It was the battle of the titans in Aros BBL when the two highest rated teams met today. For the first time the bunnies had the highest team rating but only with 4. It is also the two most popular teams in the league and the match began in front of a season record crowd of 107k.
The elfs were missing Maria Juana but the other 12 players managed to show up as did all 16 from DD in spite of old injuries.
DD seemed to be the favourite against the bunnies whose team has been decimated a lot since they took DD with a 5-2 win last season on their way to the championship. But the elfs had already a dozen wins in a row, only one from the 10 season old record set by Bad Moon Provorcs, and did they come out blazing!
With a quick snap it was suddenly easy to clear a highway for league top scorer Thora Rulle. It was Sinistra Dextre who had placed himself too close to the LoS, and he paid dearly when Sarah Cen could block him and broke his collarbone (-ST). A blitz then cleared the way, and Synne Buch once more connected with Thora Rulle who scored for 1-0 in turn 1.
Before DD had a chance of getting started the elfs came blitzing down their pitch towards the ball. Luckily this time they did not get the target Enasni the Death Eater down and he could side step to where the ball came down. The catch was failed, but the ball ended on the ground in only Ann Griff’s zone. That was bad for her! First Ramses the 5th smashed her hand, and when the apo managed to save this Xorn fouled her so she fractured and arm, and she will miss next match anyway. But she was quickly revenged next turn when Helle Dige Asen broke Erik’s neck so bad he failed to regenerate.
But before this the ball had been recovered by Mean Midget and kept safe in a cage. The elfs tried to stay clear of the undeads, but the whole cage pursued the standing elfs. Enasni the Death Eater tried to use his new diving tackle skill to stop the elfs from dodging but it was completely in vain.
At one point Helle Dige Asen dodged away from him, only to blitz him, but without luck there, so suddenly she was stranded on the side line with a diving tackler in front of her. But she continued to dodge away from him through his TZ without any problem (4+, 5+, 4+). In dismay Xorn fouled an elf KO, but was then thrown out. (Later Argos was also send off for fouling only a stun.)
But suddenly the elfs failed to be careful with their superstar! Thora Rulle was left standing unguarded within the reach of one of DD’s tacklers Mr. Stone Cold. He got assist and pushed it once to blitz the one-turner! At first she seemed to stay in her feet, but no he took her down, and her fragile armour did not hold up and BAM she was DEAD! The apo was already gone but at least she will not join DD as a zombie since they already had a full roster.
The elfs where dumbstruck and before DD scored securely in turn 8 (by Mean Midget) no less than five of them had ended up in the KO box, leaving only 4 on pitch. 1-1. But all 5 came back in and it was 10 vs. 11 for second half. (Rolling 6+ 6+ 6+ 5+ 5+ on the KO rolls).
This time it was DDs turn to make the quick snap and the ball was secured in a cage, and in turn 2 Ra BH Eva Luér. But the elfs was not going to give up this time. And when Wolf also was send off (6+) for fouling only a stun the elfs were not really outnumbered. And now the long struggle against the undead cage began. It seemed unlikely that the elves should be able to get into it, and with the guards around the ball carrier only the St 4 players could even hope of getting a one dice blitz. But first they had to dodge into the cage on 5+. Twice in a row this succeeded without using the RR but the RR was spend in vain on the blocks trying to get the clean needed.
Past the mid of the half it looked like DD had it. Mean Midget was safe in the cage, and Mr. Stone Cold made his second casualty when he gave Thera Π a gouged eye. Both ST 4 players Helle Dige Asen and Metha Stase was cornered between Enasni the Death Eater’s diving tackle and several other players. But this did not bother the two strong elfs, although there were no RRs left. First to escape was Helle Dige Asen who could then removed some assist after two go for its (4+, 2+, 2+).
And then the match winning blitz move came from Metha Stase She dodged Enasni the Death Eater into another TZ (using dodge) then managed to dodge away from this guy, and then through a TZ to the cage and into the cage. Finally the one dice came up on a clean! (5+ (with RR), 2+, 3+, 5+, 6+ (clean)). And the ghoul Mean Midget was killed instantly! The ball ended out of reach of the elves though,
But in the process of clearing the path to the ball a RR was spend on a bad block, and with Mean Midget’s sure hands gone forever, it was too much to ask Enasni the Death Eater to pickup the ball. Luckily it ended up in 4 TZ!
It took some go for it and dodges (without RR but only 3 times 2+) to get a two dice blitz on one of these 4 players. This opened up a path to the ball for super star thrower Synne Buch. After two dodges she got a chance to grab the ball, in 3 TZ thugh. But her sure hands gave her the ball.
For a short moment she considered dodging away (forgetting the diving tackler who stood next to the ball after failing to pick it up last turn). But then she would not be able to pass long enough to the waiting Gro Myko. So from 3 TZ she passed straight over the head of Ramses the 5th. At first it seemed like it would be a fumble but her passing skill made it right on the spot (6+ when 4 would have been a fumble). Of course Gro Myko caught the ball (she rolled 6+ when 2 was needed!)
Even though her team-mates, including super thrower Synne Buch, was lodged against the undead mummies she choose to wait at the EZ to secure the win and making it 13 straight victories for the bunnies tying the old record.
This meant that the undead got a chance at letting their anger out on the other bunnies! In the end it was the crowd who did the most, when first Mr. Stone Cold blitzed Vira Go into the crowd who gave her a concussion, and then after two push backs, Synne Buch was send into the crowd on a subsequent push when Ramses the 5th smacked down another elf. But to the relief of the bunnies coach the crowd “only” BH the thrower. Hoonaz reanimated tried to revenge Mean Midget but was send off when he fouled Metha Stase KO. But in the last turn there were no one to blitz, so for the first time Ramses the 5th made a foul, and he was not even send off, but it was also just a stun.
And then Gro Myko could score the winning TD ending the match 2-1.
The two top rated teams helped each other lower their team rating considerably as the two TD scorer from the first half both were killed. Thora Rulle was good for 36 TR point and Mean Midget for 15. So neither team now has the highest rating. Also they have helped their next opponent a great deal as bunnies has 4 less players for next match and can only buy one, and DD has 3 less and can also only buy one. And both teams next opponent are Slann Renegades.
The fans decided to stay with their team and with the high gate both team managed to scrape in some money (40 vs. 30 k).
The MVP for the bunnies went to Ann Griff who took two SI injuries in DD’s first turn (the games 3rd!) Ramses the 5th got DD’s MVP for making his first cas of the season and causing another on Synne Buch by sending her into the crowd!
It was a bad beat for the bunnies to loose their top scorer and have 3 MNG as well, but the win must sweeten the other looses considerably. DD’s Necromancer just has to go home and try to calculate how unrealistically lucky the bunnies where with their sixes on dodges etc…
But if DD could not stop the bunnies winning streak in their own match, will it then be enough for the next opponent that the bunnies are 4 players short… Find out tomorrow!
