This past weekend, the Pigs were on the road up in the Seattle area to take on the Valley Kangaroos. Valley used to be one of the toughest opponents in the league as recently as two years ago and have always been a great home team.
In fact, in my two seasons actively playing for the Pigs, we went 1-3 against Valley. That one victory was in Portland and was a very muddy and wet occasion. The photo above is from that match actually. We beat them 25-0 in that game.
So like I've said before, the tide has really turned in the league. Portland is now one of the two premiere teams in the entire league. In the last 6 games, Portland has outscored their opponents by a total of 158-28. The Pigs are also riding a 10 game winning streak, dating back to last fall and the first half of the season. The last time Portland didn't win was a tie against the Tsunamis, 12-12, on October 20, 2007.
Portland is now 8-1-1, and stands a firm second place in the standings. They trail Snake River by 2 points.
Here is the match report from the game. It's not written very clearly, but I wasn't there (as usual!), so it's all I've got to post about the actual match.
Bizarre NW weather; started out threatening sunshine through broken clouds, only to see sleet flurries in the first half and drizzle in the second. Maybe we were in Dunedin.
Portland, led by a creative #10, were played to a draw for the first 15 minutes. Valley was earnest in the tackle, managed to retain their own ball, but unfortunately outmatched by the Pigs attack, which came from multiple points in the backline. Portland tries came from solid forward play, and creative and wide distribution from #10. Portland #9 and #15 inserted frequently, and with good result. 2 tries in the first half, both converted for Portland.
Second half saw three tries for Portland, primarily from the backs, who were attacking where ever possible. Valley remained committed to the tackle and the game, and their patience was rewarded by a chip over the top, collected by #8, for an unconverted try.
Both sides maintained good demeanor, and worked through their captains to produce a fairly contested match.
The only thing I really took from that whole thing was that there was some "bizarre NW weather", how about you?
