Real Housing Haifa Advances to Israel Bowl I for First Ever Championship Game in Israel
The Real Housing Haifa Underdogs squad that lost to the Dancing Camel Hasharon Pioneers in November was substantially different from the one that ran onto the field at Kibbutz Ein Hashofet on Saturday afternoon for their semi-final playoff game.
Either the Pioneers did not get the memo or, more aptly, they were simply helpless to fend off the powerful Real Housing attack and withered under the unyielding storm, going down by a final score of 38-14 in front of a spirited pro-Underdog crowd on a beautiful day for football in Haifa.
The game started out like a typical playoff contest with both teams a little tentative at the outset in their play-calling, neither wanting to make a mistake and give up a game-changing score. Haifa (7-3) got on the board first with a Leor Subotnik 14-yard touchdown scamper as the team went to the ground for run attempts on nine of its first 11 plays from scrimmage. Subotnik buoyed the offense all day long, finishing with a game-high 81 rushing yards and picking up four first downs by himself, just two less than the entire Hasharon side.
The Pioneers (3-7) knotted the game at eight late in the first quarter after a phenomenal 41-yard catch-and-run by Yaniv Yaron from QB Yoni Mayzel set up a first-and-goal for Hasharon, which Shmuel O’Neil punched in for a three-yard TD. The Underdogs responded, however, with a momentum-crushing 11-play, 45-yard drive culminating in a Niv Medlinger touchdown that began a run of 30 straight points by the Haifa squad to put the game out of reach.
Once Real Housing got going in full gear, the game changed drastically in their favor as they settled into their typical high-pressure style of play and started to take the advantage of mismatches in coverage that highlighted Hasharon’s inability to keep Haifa’s high-octane offense off the scoreboard. The turning point of the game occurred at the mid-way point of the second quarter, after the Pioneers, down by only six points, forced the Underdogs to punt from deep in their own territory.
Medlinger got off a towering kick that looked as if it would go into the endzone for a touchback, which would place the ball at the fifteen yard line and give Dancing Camel a chance for a game-tying drive. However O’Neil ill-advisedly fielded the ball at his own goal line and was immediately leveled by a charging Omer Kedmi, pinning the offense at the one-yard line. Two plays later, Mayzel threw an errant pass that Shachar Yeshurun picked off and high-stepped into the endzone for a touchdown, giving Haifa a 14 point lead on which they never looked back.
Yeshurun was undoubtedly the game breaker in this one, racking up a pair of interceptions, two touchdowns, three catches for 38 yards, two tackles and two pass break-ups. All three of his catches demonstrated his ability to use body position and long reach to prevent defenders from breaking up throws in tight coverage. The running game was also the other key difference in the game as Haifa out-ran Hasharon by an embarrassing difference of 199-16 total net yards.
Overall, the Underdogs were very efficient at taking care of business at home and careful to play ‘within themselves’, not becoming overconfident while allowing their superior preparation and talent to manifest itself on the field. The results speak for themselves – they came, they saw, they conquered. Now bring on the Big Blues!
The IFL takes this week off for the upcoming three day Purim festival and returns in two weeks on Friday, March 28 at Kraft Stadium in Jerusalem. The championship-weekend daytime double-header will feature an undercard 3 vs. 4 match-up between the Pioneers and the Mikes Place Tel Aviv Sabres (1- 
at 10:00 am, followed by the main event – a 1:00 pm kickoff of the inaugural Israel Bowl to determine the IFL champion between the Underdogs and the first-place Big Blue Jerusalem Lions (8-1).
Prepared by Uriel Sturm, IFL League Statistician, who has (objectively) viewed and recorded each and every IFL down and game ever played from the best seat in the house – the field! Please feel free to contact at uesturm@gmail.com.
