Spring Camp

Details are now finalized for this year's London Beefeater Spring Camp.  As usual the camp will be at John Paul II Catholic School at the corner of Highbury Ave. and Oxford St. from May 20-23. 

The camp will run from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. each evening.
The cost of the camp is $50.  This fee covers insurance and will be deducted from team registration fees should the player continue with the team in the regular season.

Head Coach Vince Zvonkin is excited to announce that UWO Head Coach GregMarshall will be conducting one of the evening sessions with emphasis on the offensive side of the ball. 

Also expected to be on hand will be CentralS.S. Head Coach John Vouvalidis, David Gibson, recent Beefeater alumnus Tim Thomson, plus Beefs coaches Greg Thurston, John Chehade, Jason Akindilore and Pat Queenan.

Interested players should contact us through Info@londonbeefeaters.org or
Vince Zvonkin at vzvonkin@rogers.com .

WIN A FORTUNE AND SUPPORT THE BEEFS—YES!! IT’S WIN/WIN:

The London Beefeaters will be sponsoring two trips to Casino Rama as fundraisers for the team.  On May 24th and July 26th the Beefeaters are offering a return trip to Casino Rama, a buffet meal and five hours in the Casino for only $25.  ALL of the money collected for the trip goes to support the team for the 2008 season.  To take part in this, contact us at Info@londonbeefeaters.org and get your name on the bus list.  Then, secure your seat by mailing a cheque, made out to the London Beefeaters, by May 5th to the address below this section.  This is a first come, first serve offer and the bus seats 55. One other thing, you need a valid Photo ID to board the bus (not our rule). The bus leaves from John Paul II (corner of Highbury and Oxford) at 11:00 a.m.  Help yourself and help the Beefs.   Remember, just recently a woman from Toronto turned $3. into $8.9 million at Casino Rama—YOU could be next.  

Mail Cheque to:

London Beefeaters
C/o George Thomson
763 Garibaldi Ave.,
London, ON N5X 4J8

BEEFS ANNOUNCE SPRING CAMP:

Head Coach Vince Zvonkin and his staff will be holding the Beefeaters'
Spring Camp from May 20-May 23 at John Paul II Catholic School.  The
sessions will begin at 7:00 p.m. each night.  As we get closer to the date, more details will be announced.  If you are a potential player or know of potential players, contact us via
Info@londonbeefeaters.org or vzvonkin@rogers.com for further information.

TWO BEEFS ALUMNI COACHING IN THE WEST:

Alumnus Kevin MacNeill has joined the coaching staff of UBC as a full-time assistant in charge of special teams and linebackers as well as coordinator of the Thunderbirds' recruiting.  Kevin had been doing a similar job at Laurier for the last several years. 

Kevin joins the staff of former Burlington Braves' Head Coach Ted Goveia, the Thunderbirds' Head Coach since 2006.  For the complete story see
http://www.gothunderbirds.ca/sports_team_story.asp?id=8&storyid=2441
Also alumnus Ian Rosier is now the Offensive Coordinator of Kamloops Broncos of the BCFC. Ian will be working under head coach Stefan Reid,
an eight year CFL veteran who earned a Grey Cup ring with the Montreal Alouettes in 2002.

HAMILTON HURRICANES OFFICIALLY ANNOUNCE THEIR RETURN TO THE O.F.C.:
December 21, 2007 By Jim Stevenson

Earlier in December, at a news conference at the Hamilton Tiger-Cats
headquarters, Hamilton Hurricanes' President Brian Copeland announced that the team is all set to return to O.F.C. action in 2008 pending formal
approval at the O.F.C. Annual General Meeting in February.  The team has put together a management team of former Hurricanes who hope to return the franchise to its' past prominence.  The team includes many names that Beefeater alumni and fans will recall: Wally Barubek (Past-President); Dan McAlonan (GM); Guy Amodeo (University-College Liaison); David Maniaci (Vice-President); Chris Cleveland (Alumni Association President); Mike Samuel (Treasurer); Wayne Elliott (Fundraising); plus Bruce Barch, Joe Fabiani and Glenn Gibson as advisors.

In addition the team announced its' Head Coach and, again, it is a name many former Beefs' alumni and fans will recognize.  Leading the new Hurricanes is Jason Hayes who quarterbacked the Hamilton team in the early 1990's and took them to the national final in Regina in 1993.  Recently he has been on the MacMaster University coaching staff and has an extensive background in other levels of football both as a player and a coach.

The team is hoping to work out agreements with the City of Hamilton and the Tiger-Cats that will allow them to return to Ivor Wynne Stadium, their previous home field.

The team also announced that its' major team awards will honour prominent local people such as Russ Jackson, Ron Foxcroft, Dennis Griffen, Wally Barubek, Sam Mercanti and Matt Daly.
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats have indicated that they will strongly support the Hurricanes including allowing them to run 50-50 draws at Ti-Cat games.

It is also expected that the Toronto Jr. Argonaut team that plans to join
the O.F.C. in 2008 will announce their coaching staff in the near future.
Both of the new clubs have set up web sites.  To keep up with O.F.C.
expansion developments in Hamilton and Toronto check out
http://www.hamiltonhurricanes.ca/ and http://www.juniorargonauts.ca./

OPPORTUNITIES WITH THE BEEFEATERS:

November 25, 2007

Football Coaches

The London Beefeaters of the Ontario Football Conference are now accepting applications for positional coaches with the team for the 2008 season.  In particular the team is looking for coaches with offensive line, defensive back, quarterback and special teams expertise but will certainly entertain other applications.  NCCP Level 2 is preferable but the Beefeaters will assist successful applicants in obtaining that certification. 

If you are interested contact Head Coach Vince Zvonkin (click here) for more details.  The Beefeaters participate in the Canadian Junior Football League. The CJFL is a 22 and under league and each year teams from Montreal to Vancouver Island compete for the right to play in the national championship Canadian Bowl.

For more than 100 years junior teams from across the nation have been
competing for this trophy, or its' predecessors, emblematic of junior
football supremacy in Canada.  The CJFL is a stepping-stone for many players to the next level, be it CIS or CFL as witnessed by  recent Grey Cup and Vanier Cup games.

Volunteers

If you are looking for a chance to volunteer with an organization that
provides an opportunity for young men, 22 and under, to pursue their
football careers past high school then the London Beefeaters want you.
Volunteers assist with fundraising, equipment, game day operations, team operations or any one of several other areas that are required to run an organization. 

The Beefeaters play in the Ontario Football Conference that is part of the Canadian Junior Football League.  Contact us at info@londonbeefeaters.org for more details on the opportunities available with the London Beefeaters.

MORE SADNESS IN THE BEEFEATER FAMILY:
November 8, 2007 By Jim Stevenson

This morning we received a note from alumnus Sean Kernaghan advising us that his former teammate and friend Paul Deorksen had passed away on Wednesday.

The obituary in the London Free Press notes that there will be a celebration of Paul's life at St. Peter's Cathedral Basilica on Friday, November 9th at 1:00 p.m.  Condolences are being accepted at www.amgeorgefh.on.ca .

Also in a note from alumnus Doug Block-Hansen we learned that Mr. Crofts, father of Beefeater alumnus Eric Crofts, passed away on November 6 following a long battle with cancer.  No details of arrangements were included in the message.
The Beefeater executive, coaches and present-day players extend their
deepest sympathy to both the Deorksen and Crofts families.

ST. LEONARD LOSES NATIONAL TITLE:
November 5, 2007 By Jim Stevenson

Eight time O.F.C. Champion St. Leonard Cougars got one monkey off their back two weeks ago when they finally won an inter-conference game by defeating the Vancouver Island Raiders 27-24 in the national semi-final Intergold Game in Montreal.  The next step is to win a national championship and again this year the Cougars came up short in the Canadian Bowl held in Winnipeg this last weekend.

The game started at 12:00 noon in Manitoba and many people observed that the Cougars didn't show up until after 12:30 p.m.  Unfortunately by the time the St. Leonard squad decided to start playing they were behind 17-0 and they were unable to overcome this first quarter obstacle.

Neither team was flawless, as there were 14 turnovers in the game, but St. Leonard couldn't stop Hilltops running back Adrian Charles, from Toronto, who set Canadian Bowl records with 256 yards rushing and 3 touchdowns. He was the difference.  

Both teams' pass attack was limited-142 yards to 70 yards in favour of the Hilltops but the ground game, and turnovers, told the story.  Saskatoon netted 438 yards of offense to St. Leonard's 188.

The half-time score was 17-3 and the Cougars, while having opportunities to put points on the board, went scoreless the rest of the way.  Saskatoon added a touchdown in the third quarter and the Cougars conceded a safety in the same frame.  The fourth quarter was scoreless so the final score read 26-3.  If St. Leonard had started the game the way they played after the first quarter then the result might have been different but it was not to be the case.

It is now back to the drawing board for the Cougars in preparation for next year's Canadian Bowl in the East but with the other established O.F.C. teams getting stronger and two new teams from football mad Toronto and Hamilton on the map, there may soon be competition for the Cougars dynasty and, who knows, maybe all of Canada's junior football will be coming to London next November.

BEEFEATERS EARN TWO CJFL ALL-CANADIAN SPOTS:
November 5, 2007 By Jim Stevenson

The Beefeater executives who attended this weekend's C.J.F.L. Annual General Meeting and Canadian Bowl in Winnipeg went into Friday evenings' Banquet of Champions secure in the knowledge that the team would be coming home with an All-Canadian Award.  George Thomson and Ted Clark knew that Beefeater Jamike Njoku, the O.F.C.'s Outstanding Defensive Player of Year, was an automatic member of the junior league's dream team.  What was not expected was that
another player would likewise be honoured.  That was, however, what happened when defensive lineman Jason Nurse was voted onto the team by selectors from across the country.

Jamike, who was the guest of the CJFL in Winnipeg for the weekend,
unfortunately was not selected as the C.J.F.L. Outstanding Defensive Player of the Year.  That honour went to Ryan King of the Edmonton Wildcats who led the PFC Conference with 128 points.  The Offensive Player of the Year went to Victoria Rebels' quarterback Nate Cote who completed 56.4% of his passes for 2958 yards, 35 touchdowns, only 6 interceptions and a Quarterback Efficiency Rating of 122.9.  Hazen Foss of the Burlington Braves brought home the O.F.C.'s fourth Past Commissioners Community Service Award in the seven-year history of the honour. 

Tony Iadeluca Jr. was selected as the C.J.F.L. Coach of the Year while O.F.C. and C.J.F.L. Media Co-ordinator Jack Low was honoured with a C.J.F.L. Life Membership for his work in junior football that dates back to 1970"s.

Other O.F.C. Players on the C.J.F.L. All-Canadian Team were Offensive
Lineman Noubar Mareshlian from St. Leonard, Receiver Tony Testa from St. Leonard, Defensive Lineman Dane Plackman from Windsor AKO Fratmen, Defensive Back Shane Kelly from the Burlington Braves and Return Specialist Ismael Bamba from St. Leonard.

Next year the C.J.F.L. Annual General Meeting and the National Championship Canadian Bowl will be held at the home of the O.F.C. Champion, concluding with the football game on either November 8/9.  The BCFC Champion will meet the PFC Champion in the Intergold game, the national semi-final, two weeks prior to the Canadian Bowl for the right to come east.

Jamike Njoku receives All-Canadian recognition
from O.F.C. Pres. D. Dittmer

Beefeaters Honour Outstanding Players
By Jim Stevenson October 31,2007

Saturday night the London Beefeaters held their end of year banquet to thank all the players and to hand out team and conference awards.
Many executive, coaches and support personnel attended the evening at the Huron House.  Check out the photo gallery for pictures of the evening. Following a great buffet dinner the awards were handed out and below is a summary of the recipients:

Most Valuable Player and winner of the Joe Camm Defensive Award Jamike Njoku

Offensive Player of the Year
Kyle MacDonald

Defensive Player of the Year
Jesse Maddox

Rookie of the Year
Durelle McGregor

Offensive Lineman of the Year
Jason Hakkers

Defensive Lineman of the Year      
Jason Nurse

Special Teams' Player of the Year
Ahmed Halbouni

Most Improved Player
Jeff Moores

Coaches' Award      
Mike Urquhart

Ian Hayes' Presidents' Award
Jason Nurse

Dr. Doug Dittmer Award      
John Hakkers & Manny Da Silva

Sad news as we lose one of our young Alumni

This is an especially sad day for the Beefeater family as one of our young alumni, Jeff Darling, passed away yesterday.  Jeff played for the Beefs from 2002-2004.  It is always sad when we lose one of our former players but to lose someone so young is especially tragic.  Jeff would have been 24 on October 26th.   Jeff's brother Mike is also a Beefeater alumnus who presently coaches football at Oakridge Secondary School and with the London Falcons of the O.V.F.L.

The arrangements are with the Westview Funeral Chapel on Wonderland Road North.  Visitation will be tomorrow, October 26th, from 11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. and again from 7:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m.  The funeral will be Saturday, October 27 at 2:00 p.m.

Important Update : There has been a change in the plan with regards to Jeff Darling's funeral and we wanted to provide an update to all who would be planning to attend about the new arrangements.
With the anticipated amount of people attending the funeral it has been relocated to Oakridge Secondary School.
Complete information can be obtained from the Westview Funeral Chapel website-link attached.
http://www.westviewfuneralchapel.com/index.html

Jeff Darling

BEEFEATER YEAR END BANQUET AND AWARDS' NIGHT
October 8, 2007 By Jim Stevenson

The Beefeater year end Banquet and Awards' Night will be held on October 27th at the Huron House located at Huron and Highbury.  The banquet will begin at 7:00 p.m. and, for any alumni or fans who wish to attend, the cost is $15.  A cash bar is, surprisingly, available and, following the banquet, the O.F.C. awards will be handed out and the team awards will be announced.
If you are planning to attend, please RSVP to George Thomson by October 19th.

CAN WE DO IT? NO WE CAN'T:
September 30, 2007 By Jim Stevenson

Well, unlike Bob the Builder who always says after the question "Can We Do It?"-"Yes We Can!!",  the Beefs couldn't do it Saturday night and lost any hope of a play-off spot early in the evening.  (If you don't relate to Bob the Builder, talk to your kids or grandchildren)  St. Leonard came to town to make a statement and they certainly spoke loudly.  By the time the first half was over the Cougars had established a 40-0 lead and then coasted to their 8th straight victory this year and another O.F.C. regular season championship.  They now have a week off before hosting the winner of next weekend's Burlington at Windsor semi-final game. The O.F.C. Championship game goes on October 13th in St. Leonard at 7:00 p.m.  Next weekend's semi-final game at Windsor Stadium also starts at 7:00 p.m. Bobby Paradinha scored the lone Beefs' touchdown in the fourth quarter but the contest was long over by that point.  St. Leonard showed early and often why they have been so dominant the last several years in the O.F.C.  

QB Jason Hogan completed 11 of 14 passes in the first half for 272 yards and 4 touchdowns to indicate how dominant this squad is in the league.  Nine different runners rushed for 217 yards in the contest to help the St. Leonard squad to a 512 yard net yardage evening.  The Beefs, to their credit, played hard and racked up 225 yards of offense but the contest was never in doubt. Simon Vinet crashed in from 3 yards to open the scoring at 7:21 of the first frame. 

Five minutes later the Beefs surrendered a safety and the score went to 9-0 at the end of the first period.  The second quarter was the Beefs undoing as the Cougars put up 31 points on the scoreboard.  Tony Testa, the O.F.C. Offensive Player of the Year, caught a 20 yard pass for a TD just 43 seconds into the second quarter.  Nine minutes later Jesse Lacle of the Cougars snagged another 20 yard pass from Josh Hogan to add to the score. Three minutes after that Tony Testa added his second major with a thirty-four yard catch and run from Hogan.  Shortly after that Jonathan Rene pulled in another 20 yard pass for a touchdown and, when Testa kicked a 42 yard field goal with under three minutes to go, the score reached 40-0 as the half ended.

Half way through the third quarter Kenny Charles pulled in a 10 yard pass for a touchdown and then big fullback Eric Glaude rumbled 5 yards on a short pass reception for another major.  The Beefs' only score came after the score had reached 54-0.

In spite of missing the playoffs, this was a significant season for the
London Beefeaters as an extremely positive relationship was established with Greg Marshall and the UWO Mustangs.  Hopefully this will continue in future years to the mutual benefit of both programs.

O.F.C. ALL-STARS:
September 30, 2007 by Jim Stevenson

The O.F.C. coaches got together yesterday in London and selected the 2007 O.F.C. All-Stars and Award Winners.  Also announced, at the same time, were the statistical award winners for the season.

For the first time in a long time the London Beefeaters have one of the
major awards from the O.F.C.  Jamike Njoku was selected as the O.F.C.
Defensive Player of the Year.  He is automatically a C.J.F.L. All-Canadian
and a candidate for the C.J.F.L. Outstanding Defensive Player of the Year that will be announced at the Banquet of Champions in Winnipeg on the evening of November 2nd.  Jamike is also an O.F.C. All-Star at linebacker and the statistical award winner for the most Defensive Points in the conference.

Jamike Njoku the O.F.C. Defensive Player of the Year

Joining Jamike in the spotlight are O.F.C. All-Stars Jason Hakkers on the
offensive line, Durell McGregor in the backfield at running back and Jason Nurse on the defensive line.  In addition, Durell is the O.F.C. Offensive Rookie of the Year and Ahmed Halbouni was a co-winner of the statistical award for converts in the conference.

Naturally the St. Leonard Cougars dominated the All-Stars and Awards.  Tony Testa of the Cougars was selected as Offensive Player of the Year, Noubar Mareshlian of the same team is the Offensive Lineman of the Year while team mate Redggy Nicholas is the Defensive Rookie of the Year.  Speedster Ismael Bamba is both the Special Teams' Player of the Year and the Return Specialist of the Year.  Tony Iadeluca Jr. of the Cougars is again the Coach of the Year.  Dane Plackman of the Windsor AKO Fratmen was selected as Defensive Lineman of the Year while Hazen Foss of the Burlington Braves was selected for the prestigious Bill Prest Community Service Award which automatically makes him a candidate for the C.J.F.L.'s  Past-Commissioner's Award which honours those in our league who not only are outstanding football players but give back to the community in ways that often go unsung but make a difference in the towns or cities in which they live and play. For a complete list of the O.F.C. All-Stars, go to www.ofcfootball.com .

TWO BEEFEATERS EARN O.F.C. HONOURS:
September 18, 2007 By Jim Stevenson

Beefeaters' running back Durelle McGregor was selected as the O.F.C.
Offensive Player of the Week for his performance against the Burlington Braves on the weekend.  Durelle finished the game with 159 yards on 31 carries.  One of those carries, an eight yard effort in the 3rd quarter, resulted in a touchdown that put the Beefs up 14-8 at the time.  Durelle added 41 yards in punt returns and 18 yards in kick off returns for a total of 218 all-purpose yards in the game.

Jamike Njoku, who leads the O.F.C. in defensive points, was selected as the O.F.C. Defensive Player of the Week for the second time this season.  Jamike was credited with 4 tackles and a batted ball.  The key to his selection, however, was an interception that he returned 54 yards for a touchdown with half a minute to go in the game.  This ended any comeback hopes of the Braves.  Jamike's defensive points total for the game was 16, giving him 92 on the year and a 34 point lead on his nearest rival.

FINAL REGULAR SEASON GAME BACK AT JOHN PAUL II:
September 24, 2007 Announcement by Jim Stevenson

Although the Beefs have played their last two home games at TD Waterhouse Stadium, the final regular season game has to be moved back to John Paul II because September 29th is Homecoming Weekend at Western and TD Waterhouse is unavailable.  Game time is 7:00 p.m. against the St. Leonard Cougars.

TWO IN A ROW,CAN THEY MAKE IT THREE?
September 24,2007 By Jim Stevenson
The Beefeaters played their best game so far this season on Sunday afternoon in Windsor and were rewarded with a 24-7 well-deserved victory over the second place AKO Fratmen.  Led by the offense of Hayden Marks, Durelle McGregor and newcomer Kyle LeBlanc, the blocking of an ever improving offensive line and a dominating defense, the Beefs generally controlled the game from start to finish and kept their playoff hopes alive.  A victory over St. Leonard next week combined with a Windsor victory over Burlington, in Burlington, would give London 3rd place and a rematch the following week with the Frat in Windsor. 

Should Windsor lose in Burlington they would then lose home field advantage and have to travel back to Burlington for the O.F.C. semi-final on October 6th.   Defeating St. Leonard is, of course, no easy task but the Beefs have grown in cohesiveness and confidence as the season has gone on and anything is possible.  St. Leonard has already clinched first place in the conference and will host the O.F.C. Championship on October 13th in Stade Hébert at 7:00 p.m. This victory is the first for London over Windsor since September 27, 2003 when the Beefs, under Head Coach Mike Circelli, topped AKO 21-16.

The game began ominously for the Beefs as Dino Halbouni, one of the team's top receivers, hurt his knee on the first offensive play of the game following a catch.  He did not return to the game but the other receivers picked up the slack.  From that point on, with few exceptions, the Beefs were the best team on the field on each play, whether it was on offense, defense or special teams.

The first quarter was scoreless as both defenses played well.  Early in the second period Kyle MacDonald romped 60 yards on a punt return to put the Beefs into a lead they would never relinquish.  Ahmed Halbouni followed with the first of his three converts to make the score 7-0 and that would stand up through the remainder of the first half. Only 1:08 into the second half the Beefs scored again as Durelle McGregor sprinted in from close range to put the Beefs up 14-0 following the convert.

The Beefs got into scoring position when Kyle LeBlanc recovered a Frat
fumble on the opening kickoff of the third quarter.  Later in the third
frame Ahmed Halbouni hit a 27 yard field goal to up the score to 17-0 with 1:37 left.  Windsor staged a mini comeback late in the fourth quarter as quarterback Ricky Simons hit wide receiver Adam Colenutt with a 25 yard touchdown strike and the convert made it 17-7 with a little less than 3 minutes left.  London responded immediately and Durelle McGregor scored his second major of the game with 10 seconds left in the game.  The convert made the final 24-7.

Statistically McGregor had 75 yards on 16 carries while LeBlanc chipped in with 56 yards.  Kyle MacDonald picked up 39 yards on 2 receptions while Steven Mati and Durelle McGregor each caught 2 passes for 28 and 27 yards respectively.  Marks had 10 completions on the night for 124 yards.

Defensively Jamike Njoku continued to be a force as he racked up 21
defensive points on 5 tackles, 2 assists, 1 quarterback sack, 1 blocked kick and 1 batted ball.  Miguel Wason with 14 points, including a 28 yard interception return, Jesse Maddox with 12 points and Jason Nurse with 11 points also had great games as did all of the defense.
The game next week is at John Paul II because it is Homecoming Weekend at Western and TD Waterhouse Is unavailable.

Introducing your 2007 Beefeater Football Team

TWO BEEFEATERS EARN O.F.C. HONOURS:
September 18, 2007 By Jim Stevenson

Beefeaters' running back Durelle McGregor was selected as the O.F.C.
Offensive Player of the Week for his performance against the Burlington Braves on the weekend.  Durelle finished the game with 159 yards on 31 carries.  One of those carries, an eight yard effort in the 3rd quarter, resulted in a touchdown that put the Beefs up 14-8 at the time.  Durelle added 41 yards in punt returns and 18 yards in kick off returns for a total of 218 all-purpose yards in the game.
Jamike Njoku, who leads the O.F.C. in defensive points, was selected as the O.F.C. Defensive Player of the Week for the second time this season.  Jamike was credited with 4 tackles and a batted ball.  The key to his selection, however, was an interception that he returned 54 yards for a touchdown with half a minute to go in the game.  This ended any comeback hopes of the Braves.  Jamike's defensive points total for the game was 16, giving him 92 on the year and a 34 point lead on his nearest rival.

EXTRA!! EXTRA!!:  BEEFS WIN; BEEFS WIN:
September 17, 2007 by Jim Stevenson

It took a while but the Beefeaters finally notched a victory in the 2007
season.  Although they have played well at times in other games, the squad never put 60 solid minutes together and, as a result, went into last night's game against the Burlington Braves with a 0-5 record.

The Beefs got behind early in the game, as they were force to concede a safety just 2:07 into the first quarter.  The team came back quickly and, when Mario Josic blocked a Braves' punt, the Beefs took over on the Burlington 4 yard line.  Two plays later Matt Pham plowed in for the major and Ahmed Halbouni converted to put the Beefs up 7-2 mid-way through the quarter.  That score held up until the last minute when the prevent defense didn't and the Braves scored at the 14:26 mark, capping an 86 yard/3 play drive.  The attempted 2-point conversion failed and the Braves went into the dressing room leading
8-7.

At 6:06 of third quarter Durelle McGregor of the Beefs scampered 8 yards for a touchdown that was converted by Ahmed Halbouni to put the Beefs ahead 14-8.  Before the end of the frame, however, Burlington scored on a 23 yard pass from Wayne Andrejek to Brandon Gellert and, with Declan Davoren's conversion, the Braves went up 15-14. In the fourth quarter the Beefs put together a time-consuming 12 play drive that culminated in a 31 yard touchdown strike from Hayden Marks to Kyle MacDonald.  Again Ahmed Halbouni converted and London went ahead 21-15 at the 11:41 mark.  Shortly after this, a missed field goal by Halbouni resulted in a single point to increase the score to 22-15.  The victory was sealed at the 14:25 mark when Jamike Njoku, who leads the conference in defensive points, picked off an Andrejek pass and sprinted 54 yards for a touchdown.  With Halbouni's fourth convert of the night the Beefeaters claimed their first victory of the year.

Durelle McGregor rushed for 159 yards in the game on 31 carries while Kyle MacDonald caught 2 passes for 40 yards and a touchdown.  Ahmed Halbouni was credited with 6 tackles, a batted ball and he made a crucial interception while Jamike Njoku added 4 tackles and a batted ball to his dramatic interception touchdown.

Unfortunately the Beefeaters lost to Burlington by 18 points in their
previous meeting so the 15 point victory last night gives the Braves the
tie-breaker should they end up in that situation.  What this means is simply that the Beefs have to run the table and beat Windsor and St. Leonard in the final two games and Burlington has to lose to those same two teams.  It is a difficult task but if the team plays as well as it did last night, it is not totally impossible.  Time will tell.

NO POINTS=NO WIN
September 9,2007 By Jim Stevenson

If you don't get any points, it is impossible to win and that is what
happened to the Beefeaters Saturday night in Windsor as they dropped a 21-0game to the Fratmen.  Playing without QB Hayden Marks the Beefs still managed 205 yards through the air but with only 65 yards on the ground they couldn't punch the ball over the goal line to get on the scoreboard and fell to 0-5 for the season.

The Frat scored 14 points in the first quarter and another 7 by half-time to post all the points they needed for their third victory of the year, a victory that moved them into second place in the conference behind St. Leonard.  The Cougars defeated Burlington 29-12 in Burlington on Saturday night.

On a positive note for the Beefs, Durelle McGregor had 50 yards rushing while outstanding receiver Kyle MacDonald snared 4 passes for 90 yards from backup quarterback Blake Lamond.  Lamond finished the day 13/29 for 205 yards but 4 interceptions hurt the aerial game.
On defense, Jamike Njoku and Jason Nurse again led the way with 10 defensive points each.

For the Frat, Daryl Townsend returned to action after missing a few games to recover from an injury and led the AKO ground attack with 60 yards and 2 touchdowns.  Defensive back Josh Cline returned an interception 27 yards for a third touchdown while place kicker Steve Smith converted all three majors. In the statistics, Durelle McGregor is fourth in rushing, Kyle MacDonald is third in receiving yards and tied, with 19, for the most receptions in the conference.  Dino Halbouni is fourth in punt return yardage, Durelle McGregor is third in kick off return yardage while Jamike Njoku and Jason Nurse continue to lead the defensive point parade with 76 and 49 points respectively.

Next week the Beefs host the Burlington Braves at TD Waterhouse Stadium at 7:00 p.m. Sunday night, September 16th.

GOOD NEWS; BAD NEWS:
Sept 2, 2007 by Jim Stevenson

This was a good news/bad news weekend for the Beefs.  The good news was the offense came alive and the Beefs scored 29 points.  The bad news was that the same old problems of turnovers and big special team plays by the opposition, combined with a punishing ground game and opportunistic passing allowed St. Leonard to score 56 points.  Thus, another defeat is in the books.  The 29 points that St. Leonard gave up is, however, the most that
team has allowed against an O.F.C. team since Burlington scored 49 in a
victory on August 14, 2004.

Both teams scored in every quarter.  At half time it was St. Leonard 27,
London 15 but 21 points by St. Leonard in the fourth quarter put the game out of reach.

London welcomed back quarterback Hayden Marks and he made an immediate difference to the offense.  He finished the day 13 of 28 for 202 yards and 2  touchdowns, both to Dino Halbouni.  Matt Pham added a rushing touchdown while Jason Nurse scooped up a fumble and ran it in for a fourth major. Jesse Maddox added a single on a punt.

St. Leonard gained 278 yards on the ground with Lenn Gittens leading the way with 160 although it was Simon Vinet's 2 touchdowns and Carl Piché's 1 that made up the ground scores.  Kenny Charles' 98 yard touchdown pass and  Ismael Bamba's 48 yard major from quarterback Jason Hogan were most of the aerial attack.  Bamba added a 55 yard punt return touchdown, linebacker Rylund Hunter rambled 35 yards on a fumble recovery for six points and Delien Charles intercepted a Marks pass and romped 51 yards for another major.
League scoring leader Tony Testa added 6 converts and Vinet had a 2 point conversion to round out the scoring.

As far as conference statistics are concerned Jamike Njoku leads the
defensive statistics by a wide margin.  His 66 points are 20 more than his nearest rival, Shane Kelly of Burlington.  Jason Nurse is 3rd with 39
points.  Dino Halbouni is tied for 5th in scoring with 18 points.  Durelle
McGregor and Matt Pham are 4th and 5th in rushing with 128 yards and 109 yards respectively.  Kyle MacDonald is 4th in reception yardage with 217 yards on 15 receptions, which is the second highest number of receptions in the conference.  Dino Halbouni is 4th in punt returns and 6th in kick off returns.

Next week the Beefs head down 401 to Windsor to take on the Fratmen. 
To make a run at a playoff spot the Beefs will have to win at least 3 of
 their last 4 games and their best chances come in the two games they have against Windsor, both in Windsor, and their next home game, on September 16th, against Burlington at TD Waterhouse Stadium. 

The season wraps up on September 29th against the Cougars here in London.

BEEFS TO PLAY FIRST GAME ON NEW TD WATERHOUSE SURFACE:
August 21, 2007 By Jim Stevenson

Saturday at 2:00 p.m. the first regulation game to be played on the new turf at TD Waterhouse Stadium will feature the London Beefeaters hosting the Windsor AKO Fratmen.  The new surface, which has been described as "one of the best surfaces in Canada", replaces the original carpet that was the source of many injuries and rug burns.  Unlike other types of field turf, however, this one has a density of fibre and type of rubber that minimizes the splash associated with earlier versions.
Saturday's game is for third place in the conference as both the Frat and the Beefs have started the season with losses to Burlington and St. Leonard.

The Frat is led by running back Daryl Townsend who is second in conference rushing with 106 yards on 17 carries and a 6.2 yards/carry average.  The Beefs will also have to watch out for quarterback Ricky Simons who is third in rushing with 85 yards so far.  Big plays have marked the scoring for AKO as Adam Colenutt leads all receivers with 201 yards, a 40.2 yards/reception average with an 82 yard touchdown in the mix.  Also a threat to break a long one is Terry Mauldin.  Daryl Townsend also poses a threat on special teams as he already has a 90 yard kick off return for a touchdown amongst his league leading total of 172 yards in that category.  Defensive lineman Dane Plackman is Windsor's leader on that side of the ball.

The Beefs' strength is on defense at the moment with Jamike Njoku and Jason Nurse sitting at 1-2 in defensive statistics.  On offense the running duo of Durelle McGregor and Matt Pham have put up some good numbers while the receivers, Kyle MacDonald, Tyler Cunningham and Tarek Moharram are all in the Top 10.  The offensive line is also one of the strong parts of the team.

To be successful this week the Beefs must continue with the positive aspects of the first two games but also cut down on needless penalties, improve tackling technique and reduce mistakes on special teams.  If that happens they will move into third place and only one game out of second place as the undefeated Burlington Braves travel to St. Leonard to face the 2-0 Cougars.
One of them will come out of the game with a loss and the victor at TD
Waterhouse will be close on the heels of second place.

THAT DEJA VUE THING ONCE MORE:
August 20, 2007 by Jim Stevenson

In almost a repeat of the St. Leonard game, the Burlington Braves dropped the Beefs 30-12 at Nelson Stadium in Burlington on Friday night.  The game, which was part of the Braves' 50th Anniversary celebration, featured the renowned Burlington Teen Tour Band that has participated in events all over North America including the Rose Bowl Parade in Pasadena, California.

Once again the Beefs' defense played a strong game and the offense did move the ball but turnovers and poor tackling on special teams led, as it did a week earlier against St. Leonard, directly to two of three Braves' majors and the fourth should have been intercepted but was wrestled from the Beefs defender as he and the Braves' receiver fell to the ground after leaping high for the pass.
The Beefs led 6-0 after the first quarter on a run by Mike Urquhart from 9 yards out.  The convert attempt, however, failed.  Burlington then rebounded in the second quarter to take a 14-6. 

Their first score came on a four yard pass from Nick Coutou to Leroy Williams at 3:59 of the quarter.  Coutou, from the Niagara Spears of the OVFL, was replacing the Braves' All-Star quarterback Wayne Andrejak who fractured his left elbow last week against Windsor. 

The second Braves score followed a Beefs' interception that was returned 65 yards to the Beefs 10 yard line.  The defense stopped the Braves and they missed a field goal.  London took over but had to punt into a strong wind that held the punt to 18 yards.  Burlington took over at the Beefs' 40 yard line and, on the second play of the drive, Coutou hit Williams again for a 39 yard touchdown that could just as easily have been intercepted.  Give Williams credit, however, as he outwrestled the Beefs' defenders for the ball.

An unconverted touchdown on a 65 yard punt return by Ashton Nelson at 12:49 and an earlier field goal by Ovi Coca in the third quarter moved the score to 23-6 The Braves made it 30-6 mid-way through the fourth frame.  Another interception and 25 yard return had put the ball on the Beefs' 5 yard line. Ashton Nelson immediately banged in for the major.  

Beefs' running back Matt Pham put the final score on the board from ten yards out with 1 minute remaining.  A pass for the two-point conversion went incomplete.
The team has a lot of potential.  A fine offensive line, strong defense and some fine receivers give hope that better things are to come in the near future if a few more parts can be added to the puzzle.

Beefeaters Matt Pham and Durelle McGregor are in the Top 10 in OFC rushing while Kyle MacDonald, Tyler Cunningham and Tarek Moharram are in the Top 10 receiving category. 
Dino Halbouni is in the Top 10 of both the punt return and kick off return categories while Jamike Njoku and Jason Nurse are 1-2 in defensive statistics.

Next game is this coming Saturday at the newly carpeted TD Waterhouse Stadium against the winless Windsor AKO Fratmen.  The Frat lost 30-14 in Week 1 to Burlington and 38-1 to St. Leonard on Friday night in Windsor.
This is the first time since 1984 that Windsor has opened an O.F.C. season with a 0-2 record.  Game time is 2:00 p.m

BEEFEATER NAMED TOP DEFENSIVE PLAYER FOR WEEK 1
August 20, 2007 by Jim Stevenson

Jamike Njoku, Beefeater linebacker/defensive back was the O.F.C. Defensive Player of the Week for Week 1 in the conference.  Jamike had 20 defensive points on 8 tackles, 1 assist plus a knock down against the St. Leonard Cougars.

August 13, 2007 BEEFS DROP OPENER:Jim Stevenson

The old adage that speed kills was never more evident than Saturday night at JP II as the St. Leonard Cougars defeated the London Beefeaters 37-6 in the opening game of the 2007 O.F.C. season.  Although the game was never really in doubt, it was, for a time, a lot closer than the score would indicate but a combination of blazing speed, poor tackling and, dare I say, a missed block in the back penalty at the very end of the first half turned the momentum completely around and the rest, as they say, is history.
Following the opening kick off the Beefs threw an interception on the second play of the game and St. Leonard took over at the London 14 yard line.  The Beefeater defense then held on third and one and London took over the ball.   London was forced to punt soon after and, following a no yards penalty, the Cougars took over at the Beefs 24 yard line.  Two plays later quarterback Jason Hogan tossed a lateral pass to Tony Testa who romped in from nine yards out to put the first score of the night on the board.  Testa then kicked the first of his five converts on the evening.  Four minutes later Hogan hit Testa again on a 69 yard pass and run play to raise the score to 14-0 at the end of the first quarter.
The teams went back and forth through much of the second quarter until London QB Mike Urquhart hit Dino Halbouni with a 24 yard pass and run for a London major.  The convert attempt failed and the score moved to 14-6.  With one play to go and no time remaining on the clock in the first half London lined up for a 36 yard field goal.  The kick was short and wide but rolled into the end zone where speedster Ismael Bamba scooped it up and scampered 113 yards for a touchdown.  What could have been a 14-9 game suddenly was 21-6 and you could almost feel the wind go out of the Beefs’ sails.
Forced to try to get points quickly, the Beefs relied on the pass and it turned out to be a difficult task as the speedy Cougars forced four interceptions in the second half.  Five minutes into the third frame St. Leo’s quarterback Hogan tossed another lateral pass, this time to Kenny Charles, for a fourth touchdown to raise the score to 28-6.  Another short drive ten minutes into the fourth quarter was capped off by a dive over the line by Hogan for the final major score while London conceded a safety shortly after that to make the final score 37-7.
In the first half the Beefs actually had more net offensive yards than the Cougars, 157 to 121 but by the end of the game the Cougars had racked up 248 to London’s 172.  For St. Leonard Testa had 108 receiving yards, 9 rushing yards on the lateral pass, 47 kick off return yards and 17 points on two touchdowns and five converts.  Punt returner Bamba had 189 yards on 4 returns including the 113 yard backbreaker for a touchdown plus 2 catches for 25 yards.  For the Beefs, Kyle MacDonald caught 5 passes for 58 yards while Tyler Cunningham had 3 receptions for 22 yards and Tarek Moharram pulled in two passes for 48 yards.  On defense Jamike Njoku led the way for the Beefs with 20 points gained from 8 tackles, 2 assists and a batted ball while Ahmed Kholatti with 15 points and Lusson Pierre with 10 points, including 2 interceptions, topped the Cougar defensive statistics.

Next game is Friday night in Burlington at Nelson Stadium.  Kick off time is 7:00 p.m. and this is the 50th Anniversary re-union game for the Braves and a lot of ex-Braves, many with CFL experience, are expected to be in the stands.

BALLOONFEST DONE FOR ANOTHER YEAR:
July 6, 2007 by Jim Stevenson

The main fundraiser for the Beefs, the Libro London Balloonfest, wrapped up its' 25th edition Monday night.  Once again the Beefeater executive, past and present, and corps of volunteers kept the patrons of the licensed area refreshed. 
Friday night the Jeff Healy band and Kim Mitchell were the
entertainers and the response was good.  Saturday night the melodious tones of local favourite Bobnoxious entertained a different crowd who also came to see the group Finger 11.  
They had a powerful thirst for our products. Sunday night the Sam Roberts Band headlined with Priestess and, despite an
early drizzle, attracted an enthusiastic crowd to a fine concert.  Monday's finale featured tribute bands to AC/DC, Def Leppard and Bon Jovi. All in all it was a great weekend and once again the weather co-operated most of the time for the balloon flights that are always a spectacular sight. 
This year there were 25 balloons involved to salute the 25 years of the festival.
Over the weekend we were honoured by a visit from alumnus Bill "THE Bum" Brekelmans who helped us by sampling some of the product we were offering on Friday night and then assisting us in the tent the rest of the weekend.
Thanks Bill.  Bill would like all to know that he is about to drop "THE Bum" moniker. Out of the glamorous world of the landscaping business for some time now, he is on the verge of gainful employment in the fast paced world of financial planning and life insurance.
Alumnus Mark Geris assisted in the tent over the weekend, as did some current members of the team on Saturday night plus alumnus Oscar Mayorga on Monday along with current Beefeater Tim Thomson, son of our President, George Thomson.


Busy times at the booth - A well organized group.

A well deserved cool down for our volunteers

The Londoner
July 30, 2007 by Jim Stevenson

Although the London Beefeaters have been playing in the Canadian Junior Football League (CJFL) since 1977, the team has faced some difficult years as of late – both on and off the field.

Those poor results have led to a shake-up of the Beefeaters organization with several long-time members moving on and George Thomson taking over late last year as team president.

From George’s perspective, he says 2007 will be a vital season for ongoing future of the franchise.

“Our immediate goal this year is survival. Our success will be measured by having a .500 record on the field and paying our bills. If we can get through this year, show we are turning things around, then we can go out get those 18-22-year-olds who want to play here, but just aren’t sure. We want to be able to show we can make this program work,” George says. “The Canadian Bowl is in Winnipeg this year and I have said there is no reason we can’t aim to be there. We have the talent level on this team. I think we have the ability to be a good team. But we have to come together and prove it on the field.”

Vince Zvonkin is hopeful that can happen. Vince, in his third year as head coach, says there are reasons to think a .500 or better season is a reachable goal. However, he also says things have to go the team’s way. See full story

:FESTIVALS
23 July 2007 By Jim Stevenson

Sunfest is over and was a great success for the Beefs.  Our volunteers kept the patrons of the beverage area refreshed during the four-day event that enjoyed perfect weather and presented great entertainment. 
We nearly sold out of our product and the tips were great.  Many thanks go to the representatives of Big Rock Brewery from Calgary, one of the festival's sponsors, who were extremely helpful all weekend. 
But we do not rest, now on to Balloonfest.
The 25th annual Balloonfest is set for the long weekend in August and once again the Beefeaters and their volunteers will be in charge of the
refreshment tent.  For a complete lineup of the entertainment go to
http://www.londonballoonfestival.com/ and click on Event Schedule. 
We will be there Friday evening (from 4:00 p.m. until 12:00 midnight) and all day (12:00 noon until 12:00 midnight) Saturday and Sunday plus Monday (12:00 noon until about 9:00 p.m.) so come on down to Harris Park and drop into the refreshment tent, say hello and try our products.  If you would like to volunteer some time at the tent, contact Neil Bishop at nbishop@sympatico.ca or Tina Earl at t.earl@ldcsb.on.ca.  This is another major fundraiser for the Beefs and helps us keep the team on the field.

2007 BEEFEATER PROGRAM:

If any alumni or fan would like to put an ad in the 2007 program or make a donation to the Beefs and be recognized as a Supporter of the Beefs, contact Mike Circelli at 673-5177 (h) for further details.  Mike is in charge of the program this year and would like to see alumni support increase.
Additionally there may be an opportunity to establish a link to your website from our website through the purchase of an ad in the program.

PREPARATIONS FOR THE 2007 SEASON
09 July 2007 by Coach Vince Zvonkin