Brawling Monarchs fall apart

AMERICAN FOOTBALL

The London Monarch's hopes of qualifying for the World Bowl were effectively ended on Saturday night after an error-ridden, ill-tempered 17-7 loss to the Amsterdam Admirals.

The Monarchs committed eight turnovers and had three players ejected late in the game. The defensive end Horace Morris had already been removed for a foul. Then Amsterdam's Ron Carpenter taunted London's players after making an interception. It was too much for the Monarchs' offensive linemen Chris Luneburg and Terrance Wisdom, who led the charge in a bench-clearing shoving match which saw players squaring up to each other and rival coaches exchanging insults.

It was an ugly end to a scrappy affair which saw the teams combine for 12 turnovers, four missed field goals and a blocked punt. Amsterdam, who have already qualified for the championship game, also lost their quarterback Jamie Martin, who broke a collarbone.

Brad Johnson, the Monarchs quarterback, had another miserable evening, being intercepted three times and contributing a fumble. "It was the same old story, fumbles and interceptions, and you can't win playing like that," the Monarch's head coach, Bobby Hammond, said.