The CNC Gladiators will host the Budapest Cowboys for their first home game of the season, on Saturday in Kemeten. The Gladiators will play their first game since the season’s opening week, when over a month ago they lost in Belgrade to the Vukovi.

The Cowboys will come to town a week after losing, and not just that, in Novi Sad. Only a few days ago they were the hottest team in the league, expected to make the playoff battle in their group interesting for the remainder of the season, but instead they lost 56-20, once again casting a shadow of doubt on their ability to match the level of play of the top teams.

The good news for them is maybe that the Gladiators didn’t have a great start to the season, playing nowhere near as good as last year, but it was very early in the year, and over a full month has passed since. Still, in their one game this season, they managed a mere 119 yards of offense, completing just 3 passes and scoring 7 points — not to mention they surrendered over 300 yards to the opponent.

Of the two stats, obviously the more worrying one should be the defensive, considering the Cowboys gave up 56 total points in Novi Sad, including 5 touchdowns through the air. In other words, the Gladiators will likely manage more than 119 yards of offense this time, but the Cowboys themselves are proving to be a dangerous offensive team. Despite the big loss, their quarterback Jack Lydic and receiver Gabor Kalovits hooked up for two more touchdowns, giving Kalovits five for the season.

The game starts 2PM; unlike the Vukovi group, where a lot is already clear, this game won’t decide much, as all of the teams already have at least one loss. Still, the Cowboys can’t afford another drubbing for the second straight week, and that alone gives hope for a better showing by the Hungarians than last week.