A week after being fed their first defeat at the talons of the Essex Ravens, the Hamilton Ironmen made sure that they wouldn’t have to experience that same bitter taste again, as the Ironmen fought to a 24-13 victory over the Brampton Bulldogs.
Angelo Delsordo tries to find some running room.
Quarterback Liam Putt bounced back after an average performance to lead Hamilton’s offense on several big drives. Putt put up big yardage to go with 2 touchdown passes, both to Mackenzie Sadjer.
Head coach Ken McGuire was very happy with his team’s ability to answer after last week’s loss and throughout a tough first half against Brampton.
“I was really proud of the guys, to come out here and play the way they did.” Beamed McGuire, “I think we learned a lot in the loss to Essex. I mean we were down 7-0 until the end of the first half against a good Brampton team, but we managed to fight back.”
After a scoreless first, the Bulldogs took a late lead in the second quarter off of a 21-yard touchdown pass from Kyle Gouveia to Issac Smith. Putt then took over and led the Ironmen on a long drive capped off by his first touchdown pass to Sadjer with 26 seconds remaining in the half.
WR Mackenzie Sadjer hauls in one of his two touchdown catches of the day.
Hamilton went into the second half with all the momentum on their side and they never looked back. Anthony Bellardini hit a short field goal early in the half to take a lead that the Ironmen wouldn’t surrender. Putt then hit Sadjer once again halfway through the third, while running back Brandan Gamble scored on a 5-yard run late to give the Ironmen a 24-7 lead going into the fourth quarter.
“Liam Putt played excellent for us, he threw the ball really well,” praised McGuire, “Jake Williams was big, he caught about 6 passes and our defense was great as well. [Linebacker] Dezain Brooks was a real leader for us.”
The defense played great enough to hold Brampton off the scoreboard throughout the entire second half, right up until quarterback Kyle Gouveia hit receiver Brandon Ihanza on the final play of the fourth quarter.
Despite Brampton’s 0-3 record, Coach McGuire believes that the Bulldogs are a better team than that and that this was an important game for his team to win.
“Brampton’s a good team. I mean they lost to Essex and Niagara, who are both great clubs,” he indicated, “we were very aggressive. I thought they took some penalties in the second half that hurt them and we took advantage.”
Next on the docket for the Ironmen is a trip to Niagara to visit the Spears. With both teams tied at 2-1 in their division, Coach McGuire knows that this is more than just another game.
“This is a huge divisional game,” stated McGuire, “we’re both 2-1. They run a lot of the spread offense like we do…it’s going to be a good challenge for us.”
A challenge that he believes his team is ready for.
“It took some time, but I think a lot of the guys are starting to realize how different it is to play in this league as opposed to high school,” McGuire observed, “the level of play is higher, the quarters are longer, guys need to concentrate. It’s a tough league to play in.”
Hamilton travels to Kiwanis Field Saturday night to take on the Niagara Spears. Game time is scheduled for 8:00pm.
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