“1st round match in the XFL 'flings.

1st half:

Handicap is Doom & Gloom, so the Hair Club is down to 3 rerolls for the half. Kickoff result is a Blitz, so Pindo goes looking to knock down Fats Eddie (block +ag) and set up the 1st foul of the game but fails to get the pow after blowing one of the 3 rerolls.

Dumpling's dp kicks a downed tree but fails to break armor and is left in Hair Club territory. He is taken down and Hairynap, my dp, jumps on him for the 3 assist foul but only stuns him and gets ejected right off. I spread out my diving tacklers and he wins the tree war with some assists. Before my next turn ends, Tastyfeast turn around and boots his dp again (2 assists, no dp skill) and SI's him but is also ejected.

Pindo manages to knock the ball loose before getting ko'd next turn. Dumplings fail to pickup and the Hair Club send one man deep and dodges Fullmuncher over onto the ball. He manages to pick it up and Hail Marys it over to the sideline. Dumplings blitz down the deep guy and recover only to see some 1-die magic on my turn and a ball recovery. Unfortunately, my 'fling pushes his luck and fails when trying to get free (no rerolls left at this point).

With two trees and 3 'flings left on the pitch, Dumplings move the ball forward and score on turn 8. 0-1.

Hair Club gets the turn 8 TTM opportunity, but Gulpwaffle is BH on the fumbled attempt..

2nd Half:

Hair Club receives and gets enough KO recoveries to field a full 11. Diving tacklers escort the ballcarrier down the right side of the pitch and are aided by flawless dodging and ko's adding up against the Dumplings. Using the sideline to good advantage, I manage to surf two more of his 'flings but still manage only a 5 to 4 advantage. Finally on my turn 7, I feel the best option to dodge twice (ag4 with reroll still) and gfi for the tying score. 1-1.

Dumplings have 2 turns to score. He send two 'flings deep and they are marked by diving tacklers and then some. Only resort is a TTM play using his passing tree - 1st roll is inaccurate and the reroll is chosen which results in a fumble and the end of regulation.

Overtime:

Hair Club receives with 10 to 11 disadvantage on the pitch. I stack heavy to the left but run into a solid wall and am forced to backpedal. We trade a couple turns of jabs and i see an opportunity to revese field and get ahead of several Dumplings. He has a shot at a 1-die on the ballcarrier, but fails his dodges - no diving tackler needed, just double 1's. A lucky stun on his block/guard 'fling allows my guys to set up a screen with only his sidestepper to challenge the forward advance. A blitz by Pindo fails to knock the ss down and so he is surrounded and marked by a diving tackler.

A TTM attempt actually hits and injures one of my dt's on his turn 6 of OT. That same sidestepper guy dodges away from my diving tackler and lays a 1-die on my ballcarrier - pushing him against the sideline. Fortunately, the ballcarrier is Jopad (ag4) so he dodges into the safety of a cage. One corner of the cage is my last remaining diving tackler and he is closest to that annoying block/guard guy.

The block/guard guy decides to take the long way into the cage to set up a 2-die blitz later, but he fails a dodge reroll and leaves my ballcarrier unmarked for the walkin score on my turn 8. 2-1.

Last chance for the Dumplings to force a coinflip. My 9 guys set up the best TTM defense they can muster, but I idiotically place the kicker wide. The kickoff result is a pitch invasion, which leaves gaping holes in my defense but also takes down both his passing tree and his ag4 'flings standing next to one another. The kick winds up by the LOS and a dodge and a gfi gets it into the hands of a 'fling next the other tree. I cross my fingers hoping for a failed landing to burn a reroll but the TTM attempt is fumbled and the game ends abruptly.

Postgame:

FF increase and 50k to spend for next match but 2 mngs.

My plan was to take out 2 of the 3 of his blockers and dp if the opportunity presented itself in the 1st half. I figured that would be good trade for my dp and push the matchup more in my favor. However, the ejection without the eye really caught me off guard.

He made better use of his trees and when I failed to knock them down he knocked out my 'flings giving assists. He was feeling confident and I was already expecting to lose the match towards the end of the 1st half. But as is often the case with 'flings, they sometimes manage to pull off the incredible - and that's what happened here for my little guys.

Good match. Now onto the 2nd round.”