I helgen som var spilte Olavs Menn en treningskamp mot Oslo Vikings i forbindelse med Grensetreffet som arrangeres av Amcarklubben i Halden. Dette var en oppvisningskamp hvor man kunne komme på Halden Stadion -gratis- og oppleve idretten ved selvsyn. Det er ikke amerikansk fotball-lag i Halden, så dette var en flott mulighet for byens befolkning til å få en smak av amerikansk fotball.
Ut fra opplysninger tilgjengelig på nett virker det som om det var Oslo Vikings sitt U19-lag som stilte for Vikings sin del, mens Olavs Menn stilte med et mannskap bestående av spillere fra egen klubb og enkelte fra Fredrikstad Kings.
Kampen endte 35-0 til Oslo Vikings, etter å ha vært 6-0 til pause. I følge personer på tribunen spilte begge lag god og underholdende fotball, med en miks av pasninger og løpespill. Forsvarsspillet virket å dominere noe for dagen, er tilbakemeldingene vi får fra en tilskuer som fikk med seg første halvdel før han måtte gå. Som man kan se av scoren ble andre halvdel mer scoringsrik, og det spørs om ikke inntrykket av et dominerende forvarsspill balanserte seg noe da.
Lokalavisen Halden Arbeiderblad skrev følgende artikkel (inklusive et bildegalleri!) etter kampen: Fotball på ekte amerikansk vis.
I kjølvannet av kampen har vi også fått til et telefon-intervju med Olavs Menn sin hovedtrener, Travis Cornwell. Hva han hadde å si finner du nedenfor:
1) You just played the Oslo Vikings in Halden. How did that come about?
Grensetreffet and Amcarklubben Halden wanted to promote american fotball
2) What was the thought behind the game from your side; what did you want to get out of it?
We needed to test out what 11-man fotball was like. For us it was about going out there and playing the 11-man game, helping me make a playbook and figure out what we are doing next season
3) Halden is a relatively small city. Big enough to host it’s own team, or are you looking at it as a place where you can potentially recruit for your own team down the line?
We are hoping top get players for our team. There was quite the turnout, so hopefully we will see some new players!
4) How was the event promoted, and what was the response? How many spectators would you guess was there to watch the game?
200-300 spectators. I’m happy that we had a nice turnout. AmCar promoted it, as did the Halden newspapers
5) The game itself; what was the result on the field, how did your team look, your opponent look?
Score was 35-0 to Vikings. All in all guys did okay, but a lot of fundamental breakdowns. The brightest spot of the game was that our DB’s got 3-4 interceptions.
6) You’re qualified for the 1st division in 2016; what do you think about the difference between 1st division and the Elite Series when you are playing against an U19 team and they win with these numbers, what’s your plans for being competitive at that level and improving after playing this game?
As a coach i wasn’t playing to win here; winning wasn’t important at all. We have to figure out to play 11-man. I’m not sure the guys understood the concept of playing 11-man vs 9-man. We have already talked to the Oslo Vikings and we will have multiple camps with them during the off-season and hopefully have a camp with them once a month or so. We have a farm team deal with the Fredrikstad Kings and practice together with them.