UTS Gridiron

It is my great pleasure to announce that the 2012 Season for the UTS Gators will be under way in a few weeks.

First we’d like to invite you to our Welcome BBQ and registration day:

UTS Gridiron welcome BBQ and rego day

Where: Bicentenial Park, Sydney Olympic Park (we’ll have a banner and taken over a public BBQ, otherwise look for the guys throwing around some pig skin)

When 3rd June Sunday

Time: 12pm

Contact: Marco 0408 461 014

Please RSVP so we can get initial numbers for the BBQ and events.

Can you also please bring your medicare card to get your rego papers and info out of the way.

After the fun and introductions we’ll be throwing you right into the fray with our first training session on Tuesday:

UTS pre-season launch

Where: Powells creeek reserve, Concord

When: 5th June Tuesday

Time: 7pm

Contact: Marco 0408 461 014

Bring some football boots, initial first installment of $150 for registration and equipment hire (full costs will be distributed on registration day, and on the day of training day if you cannot attend) and friends who are interested.

Looking forward to seeing you there to begin another season of smashmouth football!

The UTS Gridiron Football Club will be holding its AGM Wednesday 11 April @ UTS from 7.15pm

Executive Positions are:

• President
• Vice-President
• Secretary
• Treasurer
• University Liaison Officer

Should you require job descriptions on any of the above positions feel free to email info@utsgridiron.com

With Sydney finally experiencing some good weather, Pennant Hills played host to the biggest win of the season so far, defeating the Central Coast Sharks 64-14.

The game began an even contest, with the two sides trading blows, both scoring Touchdowns along the ground. However after forcing the Sharks to punt for the first time in the game, UTS began to pull away from there, piling on the points including a whopping 31 in the 2^nd quarter alone to beat a very tough Central Coast team, who were up against it before kickoff, being down on numbers. As the game wore on, they unfortunately suffered some injuries, including the loss of their starting QB which paved the way for the final score-line of 64-14.

The highlight of the game was a terrific Kick Return touchdown, started by Joshua Weeks and finished by o-lineman Simon Gardner after he received a Benji-esque flick pass to go in for the score. Definitely an early contender for play of the year.

Not to be outdone by the special teams highlight, both offense and defense put together fantastic displays with the offense getting it done both on the ground and through the air, and the defense recording two turnovers.

A good result for the Gators, however the Sharks are to be commended for remaining in this contest despite mounting adversity. They displayed their toughness in holding UTS to 14 2^nd half points, preventing a further blow-out. With the win, the team moves to 3-1 and hope to take it to the Mustangs next weekend.

On a side note, Ramy Bchai deserves a shout out here for his help with the various injury situations throughout the game with his medical knowledge, many of which were for the other team. He is an asset to the team and personified the great sportsmanship we all strive for here at UTS.

‘Hit someone’. These two words were the theme of the day in this matchup. Coach Bosco yelled them to his side on the opening kickoff of the game, and boy did they listen. There were no easy yards on UTS (or on Bondi for that matter) in this highly physical contest, and UTS came away with a hard-fought victory, defeating the Bondi Raiders 38-14.

The Gators bounced back well after the tough week 2 loss against the Pirates by playing smash-mouth football. Tough running, efficient passing and terrific blocking by the o-line saw the offense find a grove and consistently move the chains against the Bondi D.

The Gator D on the other hand was just as tough, consistently getting into the Bondi backfield and making tackles for a loss on early downs. However to their credit, Bondi often found a way to get the tough yards on 3rd down and enter the red zone on numerous occasions. The defense may have bended, but it didn’t break until the team had built a comfortable lead, coming up with the necessary plays on multiple 4th and goals to keep Bondi out of the end zone and to get the ball back into the hands of the offense.

The play of the game was a terrific one-handed TD grab by TE Matt Schwarz, making a tough catch look easy for the score. Also, congratulations to HB Zac Li scoring his first Division 1 TD on a nice run, making several nice cuts on his way to the end zone.

The Gators responded well to the close loss of last week with a solid outing in this one, playing sound football in all phases to grind out the win. Hopefully they continue to play smart, physical football as the season progresses.

The Gators couldn’t hold on against the Pirates in week 2, losing this one 24-20 after leading by 8 midway through the final quarter.

The game went blow for blow right until the end, with the Pirates able to maintain the intensity on show by both teams just a while longer than the Gators. It was an even contest with neither team dominating. The Pirates rushing attack was just too much for a good UTS defense in the end, yielding 4 scores on the ground to Western Sydney, 2 of which came in the 4th quarter amidst their game-winning fight back.

The offense looked good in patches both running and passing for UTS, however their inconsistency kept the Pirates within striking distance and they never developed a comfortable lead, evident in the way Western Sydney chased them down in the 4th quarter.

The defense played hard-nosed football throughout, however their intensity was matched by the Pirates offense which seemingly took its toll, wearing the D down as the game wore on, definitely a factor in their 4th quarter comeback. Despite forcing two first-half turnovers, they just couldn’t make plays down the stretch to hang on to that lead.

Special teams was marred by an early muffed punt which saw the Pirates convert a short field into points, inviting them back into the contest after UTS established a rhythm on offense and forced another stop on D.

A tough one to swallow for the Gators. Hopefully they can turn it around next week against a tough Bondi Raiders outfit.