The first SELAF weekend brings us two very interesting matches, one of them being the clash between the Novi Sad Dukes and the Sirmium Legionaries. Adding weight to this match is the fact that this will be the SELAF`s only regional derby, since both teams are from Serbia`s Vojvodina region.
The Dukes` players and staff anxiously await the match. The health situation is not quite satisfactory. Besides Andrej Sekulović, who stopped playing because of medical reasons, the game against the “Legion” will also be missed by four standard players – Vezmar, Mirković, Čanić and Mijatov – who won`t be able to play for a minimum of two weeks, but it`s possible they`ll be absent for as long as six months.
Still, great optimism is in the Dukes` team. Team Vice President Zorica Simić says that thanks to several months of practice the team`s conditioning is on an avid level. She added that a victory in this match is imperative, and it will only add to the intensity of the game.
Moderate optimism can be found in a statement of the team`s offensive captain Kosta Stojaković, who expects a tough game. “Not one match will be easy, but this game against Mitrovica carries extra weight. We want to repeat the success we had last October, and the Legionaries probably want payback. We have progressed greatly in comparison to last season, and we hope that sometimes exhausting efforts practicing on the players part will give us the results we`re looking for,” Stojaković said for SELAF.com.
On the other side, the situation in Mitrovica`s team is standard. They will have QB Damir Žarko, who`s coming back from retirement, available and also one of the best players in Serbia in RB Zoran Lončarević, even though he is currently serving his army duty.
The game will be played on May 7 at 4 p.m. in FK Kabel stadium.