The Lions now sit at 4-1 after a close victory, defeating the Nottingham Arrows 16-10 last week, and now look towards the winless Catacol Wildcats, and the possibility of either staying in reach of the division leading Fools, or fall two games back and give the Wildcats their first victory in the regular season. If the win against Nottingham is anything to go by, then either could be a possibility.

Penrith, by defeating Nottingham, are showing that they might be all in for this season and a strong showing this week and in the coming weeks as the season gets towards the middle portion, could be the evidence that many need to see. Catacol, on the other hand, are still on the lookout for their first win, but have shown that they could be a dark horse to cause some problems. If they can solve their quarterback issue, they could really be in good stead moving forward. With Dr. Quincy under center at the moment, with the second highest interceptions at the moment (9) and the league lowest qualifying QBR (only one QB is lower, with a 0.00 rating), Catacol may be in for a tough season unless they can make a change moving forward.

On the flip side, they have limited opponents to an average of only 23 points in the last three games, in part to their defence led by rookie cornerback Kenneth Henderson (39 tackles) and safety Alfred Musgrove (36 tackles). The decision to draft only rookies could be a turning point, with the team already looking solid in some areas, and weak in others. The Lions need to play like they did against the Crazy Wolves and put the game away early if they want to avoid another meltdown and possibly a loss. If they can do that, alongside the combination of Whitmore and Lockett, who finally seem to be getting into the groove, then the Lions could be in for a big score here again.

Speaking to the media, Head Coach James Jennings talked about how the side was handling this long road trip:

“We are just taking it like any other game week, we know that we are away from home, and training in unfamiliar locations, it is the same for every other team this season, as the league is only brand new, so we are taking it in our stride. The guys are keeping to the routines that we have set for them, and that we discussed prior to the season, and we think that we are in a good position right now, with the right level of interaction, training, conditioning and downtime to allow them to have a relatively normal day-to-day life while we are on this road trip”

The Lions have a major injury concern to deal with, that being the nasty injury suffered by starting center Andrew Kenney last week, with medical staff saying that it could be a season-ending injury. The Lions have brought back Michael Irby to the squad as cover, with Head Coach Jennings saying that Michael Adams would be the starting center for the team this week, while Irby reacquaints himself with the team and the playbook and gets himself settled in a bit more. The team are, however, welcoming back linebacker Paul Quick and defensive end Andrew Ramsey earlier than expected, with medical reports saying that both should be fine to play on, while Patrick Shepherd has flown home and looks likely to resume training in the next few weeks, with a timeline for his return not expected until Week 8 at the earliest. The team will also be without Joseph Hoops again, as he has aggravated his right ankle, and only a week after returning from a foot complaint.

Game Prediction: I think the Lions will take this one and move to 5-1, with a solid 17-point victory over the Wildcats.

The momentum is surely in the Lions favour now, with another victory and heading into Week 7 on the back of a commanding 27-3 victory over the Wildcats, and will look to keep this going as they face the Bohemian Cats in what some commentators are referring to as the “Kitty Bowl”. Whether that catches on, is anybody’s guess.

The Lions again produced a stunning performance, with an amazing 50-yard touchdown drive from Napoleon Whitmore (31/44, 217 yards, 2 TD) to rookie Franklin Adkins, his first touchdown of the season. However, the day belonged to Frank Bell, with an amazing (and career high) 116 rushing yards, further improving that from last week’s 88 yards, with some saying that it is going to be quite tough for Head Coach James Jennings when Ricky Hall is ready to return, as to how he plays two solid running backs in the same side. When asked after the game, his response was as vague as it could be:

“We honestly have not thought that far ahead. Our focus is on the next game, and our opponents in that game. We will go forward looking at each game and opponent and make the best decisions we need to, as a coaching staff, to who plays in the game and to be honest, it’s a good problem to have”?

The Lions will finish off their three game road trip this week, with a visit to Bohemian to play the 2-4 Cubs, who are coming off a tough 13-8 loss against the Crazy Wolves. The Cubs, who signed Melvin Kingsley to a 2-year deal earlier last week, looked a different side than they had before, with the team looking more like they did in Week 1, than they have in the weeks prior. It was a shame that they came up against up and coming superstar quarterback Donald Brown, returning from quite a long injury lay-off, who was able to steal the show and lead the Crazy Wolves to victory. The Cubs, who, if they can build the supporting cast around Kingsley, will give the Lions a run for their money in this one.

The Lions will have to win the game without two stars on defence, with cornerback Luis Walsh and DT William Meeks out for at least the next 3 or so weeks, both with leg injuries, however, medical staff have confirmed that Meeks may return a little earlier as it does not look as bad as what Walsh’s was. It will require the likes of Fernando Houser, Keith Gannon and even Richard Ballard to step up in their absence and provide the defensive pressure that the Lions have been showing the last couple of games, limiting opponents on average to only 6.5 points per game. The news was a little better as well for both Patrick Shepherd and Andrew Kenney, with both very much on track with their recoveries, and looking to be ready to get into practice in about 6 weeks' time, with both looking likely to be available for selection closer to the next road trip in Week 12. Head Coach James Jennings confirmed the news that the foot injury suffered by Kenney in Week 5 was not as severe as they first thought and it was lucky that they didn’t confirm his place on the IR list, and that he will be able to return sometime later in the season.

“We had pondered whether to put Andrew on the IR list, but after getting a second opinion about his foot injury, it was our decision, along with the consultations from the doctors and Andrew himself that we avoid that, and we were more than happy to go along with that path for his recovery. He will miss a large part of the rest of the regular season, but we know that when he returns, he will get some games under his belt and will hopefully be ready for the postseason, should we qualify, or next season, whatever the case may be”

Game Prediction: I think the Lions will take this one and move to 6-1, with a solid 17-point victory over the Wildcats.

The Lions were nothing but stunned last week, a shutout loss to the Bohemian Cubs, who seemingly have pulled off the upset of the season, with many wondering who is to blame for this one. Questions were being asked almost immediately after the game, however, Team Owner Leam Mark Farrar confirmed in no uncertain terms that James Jennings, and his entire coaching staff were safe:

“They have contracts, and we will honour them. Right now, James Jennings is our coach, and it is going to stay that way. End of story”

The Lions just seemed to have no answer to the Cubs offense and defense, committing 13 missed tackles, and on the back of 4 interceptions from Napoleon Whitmore, questions really need to be asked if the Lions are who many think that they are. Many are starting to wonder if this team has what it takes to win the division and go all the way, or if the last few weeks have just been a smoke and mirrors job to create a false sense of security for the team.

Many also question how the result happened, with the Cubs punting the ball 10 times, for nearly 500 yards, while the Lions seemed to have several drives that were quite long (5 drives over 20 yards) but just could not seem to turn them into points. The Lions seemed to have the fair share of the stats sheet this week, bare the run game which seemed to falter this week, with Frank Bell only managing 46 yards compared to almost 100 for Robert Hussey. Speaking after the game, Head Coach James Jennings talked about what potentially went wrong:

“I honestly think that we just didn’t see the game for what it was worth, and we let the Cubs run away with the game. We just did not have the answers today and they made us pay. No going to smother this talk with how bad we were and that they were lucky, because simply put it, the Cubs played much better football than we did, and they seriously made us pay. Can’t sugar coat this one, they played better, and they well and truly deserved that win. We deserved to lose”

The Lions head into Week 8 with the first of a four-game home stand, starting with the Star City Slamhounds, who are coming into the game on the back of two straight loses, most recently 16-6 against the Crazy Wolves. The Slamhounds are coming in on the back of a performance that did not show much effort, quarterback James Thompson, in only his second start of his career, going from 288 yards right down to 83 yards, but was still as accurate (59.1% in Week 6 to 54.2% last week). The Slamhounds will need to keep the defense strong, and really look to limit the Lions’ offence, keeping their last two opponents to around 3.83 yards per play, and if they can limit the Lions to what they had against the Cubs, they will hold a solid chance of sending the Lions to their second straight loss of the season.

The Lions head into the game knowing that running back Ricky Hall has been passed fit to play and will play his first regular season game for the team this week, Head Coach James Jennings confirming this earlier today, commenting that they plan to use Ricky in a particular way while he builds up his confidence with the game plan and the playbook. They will also still be without Luis Walsh, who is looking more likely to be in line for a return when the Lions once again head out on the road, with the only concern from last week being right guard Donnie Daugherty who looks likely to be on the sidelines for a couple of weeks with a foot sprain.

Game Prediction: Even after that loss, I think the Lions bounce back again, winning this by a close margin, say 3 points

If things couldn’t go any worse for the Lions, last week was not what they needed, losing to the Star City Slamhounds 31-14 in front of a sold-out stadium, with many wondering where the wheels went, because they have well and truly come off the wagon now. The comments by Team Owner Leam Mark Farrar didn’t make for any better reading, with many across the league questioning whether or not James Jennings will even see out the season, or if this is just a blip on the radar and the team can move on from the disaster of the last couple of weeks.

Some will wonder if the Lions really are actually contenders, or if the early season winning streak was just some fancy footwork from the team against “poorer” sides in the league. With Napoleon Whitmore seemingly struggling over the last few weeks (10 sacks in the last four games, 194.2 yards average, 1 TD per game over the period), it lays the question as to whether Raymond Crawford should be taking the snaps with the first team this week, or if they hold out and hope Whitmore turns it around.

The team was buoyed by the return of a couple of reinforcements, namely Ricky Hall, who ran for a solid 60 yards and a touchdown in his return from the leg injury that has kept him out since preseason. Speaking to the media afterwards, Head Coach James Jennings talked about the positive influence that he has brought, however, many more questions were aimed at the results the Lions have had over the last couple of weeks and if the team is on track:

“Honestly, we have had a couple of bad results. I don’t support the idea that the wheels have fallen off, and I most certainly don’t put it down to just one aspect of our game. There are multiple factors and to say that we are done for, when we still have another 8 games to play, so I don’t agree that we have just been a flash in the pan side, or that we only won the five games so far because we played weaker opponents. Every side in this league works and plays hard each and every week and it does them a disservice if we talk about those games like that”

The Lions this week come up against the Florence Fools, who are facing a three-game losing streak themselves, coming off second best against the Bullfighters 13-7. They have lost their last three games by an average margin of 13 points, where as the Lions sit at an average of 14, so the offence might not be playing much of a part in this one, the defense seems to be where this game will be won or lost by either side. Both sides are relatively close when it comes to many offensive stats across the league, where the defense seems to be where the Lions are coming out on top, as they have the third best sacks per game at 3, compared to the Fools only at 2 on average per game (22nd) and seem to get around 0.5-0.6 interceptions per game, whilst giving up roughly the same. This looks to be, on paper, an old-fashioned shootout on our hands.

The Lions seem to be on top of their injury list, with Donne Daugherty returning to the active list this week, having overcome his foot sprain, with Offensive Coordinator Edward White confident that Daugherty will be right to play the game. The other injury concerns are the same from last week, however, Head Coach James Jennings is confident that there could be returns in the coming weeks for cornerback Luis Walsh and maybe even right guard Patrick Shepherd, if they pass fitness tests before next week.

Game Prediction: I think the Lions will bounce back this week (hopefully) this time, in a close one, by 3 points.

The Lions got back onto the winning bandwagon with a gritty 10-7 divisional win against the Florence Fools, pushing the Fools down to 0-3 in the division and giving the Lions a bit of breathing room, even if some are wondering if they are a postseason threat anymore. The game petered in the middle, with neither side having or taking any force in the game, evident with the 18 punts throughout the game, the Lions feeling the full force of it, with nine straight following the 48-yard field goal by Jeffery Paz early in the second quarter.

Whatever that game was, Head Coach James Jennings wanted to just move on from it, and focus solely on the next game, that being a conference matchup against the Hong Kong Kings:

“We’re on to Hong Kong.”

Napoleon Whitmore looked more like himself this week, even if it was only a 142 yard match for him, he found a more solid offensive line, only being sacked once in the game, the first time since Week 3 that it has happened, and also the second game of his career without an interception (Week 6 was the other), however, the issues now seem to lie with not just the ground game, but the aerial game as well, with Frank Bell struggling (59 yards on 14 carries) as well as the wide receiver group, amassing only 38 yards between them all game (the rest came from the running backs and tight ends).

The Kings come into the game on the back of two wins, with one being against the Sharknado, who are leading the Lions’ division. They seem to have settled in with Terry Im under center, with the young quarterback having played since Week 3, and while it seems that he is not the short-term answer for the Kings (2 TDs to 10 INTs, 59.4% completion percentage); the Kings look to be a side looking towards next season and the future, rather than the here and now. They have struggled in the run game, not a single touchdown on the ground (the Lions, for comparison, have five). If the Kings are to prove to be an upset for the Lions, they will have to do is simply by capitalizing on every single mistake the Lions make. If they can exploit those mistakes to their advantage, and even force the Lions into the mistakes; they will have a chance, and it will be a low-scoring affair. If the Lions can return to their ways back in the earlier weeks, and get the score out there early on, then they will win easily.

The Lions will head into the game with Luis Walsh returning, after missing the last three weeks. It will be a welcome boost for the defence, that seemed to struggle during his absence, but they will look to use his return as a boost to help getting the team back to winning ways. The Lions will also be without Andrew Ramsey for at least the remainder of the regular season after the defensive end suffered another setback, this time injuring his ankle, which will leave the Lions a bit down on personnel, at least for this week, but defensive coordinator Brian Langdon was optimistic that the team is not worried and can keep the pressure on to fight for the postseason:

“Of course, it is a loss for the whole team and I know Andrew is shattered that it looks likely that he won’t be able to return until the playoffs, but he will be there with us, supporting the defensive staff and players and he will be a big part of the team moving forward this season, and I know that we can manage his absence on the field with the players that we have, and if the team and management feel that we need additional support, then we will take that in our stride as well”.

Game Prediction: I think the Lions will take this one, by 10 points.