Exiles lose first European Match to St Polten Invaders
St Polten Invaders 42-14 Kent Exiles
23-10-2005
The Kent Exiles travelled to St Polten, Austria at the weekend to take part in the Autumn Bowl, an invitational tournament in the run-up to the national finals.
The Exiles travelled with a weakened squad of only 32 players, and jetted into Linz airport just 3 hours before kick-off, but were ready to play Exiles ball in Europe for the first time.
The final score was somewhat flattering to the Invaders, as the Exiles lost 42-14, despite the game being close throughout, the Exiles inexperienced unit was ground down towards the end of the game, conceding 3 touchdowns in the final quarter.
The Exiles shook the home crowd though by opening the scoring through an Alan Hands 5-yard run, following a good drive. A fitting way to score the Exiles first European TD, as Hands is one of the few Exiles remaining from their inception in 1990. Mat Tompsett kicked the Extra point.
The Exiles second TD came at the start of the third quarter, on a short pass from Joel Grundy to Grahame Warby, Tompsett was again good to bring the Exiles back into the game at 14-14.
Despite the loss the Exiles remained upbeat, "this was our first foray into Europe" commented defensive co-ordinator Nigel Hadley. "We've made some good friends over here, and have done ourselves proud with our performance. Already several guys have stepped up their game for 2006, and we've shown that with a full strength team we would be more than ready to compete at a higher level".
The Exiles now have a few weeks rest before returning to training for their assault on the Div 1a title, and would welcome contacts from any prospective players via their website www.kentexiles.co.uk
Selected game statistics:
Total Offence
Kent 140 yds (107 rushing,33 passing),
St Polten 295 yds (212 rushing,83 passing)
Passing
Grundy 4 of 13,33 yds,1 int,1 TD
Rushing
Muir - 8 att,61yds
Hands - 4 att,27yds,1 T
Smith- 4 att,9 yds
Receiving
Warby- 2 for 32 yds,1 TD
Boyle - 1 for 4 yds
Hands - 1 for -3 yds
Tackles
Samartin 8 solo,1 asst
Vickers 6 solo,2 asst
Alexis 5 solo,1 asst,1 sack
Maisey 4 solo,1 asst
Turner.P 4 solo
First Downs-St Polten 10 Exiles 8
Penalties -St Polten 10 for 90,Exiles 3 for 30
Box Scores 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final
St Polten 0 14 8 20 42
Exiles 7 0 7 0 14
Other scores from the weekend were:
Sunday - St. Pölten Invaders 8 vs. 26 Donetsk Scythians
Saturday - Danube Dragons 0 vs. 47 Donetsk Scythians
