Berkshire Renegades travelled to Gloucester Banshees for their first away game of the 2009 campaign, only to return home on the wrong end of a 41-26 scoreline that doesn’t do justice to the close, hard-fought nature of the game.
Gloucester received the opening kickoff, but failed to move the ball further than midfield. On the Renegades’ opening drive, they moved the ball well on the ground thanks to a mix of hard running from Drew Cameron, Nick Church and Jason Brown and some neat passes from Paul Waddington to Simon Pearce, Jim White and Phil Giddings. After moving the ball 61 yards in 16 plays, the Renegades attempted a 31 yard field goal, which was blocked.
The Banshees opened the scoring on the ensuing drive, making the most of running back Shaun Griffin to move the ball into the Renegades five-yard line. The Renegades defense held strong for two plays, but on third down quarterback Derek Yenerall found his way across the line from a yard out. The point-after kick was blocked, and the scoreboard read 6-0 to the Banshees.
Berkshire came right back though, Brown getting good yardage on the ground before Waddington connected with rookie receiver Giddings for a 42 yard touchdown pass. The 2-point conversion attempt was no good, but the scores were tied 6-6.
The Renegades took the lead at the end of the first quarter, this time with Waddington finding Simon Pearce for a 9-yard scoring pass. Neal Kent’s point-after kick was good, and it was 6-13 to the Renegades. The lead would not last long though, as at the start of the second quarter Yenerall hooked up with Gary Williams for a 33 yard touchdown pass, and Iain Vanes’ point-after kick was good – all square at 13-13.
Turnovers stalled the next two Renegades drives, the second fumble giving the Banshees the ball on the Berkshire 7-yard line. Griffin wasted no time in giving Gloucester the lead again, breaking the plane from 7 yards out. The point-after kick was wide left, and it was 19-13 to Gloucester.
In trying to score again before the half, Berkshire turned the ball over two more times, but the Renegades defense would not allow the Banshees to score again – at the half, it was 19-13.
Berkshire started the second half strongly, Cameron grinding out good yardage with his gutsy up-the-middle runs. The drive stalled around midfield though, and the ball was punted to the Banshees. Following a long first down run, the Renegades defense dug in and gave no ground, forcing Gloucester to punt back. Berkshire put together another controlled drive, going 71 yards in 9 plays, culminating in Cameron barrelling across the line from five yards out. The 2-point attempt was no good, and the scores were even again, 19-19.
At the start of the fourth quarter, the back-and-forth tussle showed no signs of letting up, both teams closing on the opponent’s endzone only to turn the ball over on downs. Berkshire broke the deadlock in stunning fashion, when Giddings caught a short pass from Waddington, before turning on the speed and racing down the sideline for a 78-yard score. Kent’s point-after kick was good, and it was 19-26 to the visitors.
The lead lasted but a few minutes, with Griffin moving the ball into the Renegades half before Yenerall connected with Kieren Helps for a 27 yard touchdown. The combination worked again on the 2-point attempt, and Gloucester had the narrowest of leads, 27-26.
Berkshire’s aggressive offensive style saw the turnover curse strike again, proving far more costly than before. Firstly, Gloucester scored off the back of a Waddington interception, as Griffin recorded his second touchdown of the day, going over from 12 yards out. The point-after kick was good, and the lead had stretched to 34-26. To round out the day, another interception was returned 45 yards by Samuel Harding for a touchdown, and another successful conversion set the final score at 41-26 to the Banshees.
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