“What a game!

The first half was all Sssesame. By the end of the Legion's 5th turn, our luck was 29% (vs 69% for the lizards), and it barely topped 40% at the half. There was a blitz which got the sidestepping diving tacklers up to our thrower, and we never got the ball. We threw block after block at skinks (some even of the 3bd variety) with next to nothing to show for it, including 4 blocks on the ballcarrier on one drive. We also lost Rexxar, a rookie black orc, to some failed medical treatment of a kroxigor-related condition.

The second half didn't start out looking a lot better, but that all changed. Out first drive bogged down in Ssssssesame territory, with side-stepping, diving-tackling skinks forming a web of can't-be-knocked-down (my luck with hurting them was still awful). Meanwhile sauruses harassed Samuro and Grom as they tried to engineer one of their now-infamous AG5 orcelf plays. Eventually we managed to smash a small hole in the lizards' wall of skinks, and in a surprise move got Thrall free for the score.

The capper though, and the answer to the question "where did the Legion's luck all go?" came late in the half, in Ssssssssssesame's drive following the Legion's score. A perfect defensive plan allowed us to crowd the line of scrimmage and deny the sauruses any favorable blocking opportunities. After a Skull/Skulled block cost the lizards a reroll, the ball pickup failed and gave the Legion a chance...

After clearing some space and fighting back for the ground lost in Sssssssssssssesame's initial push up on the line, Samuro made a daring rush for the ball, shrugging off a diving-tackler as if he were a wardancer, and with a reroll, getting to the loose ball....only to fail to pick it up. As the lizards recovered, knocked Samuro out and secured the ball, the Legion's fans grew silent and hung their heads, watching skink after skink squirm free of the orcish players and screen them off from the ball carrier. The game seemed over...

But Coach Maysrill noticed something; it was a longshot but it was their best hope. "Rokhan!" he bellowed "Fetch!" The troll looked around in confusion, but Saurfang elbowed him and pointed to where the skink with the ball was. With the grace of a dancing bear on ice skates, Rokhan lumbered away from the sauruses trying to keep him at bay and gave a little extra effort, and lined the skink up for a kill shot...knocking him prone but otherwise unharmed. The important thing was, the ball was free, but next to two defenders.

Grom grinned, that wouldn't stop HIM! Grom had been running upfield in the hope of receiving a pass from Samuro to score the game-tying TD, but he swung around and headed back for the ball. He scooped it up deftly, despite the best efforts of the sauruses to stop him, broke free, nearly tripping, and got off a short pass to Keldran, who was as surprised as anyone to be a part of the game-deciding play. Escorted by Thrall, Keldran walked into the end zone untouched on Turn 8.”