Sunday, July 24, 2022
Why is Mary looking so happy?
Because for the second straight
day she gets to celebrate her
BIRTHDAY!
This mermaid turned seven yesterday but we were not able to celebrate her latest milestone with her.
Thus, today, we had a mini-celebration which she was more than happy to experience.
Laurie always sets a good,
colorful birthday table
There were presents to be opened . . .
. . . and a Poppo photo op too!
I have no idea what prompted
this interesting monologue
Time to open her presents
This was a big hit!
A REALLY big hit as Mary
LOVES to draw
No one in our family has ever
been employed as a lounge singer
in Las Vegas
Jacob took time during the celebration
to continue to hone his American
football skills in our back yard
Speaking of American football . . .
In European League of Football,
ELF, action over the weekend
Our beloved 5-1, Southern Conference leading Barcelona Dragons were on the road in Istanbul to play the 0-6 Rams.
The Dragons easily beat the Rams, 41-7, in Spain earlier this month.
Piece of cake, right?
DAMN!
That's why they play the game.
I've always felt that there are two things that are extremely difficult to accomplish in any American football season.
The first is going undefeated and the other is not winning a game.
I have been fortunate to coach two undefeated clubs over the many years. Our 1971 Marmonte League Champion Thousand Oaks High School J.V. team finished 9-0 and our 2013 French National Champion DIII Bron-Villeurbanne Falcons was a perfect 12-0.
I've never coached a team that lost them all but I've been close on a couple of occasions with one win squads.
The weird thing is the knowledge that, as a coach, you tend to work MUCH harder during those one win seasons than you do during the simpler championship runs.
The Barcelona loss in Istanbul really shakes things up in the Southern Conference as we head down the ELF's home stretch with all teams having five games left on their regular season slates.
The Hamburg Sea Devils and
Vienna Vikings had wins over
quality opponents this weekend
Now for a look at the ELF standings after the limited number of Week 8 contests . . .
The Hamburg Sea Devils with a
two game lead on the Berlin Thunder
The Sea Devils only loss this season was at home to the Barcelona Dragons in Week 2, 24-21.
The Vienna Vikings still look like
the team to beat come playoff time
Their three game lead on the Tirol Raiders and the defending 2021 ELF Champion Frankfurt Galaxy is going to be hard to close.
The Central Conference has both the only club, the Vikings, who can possibly finish the campaign undefeated and the Stuttgart Surge, the only team still looking for their first 2022 victory.
They play each other next weekend.
The Barcelona Dragons still lead
the Southern Conference but by only
ONE game
This is the Conference with the smallest margin for error at this point. The Dragons (5-2) home game next weekend against the Rhein Fire (4-3) is big one for both clubs. The Dragons beat the Fire in Germany, 17-13, back in a Week 4 game.
ELF WEEK 9 GAMES
Istanbul Rams (1-6) at Hamburg Sea Devils (6-1)
Cologne Centurions (2-5) at Berlin Thunder (4-3)
Frankfurt Galaxy (4-3) at Wroclaw Panthers (3-4)
Tirol Raiders (4-3) at Leipzig Kings (2-5)
Vienna Vikings (7-0) at Stuttgart Surge (0-7)
Rhein Fire (4-3) at Barcelona Dragons (5-2)
If the season ended now . . .
. . . but it definitely does NOT!
The ELF's two game, 2022 playoffs will feature the three Conference Champions and the best second place club.
Currently, there are four teams in second place in their respective Conferences, all with 4-3 records.
The tie breaker is in part, season-long point differential and part head-to-head results.
Let's take a look at the point differentials up to now.
Northern Conference #2
Berlin Thunder 4-3, +37 Point Difference
Central Conference #2 Tie
Tirol Raiders 4-3, +57 Point Difference
Frankfurt Galaxy 4-3, +79 Point Difference
Southern Conference #2
Rhein Fire 4-3, +4 Point Difference
At the moment, the two teams tied for second in the Central Conference are in the lead for the coveted final playoff spot due to their larger Point Differences than their compatriots in the Northern and Southern Conferences.
Despite the Galaxy having a Point Difference that is +22 greater than the Raiders, the Raiders would currently get the final playoff spot based on their 23-17, Week 5 home victory over the Galaxy.
These two clubs will meet again in Frankfurt in Week 13. Not only do the Galaxy need to win the game for potential tie breaking purposes, they need to win by seven points or more to claim the two game season aggregate scoring lead over the Raiders.
It is not a case of "Just Win, Baby," as the Galaxy need to win BIG!
There is still a long way to go before the need for such a tie breaker as the result of the Dragons-Rams game last Saturday proved, YOU HAVE TO PLAY THE GAMES!
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