AFL Week 8
VIKINGS vs. RAIDERS
The Dacia Vikings captains (#8 Austin Herink, #32 Luis Horvath, #45 Ugo Uwakwe and #4 Bernhard Seikovits) are ready to lead their team into AFL's game of the week against the Swarco Raiders on Saturday. Photo (c) Peter Kramberger
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Vikings versus Raiders
Top game of the AFL is the Charity Bowl XXI
The annual charity game of the Dacia Vienna Vikings is this year's most anticipated top duel in the Austrian Football League. In week eight of the current AFL season, the Vikings will host the league leaders and reigning champions, the Swarco Raiders, in the Hohe Warte stadium.
The guests from Tyrol have had one of their best seasons to date, ranked first in the team standings in the strong Austrian league. The previous international matches (the Tyrolean are playing the CEFL branch of the European Club Team Competition) were convincingly won. Accordingly, the Raiders, both confident and optimistic, will therefore arrive at the Hohe Warte stadium in Vienna. The first meeting this year between the Vikings and the Raiders took place on March 30th at the Tivoli. The hosts took the win for themselves clearly demonstrating the explosiveness and effectiveness of their offense.
The dangerous key players of the attack of the Tyrolean team is quarterback Sean Sheltons, running back Sandro Platzgummer, andwide receiver Patrick Donahue. If Danahue will play in the Charity Bowl is questionable, since the Raiders switch between the wideout Donahue and defensive back Darius Robinson, coming from the Braunschweig Lions when using their US imports. The Tyroleans are also fire-threatening and nerve-racking with their special teams and 4th Down Conversions, where they lead the team statistics. In the kickoff and punt returns, all opponents find themselves with limited resources trying to stop the Tyroleans in these phases of the game.
Vikings Head Coach Chris Calaycay found a lot of encouraging words for his players after the wins in Prague and Mödling. Photo (c) Peter Kramberger
The Dacia Vikings currently have two open scores with the Swarco Raiders. First, the Vikings lost the Austrian Bowl XXXIV in St. Pölten in July 2018 in a dramatic and conceivably concise manner, where a single field goal decided the high scoring championship game in favor of the Raiders. On the other hand, they wanted to reciprocate for the end of March 48-28 defeat in Tyrol. So the Men In Purple are hyped for the game on Saturday.
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Pregame Statement by Vikings HC Chris Calaycay
“Two of the best teams in Europe will compete today in the Charity Bowl XXI. It will be an attractive and exciting game where we, the Vikings, look forward to loud support from the fans. Playing at home on the Hohe Warte is considered a great advantage. The mood and the atmosphere are unique and always give the team an extra push. This charity match has a long tradition for the team, which is proud to contribute to the Charity Bowl. We are "strong” and we help the weak. Strong should also be our performance on the field,” Dacia Vikings head coach, Chris Calaycay, shares his starting point before the Charity Bowl XXI.
Dacia Vikings DB #23 Benjamin Straight worked his way up quickly to become part of the defense starting lineup. Photo (c) Nutville.at
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Dacia Vikings Featured Player Of The Week
DB #23 Benjamin Straight
“Being lined up against import receivers, challenges and motivates me!”
The 20-year-old Austrian defensive back is looking forward to playing the Raiders on Saturday. Born in Pittsburgh, Straight was raised in Austria where he also started to play football in 2014 – with the Vienna Knights.
“After having played with the Knights for four years, I realized that I love this sport and that I want to play on the highest level possible. So, I joined the Vikings two years ago and the transition was tough. I came to the Vikings having major respect for the accomplishments of the club and for the big Vikings' names in Austrian football such as Seikovits or Horvath. You know them but they don’t know you. So, I wanted to prove myself, I wanted to earn their respect. Becoming a Viking was the best decision I could have made regarding my personal growth as a player and the quality of my game”, Straight describes his beginnings with the Vikings in early 2018 and gives credit to the entire coaching staff of the Vikings who are keen to maximize each player’s potential.
If Head Coach Calaycay who is also the Vikings’ defensive coordinator, lines Benjamin up against the best receivers in the league, the DB feels good about it. “It challenges and motivates me to be lined up against Ex-NFL players like Patrick Donahue or import WRs such as Roman Namdar. I feel a kind of honored about the trust that is put in me and at the same time it pushes me to perform at my best level.”
Vikings DB #23 Straight is a huge fan of the off-season gym plan of Vikings' Strength & Conditioning Coach Christoph Putz. Photo (c) David Hofman
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Straight is striving to become better: “I am not yet where I want to be!”
Ever since he joined the Dacia Vikings, the DB who plans on starting to study in September has made a tremendous step forward regarding his level of play. Benjamin considers himself a self-critical person: “Even after a very good game I can be unsatisfied with myself when I have one bad play. But I think as long as I can channel anger into motivation, I should be fine. Working on myself and trying to become the best player I can be is what drives me forward. I am not yet not where I want to be!”
Asked about his football goals, Benjamin mentions a few: “First of all, the Austrian Bowl comes to my mind. I certainly want us to be Austrian Champions again. And personally, I often think about playing College football whether it is in the US or in Canada. It has been a dream of mine for a while now.”
The 6 ft 191 lbs. defensive back who also acts as the team’s kicker would love to be a professional football player even if it is only for a couple of years. "Getting hired by another club, living the import life in another city and making an impact on a team sounds tempting, doesn't it."
If Benjamin Straight continues being a big factor in the Vikings’ defense, he is on a good way to become one of the big names in Austrian football that he admired not too long ago. On Saturday, the Dacia Vikings defensive back has yet another chance to prove himself when the Swarco raiders come to town to face the Vikings at stadium Hohe Warte.
Vikings DB #23 Benjamin Straight and his team will take the field on Saturday at 4 pm CET. Photo (c) Nutville.at
Key Facts:
Charity Bowl XXI presented by OSP 22
Dacia Vienna Vikings vs. Swarco Raiders Tyrol
Saturday, June 1th 2019
Kickoff: 4 pm CET
Venue: Stadium Hohe Warte, Klabundgasse, 1190 Wien
The AFL Game Of The Week is broadcasted & streamed live by ORF Sport+ --> LIVESTREAM-LINK
Text: Kiki Klepsch, Aanna Roslien
Pictures: Peter Kramberger, Nutville.at, David Hofman.