Northside Cobras (2) vs Moreton Bay Buggers (3)
Semi Final 2 is in my unbiased opinion the game to watch. These 2 teams have up and down performances all season. Cobras with a dominant first half of the season and then their fall from grace losing to UQ. Bugs started in fine style loosing their first 3 games only to pull it all back to finish 3rd. Cobras will go in favorites but this is far from a walk over win for the snakes from the North.
Northside Cobras
North is were it is at, At least if your are a hipster or a stylish uni student. Cobras bring a flair to their game which make their game entertaining to watch. I would go as far to say pretty in fact far from it, they bring the unexpected with ruthless passion.
Last seasons wooden spooners have been reinvigorated by the return of founding father wetnose and the addition of T-bone booth from south of the border. Also by cutting some of their weaker players sees cobras shed many of their turnovers and increase their potency on offense. In addition to this the snakes play an excellent defence strangling teams into submission. Against the bugs offence I would expect the cobras defence to generate plenty of turns, however it will be their ability to hold onto the disc that will determine if they dominate this game.
Players to watch on the Cobras will be Dan "the vegan" who has to be respected as a threat. He will be smiling all the way to the end zone if you give him an inch. Finn will need to work hard on defence in the absence on Dr. Grundles and his killer Mo.
Moreton Bay Buggers
The once dominant force in brisbane mens Ultimate has been plugging along in recent years without the drive of its spiritual leader in Mike Nield. Now this team is pretty darn old team with only a couple of guys below 25 and not too many more below 30. But with age generally comes experience with a number of bugs players ultimate careers old enough to head off to high school, while Buzz's is about to graduate university.
The Bugs early season was one of experimentation and high hopes and while they did loose 3 straight they were 3 close games. They reverted back to a traditional no fuss bugs offence and surprise surprise they started to win games. This team isn't about to blow any team off the field with athleticism and height but they do bring desire and mongrel enough to roll any team on their day. Hinging on the work of TJ, Trev, Spesh and Jangles in the middle of the field to get the disc moving, the bugs offense has been gaining momentum when they need it most.
Defence is probably always going to be an older teams Achilles' heel and Bugs are no different. Often struggling to match up across the park the Bugs have become a strong zone unit trying to force the disc toward its stronger defenders. Expect plenty of zone especially if there happens to be wind.
Players to watch. Spesh G the original Spesh has to be respected on the field. You don't win nationals just by being on a team with Gak. Oh wait maybe you do but you need to at least get selected on the team and Spesh is definitely good enough to make a nationals team. Often overlooked when being match up on man he is likely to cause you plenty of headaches if you do. For any new player to the game you must pay attention to what Buzz does with the disc. Not only does he have some of the best throws in the game he also has some creative shot selection and a knowledge of the game that only 20 years of ultimate will bring. Self promotion time, Jangles will be a significant part of the offence for the Bugs and will fill in where ever he is needed. With his old man hip finally starting to come good you might be lucky enough to see him layout, but I wouldn't hold your breathe.
Jangles Prediction: I would really like this one to go to golden point. I expect the game to go the way of Cobras but I intend to make them earn it.
No comments:
Post a Comment