but Ealy(2nd most rushing yards this season with 347) has the most TDs, so I guess he will be on this duty insuch an important game. Maextu has gotten a bit off his killing game, and must step up in order to follow the Greenskins in takeout. Maextu leads in blocks made this season(179) in the entire league, but must put all that effort to good use. Is he over the hill? Or will make an impact? This is decisive.
Greenskins on the other side of the ball here made playoff by getting a wildcard with a 9/3/4 record. Once upon a time the mighty Greenskins were a powerhouse drafting a lot of +ST players, but their success the last couple of seasons has taken its toll on the team. The team carries a lot of injuries, and therefor some bloat in TW. Luckily we play without inducements in the playoff, so it doesn't matter really. Other than the number of true Greenskins with +ST has fallen a bit over the seasons. However. The gameplan is still the same, and it works. Thats why they are here. They simply just steamroll the opponent. The players the Greenskins must look to in order to carry out this plan is Catcher Art Monk (+AG/Block/Fend/Catch/Dodge/Leap/Side Step) and Blitzer Derek Trotter (Block/Tackle/Dodge/Jump Up/Mighty Blow/Piling On). Monk has made 73 TDs in 78 games. What a machine. Nothing more needs to be said. He must keep on delivering as he as up to now. And to no surprice he is the one with most rushing yards this season. 387 yards. oh my. One Trotter is out, so the other Trotter must get full throttle to make this happen. With Rodney out, Derek must carry the removal on his shoulders, but he is also av7, so he must be protected. But can Greenskins keep both Monk and Trotter safe, and still win with only 14 players ready for the game? Greenskins are the underdog here.
As it is with to teams with good coaches, and good players. They know eachother in and out. Their record since CroixFer took over the Rangers is 2/3/2. Again. You pick who is first. Do we see a pattern with these divisional brawls in playoff? In this game the bench will matter. But 1 of the Greenskins players out is an easily replaced rookie lineman, so Greenskins will bring 15 men to the game, and Rangers bring 16. Both teams will go in hard, and this will be bloody(jinx anyone?). Both teams are seasoned, and carry some injuries. I think this will be a bigger problem for the Greenskins, and therefore...
Bilbali Rangers wins
All that is left from me is to let those teams I picked as loosers to go there and prove me wrong! And for the favorites hailed by me, to go there and prove me right. All I really want, is some good BB, and with these teams, and these coaches. I am sure will get just that. 1st game will be rich in TDs, and the 2nd game rich in cas. Good luck to all 4 teams!