London Warriors defeat Paris Lights to boost AFLE playoff hopes

The London Warriors (4-4) strengthened their playoff hopes in the American Football League Europe on Sunday, defeating the Paris Lights (2-5) 44-23 behind big plays on offense, defense and special teams. The victory was the third straight for the Warriors, who broke open a close game with an explosive second quarter before pulling away.

Explosive second quarter

The opening quarter was a defensive battle, with the only points coming on Reiss Ormonde-Cunningham’s 29-yard field goal to give the Warriors a 3-0 lead.

The game changed dramatically in the second quarter.

Kare Lyles found Ellis Roff on a 32-yard touchdown pass before the Lights answered with a 40-yard scoring strike from Evan Hillock to JJ Hopp. London immediately responded as Marcus Libman hauled in touchdown receptions of 62 and 59 yards from Lyles, helping the Warriors take a commanding 24-7 halftime lead.

Lyles finished the afternoon completing 14 of 23 passes for 272 yards and three touchdowns without an interception.

Complete team effort

The Warriors continued to build on their lead after halftime.

Lyles scored on a one-yard quarterback sneak early in the third quarter before Stef Atidzah returned an opponent’s fumble 67 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the period to extend the advantage to 37-7.

The special teams joined the scoring early in the fourth quarter when Ellis Roff returned a kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown, putting the game out of reach.

Libman led all London receivers with five catches for 179 yards and two touchdowns, while Roff added a touchdown catch and the electrifying kick return score.

On the ground, Andy Owusu paced the rushing attack with 79 yards on 10 carries as the Warriors finished with 150 rushing yards.

Lights battle through adversity

The Lights suffered a setback in the second quarter when starting quarterback Evan Hillock left the game with an injury.

Backup Marouane Dardour stepped in and completed 16 of 24 passes for 236 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Hillock had completed 12 of 19 passes for 152 yards and a touchdown before exiting.

JJ Hopp finished with 13 receptions for 163 yards and a touchdown, while Florian Larose added five catches for 105 yards and a score. Alexandre Agnimel also caught a touchdown pass as Paris scored 16 fourth-quarter points.

Momentum continues

The victory sends the Warriors into their second bye week riding a three-game winning streak and carrying plenty of momentum into the final stretch of the season.

With explosive plays in every phase of the game and another efficient outing from Lyles and the offense, the London Warriors continued to look like one of the hottest teams in the league as the race for the AFLE playoffs heats up.