Saturday 12 April, 1997
Final Score : Claymores 16 - 3 Admirals
World Bowl favourites Scottish Claymores won the season opener on the road in Amsterdam by 16 - 3. The Claymores win was only Amsterdam's second ever defeat at home and the first in the new 51,000 capacity ArenA.
Game Summary : The Claymores "Highland Sting" defensive unit began well, sacking Admirals QB John Sacca twice in the their opening series. The offense took a little longer but when running back Jared Kaaiohelo crossed the goal line from one yard to make the score 6 -0 a minute bofore half time the advantage was with the Scots. The following two point conversion failed. Claymores Kari Gronroos and Admirals Oliver Quass both missed field goals and the 'Mores went into the changing room up 6 - 0 at half time.
Kari Gronroos finally hit the target in the fourth quarter with a 22 yard field goal to increase the Claymores lead to 9 on the first drive quickly followed by Oliver Quass to cut the lead to 9 - 3. Returning running back Ron Dickerson completed the scoring four minutes from time with a touchdown round the right-hand side and Finn Kari Gronroos converted to make the final score 16 - 3 Claymores
Defense : It was an excellent day for the defense who shut the Admirals offense down for three quarters and gave up only 3 points on a field goal in a performance which gave up only 124 yards. By the end of the game Admirals QB John Sacca had been sacked six times, hurried nine and had two balls batted down. The Admirals running game, apparently their strong point never got underway mainly due to a poor Amsterdam "O" line frequently penetrated by Claymores front four, Wilky Bazile, Keith Powe, Jason Simmons and Brad Keeney. Number one draft pick Troy Bailey recovered a fumble by Sacca and George Coghill, Israel Byrd, Kevin Scott and James Logan made significant contributions in the secondary.
A solid performance which should stand the Claymores in good stead for the remainder of the season and hopefully - if the offense catches up - the World Bowl.
Offense : The Scottish offense, however, will have some work to do if they want to put up more than 20 points against the Barcelona Dragons next week. QB Dave Barr started off shakily but progressively got stronger and more composed. By the final whistle his stats were 23 of 31 for 206 yards, pretty impressive considering he hasn't played a game in three years! He spread the ball around well and hit six recievers but not surprisingly Allan DeGraffenreid. Yo Murphy had the best night among receivers with 5 catches for 57 yards. The running game also appeared steady with Ron Dickerson gaining 92 yards and Jared Kaaiohelo proving an ample fullback, both backs scored.
An "OK" performance perhaps marred slightly by their inability to move the ball early on. This should however improve as the season continues.
Special Teams : Oh dear. Kicking will need to be improved if the Claymores are to progress to the post-season. Gary Parker and Kari Gronroos both missed field goals under 35 yards although Gronroos made a later 22 yards attempt in the fourth quarter. It appears the Claymores will also need a dedicated punter if Spence Fischer first game performance is anything to go by. He compared badly with the Admirals NFL allocated punter who frequently landed punts inside the 'Mores 10. Kick returning is fine with Eric Smith and Yo Murphy both posting big gains in this department. Demetrice Martin looked steady under the ball in punting situations
Kicking is the main concern on special teams and Mike Kenny will have his work cut out to take a good kicking squad to Murrayfield next week for the game with Barcelona.
Quotes : Coach Jim Criner said of the victory "Winning the first game on the road is a big win. It's like putting two under your belt." Admirals coach Al Luginbill however, furious as ever was yelling "It's drastic to say that heads will roll, but there will be some strong evaluation"
Attendance : 16,185 - record in Amsterdam
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final |
| Claymores | 0 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 16 |
| Admirals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
Second quarter
Scot--Kaaiohelo 1 run (kick failed), 14:10.
Fourth quarter
Scot--FG Gronroos 22, :10.
Amst--FG Quass 32, 4:25.
Scot--Dickerson 26 run (Gronroos kick), 11:52.
A--16,185.
| Sco | Ams | |
| First downs | 19 | 8 |
| Rushes-yards | 32-135 | 20-49 |
| Passing yards | 199 | 75 |
| Punt returns | 3-28 | 1-0 |
| Kickoff returns | 2-62 | 4-74 |
| Interceptions ret. | 0-00 | 0-00 |
| Comp-att-int | 23-31-0 | 12-22-0 |
| Sacked-yards lost | 6-45 | 1-7 |
| Punts-avg. | 4-30.3 | 7-38.4 |
| Fumbles-lost | 3-1 | 1-1 |
| Penalties-yards | 6-32 | 8-50 |
| Time of possession | 34:03 | 26:57 |
Individual statistics
RUSHING: Scotland, Dickerson 18-92, Barr 10-39, Kaaiohelo 3-3, Papin 1-1. Amsterdam, Sacca 4-23, Dawkins 11-15, Moss 3-2, Temming 1-6, Davis 1-3.
PASSING: Scotland, Barr 23-31-0-206. Amsterdam, Sacca 12-22-0-120.
RECEIVING: Scotland, Murphy 5-70, Dickerson 5-45, Brady 4-39, Kaaiohelo 4-22, Smith 2-27, Couper 2-8, Papin 1-(minus 6).
Amsterdam, Davis 4-33, Tellison 2-39, Rachal 2-13, Moss 1-19, Chandler 1-9, Smith 1-5, Dickerson 1-2.
MISSED FIELD GOALS: Scotland, Parker, Gronroos. Amsterdam, Quass