“HUBBA Season 6; Division 2 - Round 1

Coach John Earl gathered the team around a large blackboard in the dressing room.
"Right lads, I've heard back from the league and you've done it. You've been promoted. This will be a big test for us and not one we've prepared for. Our first match-up will Viidakon Tähtöset. Now I wasn't here last time we played them but I hear you were lucky to escape with a draw. That'll probably be the case again. They've got some useful players and we aren't yet well trained enough to deal with them. So we're gonna go out hard. Hitting and stamping every chance you get. Hopefully the Ref will be kind and we'll come out on top..."

The teams faced off and Decadence received the kick. It was a bright start for the team, bashing their way up the field and knocking over more of the Zons than they had a right to, but they proved more resilient than anticipated and soon stood back up. Ruben saw the chance to put the game plan into action early in the half and jumped into a foul. The ref wasn't kind, however, and Ruben watched the rest of the game from the stands.

The drive was going well, rolling up field, when suddenly a fireball hit and knocked down the ball carrier and his protection. "It's not enough that they have better players, they bring a damned Wizard!" Earl was heard grumbling after the game. Viidakon recovered and sprinted clear but tripped and allowed the Pact to get back. A good recovery was upset by another lunging foul that saw another Pact player head off into the stands. The Ref really wasn't taking any nonsense today.

The Pact pulled off a superb play, made all the more difficult by the rain. Solomon picked up and threw to Jacob who sprinted clear down the left flank. The half was drawing to a close but he could make the line if he busted a gut. Viidakon had a linewoman escape the ruckus and set tail after him, running across to cover his move. The Pact had a marauder tailing her, hoping to take her out of the game. Jacob made an error he won't quickly forget. He cut back inside the covering Zon, waiting for his lead blocker to take her out of the game. That didn't happen. The Marauder stumbled and planted his face into the dirt, injuring himself in the process. The covering Zon smashed Jacob to the ground and picked up the ball, ending the Pact's hopes of scoring.

The second half was quite routine for the Amazons. 2 sent off and a few injuries meaning that Decadence only lined up with 8 men. A clever drive and last minute score sealed the win. Jacob attempted to atone for his early game error by taking to the skies in a desperate last-gasp play but Fulgrim twice fumbled him and that was that.

Decadence will expect a tough season, though they won't all go like that. A broken neck for Noah means he'll miss a few weeks but shouldn't affect his lineman duties too much. It's the frogs of Quetzovercoatl Athletic next, another stern test against a highly skilled team. Earl couldn't get them training again fast enough.”