“BLOODER MATCH #7

There is no respite in the Southern Wastes, and our Canetoads are tested by the top tier Amazon team steered by the legendary Coach CokeGuy, a former SWL Champion.


Objectives

1. SPP, pure and simple. It is our last chance before the season starts to develop our Mummies and Wights primarily, Ghouls as secondary.

2. Limit damage to any positional players with SPP.


Goals

1. We now have a Wight with TACKLE who will do the heavy blocking. Mummies must also get involved, ideally with 3d blocks. Block hard with these players.

2. Score successfully on our drive against a challenging team and coach.


Plan

1. Make good decisions on offence, sticking to order of operations, playing clean.

2. Position well on defence, making the Amazon drive as difficult as possible.

3. Play for attrition. With players skilled with BLOCK and MB we must try to make life easier for us by maximising blocks and damage output.


Match Report

We are happy to receive first, although we have questions over this, as we know Amazons are most effective and comfortable on defence.

Ball is covered, blocks taken, however not orchestrating 3db with mummy causes re-roll wastage. Schoolboy error, and first signs of cracks appearing.

The Amazons dominate a corner, compress, and spread their defence across the pitch. Real estate in the Southern Wastes is valuable, and territory is well controlled by Coach CokeGuy.

We advance with difficulty, and a mummy both downs into an important block towards ZUg to relive cage pressure. Re-roll wastage #2, but it was important to the drive. Pressure arrives with corner cage chips, and excellent 'L' shape, arrow, wedge into our ball carrier.

We attempt to block free, but a zombie (with 8 SPP but no block skill..) both downs and causes re-roll wastage #3. This is critical to ball protection, and we move to safety.

Our Turn 6 is where we lose the game. It starts with 4x players stunned, and all cage corners based. Exceptional pressure from Amazons. We decide we must score now, and find a poor odds play. We need 2x blocks requiring a push, then the ghoul must dodge a diagonal, and GFI. It is 53% play or 78% with the re-roll we do not have.. It dies not get that far as we 1/9 double skull again, and do not have the 4th re-roll to remedy.

Our blodge carrier receives the POW, Amazons scoop up ball, and screen us off whilst removing our players with blocks. The position Coach CokeGuy creates is exceptional, as we cannot find block opportunities, nor reach the ball carrier.

Amazon offensive starts well, with two stuns on T1 and another two in T2. The snowball gathers momentum, block rate increases resulting in removals, and we start T4 with only 7 on the pitch vs the 10 Amazon.

The feints work well- we are too slow and low on numbers to cover well. Our focus shifts to creating smart blocks with our key players for SPP, and doing our best to protect key players from the inevitable route.

3x lucky CAS from the Canetoads in the final 3x turns come too late, and it is a resounding win for the Amazons, and a lesson in pressure and positioning.


Learnings

1. 3d Blocks

This must always be the priority for mummies, especially without block skill. Our opponent did well to deny us this, it is true, however our LOS opening turn we could have created it, then used Wight for blitz duties. They are both similar odds (97% for 2db with block, 96% for 3db without block) so why not have both?

2. Fouls

ROI on a foul, on an already stunned Zug, with AV 10 and only 3 assists, with no DP or SG, and no Bribe.... well... it was speculative at best and cost us a player. Player advantage reduced. Silly.

3. Order of Operations

The key was T6 where we decide to not block with block skilled mummy first. But in truth, unless it was straight POW (still 30% chance of it) we would have needed to block with the failing mummy anyway. A testament to the pressure and keen positioning of my opponent, denying us any clean options.

4. Re-Rolls

When is it best to use? Our offensive drive suffered because we used them all up for sure. The 3rd was critical and had to be used, the 2nd was quite important, and think it good use, the 1st was perhaps not great as our ball was safe and we could have recovered from the position well enough. This was where we put the first nail in our coffin, and our cunning opponent exploited.

5. 1d Blocks

We make a number of these (3), some calculated with block skill. But two of them find the skull. Maybe... unlucky... but also a poor choice, and one our opponent cleverly forces on us. The S4 placed on diagonal corner to our S3 player, with support players cancelling out possibility of assist, is excellent.


Summary

This was a harsh, but good game against high quality SWL champion. It will help us to tidy up our weaknesses in coaching, and we have been lucky to take importantly placed SPP away from it.

The Trial of Blood is now complete and can be considered a success, and the Canetoads are in a much stronger position for their SWL debut.”