Sofia Bears 39:6 Black Hornets (Serbia)

As most of you know, this year the best American football team in Bulgaria – the Sofia Bears will take part in the Third Serbian League. On Saturday 18 April 2015 in Jagodina, Serbia, the Bulgarians faced the home team, the Black Hornets, in a first-round battle. The Serb team consisted of almost forty people, including former players of some of the most elite teams in Serbia, and in contrast to the experience and strength of their veterans, the Hornets had a core of fast, agile youngsters from their own youth programme. In turn, the twenty-five "Bears" proudly waved the Bulgarian flag on the field and without a shred of fear entered the battle.

As usual, the Sofia side started unfocused, and in the first three plays the hosts got within ten yards of our end zone. The Bears' defence, however, woke up and stopped the drive, and the field goal attempt failed. From then on, there was only one team on the field and although at half-time the Bulgarians withdrew for rest with only the six points scored by Atanas Atanasov, who played great this match, the "bears" kept the game under control.

The boys came out extremely focused after the break, and on the very first play of the second half Nikolay Georgiev, making his debut at quarterback, fired a thirty-yard bomb right into the hands of the swift-footed receiver Todor Stamenov, who in the forty-yard race to the end-zone of the "hornets" outran the three chasing defenders – 12:0. Stamenov also scored the extra point after his touchdown. The Bears' defense stopped the raids of the hosts, and in the ensuing attack QB Georgiev slipped behind his strong offensive line and scored for 19: 0. Stamenov again added the extra point and so at the end of the third quarter the score was already 20:0.

Heated minutes followed: the game got rough, the rattled hosts started committing reckless penalties, which only fired up our boys. The Bears' defensive line played even more furiously, and under yet more pressure their quarterback hurried a throw straight into the hands of Atanasov, playing on defence, who scored for 26:0 behind some wholehearted blocking by his teammates.

The Black Hornets still scored after a controversial touchdown. This only irritated the Bears. In the remaining eight minutes to the end of the match Atanas Atanasov scored another touchdown, followed by a successful extra point from Todor Stamenov, and after another interception by Atanasov, Aleksandar Mitsov, playing in full equipment for the first time, scored the Bears' last six points forty seconds from the end – 39:6.

The match ended with friendly greetings and lots of smiles. The Bears started with a victory their adventure called "Serbian League". The best part was that the boys won the game in the strongest way – with an exceptional team spirit. Photos and videos of the match coming soon.

The next match is on 09.05.2015 in Sofia, this time against Obrenovac Hawks, when the "bears" will try to delight their fans with an even more emphatic victory.