The Coventry Jets received a major boost on Saturday as the Søllerød Gold Diggers defeated the Saint Ouen l’Aumône Cougars 40-16 in Group C of the EFAF Cup.
The result leaves the Jets knowing that they will play for the right to progress into the semi-finals when they entertain the Danish champions on the 7th of May at the Butts Park Arena in Coventry.
Defeated semi-finalists in the French playoffs last year, the Cougars were expected to be one of the frontrunners for this year’s EFAF Cup but the crushing defeat in Nærum, Denmark has shattered their dreams of European glory. A huge investment, including the signing of former UCLA Bruins starting quarterback Kevin Craft, was expected to push the Cougars, based in a suburb of Paris, to the heady heights of their first French national title but they currently stand in third place after winning only one of their four previous league matches.
Coventry will travel to Paris over the Easter weekend safe in the knowledge that whatever happens in the French Capital they will still have the opportunity to play for a place in the final four of the tournament. Secretary Adam Etheridge admitted his surprise at the result “I didn’t see it coming at all. I expected quite the opposite from the scoreline in fact. The Cougars were very strong last season in a very competitive league, narrowly missing out in the semis to the team that went on to win it all.
“I’ll admit that, as an eternal pessimist, I was concerned that our game at the Butts might have proved to be a dead rubber if we struggle on our travels. However, this result guarantees that we’ll still control our own destiny if don’t get the result we need away from home. We’ve been fantastic in Coventry over the years, we’ve won all of our European games in the City and we’ve only lost 3 games at home over the past six seasons so I’m confident that we can progress to the semi-finals.”
A familiar foe will likely be waiting for the Jets if they can make it into the next round. The winner of Group C will face Group D’s victor for a place in the final. British Champions and Jets’ nemesis, the London Blitz, currently sit atop that group after a thumping 68-6 victory over the Amsterdam Crusaders at Finsbury Park on Saturday. The only team capable of thwarting their progress are the Valencia Firebats, a team the Jets beat in 2008 as they progressed to the Eurobowl quarter-finals.
With 27 new faces on their 60 man roster for the EFAF Cup, the 2011 Jets have been working hard on their pre-season preparations and will scrimmage with the Birmingham Bulls next week as a final rehearsal for the Cougars. For more details on the Coventry Jets and to find out how you can be part of their 2011 campaign, please visit their website www.covjets.com or follow them on Twitter www.twitter.com/CoventryJets.