WXV: Parisian Nice Lyon Reindeers

[Justin Bieber]

Clay can't buy any luck and has shown good potential prior to injuries :(. PNL vows to stand by him, through these tough times.

[DazBurg]

http://www.news.com.au/sport/afl/luke-ball-has-called-time-on-his-career-after-stints-with-st-kilda-and-collingwood/story-fndv8g1a-1227040325048

thanks Luke you've been a great servant of the club

[Justin Bieber]

Round 2

PNL get the Points
Wellington Warriors (19.11.125) lost to PNL Reindeers (20.16.136)

Best
Wellington: M Murphy, S Dempster, L Hayes
PNL: M Jaensch, C Rioli, M Lobbe, C Wingard, D Rich

Club Debut
PNL: M Jaensch

Reserves
Wellington Warriors (15.14.104) lost to Marseille Kings (17.10.122)

Best
Wellington: T Mzungu, X Ellis, D Morris
Marseille: M Thomas, H Grundy, B McKenzie, T Goldsack, Jackson Trengove

Low scoring affair for PNL but notched our first win of the season here! Jaensch debuts for us in a big way and Marseilles has a big week!

B&F
3. M. Jaensch
2. C. Rioli
1. M. Lobbe

[Justin Bieber]

Round 3

PNL in the 8
PNL Reindeers (22.14.146) defeated Pacific Islanders (19.16.130)

Best
PNL: M Priddis, F Ray, M Jaensch, C Rioli
Pacific: S Gibson, Jack Redden, J Howe

WXV Debut
PNL: M Thomas

Reserves
Marseille Kings (12.10.82) lost to Port Morseby Iguanadons (19.14.128)

Best
Marseille: L Jones
Port Morseby: J Elliott, S Day, B Sheppard, R Stanley, K Hardingham

PNL had a very consistent week to post a respectable score. Anchored by a huge score by Co-Captain Priddis and the main club debut of Thomas who was finally able to show scoring potential!

B&F Votes
3. M. Priddis
2. M. Jaensch
1. F. Ray

[Justin Bieber]

Round 4

PNL knock down Sands castle

Cairo Sands (19.17.131) lost to PNL Reindeers (22.17.149)

Best
Cairo: D Beams, B Smith, N Malceski
PNL: N Jones, K Simpson, J Westhoff, M Jaensch, L Ball, M Thomas

Reserves
Alexandria Hieroglyphics (16.11.107) defeated Marseille Kings (14.10.94)

Best
Alexandria: K Hartigan, S Rowe, C Pearce
Marseille: L McPharlin, L Casboult, T Goldsack

After besting Wellington and Pacific, came a much bigger test in 2013 finalists Cairo. This is what put us on the map for this season. Huge games by many players, with Jones the main instigator! Marseilles suffer a 2nd straight defeat, but still posting pretty respectable scores.

This round was also known as the beginning of the Worlds Hashtag of the season #NoMummyNoCairo

B&F Votes
3 K. Simpson
2 J. Westhoff
1 N Jones

[Justin Bieber]

Round 5

PNL outlast improving Royals
PNL Reindeers (20.17.137) defeated London Royals (20.14.134)

Best
PNL: N Jones, M Jaensch, K Simpson
London: J Brown, J McVeigh, D Hannebery, D Rampe, H Lumumba, B Stanton

Reserves
Marseille Kings (20.16.136) defeated Imperial Princes (13.7.85)

Best
Marseille: C Dawes, J Billings, T Goldsack, Jackson Trengove
Imperial: B Reilly, R Laird

Wasn't the prettiest display against London but was enough to get the job done! Was a consistent team performance which allowed us to get over the line so kudos to the boys, Jones certainly was the standout from this match and deservedly received the 3 votes.

B&F
3 N. Jones
2 M. Jaensch
1 K. Simpson

[Justin Bieber]

B&F Tally after 5 rounds

7 Votes - N. Jones, M. Jaensch
5 Votes - K. Simpson
4 Votes - J. Westhoff
3 Votes - M. Priddis
2 Votes - C. Rioli
1 Vote - M. Lobbe, F. Ray

Now for our first reward for the last night festivities :P. First Year Player Of The Season! Just to make it fair, this will be the first year the player has been in the WXV system and not just with the team!



Despite being our 2nd draft pick of the season, he certainly made a name for himself up forward when injuries struck again! Albeit a sub-vest potential, when he wasn't, certainly showed he can potentially be a future club stalwart. Has firmly settled into the best XV of the season with Lynch and Cyril both missing chunks of the season. The future looks bright for young Zach and hoping he is able to further step up to battle for his spot when Lynch and Cyril are fully fit!

Runner up: Jack Billings. Although taken at #6 and played many games for Marseilles, was unable to consistently crack the PNL side. Hopefully he shows more similarities to Wingard if he is able to break out next year after getting settled in first year!

[Justin Bieber]

Round 6

Wolves Make Statement
Toronto Wolves (23.20.158) defeated PNL Reindeers (22.17.149)

Best
Toronto: P Ryder, S Pendlebury, M Johnson, T Hickey, C Pedersen, N Grima
PNL: C Rioli, TT Lynch, N Jones, M Priddis, M Lobbe

Reserves
Toronto Wolves (20.15.135) defeated Marseille Kings (19.11.125)

Best
Toronto: R Shaw, B McLean, A Hall, T Jonas, C Young, M Jamison, Matt Shaw
Marseille: J Patton, T Goldsack, H Grundy

Entering round 6, PNL were riding high, on a 4 game win streak. However came up against a tough Toronto side who pulled out an even bigger score to end our streak. Priddis and Jones tried their hardest as Co-Captains but it was just not enough high scorers in the end that decided the outcome as majority put in sollid 70+ scores! Also suffered a loss in Reserves with Marseilles :(.

B&F
3 C. Rioli
2 T Lynch
1 N Jones

[Justin Bieber]

Round 7

Sao Paulo play Reindeer Games
PNL Reindeers (21.12.138) lost to Sao Paulo Pumas (23.21.159)

Best
PNL: C Rioli, K Simpson, F Ray, C Enright
Sao Paulo: G Ablett jnr, J Polec, Jarryd Roughead, S Jacobs, A Walker, R Sloane, D Smith

Reserves
Marseille Kings (24.18.162) defeated Rio de Janeiro Jaguars (11.9.75)

Best
Marseille: C Dawes, D Shiel, L McPharlin, L Casboult
Rio de Janeiro: J Stringer, M Paparone

Against a tough Pumas outfit, lose our 2nd on the trot. Didn't put up a horrible score, but far from a great score if we were to try and beat one of the Big 4 in the league, especially a powerful Pumas team lead by Ablett. Rioli was top scorer with not too much else to notce. Lynch also went down early and effectively lead to him missing a huge chunk of the middle of the season :(. At least Marseilles end their losing streak by posting a mammoth 162!

B&F Votes
3 C. Rioli
2 K. Simpson
1 F. Ray

[Justin Bieber]

Round 8

Spetsnaz Knock on Top 4 Door
Moscow Spetsnaz (24.12.156) defeated PNL Reindeers (20.14.134)

Best
Moscow: D Heppell, C Ward, J O'Meara, D Martin, R Griffen, J Jenkins
PNL: K Simpson, M Priddis

Club Debut
PNL: C Dawes

Reserves
Siberian Wolverines (12.10.82) lost to Marseille Kings (18.17.125)

Best
Siberia: S Docherty, D Ellard
Marseille: H Grundy, M Hallahan, Z Merrett, L Jones, J Billings

Not a pretty round for PNL. Another loss making it 3 in a row to top 8 candidates and pushing our record to 4-4 at this stage. Round did see the club debut of Dawes but that didn't really lift the team :P. Kade put forth a mighty effort and Priddis solid backup as Co-Captain, but just lack of support in order to get us over the line.

B&F Votes
3 K. Simpson
2 M. Priddis
1 C. Wingard

[Justin Bieber]

Round 9

PNL Reindeers (20.12.132) defeated Berlin Brewers (17.15.117)
Best
PNL: M Priddis, M Jaensch, J Westhoff, K Simpson
Berlin: D Zorko, P Duffield

WXV Debut
PNL: M Hallahan, Z Merrett

Reserves
Marseille Kings (23.17.155) defeated Rhineland Rum-Runners (6.7.43)

Best
Marseille: C Shenton, Z O'Brien, D Myers, L Casboult, L McPharlin, M Thomas
Rhineland: D Grimes

PNL wins the EUROPEAN CUP
MATT PRIDDIS wins the WEIDEMAN Medal

Game was pretty low scoring and we were lucky to win with a score of 132. We also grab our first trophy of the season topping Berlin this round! First time ever PNL have won it in 3 meetings. This also was the break in the form slump we needed, finally ending our 3 game losing streak. Wingard had a shocker round (10 points) but his teammates were able to carry him through for the win. Priddis and Jaensch stand out performers while Kade and Hoffman were able to provide good enough back up in order for PNL to remain in the 8. This round also saw the club debuts of Zach Merrett and highly touted Mitch Hallahan, although the fortunes for both were expected to be reversed in their performances this year! Marseilles also grabs a big win.

B&F Votes
3 M. Priddis
2 M. Jaensch
1 J. Westhoff

[Justin Bieber]

Round 10

Reindeers Crack the Armadillos

Buenos Aires had its first loss of the season, while the Reindeers got just the win they needed to consolidate a spot in the top 8, and maybe push for the 4.

Buenos Aires Armadillos (20.12.132) lost to PNL Reindeers (20.15.135)

Best
Buenos Aires: B Harvey, J Schulz
PNL: M Lobbe, N Jones, C Wingard, M Thomas

WXV Debut
PNL: C Shenton

Reserves
Buenos Aires Armadillos (8.6.54) lost to Marseille Kings (24.19.163)

Best
Buenos Aires: D Petrie, D Cross, B Sewell
Marseille: D Shiel, Jackson Trengove, H Grundy, Z Merrett, J Patton, C Dawes, L Casboult

Big round for PNL! Not only did they grab a big scalp of a top 4 team but also handed the Armadillos their first loss of the season! It was a closely contested match and came down to the very last batch of players in order to get PNL over the line! Lobbe had his biggest game of the season which was backed up well by Nate Jones and co, just enough to get the win. Marseilles post another huge score, with a few pushing for games in the Seniors, especially Shiel making a case now.

B&F Votes
3 M. Lobbe
2 N. Jones
1 C. Wingard

[Justin Bieber]

B&F Tally after 10 rounds

10 Votes - N. Jones, K. Simpson
9 Votes - M. Jaensch
8 Votes - M. Priddis, C. Rioli
5 Votes - J. Westhoff
4 Votes - M. Lobbe
2 Votes - F. Ray, C. Wingard, T. Lynch

Not many real surprises here on who'd be polling votes. Jones and Priddis were standouts in the midfield this season while Kade and Jaensch were the same down back. This is where things become interesting as quite a few players have a great second half so keeps this award wide open!

Betting odds would be roughly...

$1.45 Matt Priddis
$1.80 Nathan Jones
$4.25 Kade Simpson
$5.90 Matthew Lobbe
$8.00 Justin Westhoff, Matthew Jaensch

[Justin Bieber]

Most Improved Player Award

Now this was a tough award to decide. This is why joint winners were chosen in both Matthew Jaensch and Dylan Shiel.



Matthew came to the club via the National Draft, as PNL threw him a lifeline and he repaid us in being more than just a depth player but a vital cog in the defence which was formerly our weakest area. Jaensch not only lifted his output but cracked the 100 mark in 9 appearances for PNL/Marseilles. He proved a worthy investment after being delisted by Pacific, and lifted his game to another level this season in order to get games for a senior side.



On the flip side could not leave Dylan Shiel out of this. He was not as influential as Jaensch but he took a big step up in his level of scoring and showed why he's a future leader of the club. Although he wasn't able to find games until the second half of the season, he provided much needed relief in the midfield behind Pridda and Jones. Although consistency is a problem, he has shown he can go big and is a ball-magnet, lifting his scoring up by around 18 points from last season. Certainly going to want to continue this into next season and is not looking to leave us anytime soon.

[Justin Bieber]

Round 11
Reindeers Are Coming

PNL Reindeers (24.15.159) defeated New York Revolution (20.15.135)

Best
PNL: M Lobbe, D Shiel, M Priddis, N Jones, C Enright
New York: M Stokes, T Liberatore, A Treloar, T Cloke, J Macrae

Reserves
Marseille Kings (28.15.183) defeated Washington Rebellion (9.5.59)

Best
Marseille: L Jones, J Grant, J Patton, L Casboult, D Myers, Jackson Trengove, H Grundy, C Shenton
Washington: S Lycett

With the coaching changes at New York finally coming to an end, PNL were still able to get the better of them by quite a margin! A massive score of 159 was posted spearheaded by Lobbe who backed up last week's performance with another monster score. Not only this, but Shiel's performance for Marseilles the previous week did not go unnoticed, as he was put on the big stage once again and shined brighter than most! Marseilles hitting peak form now, with many guys fighting for a place on the Seniors.

B&F Votes
3 M. Lobbe
2 D. Shiel
1 M. Priddis