“It was another beautiful day at Diggly Field, and the Diggers were still reeling a bit from the blows they endured in their recent victory against the Buffalo Billed Platypi. And what a team to have to face when you're feeling bruised: the Hillbilly-Rays, a hard-hitting Khemri team with a rep for leaving lasting impressions on their opponents!

Hillbilly-Rays elected to receive, and an unusual bad kick from Dolomite resulted in a touchback! The Rays gave it to Mind Your (the Mummy; such names!) and began the long slog toward the end zone. The undead laid about them with vigor, but the lineDwarves and their new recruit Yanmar the Troll took their punishment and then some... though a moment later the crowd roared when a foul stunned the Troll (who incidentally never got his mind back in order the whole first half!)

The Diggers managed to recover, though, and between a nasty blow to Biily Ra and a timely blitz from Keuper they managed to get the ball out of Mind Your's hands... though at the cost of watching as several players were knocked off the field and sent to the dugout to nurse their sore heads.

The ball flipped from the Mummy's grip into the crowd, who tossed it back - right into the Diggers' end zone! There was a mad scramble as both teams tried to extricate themselves, but in the end the Diggers were closer, and Keuper scooped up the ball behind a screen by Lull and Caterpillar.

The Rays tried to blitz through but couldn't surround Keuper, who slipped away and took the safe option, tossing the ball far downfield. During the scrum as the ball was chased once again, Bobby Ray tried a solo block against Gradall and found himself shattered against the Dwarf's armor, far beyond his ability to regenerate. As the bone dust settled, the Thro-Ra Eli Ray raced for the ball, with Word To Your laying out Mahindra to keep the Bull Centaur from getting it, and in the end it could not be recovered in time by either side, and the half ended 0-0.

The second half started with the Diggers receiving and the Rays lining up a few paltry Skeletons on the line of scrimmage, with their Mummies on the sidelines hoping to stop a drive. Their kick went awry, though, and the second touchback of the game went to Mahindra on the sideline. The Bull ran past the Mummies, pushing to the limit to get out of their reach, while the front line beat the Skeletons down, delivering a slew of injuries before moving out to mark the Mummies and make it harder for them to chase Mahindra.

None of this kept Biily Ra and Nicky Ray from gathering around Mahindra, though, and as they prepared to pile into the Bull, Listen To Your (Mummy again) was blitzed free of Deere's mark and ran up to join the fray! With only one option left, Mahindra steeled himself for a hit as he ponderously turned to dodge away... but the defenders got tangled with each other, and amazingly, he made it free! A moment later he crossed the goal line, and it was 1-0 Diggers.

By now it was the Rays' dugout that was full of hurt players, and it looked bad for them even as they lined up to receive the kickoff. None of their Mummies were hurt, though, and the ancient warriors made their presence known, knocking out the Troll and hurting Deere badly enough to remove him from this game and the next. Bubba Ra made a sideline run, hoping to tie the score, but Dolomite laid him out just in time. Once again the ball went into the stands, and this time it was tossed out right next to the Mummy, Word To Your! In a remarkable and unforeseen display of dexterity, he picked up the ball and started running toward the end zone!

Unfortunately for the Rays, there were just too many Diggers left on the field, and the with the help of Mahindra and Loam, Keuper was once again a key player: he knocked the Mummy down and grabbed the ball in one long motion! Even as he turned to run, though, Mind Your (Mummy) roared in rage and charged him, knocking him senseless to the field. Another mad scramble started, and the Hobs almost managed to get the ball down the field, but some brilliant coaching kept the Khemri in the way, and the whistle blew just as Loam made a last mad (and unsuccessful) scramble. In another surprising turn, Keuper was actually awarded a very appropriate MVP for the Diggers for his adept display of ball-stripping during the game.

It was a tough rumble, but in the end the Diggers' luck held, and they won it 1-0, putting them in second place (for now) in the Tournament. But their next opponent is 6-0-1 and ready to stay out of their grasp: their last game of the regular season will be against the Dodgyyy Girls, those fierce Amazons who have put fear in the hearts of the League. Well, those that have hearts.

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Thanks to rllesh for a great game and for his good sportsmanship as my Dwarves ended up hitting harder than his Khemri. I had some amazing luck in the first half, and only his excellent defense kept it from being a 2-0 win. Kudos to my opponent for that, and I wish him luck in future games... at least until we meet again on the pitch ;)”