20120624: Show beat Trolls, finish 3rd
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Another home game, another day of varying weather in Stavanger. The Vålerenga Trolls, having arguably their worst ever season in the top division, came with 18 players ready to give it their all. The oldest and perhaps most storied club in Norwegian gridiron, the 18 players the Trolls had brought with them were no slouches; not a single rookie could be found among them, and many with a background on the national team.

​​The Show started by driving the ball on the first drive after stopping the Trolls on their first. However, after driving around 50 yards, QB Pål Dannevig was intercepted by Trolls' DB Marius Babic. Vålerenga promptly went on a longer drive of their own, producing the game's first TD as QB Scott Boer found WR Petter Thorp who made a sensational grab while flying towards the back of the endzone. The PAT was good; 7-0 for the Trolls.

AFC Show immediately answered with a four-play drive capped off with a Simon Bruset dive through the middle for the TD.​​ The PAT by Kicker Truls Johansen was good; 7-7.

The next couple of Trolls' drives were effectively stopped, while the next couple of Show's drives quickly ended by fumbles.​​ Vålerenga then once again drove the ball, with a beautiful pass from Boer to Thorp giving them their second touchdown of the game. The PAT was once again good; 14-7 in favor of the Trolls.

Show once again answered on the following drive, this time through a 65-yard pass from QB Dannevig to WR Magnus Vadla. The PAT was no good, and the home team was trailing 14-13 at this point.​​ The teams traded a few more unsuccessful drives before halftime was reached in a game that at this point had had it's highs, but also certainly it's lows.

AFC Show received the kickoff and subsequently went on a long drive that ended with another Simon Bruset touchdown. The drive set the tone for the 2nd half, and AFC Show had trailed for the last time in the game. The two-point conversion attempt was good as Bruset found the endzone again, giving the Stavanger team a 21-14 lead.

A couple of drives later, and still in the 3rd quarter, QB Dannevig went back to the air, finding TE Darryl Kennon​​ for a 19-yard touchdown pass. The PAT was no good, leaving the score at 27-14 in favor of the AFC Show.

The rest of the game saw the Show defense stuff the Trolls attack, while the Show offense often managed to drive the ball and use time, but never again reached the endzone. A solid interception by DB Sivert Duvsete was among the highlights before DB Christian Andreassen ended the Trolls' hope of a late comeback by snatching an interception as well, giving the ball back to the two-headed rushing attack of Simon Bruset and Simon Olsen to run out the clock.

AFC Show head coach Jarle Magnus Henriksen was not particularily pleased with the performance, but pleased that the team got the win it so sorely needed to qualify for the playoffs. "It was not a great performance by any stretch of the imagination, but it was solid as a display of conservative play to secure a needed win. I am pleased that we've done enough to reach the goal set by the club four years ago". Coach Henriksen is referring to the club's long term goal set in 2008, which was to be among the top three teams in the country by 2012. AFC Show ends the regular season as the 3rd best team in the country after this win against the Trolls​.

Next up is the semi-final game against the Kristiansand Gladiators. The game will be played in Kristiansand on the 1st​​ of July. The winner of that game will go on to the Norwegian Championship game, meaning that one of the two teams in the championship game will be a team that played in the 2nd Division in 2011, as was the case for both the Gladiators and the Show!

You can check out AFC Show highlights and the Vålerenga Trolls highlights from the game in the videos below the text in this article. Enjoy!











































































With a league record of 2-3, AFC Show was facing the 1-4 Vålerenga Trolls.​​ For Show it was a chance to reach the Norwegian Championship that was on the line. For the Trolls it was the opportunity to end in 5th place instead of 6th and end the season on a winning note.

Early in the game it looked like the Trolls might leave Stavanger with a win, as Show struggled to keep a decent level of play. The brave 18 players of the Oslo side did their best to keep the Trolls​​ ahead.

A 14-13 halftime lead for the Trolls​​ had the Show coaches furious. As soon as halftime was over, AFC started producing better, led by RB Simon Bruset's 176 yards rushing on the day.

In the end, Show proved too strong for this year's edition of the Trolls, winning 27-14.​​ This meant Show qualifies for the playoffs, meeting the Kristiansand Gladiators in the Norwegian Championship semi-final next weekend!
Photo by Oriana Durán.