The Blitzer and Ball that went "Poof!"

The Coach looked at the bag of coins just handed to him by the Nere-do-well hired to deliver the purse to “even” up the match.  He shook his head and sighed.  The Slammers had a well-deserved and well-earned reputation for brutality.  They were Orcs after all and delighted in putting the “blood” into Blood Bowl!

Yes, he could try to incentivize his players to perform (to a degree) with the extra money… but his players were already proud elves and he wasn’t certain the meager one hundred “k” and change was enough.  No, no… a better investment would be… YES!!!

He snapped his fingers and one of the assistants poked his head in, “Yes, coach?!”

“Grab one of the ball-boys… and hurry! On the double!” He scribbled a quick note and stuffed it in the bag, just as the ball boy showed up.” 

“Coach?!” a terrified look on his face, assuming he had done something wrong.

“Did you see any wizards in the stand as we came into the stadium?” the Coach asked.

“Er, I think so…” the boy retorted.

“Quick, Go find him and give him this pouch! I have one gold shilling for you if your extra quick when you return!” The coach said with a mirthful smile.

The boy’s eyes lit up.  He nodded his head up and down with enthusiasm, grabbing the bag and sprinting out of the locker room as quickly as his spindly legs would go!

Over 2,800 fans showed up to watch the Titans and the Slammers in this epic play-off match! The Slammers won the toss and elected to receive the ball.  After lining up, the Titans squared off to begin their agile game against the thundering Orc brutes of the Swinging Slammers.

The Orcs received the kick-off and right out of the gate, Big No1 “Knuckle Duster” got a casualty, setting the tone for the match! With chorded muscle, and strong, short strides on monstrous feet and legs… the Slammers started their drive up the field!

One casualty, two, a knock-out! Then Galandour the Great, the Titan’s star blitzer went down puked on by McStompy, the Slammers untrained Troll! The cheers from the Titans fans stopped, while the cheers and jeers from the Slammers fans rose to a deafening cacophony. The team Apothecary was quickly dispatched, and Galandour was taken off the field on a stretcher with everyone's hopes that he would return to the pitch.

The Slammers were (well) slamming the Titans!  With only two turns left to go in the first half and within eight paces of the touchline, the Titan’s coach was panicked. His eyes scanned the stadium… did the boy deliver the purse? Was the message received?

Then he saw him, blue hat, spectacles… oh no! Not… yes… there he was, Horatio X Schottenheim himself! Not well known for his prowess as a wizard (and more for his news reporting) the coach knew Horatio to be a die-hard Blood Bowl fan, but unreliable at best with his spell-casting.  So, the coach crossed his fingers… and waited!

Just as No7, Kurzatt the Blitzer from the Slammers finished moving up the pitch, POOF a puff of smoke and a loud ZAP was heard!  There, where Kurzatt used to be, was a helpless little frog! Oh, glory be!  Down four players, and with most of his team scattered on the pitch, the Titans now had a chance!!! The Titan fans stood up and began cheering so loudly, that it was difficult to even hear ones self think!

With the frog, dropping the ball, it bounced to Eltharion, the Titan’s thrower! He caught the ball and nimbly dodged away for a pass.  The crowd was going nuts!!! The famed High Elf thrower cocked his arm back to throw and… the adrenalin proved too much! Eltharion fumbled the pass, and then the unthinkable happened, Grirzruk the Gravekeeper, a Big'Un Blocker blitzed Eltharion, scooped up the ball and ran it in for a touchdown! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!!!!

Just as quickly as the Titan fan base exploded in revere, they were silent.  And just as if someone had flipped a light switch, the Slammers fans erupted, feet pounding the East side stadium bleechers almost causing a collapse!

Knowing they needed to make-up ground, the Titans pitched the ball to Valiananore, who sprinted in for an early touchdown tying up the score!

Enthused by the play, as the Titans lined up for the next drive, several teammates cleared the stars from their heads, patched up their wounds and took to the pitch.  The Titan's kick proved to be too much, and the ball went out of bounce, only to be tossed back in from the sideline to one of the Slammer’s star blitzers.

The Titans rushed forward, slamming into the muscled Orcs frenzied by their desire to move on to the next round of the play-offs.  The Orcs and Elves spent the next several turns smashing and bashing each other to bits! McStompy even tried to empty the contents of his stomach onto the horde! All but empty—he could only manage to dry-heave!

With some brilliant key blocks, and an incredible break-away play, the Titans managed to score again, bringing the game to a 2-1 lead!

With only one turn left to go, the Slammers had no hope of scoring.  But, the Slammers coach, in a brilliant move, called time-out for a review of the play for the last Titan score.  The refs, after reviewing the play (with a little bit of extra coin and a large group of looming Slammer fans to motivate them) called back the turns, giving the Slammers an opportunity to even the score!

What a game!!! The fans were on edge, everyone was watching now with two turns left as the Slammers got into position.  Lining up critical blocks, the Big'Un blockers were able to open a hole for Drimzrod the Blitzer to get through into the open! He churned down the field, closing the gap between himself and the touch line! The Slammer fans started screaming at the top of their lungs, “20! 15! 10! 5!...” the frenzied crowd went CRAZY!!!! HE WAS GOING TO MAKE IT!!! THE GAME WAS GOING INTO OVERTIME!!!! THIS WAS NUTS!!!!  Then, all of the sudden, everyone went dead silent… you could have heard a pin drop!!!

Just as Drimzrod was crossing the touchline, his momentum overtook him; the burning and numbness in his legs was just too much! Losing his balance (and losing control of the ball) he went down in a tumbled heap!!! The Titans had just won the match!!!! THE TITANS HAD JUST WON THE MATCH!!! 

The crowd cheered.  The Titans players wiped generous moisture from their eyes.  A five-gallon jug of ice-cold Orcade was dumped over the coach, with a smile he couldn't seem to wipe from his face! The Titans will advance to the next round of play-offs.