DEFENCE TURNS TO OFFENCE IN ROCKTON

Both teams had an interception returned for a touchdown in a must-win game when the
Hamilton Hurricanes hosted the Windsor Fratmen at McCrae Field in Rockton on October
2nd.

“It was win or die,” said Head Coach Jason Hayes. “We could not get into the playoffs without a win today.”
After beating Windsor 36-17, the Hurricanes are guaranteed a playoff game. As for where and whom they play, is yet to be determined.
With the rain coming down to start the game, both teams ran the ball early. A couple of mishandled snaps and a surplus of penalties made it look like both teams were in for a sloppy game of football.
Dropping back to pass was an adventure with the wet ball, slippery grips, and rain falling in the eyes of receivers.
Gaining yards by way of the pass proved difficult.
With the Fratmen up 3-0 some pass attempts resulted in them going three-and-out after a ball went off a receiver’s hands and Matt Brady coming up with a big sack forcing a punt.
Now Hamilton wanted to move the chains by way of the pass, and it proved costly. First, a sack resulted in a loss of four yards followed by an interception returned for Windsor’s first touchdown giving them a 10-0 lead.
On Hamilton’s next possession, a good offensive mix of run and pass allowed the Hurricanes to put together their first real scoring threat. The drive even employed the “wildcat” offence when the ball was directly snapped to running back Ryan Rowe. A first-down catch by Malcolm Paul just short of the end zone allowed the Hurricanes to score on a short touchdown run.
Then the defence took over for the Hurricanes. A sack by Anthony Dinguana forced a Fratmen punt from deep in their territory. After a Hamilton field goal attempt was negated by a penalty, Windsor was backed-up with a punt. The defence stuffed both rushes, and Hayes called a timeout with the half coming to an end.
Hamilton took advantage after Windsor’s punt, with three consecutive first-down plays by Rowe. A fumbled snap caused a second-down play where quarterback Mike Chase found Joshua Pratt in the back of the end zone giving Hamilton a 14-10 lead going into halftime.
Pratt kept up the big plays in the second half. A pass meant for Pratt was tipped by the defensive back into the hands of the big wide receiver, leaving him alone for a big gain down to Windsor’s five-yard line. This play set up a touchdown pass to Paul.
The Hurricanes then mistakenly booted the ensuing kickoff out of bounds, allowing Windsor to start from their 40-yard line. With the blitz coming, the Fratmen quarterback had to throw before he wanted, resulting in a tipped ball falling into the hands of Hurricanes’ linebacker Aram Eisho.
In the fourth quarter, Samuel Donkor returned the favour to Windsor by intercepting a pass and returning it for a major of his own.
Windsor’s next possession was their best of the game. The Fratmen marched down the field after a new set of downs was granted to them after a penalty. They would make the score 30-17 after a short touchdown pass.
“Things that we have to sharpen up are just far too many penalties,” said Hayes. “We won’t be able to last in the playoffs with that.”
Windsor then failed to gain possession of an on-side kick, not allowing the ball to travel the necessary 10 yards.
After a three-and-out by Hamilton, Eisho came up with his second interception of the game when a pass attempt was tipped into the air. The Hurricanes kept their foot on the gas as Chase connected with Rowe for a touchdown making the final score 36-17. With little time left in the game, Windsor had no choice but to run out the clock.

By Dave Watson