Following the release of the fixtures for the 2022 Electrosports Football League season, we have all the details on who Penrith are playing where and when...

Who will Penrith play in the opening month of the season?
The new season kicks off on September 4 with a visit by the Nice Baguettes to The Lions Den, which will be the first of four games that the Lions will play against the Fail Brigade South division. The Lions will then head off to sunny Balsicas in Week 2 to face the Bullfighters in our first division game of the season. Then there is a two-game home stand with the Lions welcoming the Sumpan Crazy Wolves in Week 3 (September 18), before a divisional rematch with Balsicas in Week 4.

You mentioned our division, when are those games scheduled?
In addition to Balsicas in Weeks 2 and 4, we also have to face the Florence Fools and Tillamook Thunder twice each season. We welcome the Fools to town on October 30 (Week 9) and the Thunder on November 13 (Week 11), before we head to Florence straight away in Week 12 and Tillamook in Week 15 in our second to last game of the regular season.

Being the first season, what other divisions are we scheduled to play?
As part of the fixture rotation for the league, we are scheduled to play the three other teams in our division in a home-and-home series (6 games), with another four games scheduled against the teams in the Fail Brigade South division (2 home, 2 away) along with the four teams in the Bad Company East division (2 home, 2 away). The final two games are scheduled against two random opponents from the remaining two Fail Brigade divisions , that being Nottingham from the east and Porth Emmett from the north division (1 home, 1 away). That gives us the 16 games in the regular season.

In future seasons, the two remaining opponents will be teams from two divisions that finish in the same spot as us this season (so, if we finish 1st, we will play two teams that also finished 1st in their division, that we aren’t scheduled to play).

What does preseason look like for the Lions?
We have two home and two away games for the preseason, all teams from the Bad Company Conference with home games against the Montevideo Screamers from the BC South division and the Star City Slamhounds from the BC East division, who we will welcome back in Week 8. Our away games start off with a trip to Edlington to play the Anarchy from BC North divisionand in Week 3, we will visit Sweden to play the Stockholm North Stars also from the BC South division.

We have four home games in a row?
That's correct. Weeks 8 through to 11, we will be staying at home and trying to make The Lions Den a fortress for visiting teams to come to, with games against the Star City Slamhounds, Florence Fools, Hong Kong Kings and Tillamook Sharknado. These four home games in a row will be offset by the team travelling in the three weeks prior (Weeks 5 to 7) as well as two sets of double away games in Weeks 12 and 13, and then in Weeks 15 and 16.

What does the last month of the season look like for the Lions?
In Week 13 (November 27) we head to sunny Los Angeles to play the Earthquake, before returning home for our final home game of the regular season against the Porth Emmett Auctioneers, before heading away to play the aforementioned Tillamook Thunder in Week 15 (December 11)

What’s our last game of the regular season?
Away to Cheesy Philly (December 18)

Penrith Lions’ Electrosports Football League fixtures – Season 2022

Following on from the draft, the Penrith Lions have all arrived at The Lion Campus to begin preparations for Training Camp. Following a little welcome luncheon for the players from Team Owner Leam Mark Farrar and a presentation of their jersey for the season, something Leam Mark said would be happening each year, not just for the rookies joining the team; the players then took a tour of the facilities that have been built over the past 18 months to facilitate the teams' arrival in Penrith, culminating with the team photo at midfield of The Lions Den, the new 65,000 seater stadium that the team will call home.

Speaking at the function, Team Owner Leam Mark Farrar spoke about what binds this team together, not just for this season, but for life:-

"We drafted you for a reason, not simply because we liked your fundamentals, or you had a skill that we needed in for the team. We drafted you because you are who we wanted. They say you can choose your friends but not your family, but we have done just that. We have chosen a family. The moment your name was called out, you became part of the family here at the Penrith Lions. No matter what happens this season, or next, or in twenty years; you will always be part of the Lions family and we will never let you forget that, and when you step out onto that field each week, you play for three things. You play for this city. You play for the jersey. You play for each other".

Speaking to the media after the event, Head Coach James Jennings was optimistic about the upcoming season:

"We honestly can't predict where we will finish, I don't want to focus solely on the win-loss record that we could potentially have. Everyone is coming into this season with their own outlook on things, some want to win now, others want to build a potential dynasty. Each team has drafted in particular ways and to say that just because one team went through the draft in one way compared to us, is not going to make a world of change. We have drafted these 46 foundation players to compete for this team, and we will bring in undrafted free agents to build our team to the 60-man roster in the preseason. They will all compete for positions, be it starters or backups or anything else, but they will all compete for the team and for this city each week, home or away, and we will be going out there to win each game, or if we don't, we will fight until the final whistle".

Presumptive starter at quarterback, Napoleon Whitmore spoke about what he plans on doing for the season;

"We don't know who will start and who won't, it is a battle for every position. I know that my plan is to come to training camp, and workouts and push myself each and every day to be the best quarterback that I can be, and hopefully the best quarterback in the league. Whether I achieve the second, only time will tell, but I know that no matter what; if I am the starter or not, I will do whatever I can to push this team to championship glory and it takes every single player on this roster to make that happen. We are not just a team, we are a family".

The players then got a chance to sit down with their position coaches and start getting a look through at some of the playbook that they will be working with during training camp and the preseason, with the teams' focus squarely on that first preseason matchup against Edlington in only a few weeks time.

The team will host a media day next week, where coaches and players as well as select administration members of the team, including General Manager Todd Carlton, will be available during the six-hour event, for the media to discuss the season and other areas of the team so far.

PENRITH, NSW - The Lions have made their first official move in the trade market for the season.

Penrith has officially traded tight end Walter McMillian in a deal with Cheesy Philly, the team announced on Thursday.

The Lions received a third-round pick in next year's draft in exchange for the ninth-round selection for the Lions. McMillian was projected as second string on the depth chart for the upcoming preseason matchup and has been dealt to Cheesy Philly, where he is predicted to start for them.

The Lions have made an earlier trade with the Ulaanbaatar Raptors, trading respective seventh-round choices prior to this trade. The Lions will take fellow tight ends Ryan Coley and rookie Wayne Synder into the preseason game on Sunday against Edlington, and will look to further their draft complement, now holding 8 selections in the draft.

Speaking to the media following the trade; General Manager Todd Carlton spoke of how the trade came about and what it does for the team:-

"We know that clearly, we can't carry 60 players into the regular season, and the players know that throughout the preseason, we all know that some players will have to go from the roster and if we can find suitable trade partners then we will explore all those options. We took on additional players in some positions, tight end being one of them, and it was lucky that Cheesy Philly was in the market for a tight end and it is positive news that Walter has found a team where he can be a starter and we can pick up additional draft selections coming up"

General Manager Todd Carlton will look to continue making improvements around the team, throughout the preseason and will look to make further moves over the course of the preseason. The Lions currently have 59 players active on the roster heading into Sunday's game.

PENRITH, NSW - The Lions have made further trade moves in the preseason.

The Penrith Lions have decided to deal three picks to the Zena Soneros in return for cornerback Luis Walsh today, bringing an important trade discussion to its conclusion.

The Lions in receiving Walsh, a solid starter at cornerback for the team, in return, they have sent a third-round selection in both the 2023 and 2024 drafts, as well as a fourth-round selection in the 2024 draft.

General Manager Todd Carlton spoke to a few reporters on a conference call, due to the late nature of the trade being finalized and approved by league headquarters and spoke about how the trade looks on the Lions side of it:-

"Some will say that we gave up a lot for an unproven commodity, it's only been one preseason game, but our focus is not just on one game, but on the whole season and the future of the franchise. We felt that through our discussions and what we saw from the Soneros game this afternoon, Luis [Walsh] was the right fit for our organisation and he will slot right in where he best suits our defence. I think that we will see over the next two drafts, where both franchises go when it comes to this trade, and this is not to say that over the next twelve months or so, we can bounce right back into the rounds where we have given up the picks".

This trade represents the first player to join the Lions via trade, with tight end Walter McMillian heading off to Cheesy Philly earlier today. Luis Walsh is expected to start at cornerback for the Lions in their next preseason matchup, a home fixture against the Montevideo Screamers.

PENRITH, NSW - The Lions have made further moves during the preseason.

The Penrith Lions have dealt cornerback Terrence Myrie to Port Emmett, in exchange for cornerback Richard Brown and a pick selection.

In exchange for Myrie, Port Emmett has sent a fourth-round selection in the next draft and a cornerback Richard Brown. In two preseason games with the Auctioneers, Brown achieved 8 tackles, 4 knockdown attempts and 12 blocks on 134 plays after being drafted to the Auctioneers in the second round of the foundation draft.

Myrie played also in two preseason games, after being drafted in the fourth round of the foundation draft and finished with two tackles, 2 knockdown attempts and 2 blocks in 73 plays.

Speaking to the media after the trade was finalized, General Manager Todd Carlton spoke about the future of the team following the departure of two foundation players in the last two weeks:

"We look at what is best for our team moving forward, not just this upcoming game, or season but overall. We may look two or three years into the future when it comes to some trades, or we may trade for the here and now. Trades also evolve with time, we can have discussions and then 30 seconds later; terms can change. We worked hard with Porth Emmett to get to this point where both sides were and are happy with the trade"

The Lions will head into their final preseason matchup against Star City next week before the team will be cut down to 53 players.

PENRITH, NSW – The Lions have begun to make roster moves to reach the league-mandated 53-man limit, the team announced on Thursday.

The Lions have waived both cornerback W.M. Baron and linebacker Devin Hunt this morning, and have picked up running back Samuel Mendoza from waivers, bringing the roster currently to 59, with further roster moves required to be made before the opening game of the regular season against Nice on September 4th.

Baron, selected in the forty-fifth round of the foundation draft featured in the opening three preseason games for the Lions and collected 7 tackles to go along with 4 knockdown attempts, 1 interception and two blocks in 122 plays. Hunt, who was undrafted, also featured in all three preseason games so far, also with two blocks, and two tackles in 60 plays for the defence.

Mendoza, who was recently cut by the Seattle Slammers, joins the team looking to solidify the running game following the long-term injury to both Ricky Hall and now David Diaz, who looks likely to miss the opening two weeks. Mendoza, who didn’t feature for the Slammers at running back, and was utilized more as a receiver, collecting 20 yards on 3 receptions, will look to build his running back resume with the Lions moving forward.

The Lions will, following the last preseason game against Star City, have to make at least 6 further roster moves to bring the roster to the league-mandated 53-man limit.

PENRITH, NSW – The Lions have made a roster move prior to the regular season.

The Lions have traded linebacker Johnathan James to the Stockholm North Stars as well as a fourth-round selection in return for defensive tackle William Meeks and a sixth-round selection in this year’s draft.

James, who featured in all four preseason games, where he had 10 blocks and 13 tackles and an interception, was drafted in the thirty-third round of the foundation draft and would have battled with Miguel Logan for the backup linebacker slot alongside Paul Quick.

Meeks, a rookie out of Pittsburgh, started in three of the North Stars' preseason games, including the 27-9 loss to the Lions and while he dressed for the games, his contribution was negligible, and he will look to make a lasting impression at the Lions

Speaking after the trade was finalized, General Manager Todd Carlton discussed the moves that the team would be making over the coming days:

“Of course, we have seen some injuries to our roster, and we know that we have quite a few roster changes to go through over the coming days before our first regular season game and some may say that trading one player for another is not in our interest at this time, but we have made the calls that we feel are right for our team and we know that building a roster that can compete each and every week is better than just trading players away for the sake of getting our roster to the league-mandated levels”.

The Lions, now with a roster standing at 59 players, will look to make several roster changes over the coming days to bring the roster to the league-mandated 53-man limit.

PENRITH, NSW – The Lions have made the final roster moves to bring the team to the league-mandated 53-man roster.

The Lions have waived six players from the roster, bringing the roster to the maximum size of 53 players for the upcoming regular season. The Lions have waived SLB Richard Good, LG Pierre Cantor, WR Raymond Carson, C Michael Irby, WR Donald Smith and RB Samuel Mendoza.

The entire Lions organisation thanks these players for their service and wishes them the best for their future careers in the league.

If there wasn’t anything much to say after that preseason, the buzz around the city is that the Lions look solid and could be in for something this season, but being the first season in the new league, anything could really happen. The Lions finished the preseason at a perfect 4-0, with a league-high 116 points, and limiting their opponents to the league’s third-lowest total of 14 points.

The Lions are getting the best of the league with the opening game of the new season at home, welcoming the Nice Baguettes to town. They surprised not many people, going 1-3 in the preseason, scoring only 16 points. They have gone through three quarterbacks in the preseason, looking unable to find someone to settle in, whereas the Lions have Napoleon Whitmore (39/54, 306 yards, 2 TDs) and he looks to have secured the starting job, and even if he goes down (which we hope he won’t) , then Raymond Crawford looks to be a very suitable backup and if things play well for the team, maybe Crawford attracts some interest for some marketable draft capital next season.

I will two things about the Nice team; I do like the speed that running back Breadrick Lepain has (20 attempts, 120 yards) in the preseason. I was hoping to see him play, the speed he has could really have hurt the ground game for the Lions' defence, but he seems to be out and will probably not play, so it’s down to the 7-year veteran Alexander Linsey and rookie Howard Duke to get the ground game going for the Baguettes.

On the defensive side, they have kept their own, getting some solid tackle numbers out of the likes of defensive end David Jones, cornerback Henry Asher and even safety Willie Overbey chiming in with 12 tackles. The downside is, that they are missing as many tackles as they are making, and they are just not pressuring the quarterback, only seeing 4 sacks in the preseason. The defence really needs to be on its game from the opening drive if the Baguettes realistically have a chance of keeping this game close.

For the Lions, offensively, they are set in positions, with only Ricky Hall being the most pressing issue, with the star running back looking likely to miss at least the first half of the season with a serious knee injury. Defensively, it is another question with three defensive tackles Nicholas Shropshire, Keith Gannon and Andrew Robertson all looking at some time off the field, however, the news was eased off a bit with all three looking at returning sometime around Week 4. The other concern is with defensive end Andrew Ramsey. Speaking to Head Coach James Jennings, he was saying that both Ramsey and safety Matthew Malpass are both on track with their injuries and should be ready for the trip to Nottingham in Week 5 but could return earlier if they clear protocols.

“We took a few serious hits in a couple of preseason games, but we managed to work around that as it came, and if we can look at being one of only five teams to be undefeated in the preseason, then I can say that we can handle these injuries and that we can manage with the rest of the players on our roster”.

Game Prediction: Lions to romp home. Going to give it a 14-point margin.