Mustangs & Destroyers post wins in Week 2 NS Spring League action (Midget RECAP)

In the Nova Scotia Spring Indoor League, week two action saw one team beginning their 2013 spring campaign with a victory while another team posted their first win of the season.

The Metro Mustangs began their season with a thrilling victory over the Timberlea Renegades 29-23 this past Saturday at the East Hants Sports Complex in Lantz.  In the other game, the Dartmouth Destroyers got their first win of the season as they trounced the Valley Bulldogs 35-9.

The Halifax Argos enjoyed a bye this past week.

METRO MUSTANGS 29, TIMBERLEA RENEGADES 23:

On Saturday, the Metro Mustangs began their 2013 spring campaign in exciting fashion. Matt Bayne scored on the game winning interception to give the team their first win of the season, 29-23 over the Timberlea Renegades.

Taylor MacDonald led on-field assault as he amassed 162 rushing yards on 30 carries, two receptions for two yards, three returns for 80 yards and 244 all-purpose yards. Ryan Keays chipped in with 12 yards on four carries, 110 yards on four returns and 122 all-purpose yards. Garrett Jewers accumulated 24 yards on two carries, Matt Zwicker registered four yards on three carries and Aiden Majury had four yards on two carries.

The Mustangs defense came up big in this victory.  Not only did Bayne score the winning touchdown on an interception, he also had a solo tackle, an assisted tackle, and a blocked kick.  Will Chamberlain also dashed all the way to the end zone after catching an interception and added two solo tackles and one assisted tackle.

Jesse Boudreau caught an interception as well as registering four solo tackles and five assisted tackles.  Brad Bevan chipped in with 10 assisted tackles and two solo tackles.  Other key contributors on defense included Jay Hachey (four solo tackles, one assisted tackles), Malcolm Hyde (six assisted tackles, a blocked punt, and a sack), Dustin Buchanan (three assisted tackles, one solo tackle), Kyle MacDonald (a solo tackle, an assisted tackle, and a fumble recovery), Tyler Robichaud (a solo tackle, an assisted tackle) and Andre Boudreault (an assisted tackle).

With this victory, the Mustangs are 1-0 on the season while the Renegades are an even 1-1 with the loss.

“Needing to rest Sean Muir at the quarterback position was a big challenge coming in to the game,” commented Mustangs Head Coach Greg Bayne after the win.  “Morgan Laws who was our back up was also away.”

“Garett Jewers was asked to step in with little preparation and showed his athleticism and football experience. We asked a lot of our “Go To” player Taylor MacDonald, who carried the ball 30 times. Our offense did a great job given the tough situation against a strong defense.”

In his postgame assessment, Bayne said the defensive played a significant role in enabling the Mustangs to come away with the win.

“The key to keeping us in the game was our ability to stop the run and create pressure up front on defense,” reflected Bayne.  “The whole front seven did a great job with linebacker Brad Bevan getting a lot of work and rising to the occasion.”

“Malcolm Hyde registered a sack and a blocked punt. Turnovers were key as well with Jesse Boudreau getting and interception and Will Chamberlain getting an interception touchdown and the game winning interception touchdown by Matt Bayne.”

In spite of the win, there were certain areas of the Mustangs’ game that was exposed by the Renegades.  The team hopes to improve on those areas in the coming days.

“Work has been limited on our special teams and it showed,” explained Bayne.  “We will get to work cleaning up our execution and make sure we improve in that area.”

“Penalties and discipline was a challenge and we will review this with our players and make improvements in this area as well.”

The Metro Mustangs will face a tough task as the team will face the undefeated Halifax Argos on Saturday April 20th, 2013 at 3:30pm at East Hants Sports Complex.  Meanwhile, the Renegades will look to get back into the win column in their next match-up the Valley Bulldogs on Saturday April 20th, 2013 at 12:00pm at East Hants Sports Complex.

DARTMOUTH DESTROYERS 35, VALLEY BULLDOGS 9:

On Saturday afternoon, the Dartmouth Destroyers notched their first game of the season by defeating the Valley Bulldogs 35-9.

With this win, the Destroyers are evened up at 1-1 while the Bulldogs slip to the bottom of the standings with a 0-2 record.

Destroyers Head Coach Louie Velocci gave a summary of what took place in the game.

“This past Saturday Dartmouth Destroyers beat the Valley 35-9 in our second game of the season,” commented Velocci.  “The first points on the board came from a 35+ yard field goal by Joe Russell.”

“The Destroyer momentum continued to push the points on the board through a combination of disciplined football, hard work and special teams (accounting for 9 points overall).  Other points came from a 62 yard return at the start of the second half by Liam McVarnock who also pushed through several other majors during the first and second half.  The final scoring opportunity of the game came with approximately 30 seconds left on the clock and Destroyers on a 2^nd and 8 yard mid-field position. Nick Bronson our QB connected with Nate Skeete deep who had beaten the corner and safety and easily ran it in for a major.”

After the loss, Bulldogs Head Coach Stephen Melanson assessed what went wrong in the game.  However, a couple of players did put forth strong efforts in the loss.

“Valley had another tough game,” reflected Melanson.  “The players need to realize that they have certain assignments which they need adhere to.”

“If they do not follow what they are supposed to do then bad things will happen. Last Saturday, this is what happened. I thought Jon Main played well at mac and Kyle Fraser played well at free.  We spoke for a long time today about what it takes to perform and what it means to be a team mate. We hope the team can rebound and have a good showing Next Saturday. The games only get harder from now on we will see who rises to the occasion.”

The Valley Bulldogs will be in search of their first win of the season as they face the Timberlea Titans on Saturday April 20th, 2013 at 12:00pm at East Hants Sports Complex.

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