AFL Week 2 Preview

AFL Week 2 Preview

The Danube Dragons will won't be taking the field for the first time this season.

The AFL was going to bring us a full slate of games this weekend, but because of the inclement weather both the Raiffeisen Vikings - AFC Rangers AND Danube Dragons - Graz Giants games are cancelled so I’ll only be previewing the Swarco Raiders and Prague Black Panthers matchup and will hold back my other thoughts until we get word on when the games will be played.

Saturday 30^th March
Swarco Raiders @ Prague Black Panthers – 14:00 GMT

(ED :We have now had word that this game is likely cancelled too, but please enjoy the preview anyway!)

The Prague Black Panthers have had the unenviable task of facing last year’s finalists in back-to-back weeks and whilst it’s clear their program has got a lot better from last year, I don’t think anyone realistically expects them to pull of the upset against the Swarco Raiders after we witnessed them handle the Graz Giants so easily at home last Saturday.

When it comes to game planning, the Raiders have a pretty straightforward job, limit what quarterback Andrew Shoop can do in the passing game. The quarterback and his receivers showed that you cannot sleep on them when it comes to the vertical passing game as they managed to having scoring strikes of 67 and 28 yards when the Vikings believed that the game was wrapped up. Whilst Shoop isn’t quite as good with his feet as the Giant’s Alex Good, his arm looks to be a lot better and could really hurt the Raiders if they’re not tight with their coverage.

The Raiders offense is going to present a multitude of challenges for the Panthers defence and will most likely put up more points than they did last week on the Giants. Quarterback Kyle Callahan will once again be running the show and I doubt he will have to break much of a sweat to keep the scoreboard ticking over. I expect to see more of the Raiders traditional running sets this weekend so look to Andreas Hofbauer to be getting more carries.

Talib Wise made a big contribution on the scoreboard last weekend. Will he step up again?
© Florian Schellhorn from www.footballpics.info

Players to Watch

Raiders: Philipp Margreiter, Linebacker #36. A very disruptive force against the Giants where he had 2 sacks and 4.5 tackles for a loss along with 4 solo takedowns, look for him to be putting the pressure on Shoop in the Panther backfield.

Panthers: Jan Steigler, Wider Receiver #22. The man that caught the 67 yard touchdown pass was clearly Shoop’s favourite target as he hauled in a total of 7 passes for 146 yards. The Panthers will be hoping that Shoop to Steigler becomes a regular touchdown connection.

Jan Steigler was Shoop's main target against the Vikings

Prediction: I expect the Raiders to maintain their dominance from last weekend even if they are on the road and pull out a 45 – 10 victory.

RaidersTV will be in Prague so tune into their stream at http://www.raiderstv.at a little before game time and you’ll probably catch some interviews and pre-match analysis to fill out your Saturday of football.

Once again we are pleased to announce that we will be working with Florian Schellhorn and footballpics.info to bring you some fantastic shots from the Raider's games.