Richmond (AP) - The Rwanda Assassins (1-1, 0-1 in the conference) face off against the Richmond Raiders (2-0, 1-0 in the conference) in an exciting matchup. The game features two of the best quarterbacks in the league with Ernie McCrackin for the Assassins (2nd in yards, 2nd in touchdowns) and Khari Jones for the Raiders (3rd in yards, 3rd in TDs), in addition to some of the best receivers in the game with Assassin Julius Flash leading the conference in yards and Raider Jupp Zupp in 2nd place.
But the Raiders have recently brought in a secret weapon at the 3rd WR spot -- Prince Arbrant.
Arbrant played for the Rwanda Assassins for two full seasons, winning the award for 3rd most receiving yards in the league during the 3rd season and 3rd most receiving touchdowns in the 4th season before a much-publicized rift between the owner and the player resulted in The Prince being pushed down the depth chart to rot until his contract expired early in the 5th season.
"Basically the owner and GM were jealous of my skills,' Arbrant told reporters after he was benched. "I tried giving (Julius) Flash some tips to help his playmaking abilities, but his agent flipped out. My tips paid off for him, but by that point the rift was in place."
Arbrant signed a one-year contract with a team in Western Europe but after leading the team to their first playoff appearance decided to test the free agent waters.
"The Orange were going in a different direction and we decided to part ways. I wish them the best -- they're in a tough conference, but with some of the moves they've made I think they'll do fine."
He was contacted by dozens of teams but finally decided on the Richmond Raiders because of the friendly relationship between QB Khari Jones' agent, rbetesta, and Arbrant's agent, Fezmid.
"I've had many dealings with rbetesta and he's always been easy to work with. He convinced his star cornerback to stick around with the Brussels Cows (Western Europe AAA Zeta), so when he suggested that Prince come over and help with Jones' development, it was an easy sell to my client," Fezmid told the press after the signing.
It wasn't until the next day that Arbrant realized what conference the Raiders were in.
"I'm no geography expert, but I always thought Richmond was in Virginia. Who knew that there was a Richmond in Africa too?!?"
So now Arbrant's new team will host his old team, and the fires are burning deep.
"Yeah, I circled this game the second I realized the plane wasn't stopping on the east coast of the USA."
It didn't take long for the owner of the Assassins to realize that Arbrant was going to be playing in the league again. Less than 24 hours after signing, Fezmid received a letter from Rwanda owner Roches saying, "How hard did you try to get into our division?" The owner accidentally revealed his fear of the Raiders by later saying, "Are you waiting for them tobeat us (since they out level us) so you can run your mouth again?"
Arbrant laughed when reporters asked about his relationship with Roches, but insisted that he held no hard feelings towards the boisterous owner. "We have some differences of opinion. I used to joke around a lot in the locker room, but the Assassins don't like playing around -- they're all business, no fun at all. Heck, they got pissed off at me for talking to you guys (reporters - ed) on more than one occasion! But it's all cool -- the Raiders encourage press releases: we party hard and play harder!"
Arbrant refused comment on the death threats he received from Rwanda management after sending a friendly jab to the front office when they failed to make the playoffs after Prince's release. "That was handled by league officials and my lawyers have informed me that I shouldn't talk about it right now until we figure out what sort of legal procedings to follow through with."
What kinds of secrets has Arbrant shared with his new team?
"I was going to give away some of their offensive tendencies -- but then I remembered that their gameplan is for the receivers to run as deep as possible and for Ernie to chuck the ball downfield. Doesn't take an insider to realize that!
"However, I have coached some of the DBs on how to beat Julius -- smack him around and he'll start dropping the ball. He was close to the league lead in season 4 (19 drops), and didn't look much better last year (13 drops on 58 less plays). He's also a fumbler, losing 3 fumbles every full season he's played."
When asked what kind of game Arbrant expects Saturday night, he replied, "Fireworks. I wouldn't be surprised to see a 70-63 final. If you like big plays and high scores, you have to watch this game."
Is the game personal?
"I'd like to say no, but when you've endured some of the stuff the Assassins have put me through, yeah - I want to beat them really bad. My teammates are all rallying behind me and I think we'll be able to shut 'em down enough to win."
This one could get ugly....
But the Raiders have recently brought in a secret weapon at the 3rd WR spot -- Prince Arbrant.
Arbrant played for the Rwanda Assassins for two full seasons, winning the award for 3rd most receiving yards in the league during the 3rd season and 3rd most receiving touchdowns in the 4th season before a much-publicized rift between the owner and the player resulted in The Prince being pushed down the depth chart to rot until his contract expired early in the 5th season.
"Basically the owner and GM were jealous of my skills,' Arbrant told reporters after he was benched. "I tried giving (Julius) Flash some tips to help his playmaking abilities, but his agent flipped out. My tips paid off for him, but by that point the rift was in place."
Arbrant signed a one-year contract with a team in Western Europe but after leading the team to their first playoff appearance decided to test the free agent waters.
"The Orange were going in a different direction and we decided to part ways. I wish them the best -- they're in a tough conference, but with some of the moves they've made I think they'll do fine."
He was contacted by dozens of teams but finally decided on the Richmond Raiders because of the friendly relationship between QB Khari Jones' agent, rbetesta, and Arbrant's agent, Fezmid.
"I've had many dealings with rbetesta and he's always been easy to work with. He convinced his star cornerback to stick around with the Brussels Cows (Western Europe AAA Zeta), so when he suggested that Prince come over and help with Jones' development, it was an easy sell to my client," Fezmid told the press after the signing.
It wasn't until the next day that Arbrant realized what conference the Raiders were in.
"I'm no geography expert, but I always thought Richmond was in Virginia. Who knew that there was a Richmond in Africa too?!?"
So now Arbrant's new team will host his old team, and the fires are burning deep.
"Yeah, I circled this game the second I realized the plane wasn't stopping on the east coast of the USA."
It didn't take long for the owner of the Assassins to realize that Arbrant was going to be playing in the league again. Less than 24 hours after signing, Fezmid received a letter from Rwanda owner Roches saying, "How hard did you try to get into our division?" The owner accidentally revealed his fear of the Raiders by later saying, "Are you waiting for them tobeat us (since they out level us) so you can run your mouth again?"
Arbrant laughed when reporters asked about his relationship with Roches, but insisted that he held no hard feelings towards the boisterous owner. "We have some differences of opinion. I used to joke around a lot in the locker room, but the Assassins don't like playing around -- they're all business, no fun at all. Heck, they got pissed off at me for talking to you guys (reporters - ed) on more than one occasion! But it's all cool -- the Raiders encourage press releases: we party hard and play harder!"
Arbrant refused comment on the death threats he received from Rwanda management after sending a friendly jab to the front office when they failed to make the playoffs after Prince's release. "That was handled by league officials and my lawyers have informed me that I shouldn't talk about it right now until we figure out what sort of legal procedings to follow through with."
What kinds of secrets has Arbrant shared with his new team?
"I was going to give away some of their offensive tendencies -- but then I remembered that their gameplan is for the receivers to run as deep as possible and for Ernie to chuck the ball downfield. Doesn't take an insider to realize that!
"However, I have coached some of the DBs on how to beat Julius -- smack him around and he'll start dropping the ball. He was close to the league lead in season 4 (19 drops), and didn't look much better last year (13 drops on 58 less plays). He's also a fumbler, losing 3 fumbles every full season he's played."
When asked what kind of game Arbrant expects Saturday night, he replied, "Fireworks. I wouldn't be surprised to see a 70-63 final. If you like big plays and high scores, you have to watch this game."
Is the game personal?
"I'd like to say no, but when you've endured some of the stuff the Assassins have put me through, yeah - I want to beat them really bad. My teammates are all rallying behind me and I think we'll be able to shut 'em down enough to win."
This one could get ugly....
Last edited Nov 14, 2008 20:28:26
