The Nottingham Caesars’ senior’s unbeaten start to the season came to an abrupt end on Sunday with a 30-23 loss to West Coast Trojans at the Harvey Hadden.
Touchdowns from Danny Miller and Charlie Paterson weren’t enough as the Big Cee fell to their first loss of the season, with Gary McNey passing for three of the Trojans’ four scores.
As is now customary, the Caesars started brightly, with a brace of big plays from Miller and a third down catch from Tom Snee setting up the running back for a four yard touchdown run.
Not to be outdone, the Trojans came out fighting on offense, making good use of the Wildcat formation to set up a well executed touchdown pass from McNey to Tommy McGeorge. With no kicking game to speak of, the Troon-based outfit managed a successful two-point conversion to take an early lead.
The second quarter saw the Caesars regain a narrow lead after a poor snap sailed over McNey’s head and out the back of the endzone for a safety, but again the Trojans showed their mettle. A series of big pass plays set up running back Jordan Falkner for a six-yard touchdown run, and a further two points left the game finely poised as half time approached.
Not to be daunted by being behind, the Big Cee fought back with a score of their own, with quarterback Simon Denning finding Paterson in the end-zone; the 17-yard score was followed up by yet another extra point from Dan Johnson to leave the score tied at 16-16 entering the break.
Another touchdown pass from McNey regained the lead for the Scots, but a good play by James Muller on the following conversion kept the margin at six before Johnson found Paterson for the wide out’s second touchdown to level the scores.
The successful PAT from Johnson gave the Caesars the lead by a single point entering the fourth quarter, but the Trojans had the final say with McNey’s third touchdown pass – an excellent play on fourth down.
With five minutes on the clock, the Caesars moved the ball much of the length of the field – including a fantastic fourth down catch by tight end Nick Wadlow to keep the drive alive – but a fine defensive stand from West Coast sealed the deal and handed the Caesars their first defeat of the season.
In contrast to the seniors, the Caesars Junior Team continued their impressive start to the season by beating the visiting Birmingham Bulls for the 2nd time in row. The 22-13 victory was hard fought but sees the Junior outfit extend it's lead in the Central Division as it now stands at 5 - 0.
The Big Cee will now look to bounce back ahead of their trip to Coventry next Saturday whilst the junior team’s next contest comes on 3rd June against the Leicester Falcons.
Senior Headline stats
Danny Miller – 20 carries, 160 yards, 1TD
Charlie Paterson – 2 catches, 39 yards, 2TDs
Andrew Wilkins – 4 tackles, Spencer James – 3 tackles
Will Hobbs – 3KR, 106 yards