An old rivalry roars back to life this weekend, as the Aberdeen Roughnecks visit the Glasgow Tigers for the first time since 2017.
That year both teams were in the NFC2 North and met four times in the season. Aberdeen took first blood before the Tigers won the next two games, with a 27-0 home win followed by a 23-6 away victory two months later.
Glasgow went on to beat Aberdeen in the play-off quarter finals and The Tigers finished that season with a bowl game against Shropshire Revolution, moving up a division and leaving Aberdeen behind.
It was Aberdeen’s turn last year to earn promotion to the NFC1 North. After an undefeated regular season and a playoff semi-final win to secure promotion, the Roughnecks went one step further than the Tigers did in 2017 by winning their bowl game with a dramatic overtime win against Chester Romans.
After coming close against the East Kilbride Pirates in the opening week, the Roughnecks ultimately fell to a 23-12 defeat in the battle of two Scottish sides new to the NFC1 North. Their season kicked into gear in Week Two, when they dished out a 43-0 defeat on the road against Yorkshire Academy Rams.
The dominant victory over a side who were tipped to challenge for a promotion spot in the pre-season forced those around the British American Football community to sit up and take notice of this Aberdeen side. Their next game saw the league leading Northumberland Vikings visit the Granite City and – similarly to week one – despite running the contenders close, the Roughnecks came up just short in a cagey 7-3 defeat.
Next up came Gateshead Senators in a battle that many felt could prove decisive in the relegation battle – but another confident performance saw the Roughnecks take their record to 2-2 for the season, with two comfortable victories and two narrow defeats against the league’s top-placed sides proving the Roughnecks have earned their place in the division.
Last weekend’s clash with the Yorkshire Rams would have been one the Roughnecks saw as a potential chance to move above .500 for the first time this season – but a tough defensive battle led to an almost unbelievable scoreline of 2-0 to the English side. The result left Aberdeen with a 2-3 record for the season.
This weekend’s visit to Glasgow pits the third and fourth placed sides in the table against each other. With a Tigers win and a defeat for the Pirates in the top of the table clash, Coach McCluskey’s Tigers could pull clear of the Roughnecks and Rams – while the Aberdonians could ensure they remain in third with a victory.
Find out more about this weekend’s game, and let us know if you’ll be there to roar the Tigers on, on our Facebook event page.
