It is amazing to think that just over 5 months ago I hadn’t really heard of the Legends Football League (LFL) but now my life wouldn’t be the same without the Women of the Gridiron!
With the above in mind let me take you on a journey through my highs and lows of my first LFL season. The aim of this article is to have you craving the next dosage of LFL which starts in Canada in just a few short weeks.
Okay so on with the plan, it's here where most season reviews would give you a week by week breakdown of the games and which way they went, that is not how we work here at Ballhawksnest! Instead of this you will get my spin on the league, it's players and most importantly how I would like to see the game develop to improve fan experience and player safety.
Let us start with some players who have caught my eye this year for their outstanding performances on the field. First up is a young safety out of Jacksonville who had incredibly big shoes to fill this year. I am of course referring to Adrian Purnell and it is fair to say that Adrian did not disappoint this season. In fact I would go as far to say that she has in my eyes definitely made the safety position her own.
With the above in mind let me take you on a journey through my highs and lows of my first LFL season. The aim of this article is to have you craving the next dosage of LFL which starts in Canada in just a few short weeks.
Okay so on with the plan, it's here where most season reviews would give you a week by week breakdown of the games and which way they went, that is not how we work here at Ballhawksnest! Instead of this you will get my spin on the league, it's players and most importantly how I would like to see the game develop to improve fan experience and player safety.
Let us start with some players who have caught my eye this year for their outstanding performances on the field. First up is a young safety out of Jacksonville who had incredibly big shoes to fill this year. I am of course referring to Adrian Purnell and it is fair to say that Adrian did not disappoint this season. In fact I would go as far to say that she has in my eyes definitely made the safety position her own.
In the first game of the season Adrian just bullied the rookies from Atlanta and her stats for the day included two defensive touchdowns. Adrian went on to finish the season with 12.5 tackles, four interceptions and a fumble recovery. I know that the numbers may not sound great but don't forget they only play four games and in two of those Jacksonville destroyed their opponents with offence. If you don't believe when I tell you how good she is check out the story of game nine in her own words courtesy of the LFL you tube channel:
Another defensive player that I have been impressed with this year is Theresa Petruziello of the Cleveland Crush. Cleveland have had their ups and downs this year but Petruziello has been the only constant. It is fair to say that she has been an absolute tackle machine recording a total of 20 tackles, one sack and one interception. Theresa also contributed heavily to the offense with six receptions for 88 yards and four touchdowns. I just know you love it when I put in lots of video's and so here is the wow clip from game 12 which is a highlight reel of Petruziello's tackles ;)
Let's now take a look at some of the offensive players who really stood out for me this year. First up to the plate is Anne (pronounced Annie) Erler of the Green Bay Chill. This year Anne led the most potent passing attack in the league throwing for 550 yards and 16 touchdowns. As with most of the other great players Anne plays both sides of the ball and earned a spot on the all fantasy team at free safety! The final thing that impresses me is how she earns everyone's respect by what she does on the field as you will see from this next clip:
Next up we have a running back who is a massive reason that her team made the playoffs, when I think about it, it was much like how Minnesota road Adrian Peterson to the playoffs this year as well. The player I am referring to is Chicago's own Chrisdell Harris, she is an elite running back who has not only electric pace but great strength to bounce of tacklers. If I was an LFL coach I would always be telling my players to tackle low! Now I'm sure there are those of you out there who may be sick of the videos by now so there isn’t one below, however if you do want some Harris highlights click on the picture below:
The above is just a handful of all the players who have really shined this season but I feel we must move on before I talk your ears off just about the quarterbacks alone.
Okay so you have heard my take on the great players of 2013, now let us move onto a few things that I have picked up on this year that I would ideally like to see changed. Before I do though I would like to say that I think the LFL team and it's owner Mitch Mortazza have done an unbelievable job of bringing the league this far.
Okay so you have heard my take on the great players of 2013, now let us move onto a few things that I have picked up on this year that I would ideally like to see changed. Before I do though I would like to say that I think the LFL team and it's owner Mitch Mortazza have done an unbelievable job of bringing the league this far.
Right onto the things I would like to see changed and the first would have to be to have more outdoor arenas like in Philadelphia and some of the new arenas for LFL Australia, not only does it provide a more realistic experience it makes the game safer for the players. There is no wall down the sideline, instead this is replaced with a proper grass pitch and marked sidelines with a big run off area decreasing the risk of potential neck injuries when players get tackled into the wall! There is also the benefits of playing on a grass pitch like a decreased chance of knee and ankle injuries as often on turf it is easy for ankles and feet to get stuck in one position and the rest of the body turns or lands on them awkwardly.
I would also like to see better head gear / helmets for the players, with the current speed of the games and power in the tackles, the amount of player concussions is only likely to increase. I am sure you would all agree that this is just not acceptable as without the athletes you have no sport.
The final issue I currently have is that still after four years the league is classed as an amateur sport and when you are putting your life and career on the line the least you can expect is to be paid for it. I must say that I have read that the players do get very good medical coverage of up to $100,000 for each injury incident and also all of their game expenses paid like travel and accommodation but I do not feel this is enough. For the sake of the players who love the league I hope something is done to address these issues as the game continues to spread across the globe.
The final issue I currently have is that still after four years the league is classed as an amateur sport and when you are putting your life and career on the line the least you can expect is to be paid for it. I must say that I have read that the players do get very good medical coverage of up to $100,000 for each injury incident and also all of their game expenses paid like travel and accommodation but I do not feel this is enough. For the sake of the players who love the league I hope something is done to address these issues as the game continues to spread across the globe.
Right let's finish off on a positive as despite the above comments I love the league and will continue to watch every second of LFL action.
I would like to finish off with a regular feature from my blog and that is the offensive and defensive impact players of the year, otherwise known as the 'Megatron' award and the 'Mr Ray Lewis' award!
I would like to finish off with a regular feature from my blog and that is the offensive and defensive impact players of the year, otherwise known as the 'Megatron' award and the 'Mr Ray Lewis' award!
On this occasion I shall start with the 'Megatron' award and this years runner up is someone who led their team to yet another playoff run but just fell short in the playoffs and that is Ashley Salerno. A few other players worthy of a mention are Laurel Creel from Seattle Mist who went unbeaten in the regular season, and Anna Heasman Wide Receiver for Green Bay Chill who lead the league in receiving touchdowns.
Now drum roll please …........... the winner of the 2013 LFL Megatron Award is Heather 'Rockstar' Furr of Chicago Bliss. The main reason for Heather to win this award is her exceptional play when the season was on the line against Green Bay and throughout the playoffs. There is one play that really sticks in my head and it was a touchdown pass to Chrisdell Harris with the game tied at 12 all against the Los Angeles Temptation in the divisional playoffs. When I first wrote this article there was no highlight of this to be found anywhere however thanks to Miss Heather 'Rockstar' Furr I now have this video of the touchdown to share with you:
Finally we finish of my favourite award and that is the 'Mr Ray Lewis' award for 2013. Again I shall start off with the runner up and that is Jacqueline Smyth of the Omaha Heart. Jacqueline is everything you would want a middle linebacker to be, she is tough, tackles hard and inspires the players around her. Again a few more players worthy of a mention are Saige Steinmetz, Lauren Ziegler both from Jacksonville and Ogom Chijindu from Los Angeles Temptation.
So without any further delays I am proud to announce my Ray Lewis Award winner for the 2013 season is Adrian Purnell of Jacksonville Breeze. It was a tough decision this year as there were a few quarterbacks who could have also won this award due to playing both sides of the ball but for all of the reasons previously mentioned Adrian has been brilliant this year and I can not wait to see how she improves on this season.
If you would like to check out all of the scores and stats from the season so you can come up with your own award winners, check out www.lflus.com. As with all of my articles if you would like to get in touch, post any comments or volunteer yourself for the fanzone interviews on my NFL blog then please use the comments box below or any of the social media icons above.
Well that raps it up from me for now but remember 'The arena comes alive, the crowd rises to their feet, for these women warriors!'
Well that raps it up from me for now but remember 'The arena comes alive, the crowd rises to their feet, for these women warriors!'
LFL Pictures and videos courtesy of www.lflus.com - www.lfl360.com - www.youtube.com/mylfl