Pirates break Cheetahs’ Herts
August 29th, 2018
East Kilbride Pirates 46 – Hertfordshire Cheetahs 0
The Pirates Under 19 side rounded off their season with a resounding win in the National Plate Final on a cold, wet day in Leeds.
East Kilbride kicked off and quickly had their opponenets under pressure. A wayward snap shot over the QB’s head and out of the endzone for a Safety on the thrid play from scrimmage. The Pirates got the ball back from the restart and took to their powerful running game. Eight consecutive rushes moved the ball to the Cheetahs’ 11-yard line and from there, QB Sam Montgomerie passed to Fraser McDonald for the first TD of the game, Montgomerie also found Scott McKigen for the 2PAT for an early 10-0 lead.
The Pirates’ next possession saw the game move into the 2nd Quarter, and an eight play drive concluded with a 2-yard TD run by Rory Hutton. Jack Cochrane duly ran in the extra points to make it 18-0. A short Herts drive ended with them trying to fool the Pirates on a fake punt, but the punter was stopped well short of the necessary yardage. However, one of the Pirates’ few mistakes on the day saw them cough up the ball on a fumble just three plays later. The Cheetahs couldn’t capitalise however, and despite an prolonged drive, they fell short on a long 4th Down
EK received the kick off to start the second half, and set about extending their lead. Running Back Lee Chappell carried home from 7 yards to cap a 9-play drive, although the 2PAT failed this ime round. Herts then went 3-and-out with a short punt leaving the ball still in Cheetahs territory. From there, Cochrane ran the ball home for a 48-yard score, leaving EK 30-0 ahead as the game moved into the final period.
As the teams turned around, the Pirates had made their way to the Cheetahs’ 8-yard line. On the first play of the period, Montgomerie foung McKigen in the back of the endzone, with the young receiver doing a great job of keeping himself in bounds as he caught the ball. Hutton also ran in the extra points to make it 38-0. The final TD came late in the game when Cuchrane added his second with an 11-yard run, Chappell adding the 2PAT. The game ended much as it had begun. Hertfordshire backed up in their own territory, and on 4th-and-20, another misplaced snap headed into the endzone. The punter kicked the ball off the ground, but failed to get it out of bounds. It was recovered by Jack Anderson for what appeared to be another TD. However, he was ruled to have recovered at the 1-yard line. The penalty for the illegal kick was declined and as time had expired, the game came to a confusing close.
Jack Cochrane was named as MVP and he collected his trophy before joining his team mates to raise the Plate and bring down the curtain on a successful campaign.
Report by Bill Campbell
Photo © What A Picture Photography
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