Da Bolts Game 5

vs. Athel Loren Athletics

A beautiful day for Blood Bowl saw the Elves of the Athel Loren Athletics face off against Da Bolts, hungry to turn around their fortunes this season, and if that was not going to be possible then BBQ Wood Elf would fill the gap nicely.

A kick deep into Da Bolts half was gathered up by Thrower, Flash Git, who moved into a loose cage and began to advance the ball. Before he could get across the half-way line disaster loomed in the form of a particularly bouncy Wardancer who deftly lept into the cage and planted a particularly firm haircut into Flash's tenders. Needless to say the balls came loose and Flash would never be the same again (-1 AG despite re-constructive surgery from Da Bolts Apothecary). Given their track-record on ball-handling this looked bad for Da Boltz but it seemed that the newly acquired Blitzer Slash Spleenspilla hadn't read the playbook and he deftly scooped up the ball. Buoyed by this unexpected display of skill Da Bolts reformed the cage around Slash and saw him into the endzone after only four turns.

The prancing Wood Elves are notorious for quick scores so Da Boltz lined up expecting the worst but it seemed that Nuffle was still smiling on them because the kick landed only a couple of yards away from the centre-line. A couple of solid Blocks later and the Athletics' ball-carrier was within range of a blitz and the ball was knocked loose. Not content with his first display of skill Slash jumped on the ball and, with a blast of inspirational language so colourful that his team-mates could only feel proud to be on the same side as him, he was shepherded into the endzone for his second score with only two turns left on the clock.

It was then that the Elves decided to show just how good they were at scoring and crafted a magnificent two turn touchdown with a combination of hand-offs, leaps and dodes through tackle zones, rounded off with a pass and catch which made Da Bolts attempts at ball handling look pedestrian in comparison. At the end of the first half it was 2-1 to Da Boltz but they would be kicking off in the second!

And so it was that with the ball in hand from the start of the second half that the Athletics proceeded to set up to enact a replay of the end of the first and two turns later it was 2-2. Those War Dancers really are a handful and Da Bolts thought it was time to take the wind out of their sails... easier said than done!

6 turns left in the game and a win was on the cards for Da Bolts. Hak Bonechewa picked up the ball and a familiar cage formed around him. This time Slash was leading from the front putting the hurt on those pansy, yet slippery, elves. He capped off an exceptional rookie game with a particularly brutal hit on an elf Lineman, knocking him off his feet and, in fact, into several pieces, kill number 1 to the Orcs! Meanwhile the cage was advancing slowly up the field burning time off the clock but the elves were not done yet and those damn War Dancers were proving highly effective at targeting the ball carrier even in his cage.

The pressure eventually yielded a loose ball and while the elves could not capitalise on it, the damage was done to the Orc drive as they did not have enough time left to score. So the game ended 2-2, a step in the right direction for Da Bolts and a result they hope to build on in their next game. But the real story of the game for them was the emergence of Rookie Blitzer Slash Spleenspilla, the fans hope to see more of this great young prospect in the future.