ELF Recap: Week 4

By Peter Mann

With the new, expansion franchise, Nordic Storm, inactive this past weekend, thus keeping their unbeaten record, the only other European League of Football side to lay a claim on that are last seasonโ€™s Championship Game runners-up, Vienna Vikings.

Several sides have moved to 3-1 after the fourth week of the regular season, as the runners and riders across the league are now starting to take shape, with two franchises, the Fehervar Enthroners (0-4) and Helvetic Mercenaries (0-3), still to register a victory heading into week five.

VIKINGS CONTINUE TO REIGN SUPREME VIENNA VIKINGS (4-0) continue to have a tight grip on the East Division are their dominant, home win, over visiting Tirol Raiders (2-2) this past weekend, in the โ€˜Battle of Austria.โ€™

It would be as much a one-sided contest in that the Vikings were forty-one points to the good before the Raiders got a sniff of the opposing end zone, home quarterback, 30-year-old American, Ben Holmes, having done a hugely significant amount of damage.

Six TDs the hosts posted, and Holmes was the huge thorn in them all, game stats seeing him post 177yds 5TDs passing, 57yds, 1TD rushing, as he cleaned house; young WR, 23-year-old Noah Toure, was the recipient of three of Holmes; TD passes, the longest being at 40yds, whilst WR Nils Keimel and TE Florian Bierbaumer also getting in on the act.

Holmes saved his best act until last, putting on a 31yd rushing TD of his own to complete the scoring before the visitors snatched a TD of their own, Nโ€™Kosi Perry with a close-range pass to JaCorey Sullivan for a mere consolation. ย 

HIGH-SCORING ENCOUNTERS SEE THREE AT 3 (AND 1) Three franchises have moved onto a 3-1 record over the weekend gone, and with convincing victories as the MADRID BRAVOS led the way.

The Spaniards, in only their second season in the league, raced into a 45-0 lead when in Hungary, at the Fehervar Enthroners, and were 35-points to the good at the halfway stage of the contest.

The second half was a much tamer affair, in fact the fourth quarter yielded zero points for either side, 28-year-old American QB, Reid Sinnett, having already done the damage early doors; he got the ball rolling with a 21ys TD pass for RB Justus Seelig, and never looked back, posting overall figures of 431yds, 6TDs, on a impressive afternoon which included 73yds and 64yds passes to American WR, Aron Cruickshank; Juan Flores-Calderon also got in on the act with a couple of scores.

QB Matthew McKay and FRANKFURT GALAXY continued their impressive start with a 47-15 success over visiting Cologne Centurions, the hosts leading 26-0 at the halfway stage of the contest; McKay posted 170yds, 2TDs, whilst there was also joy for 23-year-old German RB, Gerald Amien (170yds, 1TD), and 21-year-old Juri Sievers.

As for the all-German contest between STUTTGART SURGE and Munich Ravens, that ebbed-and-flowed with an exciting match-up finishing 36-28 to the hosts, in the final tie of the weekend.

It was certainly a game of the week, the first and third quarters were high-scoring affairs, the two combatants sharing 29-points and 23-points respectively, the Surgeโ€™s success in Q2 and Q4 ultimately proving the decisive moments.

Reilly Hennessy (Surge) posted 220yds, 1TD passing and 16yds, 1TD rushing, whilst Russell Tabor (Ravens) notched up 220yds, 3TDs passing, and 71yds, 1TD rushing, with the hostsโ€™ Timo Bronn kicking three FGs, from 25yds, 45yds, and 20yds respectively, and saw an early, fourth quarter attempt, from 38yds, blocked by Cole Coleman.

SEA DEVILS CONTINUE ERRATIC START The HAMBURG SEA DEVILS (2-2) continued their mixed start to the 2025 season with a 31-14 home win over Berlin Thunder.

The Sea Devils, whose start now looks L-W-L-W, found themselves leading 31-0 early in the third quarter, before a late rally from the Thunder threated to upset the applecart; they are led by a QB with a familiar surname, Hawaiian-native, Taulia Tagovailoa, younger brother of the Miami Dolphins QB, Tua.

Baby brother, Taulia, registered 230yds, 3TDs as they blitzed their opponents; the Thunder reduced the deficit with two scores in the second half, Jakeb Sullivan hitting first Tyler Foster (10yds), then with a rushing TD from close-range.

CLOSE CALLS FOR THE FRENCH Similar to that of the Sea Devils, the PARIS MUSKETEERS (2-2) have also had a mixed start, and with a L-W-L-W record, but, prior to the weekend win over an ailing Rhein Fire (1-2), the three previous outings of the season were somewhat tight affairs.

The first three outings of the season for the Musketeers would see narrow, 17-15 and 29-27 reverses, and a 6-0 win sandwiched between; in Germany, against the ailing Fire, the Musketeers were in no mood to be generous, only to themselves.

The Musketeers shut-out the hosting Fire for three of the four quarters, and raced into a seventeen-point lead at the end of the first, before doubling up with sevens in the third and fourth for a famous win.

Two TDs and a FG had them 17-0 up after the first, Jaylon Henderson hitting Hugo Tekedam with both, and a Mathys Dupont boot (43yds) sandwiched between; although Chad Jeffries registered a close-range, rushing score in the second quarter, Henderson continued to put the Fire to the sword.

Henderson proceeded to hit Florian Larose in the third quarter, then Cheikhou Sow following unsportsmanlike conduct on the same, from close-range as the Musketeers registered their first-ever victory over the Fire, and the Fire lost back-to-back for the first time in theirs.

KICKERS CONTINUE TO IMPRESS WITH HRUBON SHINING The ELF kickers are having an enjoyable time with the boot at the start of the current season, the likes of MAREK HRUBON (Prague Lions), ALVARO PENAS ORJAS (Madrid Bravos), TIMO BRONN (Stuttgart Surge), and DANIEL SCHUMACHER (Stuttgart Surge), all impressing thus far.

Hrubon and Bronn have been busy on both kicking and punting for their respective franchises, Penas Orjas (kicking) and Schumacher (punting) also in the mix at this early stage of the season.

The first three of those have played four games, whilst the latter three thus far with the Prague Lions kicker, Marek Hrubon, the Czech 31-year-old having registered 5/6 FGs; longest kick 40yds; and 11/13 PATs (kicking); alongside 701yds, 18 punts, longest 53yds (punting).

The young, 23-year-old Spaniard, Penas Orjas, has a hundred percent record thus far with 4/4 FGs; longest kick 42yds; alongside 14/16 PATs; 26-year-old Bronn has posted 5/7 FGs; longest 45yds; and 11/16 PATs (kicking); alongside 497yds, 15 punts; longest 45yds (punting); whilst Schumacher is up there with his punting record of 792yds, 18 punts, and the longest of 69yds. ย 

Week Five begins with Polish side, Wroclaw Panthers (1-2), heading to Germany to face the winless Cologne Centurions (0-3), and an all-German affair sees Hamburg Sea Devils (2-2) look to inflict more pain on the wounded Rhein Fire (1-2).

Undefeated Scandinavian expansion outfit, Nordic Storm (3-0), are in action when they host Germans Frankfurt Galaxy (3-1) in a standout game, whilst the weekend closes with Spanish side, Madrid Bravos (3-1), travelling to Austria to face Raiders Tirol (2-2).

PETER MANN

NFL ANALYST

PETER IS A LIFELONG SPORTS FAN, JOURNALIST AND AUTHOR BASED IN COUNTY DURHAM. HE HAS FOLLOWED THE NFL AND THE RAIDERS SINCE THE 1980s, AND LOVES BOTH SPORTS AND FAMILY HISTORY. PETER HAS A DEGREE IN SPORT & EXERCISE PSYCHOLOGY, AND CAN BE FOUND ON TWITTER @petermannwriter

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