16 May 2011
Pirates dig deep to secure win

Yorkshire Rams 6 - East Kilbride Pirates 13

East Kilbride notched up their second win of the season away to the Yorkshire Rams on Sunday, but not before receiving an almighty scare as a determined Yorkshire side made the Pirates dig deep to come up with the victory.

The visitors kicked off on a dull and windy day in Leeds and immediately forced the Rams to go 3-and-out. However, a fumbled punt return gave them possession back inside the East Kilbride half. Yorkshire made some yardage before deciding to attempt a long Field Goal.

The 45-yard attempt held up in the wind and was actually fielded short of the goal-line before being returned. The Pirates started their first drive by allowing a sack on quarterback Ryan Hunter and also lost yardage on their next two plays before punting.

They quickly got the ball back though when Jamie Charles recovered a fumble by falling on a loose ball, and the Pirates did start to gain some positive yardage. The drive stalled when a 4th Down pass attempt fell incomplete, but Yorkshire were again forced to punt as the first quarter came to an end.

The Pirates were starting to get into their stride and opened the second period with a 9-play, 72-yard scoring drive, rounded off by a 23-yard run from Hunter. Steven Kane missed the conversion, giving East Kilbride a 6-0 lead.

The home side immediately responded and put together a long drive of their own, kept alive by two long runs from Yomi Okuboyejo, before fellow running back Adim Irozuru plunged over from the 5-yard line. A penalty on Yorkshire moved the conversion attempt back 5 yards and a bad snap ensured that the game remained tied at 6-6, a score that wasn’t to change before half time.

The points drought continued throughout the third period, and as the game moved into the final quarter the result was still in doubt. The momentum swung towards the Pirates when a perfect punt from Ryan Hunter rolled out of bounds at the Rams’ 1-yard line. Pressure on the home side saw their quarterback throw an unwise pass which was intercepted by Ivor Clark to leave his team mates only 12 yards for the go-ahead score.

This they duly did, twice! The first score was called back when the referees mistakenly blew to stop the game, thinking that running back Iain Dick had been tackled with the ball. However, they had been fooled by a fake hand-off and failed to notice that Hunter was heading to the endzone with the ball in his hands. Fortunately, two plays later Hunter was again in the endzone and this time it counted.

Kane converted to make it 13-6 with just over 7 minutes left to play. Yorkshire mounted one last drive, and aided by a “roughing the passer” call on an incomplete 4th Down pass and a harsh ejection (sending off) they made it down to the Pirates’ 5-yard line. The East Kilbride defense remained resolute and held out the first three attempts then recovered a fumble on the fourth to regain possession and allow the Pirates to run out the game.

The tough win takes East Kilbride to a 2-0 record and they return to Yorkshire on May 29 where they take on Doncaster Mustangs at the Keepmoat Stadium.