Cats 2007 Awards

With the 2008 pre-season right around the corner, The Cats got together to acknowledge the achievements of the individuals whom helped the Cats to playoff football for the first time since 2004.

2007 Paul Wheal Player of the year, Matt Kelly.

Paul Wheal Player of the Year Award
A 7-3 record was good enough for runner’s up spot in BAFL2 East in a season that saw the Cats defense concede the fewest points of any team in Britball, before eventually succumbing to the Warriors in a playoff quarter final in South Wales. It was during this crucial game in Wales that Cats fullback Matt Kelly sustained an injury that ended his first season in the backfield, however the converted linebacker had already impressed enough to earn himself top honours, receiving the formerly named MVP award. Cats GM Paul Wheal had adamantly expressed Kelly’s deservedness for the award before his passing shortly after the season’s end, so it was only appropriate that Kelly was presented with the Paul Wheal Player of the year award by Paul’s eldest son and Cats lineman, Chris Wheal. Experiencing limited playing time in his rookie season, Kelly took it upon himself to change position in order to gain himself a place on the field. Through his hard work and determination to succeed he earned himself a starters role as fullback shortly into the season. Transferring the skill learned as a linebacker, Kelly provided fearless run blocking and helped create the pass protection that afforded the Cats passing game the time to execute as the season went on. Kelly rushed for 2 touchdowns averaging a tough 2.8 yards over his 30 attempts.

Rookie of the Year

Honours were split between two newcomers, both showing great development over the season and promise for the future. Wide out James Wyatt broke into the starting rotation in the Cats strong receiving core, helping himself to 8 catches for 90 yards and 1 touchdown. Dave Parr made the adjustment from flag to kitted football quickly and effectively, his role with the team growing throughout a season whereby he achieved 14 tackles with 2 for loss.

Receivers Coach Tony Reveglia presents Wyatt

Line-coach Chris Cooke presents Parr.

Fox receiving his award from Coach Reveglia

Offensive MVP went to running back Dom Fox, who surpassed his ‘06 yardage total averaging an outstanding 6.9 yards per carry for a total of 1277 yards and 12 touchdowns in only his second season as a running back.

 

Defensive honours were shared, with first year player Justin Royer making an immediate impact with the team. The young Texan soon lent his experience of high school football and racked up 38 solo tackles in just 9 games for a total of 78. In these he had 9 tackles for loss and half a sack, broke up one pass, intercepting another and recovering 3 fumbles.

Coach Gray presents Royer

Matt Brown.

Long-serving Cat, the versatile Matt Brown was also acknowledged for his efforts in numerous defensive positions. Playing safety, linebacker and defensive end, the 15 year veteran had 14 tackles for loss and 3 sacks, a safety and scored his first ever touchdown amongst his 3 fumble recoveries.

Coach Cooke presents Fenton with the award.

Lineman of the Year went to Chris Fenton, honoured for the second successive year. Fenton has made a staggering turnaround from a defensive back in the 2004 season to starting centre in 2007, spelling time with his coach and mentor Chris Cooke."

 

Head Coach Bice with Cooke.

Special Team MVP went to Louis Cooke. Priding himself on his role as shooter on both kick-offs and punts, Cooke’s aggression was reflected with his 14 special teams tackles and his nose for the ball saw him recover 2 kick offs. Cooke also supplemented his impressive receiving yards with 139 return yards when spelling at kick-off/punt returner.

Bice presents Delozier

The Players Vote was split between two outstanding contributors. David Delozier brings a personality to match his stature and a wealth of experience that is immeasurable on the field for a starting defense with an average age in the early twenties. The middle linebacker had 30 solo tackles for a total of 51, 10.5 for loss and 1.5 sacks. His kick-off return for 0 yards was one of the lighter highlights of the season.

2007 Team Captain Ray Palmer passes the torch to 2008 team Captain Martin Brown.

Cats’ newcomer Martin Brown cannot have dreamed what he was signing up for when transferring from Chiltern at the start of the 2007 season. Expecting to play solely as linebacker, Brown found himself handed the controls of the Cats offense when injury and absence conspired to take away four different quarterbacks. Browns’ years of experience in flag as well college kitted Britball put him in good stead as he threw 17 touchdowns in 9 starts at quarterback, finding 10 different receivers in the end zone. Spreading the ball around was one of his biggest accomplishments, Brown is  proud of the fact that he completed to every player on the Cats receiving roster, earning himself an admirable 115 passer efficiency rating

The Play(s) of the Year Award was pluralised to account for the continual excellence of one individual. James Kocherhans nose for the ball saw him lead the team in tackles, however it was his consistency against the pass that saw him earn this honour. He returned all 5 of his interceptions for touchdowns, for a staggering average of 38.4yards. “Coco” also recovered a fumble in the endzone for his 6 defensive score of the year, putting him just a safety away from personally eclipsing the total points conceded by the Cats defense.

The Glen Paveley Award for “Heart of the Cats” went fittingly to the Wheal family. Battling through GM Paul’s terminal cancer throughout the season, the Wheal’s were a pillar to the team and their family spirit was the glue that held the Cats family together. Despite Paul’s illness, he and wife Shirley still prioritised the needs of the team throughout, taking on numerous roles vital to the club as they always have. Son’s Chris and Mickey continued to play, Mickey providing a great family moment with his touchdown reception against Chiltern. Louise renounced her usual game day responsibility of ball-girl in the post-season friendly against BAFL newcomers MK Pathfinders, honouring her father by assuming his duties on the down-marker, a role that afforded him the opportunity to politely discuss calls with so many sideline officials over the years. The Cats would like to once again extend our heartfelt thanks for the efforts of the Wheal family, as well as all those volunteers that helped make the 2007 season a success.

Shirley, Mickey, Louise and Chris with the Paveley award.

 

 

 

Photographs courtesy of Cambridgeshire Cats.