2006 Amsterdam Admirals season

The 2006 Amsterdam Admirals season was the 12th season for the team in the NFL Europe League.

The 2006 season of the Amsterdam Admirals started off full of hope. The previous season headcoach Bart Andrus and his team had managed to lay their hands on the coveted World Bowl trophee - for the first time in the Admirals' history - after beating Berlin Thunder 27 to 21 in World Bowl XIII. Furthermore, Gibran Hamdan had returned as starting quarterback after being injured halfway the 2005 season, ready to be the focal point of a passing offense.

After an initial loss in week 1 to their World Bowl XIII opponent Berlin Thunder, quarterback Gibran Hamdan, together with key players such as wide receivers Skyler Fulton, Noriaki Kinoshita, Chad Lucas and special teams players Glenn Pakulak and Ryan Killeen, led the Admirals to 6 straight wins before suffering two broken ankles in week 7 against the Hamburg Sea Devils. After that the well-oiled Admirals offense lost steam when second-string quarterback Jared Allen took over. Despite this, Allen and his team managed to defeat the 2006 NFLE league number two team Frankfurt Galaxy in week 9 on Galaxy home soil, resulting in the Amsterdam Admirals clinching their World Bowl berth.

Finally the Admirals met Frankfurt Galaxy again in week 11 in Düsseldorf in LTU Arena, the spot of World Bowl XIII. The hope from beating Galaxy in week 9, however, quickly dissipated when it became clear that the Admirals' offensive line without Hamdan was no match for Galaxy's rushing offensive line powered by running back Roger "the rabbit" Robinson. After four quarters the Admirals hadn't managed to claim their second World Bowl victory with a final score of 22 to just 7.

Despite the disappointment of losing, the season of 2006 also saw many highlight like when Skyler Fulton established a new league record by catching for 100+ yards in 6 out of 10 games. Fulton fell just 32 yards short of breaking the individual record for most yards gained in a season, set at 1023 yards in 1996 by Scottish Claymores wide receiver Sean LaChapelle (Fulton received for 992 yards). He would surely have broken this record if not for a hamstring injury towards the end of the season.

Week 1: vs Berlin Thunder
During the first game of the season the Admirals met their 2005 World Bowl XIII adversary Berlin Thunder for a rematch on the grass of their home base, the Amsterdam ArenA. After going three and out on their first possession Glenn Pakulak punted the ball to the Thunder 20 from where it was carried to the 26 for Thunder's first down. Thunder's offense opened with good drives when second-year running back Little John Flowers carried 5 times for 22 yards and picked up an important 13 yards on third-and-six, bringing the ball to first-and-six. Flowers also covered the last six yards on the next run for a touchdown and the extra point by Xavier Beitia. All this was witnessed by the cold Admirals fans - it was already a chilly 0°C/32°F at kickoff - who hadn't seen the last chilling event for the night.

On their next possession. the Amsterdam Admirals carried the ball from their own 32 to Berlin's 21, where it was fumbled by running back Larry Croom and recovered by Berlin. Berlin took advantage of the turnover as they began another scoring drive with Berlin quarterback Campbell avoiding what seemed like an unavoidable sack to complete a 16-yard pass to wide receiver Keron Henry. Berlin running back Marty Johnson pulled off an 18-yard dash before - in the second quarter now - Campbell connected with his wide receiver Musinski on a 27-yard scoring play, followed by another successful PAT kick by Xavier Beitia: 14-0.

After driving up to the Berlin 39, the Admirals found themselves stuck on 3-and-1 and 4-and-1. Pakulak was brought out once again and punted the pig's skin into the end zone for a touchback. Berlin Thunder had success again and made it to Amsterdam's 9-yard line, but were faced with 4-and-2. They decided to roll the dice. Apparently they rolled a pair of sixes, since the pass connected for yet another touchdown. Berlin failed to come up with the extra point though, when the snap failed to connect. 20-0, it was indeed getting very cold on the Amsterdam stands. The chill was complete when inside the two-minute warning when Admirals quarterback Reggie Robertson was intercepted by defensive end Christian Mohr, who ran the ball back 34 yards to the Admirals’ two-yard line. Berlin Thunder got stuck on the Admirals' 1-yard line on their 4th and decided to roll the dice again for a touchdown attempt, comfortable in their 20-0 lead. This time however, they rolled snake eyes and fumbled the ball after which Derrick Ballard ran a league record 95 yard fumble-run to score as time expired in the first half. Ryan Killeen kicked the ball between the uprights for the extra point: 20-7

On the opening drive of the 3rd quarter, Berlin got into scoring position again when they ended up with 4-and-15 on the Amsterdam 19. Beitia kicked the ball in for the third times with a 36-yard field goal, making it 23-7. The Admirals must have figured it was high time to bring out the magic because right after Croom gained 9 yards, Hamdan connected with wide receiver Craig Bragg (who was wide open) on a 56-yard passing play taking the ball to the Berlin two-yard line. Croom then forced his way into the end zone and Killeen followed with the extra point: 23-14. Admirals fans were getting a bit warmer.

The next scoring play came from Berlin Thunder once again when, after one of Hamdan's passes hit an offensive lineman, Berlin drove up the field and Beitia came into position again for a 27-yard field goal. After intercepting another pass near the end of the 3rd quarter, Berlin drove the ball up to the 1-yard line before scoring another touchdown in the 4th quarter. The Admirals brought out the magic again when Japanese national player Noriaki Kinoshita scored on an explosive 59-yard punt return down the left sideline. Hamdan then fired off a 54-yard scoring pass to his favourite wide receiver Skyler Fulton, with the pair hooking up again for a two-point conversion. With 3:04 left on the clock, the Admirals had closed the gap to 4 point: 33-29.

The last bit of hope of Amsterdam dwindled, however, when Berlin's Campbell threw a 13-yard pass on 3rd down, giving them enough time to drain the game clock. The warmed-up Admirals fans had to admit defeat when the game clock ticked down to zero and the score on the big board was still 33-29.

Week 2: at Cologne Centurions
After losing to Berlin at home in week 1, it was up to the Admirals to even the score at Cologne.

Cologne began their opening drive after Amsterdam's Diamond Ferri stopped Bratton at the 26-yard line. Cologne's quarterback Kliff Kingsbury opened big with an 18-yard pass to running back Russell on the first play. However, the Amsterdam defense fought back, forcing Cologne to punt after going 3-and-5 when Tony Brown sacked the quarterback.

A 48-yard punt and a fair catch by Noriaki Kinoshita set the Admirals back at their 6-yard line. On the first play however, Hamdan outdid Kingsbury when he connected through the air with the same Kinoshita for a 48-yard gain. To make matters worse for the Centurions, they were penalized 30 yards for roughing the passer, making it a 78-yard gain on the first play and taking the ball to Cologne's 16. Another penalty – this time for pass interference - gave Amsterdam a first down at the 9. On third down and 6 yards to go, Cologne's Thomas Houchin intercepted a pass by Hamdan in the endzone, running it back to his own 16.

On the next drive, Cologne was again stopped after their second first down and punted the ball the Amsterdam's 25. Amsterdam got handed a first down again when, with 2-and-14 after a false start, Cologne was penalized again for roughing the passer, giving the Admirals their first down. However, after three incomplete passes and 4-and-10 at Cologne's 26 near the end of the first quarter, Amsterdam brought Ryan Killeen into position for a 44-yard field goal, which he scored.

With a successful drive by Alex Haynes - rushing the ball for 38 yards on 4 tries - Cologne got stuck again at 4-and-4 at Amsterdam's 28. Going for the field goal, Cologne's kick got blocked and picked up by Admirals cornerback Justin Perkins who returned it 72 yards for a touchdown, giving the visitors a 10-0 lead.

After another penalty for offensive holding, the Centurions countered with a big play, with second quarterback Boyd completing a 55-yard pass, followed by Haynes ending up in Amsterdam's endzone after rushing for 9 and 22 yards. 10-7. The Admirals had a case of déjà-vu when on their second down Diamond Ferri fumbled the ball and it was recovered by Centurion right tackle Dixon. After driving up to Amsterdam's 28 with the help of a roughing-the-passer penalty, Cologne once again attempted a 46-yard field goal. This time it greeted the uprights left and right, squaring the score at 10-10.

The Cologne Centurions quickly got possession of the ball again. A 25 yard connection between quarterback Boyd and tight end Trent Smith after Amsterdam's defense choked on a faked handoff to Russell, took the ball to Amsterdam's 17. Cologne's touchdown plans were however once again ruined when tackle Obeng's offensive holding set them back 10 yards and the Centurions got stuck at 4-and-18. Tim Duncan was brought in again and secured Cologne's second field goal of the afternoon.

One minute into the second half, Cologne safety Brandon Pinderhughes hit Hamdan hard from behind, forcing a fumble and giving Cologne the ball at the Amsterdam 29. It was the same story all over again, though, when they couldn't get another first down. When Duncan was called upon again, his kick failed, going wide right from 44 yards. This miss proved to be costly immediately afterwards. On their second down, Hamdan spotted Skyler Fulton wide open down the right sideline and threw a perfect pass for a 65-yard touchdown, giving the Admirals the lead again at 17-13 after Killeen secured the extra point.

Next, Cologne drive made it all the way to Amsterdam's 6-yard where they once again were withheld from a touchdown by the Admirals defensive line. Duncan then missed a costly second time on the 24-yard field goal to leave Cologne stranded four points behind the visitors, 17-13. A 12-yard rush up the middle by Ferri and a 35-yard pass by Hamdan to Chad Lucas gave Amsterdam a first down at the 24-yard line. Three plays later they also got stuck at 4-and-9 and Killeen's successful 41-yard field goal widened the gap to 20-13.

Cologne's defense held Amsterdam's offense at bay and managed to block Glenn Pakulak's punt in the 4th quarter, only 14 yards from Amsterdam's endzone. Quick thinking by Admirals safety Atari Bigby saved the Admirals from a possible score-evening touchdown run by kicking the ball out of bounds at the back of the endzone, giving the Centurions a safety instead. After the free kick, the Cologne Centurions came back dangerously when they ran the ball all the way back to the Amsterdam 9 after a 25-yard pass to Russell by Kingsbury. When Kingsbury was sacked by Amsterdam defensive end Earl Cochran and penalized for intentional grounding, it forced Cologne to go for the kick again with 4-and-19. Tim Duncan then missed his fourth field goal with 3:02 remaining, condemning Cologne to defeat and giving Amsterdam their first win with 20-15 on the board.

League Records (1995-2006)

 * Note: NFLE has a 10-game season!

Roster
Totals 'Acquired':
 * NFL: 35
 * FA: 7
 * Nat: 10

KEY TO 'ACQUIRED' COLUMN: Source:
 * NFL - Allocated and assigned by NFLEL office
 * NFL Draft-1 - Shows round selected in NFL Allocation Draft
 * FA Draft-1 - Shows round selected in Free Agent Draft
 * FA-2006 - Undrafted free agent
 * Nat/country - National player and home country
 * NFL D-11/Team/Protected - Shows draft pick used to protect veteran allocated player
 * Admirals.nl
 * NFLEurope.com (2006 roster no longer available)