2008 Season

Fixtures & Results 2008
Press Releases & Match Reports

Fixtures & Results 2008

Senior team fixtures in UPPER CASE, youth team in lower case, home fixtures in bold.

Senior Team Regular Season Standings Played Won Lost Drawn % 7 0 7 0 0%

Youth Team Regular Season Standings Played Won Lost Drawn % 8 7 0 1 96%

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Press Releases & Match Reports

The Senators are the North's Premier American football organisation, with both senior and youth teams. The senior teams have a proven track record of success, whilst the youth team were Northern Champions in their first season, losing out in the sudden death playoffs on the road away to the experienced Bristol Aztecs Youth. To be part of this successful team in 2008, contact David Wilson

Senators retain Premiership Spot

The league confirmed this with the announcement of the 2008 alignments. This despite the senior team having the worst season for years in 2007 and not reaching the playoffs for the first time in many years. But their record was enough to stay in the Premier League.

Meanwhile the Senators Youth team are hoping to go even further in their second year. The inaugural season saw them take the Northern Championship but fall in the sudden death playoffs to the established Bristol Aztecs Youth. But in 2008, Senators youth vow to go all the way!

Opening Win for Senators' Youth

Clyde Valley Hawks 14 Gateshead Senators Youth 26

Senators took the first possession of the ball and marched steadily up field behind some excellent blocking by the O Line of Dearden, Kersey, Buckley, Bell and Summerfield and powerful running by Gavin Barr, Iain Dover and Adam O'brien .Barr it was who rounded off the drive with a 25 yard streak up the sidelines for the opening touchdown. A swarming Hawks defense prevented the extra points being scored. Although Clyde Valley mounted a drive of their own it stalled in their own half. Gateshead capitalised on this when on their next drive from scrimmage Iain Dover burst through the middle of the Defense and sprinted 20 yards to the end zone to make it 12-0 to the Senators. The extra point was no good.

In the second quarter the Senators added to the scoring again after excellent work by Adam Bradord ,Dan Guex and Darren "Tripod" Mould on defense handed the ball to the Gateshead Offense in good field position. This time the Senators went to the air QB Chris Doyle connecting with Adam O'Brien for a 45 yd score, the extra points were converted by Iain Dover carrying the ball into the end zone to bring the score to 20-0.

Hawks next possession started deep in their own half but quarterback Will Winter took advantage of a blown coverage to hook up with brother Mark Winter on a 65 yard pass for the Hawks first touchdown. The score was increased by another 2 points when Graeme Duncan rumbled over making it 20-8 to the visitors at the half.

The second half was a much tighter affair with Gateshead rotating in rookies Kirkland, Burn ,Plant, Spalding and Watson on both sides of the ball and the Hawks making some adjustments on Defense. It was Gateshead however who would resume the scoring with a 8 yard run by Adam O'Brien who finished the day with over 100 yards rushing going in for six, again the extra point was no good making it 26-8 to Gateshead at the end of the 3rd Quarter.

The Hawks finished the scoring for the day in the 4th Quarter when Mark Winter scooped in a 4 yard pass for his second touchdown, the extra point being no good making the final score Clyde Valley Hawks 14 Gateshead Senators 26.

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Second Win for Senators' Youth

Gateshead Senators 22 Highland Wildcats 14

The Senators began the first quarter relying on their running game with Steve Balbach and Iain Dover make good gains against the Wildcats' defense. The first score of the game came from 3 yards out by Iain Dover after some strong running by Adam Obrien had given the Senators great field position. The extra points were missed making it 6-0 to the Senators.

The Wildcats began their possession brightly, steadily moving the ball against the Senators' Defense which was superbly led by Darren Mould who finished the day with 7 solo tackles 3 assists and 1 pass deflected. The Senators stood firm however and the Wildcats turned the ball over on downs.

Senators took the ball on their own 30 yard line and marched the ball downfield behind some excellent blocking by the O line led by Craig Summerfield and some powerful running by Gavin Barr. It was Adam Obrien who would finish the drive off scampering home from 20 yards out. The extra points were added by Obrien making it 14-0 to the home side.

Wildcats however were in no mood to lie down and quickly responded to the Senators scoring, throwing a 50 yd TD to a wide open receiver and adding the extra points to bring the score to 14-8 at the half.

The second half started with the Wildcats taking the upper hand, after great defensive worked forced the Senators to punt. They put a 70 yard drive together finishing the drive off with a 6 yard run into the end zone. The extra points however were missed levelling the scores up at 14-14.

The Wildcats fightback seemed to spur the Senators into action, the next drive seeing Adam Obrien scoring his 2nd TD of the day from 54 yards out; Obrien capping of a superb individual effort finishing the day with 11 carries for 151 yards 2 receptions for 45 yards and 2 TDs. This time Chris Doyle added the extra points to bring the score to 22-14 in favour of the Senators.

Although the Wildcats continued to drive the ball the Senators' D stood firm with Cornerback Sam Keddy coming up with a crucial interception on his own 30 yard line with 2 minutes left in the game to allow the Senators to run out the clock. The Senators thus winning a closely fought contest 22-14 and moving to 2-0 on the season

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Youth Undefeated

Glasgow Tigers Youth 6 Gateshead Senators Youth 6

The first quarter started badly for the visitors on a pitch badly affected by overnight rain. The opening kick off was returned to the Senators' 40 yard line. The Tigers quickly establishing their power running game, then went to the air hitting their Tight End on a 5 yard out pattern. After rumbling to the Senators' 5 yard line a vicious hit by LB Dan Geux forced the ball loose giving the Senators an early break.

After starting with their own running game the Senators faced a third and long, as QB Chris Doyle dropped back to pass he was sacked, fumbling the ball in the process on his own 25 yard line. Three plays later the Tigers made the visitors pay, running into the end zone from 20 yards out for the opening score of the game. The extra point was missed making it 6-0 to the Tigers.

Both sides then exchanged possessions but couldn't add to the scoring as both Defenses managed to snuff out the opposing Offenses and some questionable calls from the stand in officials brought the Senators up short on a key 4th and short possessions inside the Tigers 30 yard line.

More bad luck would dog the Senators at the start of the second half with star Running Back Adam Obrien being forced to sit out due to concussion. The Senators however maintained their running game with Iain Dover stepping up and finishing the day with 19 carries for 106 yards. No further scoring was added in the third quarter with again strong Defenses being the order of the day, Senators' rookie CB Callum Purvis coming up with the first interception of his career.

In the 4th quarter the Senators made their time of possession pay mounting a 20 play, 70 yard drive which took 8 minutes off the clock. Gavin Barr capped a fine individual performance on both sides of the ball powering into the endzone from 10 yards out with 20 seconds left on the clock. The Senators opted to run the ball in for the conversion due to the weather conditions however the swarming Tigers D stopped the Senators a yard short. The game finishing tied Tigers 6 Senators 6.

The Senators now have a six week break before facing their first inter-conference game of the season against Sheffield Tomahawks at Gateshead Stadium on Sunday 22nd June, kick off 11:00am

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Blitz bomb Senators

Gateshead Senators 0 London Blitz 48

The Senators started the game with a much changed line up from their 2007 campaign giving debuts to no fewer than 12 rookies 8 starting on the Defensive side of the ball including Youth team graduates Ben Forster and James Landless.

The hot, sunny conditions put both teams to the test when they kicked off the Britbowl XXII chase as a series of mistakes and penalties led to a disjointed start to the game. The Blitz offence, led by QB Stuart Franklin, moved forwards only to be dragged back by errors. This sloppy play was typified when RB Tyrone Irons-Reid carried the ball successfully down inside the Gateshead ten yard line only to fumble on a sweep play.

The Blitz defence took to the field looking to return to their dominating performances of 2007 and quickly snuffed the Senators when CB Melvyn Akins intercepted a wayward pass from Senators QB Ed Tate.

Two plays later new signing from EKP Jon Chilton rumbled into the endzone on 5 yard run and Nathan Holt tacked on the extra point to give the Blitz a 7-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Holt was forced to show his linebacker credentials on the ensuing kick-off as Gateshead made it to halfway before being dragged down by the kicker. The teams then traded punts until the Blitz found their offensive groove and engineered a consistent drive capped off by Chilton this time diving in from the two yard line and Holt again added the extra point.

The Blitz 'D' again stood firm and Franklin took over with completions to a various receivers until veteran WR Marcin Lai scampered between tacklers into the endzone.

The next Senator drive was finished early when DE Pat Yeye forced a fumble which was recovered in the endzone by former Olympian DE Lawrence Reid. This gave the Blitz a 21-0 lead going into half time.

The second half saw Gateshead come out with their change up running formation. After Gateshead made successive first downs, some system changes from the Blitz coaching staff stifled the Gateshead running plays.

The Blitz answered straight back when newcomer RB Gareth Dawbrey followed some great blocking to take the rock 72 yards for another six points. The rest of the second half followed a very similar path as the Blitz defence led by new signing Paul Summers and buoyed by an interception from CB Barrington Moxom-Smith, gave their offence great field position as they added scores through a Stuart Franklin scramble and another on a rush from Dawbrey.

With 4 minutes left to play Blitz decided to rest starting QB Franklin and give ex Gateshead QB Fraser some game time however he was unable to add to the scoring and had to content himself with having done a great job holding for the Blitz extra points.

The icing was put on a solid Blitz performance when on the last play of the game linebacker Lloyd Buxton returned an interception for another TD, leaving the final score 48-0.

The Senators now have a week to regroup before travelling to East Kilbride on 25th May to play the first of their two regular season games against the Pirates.

Senators' Youth cut down Tomahawks

Gateshead Senators 56 v Sheffield Tomahawks 0

The Senators came into the game on the back of a six week break against the in-form Tomahawks who had started the season undefeated. Things started well early on for the Senators with RB Gavin Barr running home untouched from 25 yards on the Senators' first possession making it 6-0 to the Senators. The Senators' D, led by MVP Darren Mould, forced the Tomahawks to punt on their next possession giving the ball back to the Senators' offence. This time Adam O'Brien would make the Tomahawks pay, running home from 20 yards out to make it 12-0 to the home side.

#29 breaks away (Photo: Cathryn Buckley)		Good blocking ahead (Photo: Cathryn Buckley)

On the next drive great play from the Senators' Special Teams gave the offence the ball on the Tomahawks' 10 yard line. 1 play later Iain Dover added to the scoring to make it 18-0 to the Senators at the end of the 1st quarter.

The 2nd quarter began with the Tomahawks' offence finding its feet and gaining 1st downs. However another turnover on downs gave the Senators the ball on their own 20 yard line. After moving the ball to the Tomahawks' 40 yard line the Senators faced a 4th and long. This time Iain Dover ran home untouched, Adam O'Brien with the 2pt conversion making it 26-0 to the Senators.

Looking for the gap (Photo: Cathryn Buckley)		Senators stop at nothing to make the play (Photo: Cathryn Buckley)

Things got worse for the Tomahawks on their next offensive drive. After gaining a 1st down Senators' LB Gavin Barr, assisted by CB Sam Keddy, stripped the Tomahawks' receiver of the ball and ran it home 20 yards for his second TD of the day. Rookie Chris Watson added the 2 points to make it 34-0 to the home side at the half.

Punt away (Photo: Cathryn Buckley)		The MVP O-line (Photo: Cathryn Buckley)

The 2nd half began with the Tomahawks' offence steadily moving the ball on the Senators' defence; however on 3rd and long on the Senators' 10 yard line LB Darren Mould intercepted the Tomahawks' QB and returned the ball to the Tomahawks' 40 yard line. 1 play later O'Brien added to the scoring, out-running defenders on the way to his 2nd TD of the day. Gavin Barr added to the points with a 2 point conversion making it 42-0 to the home side. The next Senators' possession saw another sustained drive assisted by some great blocking by the Senators' O-line of Bell, Summerfield, Buckley, Byrne and Dearden. QB Chris Doyle hit Adam O'Brien from 25 yards out for his 3rd TD of the day. Eddie Kirkland added the two point conversion to make it 50-0 to the home side.

The Senators then took the opportunity to blood some rookies with Chris Watson and Eddie Kirkland seeing time at RB in the 3rd and 4th quarters. It was Kirkland who would cap a fine day for the Senators running in for his 1st career TD from 5 yards out to end the scoring as time expired. The final score Senators 56-Tomahawks 0

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High Score in the Highlands

Inverness Highland Wildcats 12 Gateshead Senators Youth 62

The 1st quarter started well for the Senators with Defensive captain Gavin Barr recovering the opening kick off and then on the 1st play from scrimmage running into the end zone untouched from 33 yards out. The extra points were missed making it 6-0 to the visitors.

The Wildcats then turned the ball over to the Senators on their next drive. Cornerback Sam Keddy setting the tone for the day with a big hit on the 1st play of the drive and then Gavin Barr forcing a fumble that was recovered by the Senators' D on the Inverness 20 yard line. One play later Adam Obrien ran home from 20 yards out and converted his own TD to make it 14-0 to the visitors.

The Wildcats again struggled to move the ball and were forced to punt, the Gateshead offense taking over on their own 40 yard line. Marshalled by QB Chris Doyle they marched downfield with Iain Dover running home untouched from 35 yards out. The extra points were no good making it 20-0 to the visitors at the end of the 1st quarter.

The 2nd quarter saw the Wildcats' Defense starting to come to grips with the Senators' running attack, forcing a turnover on downs at their own 20 yard line. The Wildcats' Offense however were unable to gain a first down and punted the ball away; 3 plays later Gavin Bar scored his second TD of the day on a 35 yd TD pass from QB Chris Doyle. Again the extra point was no good making it 26-0 to the Senators.

The Wildcats got the break they needed on the ensuing kick return. Great work by their special teams unit returned the ball to the Senators' 30 yard line. On their next play from scrimmage their QB Kenny Mackay found his WR in the corner of the endzone to make a great catch on the sideline for the Wildcats' opening score of the game. The extra points were no good making it 26-6 to the Senators at the half.

The second half started well for the Senators. After returning the kick off to their own 30 yard line Adam Obrien ripped off a 45 yard run and on the next play from scrimmage Gavin Barr scored his 3rd TD of the game, running home from 25 yards out. Chris Doyle converted the extra points to make it 34-6 to the Senators.

The Wildcats were again unable to move the ball on the Senators' D and had to punt the ball away after Gavin Barr had forced his 2nd fumble of the day to pin the home side deep in their own territory. 3 plays later Adam Obrien would score his 2nd TD day of the day, Chris Doyle throwing his second of 4 TD passes on the day hitting him on a 45 yd bomb to move the score to 40-6.

More bad luck hit the Wildcats on their next drive. After QB Kenny Mackay had found his WR behind the Senators' secondary the WR fumbled the ball on the Senators' 2 yard line which was recovered by rookie Defensive Back Phil Brown. The Senators' rookie Running Backs Kirkland and Watson then came into their own each ripping off 10 and 14 yard runs to gain consecutive 1st downs. The Offense then continued on a 98 yard scoring drive rounded off by Gavin Barr with his 4th TD of the day on a 23 yard TD pass from Chris Doyle with Doyle again converting the extra points to make it 48-6 to the visitors.

The Wildcats got their second TD of the day with QB Mackay hitting his WR from 20 yards out; the extra points were no good making it 48-12 to the Senators at the end of the 3rd quarter.

The 4th quarter saw the Senators offense again turn the screw on the Wildcats Defense. Adam Obrien went in for his 3rd TD of the day from 57 yards out and rookie Chris Watson caught the 1st TD of his career on a 28 yard pass from QB Doyle to make the final score 62-12 to the Senators.

Assistant Head Coach Wim van Tergouw commented,

"This was a great team performance. Our Offense was very good especially our O line who made sure we had 3 backs over 100 yard rushing and over 450 yards total rushing in the game. They also gave our QB enough time to throw 4 TD passes. We were equally proud of our Defence, however we need to work on shutting teams out"

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