Week 10 Headlines

Short-Handed Flag Moi L’Sac give PartyCrashers their first loss

In the highly anticipated Game of the Week, Flag Moi L’Sac faced the undefeated PartyCrashers. Flag Moi were missing several players but brought in reinforcements, including Grey Cup champion Marc-Antoine Dequoy. On a Saturday night in Brossard, PartyCrashers showed up in numbers, creating a great atmosphere.

Both quarterbacks were efficient. Jeanslee Alexis finished with five incompletions compared to Alex Nadeau-Piuze’s four. Mamadi Kaba and Guillaume Robert also stole the spotlight, combining for seven touchdowns while seemingly trying to outdo each other on every drive.

Flag Moi’s experience went toe-to-toe with the athletic and confident PartyCrashers. The first half was tight, with a key momentum play coming on the final play before halftime when a safety gave Flag Moi the lead heading into the break. The call happened right in front of the PartyCrashers’ supporters, who felt it was incorrect. Tensions rose further when a missed call allowed Nadeau-Piuze to come away with an interception, sending the crowd into an even louder reaction.

Despite the extra drama, Flag Moi stayed in control and PartyCrashers never fully recovered.

A rematch between these two teams feels necessary. Unfortunately it won’t happen again in the regular season, so hopefully the playoffs give us another meeting — this time with both teams at full strength.

Naproxen defeat Bleue Dry 10.1 in battle of the new kids on the block

There was always some uncertainty around these two teams entering their first season in 5v5 Competitive. Bleue Dry 10.1 had the advantage of playing several seasons in Intermediate, even winning the championship last fall before making the jump to Competitive. Naproxen, on the other hand, entered the division as a brand-new team loaded with talent but still needing time to build chemistry.

With Dimitri Sinodinos unavailable, Stephen Casey stepped in at quarterback for Naproxen and looked as calm as ever in a 34–14 victory. William Marchand continued his strong season, finishing with 79 receiving yards and two touchdowns, while Zachary Brassard led the team with 84 yards and a score.

On defence, former Vert et Or receiver Emilio Jaimes Leclair added two interceptions in the win.

It was a tough outing for Bleue Dry, as Fred Juneau struggled to connect with his receivers throughout the game.

Both teams have faced challenges in their first season in 5v5 Competitive, but there are still plenty of positives for each group to build on heading into future seasons.

Will #NR win a game in 5v5 Comp this season?

After #NR nearly upset PartyCrashers in Week 9, it felt like things might be turning around for them. Joey Notaro’s return also gave the team a boost, but two losses in Week 10 put them right back in a difficult spot.

There have been flashes of promise with both Sanders Armand and Zach Deschamps at quarterback, but even at their best it hasn’t translated into wins.

With two games remaining, #NR is still fighting for the final playoff spot. Anything can happen on any given night, but beating Raw Dawgs in Week 12 will be a tough task. Their final game of the season comes against Bleue Dry, and depending on Bleue Dry’s record by then, it could easily turn into a win-or-go-home scenario.

Since #NR hasn’t faced Bleue Dry yet this season, so that matchup might be their best opportunity to grab a win. If they can sneak into the postseason, it becomes anyone’s game — and this veteran group knows a thing or two about shocking the division with a playoff upset.

Right now it doesn’t look great, but sometimes all a team needs is one win to build momentum.

Naproxen team review with Emilio Jaimes Leclair

With Naproxen being the newest team in 5v5 Competitive, what was the decision on making this team in this specific division? Where does the name Naproxen come from?

Most of the players on the team were still playing college football and some had just retired. Because of off-season training and the distance for the guys playing in Sherbrooke, we never really had the chance to play a full FPF season.

We wanted to jump in right away and compete with the best players in the province. We know the 5v5 Competitive division is loaded with talent. We knew it wouldn’t be easy starting in this division, but we wanted that kind of challenge right away.

The name Naproxen comes from the medication used to treat pain and inflammation. Since we’re all pretty banged up from our football careers, we thought it would be funny to reference that because honestly, we probably all need it.

It’s evident that with Dimitri Sinodinos, the offence is much more efficient and fluid. What is the biggest asset in his game that is able to make receivers jobs easier?

Dim has amazing arm talent. He has the power to throw deep, but he’s also able to fit the ball into tight windows, which is a huge key in flag football.

We’re lucky to have a QB who not only has great athletic abilities, but who can also manage the game and call the right plays. It’s our first season together, and he was able to build timing with the guys on the team right away.

How would you describe Naproxen’s season so far? What is one thing that you see that can improve and one thing that your team will continue to strive for?

Perseverance is how I would describe this season. Every week, we can see that we’re learning and fixing our mistakes quickly. We need to be more consistent in every aspect of the game, especially on defense. Defense is really tough in 5v5, but in every game we’re getting better at recognizing pass concepts.

Offense has definitely been a strong point. Having explosive players like Justin Dion and William Marchand really helps the team, and Zach Brassard, with his experience and great juke skills, helps us gain key yards after the catch.

We’re a bunch of stubborn guys, so every game is another chance to get better—and that’s the mindset for our first season.

You currently lead the team with 3 INTs. You have games coming up against Bleue Dry and PartyCrashers. How are you going into these games as a defender against Fred Juneau who loves to air it out and Jeanslee Alexis who is very evasive?

We already played against Party Crashers this season, and we lost the game on the last play. So for sure, we left with a bad taste in our mouths. We have a strong rusher, Tristan Toussaint, who has the speed and athletic ability to contain Jeanslee, but we’re aware he’s one of the best QBs in the league.

Fun fact: Alex Nadeau and Sam Nadeau coached Tristan, Marchand, and me in CEGEP, so we’re pretty excited to play against them. We need to stick to our game and not give Alex the time and space to throw wherever he wants, because he hardly ever misses a pass. We especially don’t wanna lose against our old coaches haha.

Both teams are at the top of the league, so we’re going to have to start fast and be nearly perfect all game if we want to win back-to-back games. It’s a great challenge for the second half of the season and a real test of how much we’ve progressed this year.

Week 10 Power Rankings

1️⃣ PartyCrashers (7-1)

Week 9: -

PartyCrashers would go 3-1 in the last two weeks but the big thing is that they lost to Flag Moi L’Sac who were not with their full lineup. Some questionable calls and great plays from their opposition and a single point would be the difference in that game. It shows that PartyCrashers are beatable but I still think they are the best team at this moment in 5v5. They have Naproxen in Week 11 before a long break until their regular season finale against KGP Elite.

2️⃣ Flag Moi L’Sac (5-1)

Week 9: +1

Flag Moi would only play twice in Week 10 but with a short-handed lineup, they would beat PartyCrashers, handing them their lone loss and would dominate Bleue Dry 10.1 in a 26-8 victory. Whether it’s his brother Samuel Nadeau-Piuze, Guillaume Robert, Francois Rocheleau or even the recently retired Marc-Antoine Dequoy, Alex Nadeau-Piuze seems calm and collected with his playcall as of late. Seems like a perfect time for Flag Moi to build momentum as they have a showdown against Raw Dawgs Sunday night.

3️⃣ Braves (5-1)

Week 9: -1

Braves are on a break and with several players back from California, their 5v5 team doesn’t need as much work as their Division 1 team. They slid down the rankings only because they haven’t played. They can easily jump Flag Moi and PartyCrashers in the next coming weeks. I do think the Braves will be the championship favorite in 5v5 come playoffs but the gap is much closer than we think compared to only a season ago. Another week off for Braves before two big games in Week 12 against Raw Dawgs and KGP Elite.

4️⃣ Raw Dawgs (4-1)

Week 9: -

Raw Dawgs would pick up big wins over MTL Magic in Week 9 and control the second half in a win over #NR 40-24. The QB duo of Jordan Panetta and Jeff Rosenblatt is working this season. Whether Panetta plays against opponents, it seems that he’s already in mid-season form in the limited time behind center. Rosenblatt has given his team a cushion to get these wins when Raw Dawgs feel Panetta can play WR. It seems to be that Panetta will play QB come playoffs but having a solid QB room is nothing to be worried about if both are playing good. Raw Dawgs play Flag Moi this upcoming week in a matchup that can swim momentum for either team with a win. 

5️⃣ KGP Elite (2-2)

Week 9: +1

KGP rose up the ranks but not because of their own play but rather the struggles of another team. I’m not sure if they requested this schedule but with the huge gaps in their games at times, it’s tough to know how this team will look when they come back in Week 12. They have played the least amount of games with 4 so far and within a 3-week span, they play their 6 remaining games. It will be over a month since their last game when they take the field against MTL Magic. This team sits at 2-2 and have shown glimpses on both sides of the table so it’s a mystery of how this team will look come March 21.

6️⃣ MTL Magic (2-4)

Week 9: -1

Definitely the most disappointing team in 5v5 this season for sure. It doesn’t help Dan Lazzara that his roster is in flux and he doesn’t have his usual receivers. He’s doing the best he can but MTL Magic has had a stretch over the past four games playing PartyCrashers, Flag Moi, Braves and Daw Rawgs, all ending in losses. They will play Bleue Dry 10.1 twice in Week 11 so hopefully this will be a chance to get back on track.

7️⃣ Naproxen (2-4)

Week 9: +1

Naproxen played in Week 10 and dominated against Bleue Dry, winning 34-14. Stephen Casey played solid in the absence of Dimitri Sinodinos who was in Chula Vista for the Team Camp last week. Naproxen hasn’t been too bad in 5v5 and with a 2-4 record, have a strong case to build towards finishing the season strong and building a case to these veteran teams. Their schedule ain’t easy as they do face both PartyCrashers and Flag Moi this week but if there ever was a time to make a statement, it’s now.

8️⃣ Bleue Dry 10.1 (1-6)

Week 9: -1

Bleue Dry 10.1 went 0-3 in the past two weeks and if their offence was clicking, their defence was playing catch-up and vise-versa. Fred Juneau talks very highly of his team whenever I see him and I can see the fire in his eyes every time he’s on the field against the best of the best. He doesn’t shy away from any competition. It hasn’t been great for his team but they get to face a MTL Magic team trending in the wrong direction twice in Week 11. This would be a perfect opportunity for Bleue Dry 10.1 to either split or go this week 2-0 but MTL Magic won’t back down from that.

9️⃣ #NR (0-8)

Week 9: -

NR had a very close game against PartyCrashers but without Sanders Armand or Zach Deschamps in the rematch in Week 10, would turn to Stephen Harripersaud to help them. Unfortunately, Harripersaud's first FPF 5v5 game did not go well as they got shut out and it was a disaster on offence. It seemed that the only positive from that game was the return of Joey Notaro who can give this team a boost on offence. The following game, Armand and Deschamps were back but they weren’t able to stop Raw Dawgs after keeping the game close by halftime. NR plays in Week 12 in a rematch against Raw Dawgs and finishes their season against Bleue Dry so it remains a question on if they can win a game this season.

Closing Remarks

There you go 5v5 Competitive with this week’s article. Thanks to Emilio for giving us great insight towards Naproxen who continue to make strides in their 5v5 debut. The latest episode of the First & Goal Podcast is now up on Youtube so go check it out! As always, if you didn’t get a chance to respond or want to be included in future pieces, you can reach me on Facebook or Instagram @keyoncyrus.