Game Report – Young Pirates storm first tournament

Saturday saw East Kilbride Pirates’ Youth team take part in their first competitive tournament in Edinburgh, and against all the odds, they remained undefeated and came away as winners of the four team competition. East Kilbride also secured three of the six Most Valuable Player awards for the tournament.

Game 1: Having lost heavily to the Glasgow Tigers in a scrimmage just three weeks earlier, the young Pirates were determined to show how much they have progressed in that short time. The game started slowly, with the wet and windy conditions proving difficult for both teams. So much so that the game remained scoreless as it reached half time. However, the first play after the interval brought a scoring run from Running Back Callum Derrick to give East Kilbride a 6-0 advantage. That lead was short lived as Glasgow levelled things up on their next possession. Late in the game, Quarterback Matthew Waddell passed to Douglas Alexander to regain the lead for the Pirates and a second rushing touchdown for Derrick sealed the victory.

Final Score: East Kilbride Pirates - 18 Glasgow Tigers 6.

MVP: Callum Derrick.

Game 2: Pre-tournament favourites Inverclyde Phoenix were next up, and when Pirates’ Quarterback Grant McMaster was sacked for a safety on the very first play of the game, it looked like the form book might be right. Surprisingly though, those were the only points Inverclyde would score. A Derrick run coupled with a conversion pass from McMaster to Scott Marshall gave East Kilbride an 8-2 lead. “Dynamite” Derrick soon added his second touchdown of the match to extend that lead to 14-2 at the break. After the interval, Quarterback Waddell found Receiver Marshall in the endzone, padding the lead to 20-2, before a McMaster to Marshall completion finished the scoring. In addition to the four touchdowns, this was an outstanding performance by the Pirates’ Defence who repeatedly shut down any Phoenix attacks. Top tackler was Fraser Hannah with five as well as one fumble recovery and an interception.

Final Score: East Kilbride Pirates - 26 Inverclyde Phoenix 2.

MVP: Fraser Hannah

Game 3: Tournament hosts Edinburgh Coyotes provided the opposition in the final encounter of the day. Both sides had their squad numbers reduced as the day’s exertions began to take their toll, and more were to drop out during a physical encounter. East Kilbride took the lead midway through the first half with Callum Derrick again running the ball home. The Pirates went for the 2-point conversion, but the pass attempt was intercepted and returned all the way for a deuce by the Coyotes. That made the score 6-2 and there was no change to that before half time. Indeed there was no more scoring until deep in the second half, when Nose Tackle Liam McMillan recovered a fumble in the endzone for a touchdown. Edinburgh immediately responded with a touchdown of their own, brining the score to 12-8 in the Pirates’ favour. It was to be East Kilbride who had the last word, recording a safety when a fierce McMillan hit forced his opponent to fumble the ball out of bounds in the endzone. McMillan had no fewer than four fumble recoveries in this game and seven in total on the day.

Final Score: East Kilbride Pirates 14 - Edinburgh Coyotes 8.

MVP: Liam McMillan

Pirates’ Squad: Douglas Alexander, Daniel Barbour, Aaron Callaghan, Callum Derrick, Fraser Hannah, James Herd, Andrew Lawson, Grant McMaster, Paul McNulty, Liam McMilllan, Scott Marshall, Andrew Prentice and Matthew Waddell.

The Youth team’s next league encounter will be on Saturday 11June, when they take on Glasgow Tigers, Clyde Valley Falcons and Inverclyde Phoenix in a tournament in Gourock.

Game report by Bill Campbell: Pic C/o EK Pirates