Eagles v Lowlanders for a place in Polish Bowl XX. Semi-final preview: Warsaw Eagles – Lowlanders Białystok

Saturday's game against the Lowlanders will be Eagles' last home game of the season. We don't yet know exactly where Polish Bowl XX will be played, but according to various leaks and speculation, this year's final will take place outside Warsaw. Let's put thoughts of the biggest game of the season aside for a moment, though, because first comes a semi-final against a team that always shows a different face in the play-offs. It's well known that during the regular season the Lowlanders can be… inconsistent. They have their errors, slip-ups, injuries and even whole losing runs. But when the play-offs come around, the Białystok side shift up a gear and are capable of knocking out even the hottest favourites. Seahawks Gdynia (2018), Tychy Falcons (2022) and Kraków Kings (2024) all found that out the hard way.

*The Lowlanders haven't lost since their game against Eagles, and their form keeps on rising!
Photo: Dariusz Jacek / Interception*

*"I think it's only natural that form and chemistry should improve from game to game, especially when you have new, young or less settled players in the squad. This year we also have a new set of coaches and offensive and defensive coordinators, and that takes time too. The semi-final will be our fourth game in a row, and there's no point complaining about it. We knew the schedule in advance and our training calendar has long been built around it. The extra play-off game certainly means there's less time to prepare for the semi-final, but that's the beauty of football – you have to adapt quickly and smartly, and that can be a game-changer at this stage. Everyone can see how Eagles play and the results they get. Can they be beaten? Evidently they can – Calanda did it. It's hard to find weaknesses in such a well-organised team, but that's what the coaching staff is there for: to find a way, prepare it, implement it and get the players to execute it on the field. Unfortunately, we can't be 100% happy with the state of health in the squad, but that's part of the business too and at this stage everyone has problems, big or small. In my view, no one has ever won a game before the opening whistle. You have to believe in yourself and play to the end. History has shown that even the best can have a bad day. We're going to Warsaw to win."– said Piotr Morko, President of Lowlanders Białystok, ahead of the semi-final.

The Białystok side finished the regular season with a 6-2 record. The Lowlanders scored a total of 338 points and conceded 151 – an average of 42.2 points scored and 18.8 conceded per game. Their only two defeats of the season came against the two Warsaw teams. On 23 March they lost at home to Warsaw Mets 28:35, and on 17 May they went down 19:43 to the Warsaw Eagles at the Bemowo Football Centre. Since that defeat to Eagles, however, they haven't lost a single game – five wins in a row.

17 May 2025 · Warsaw Eagles · 43:19 · Lowlanders Białystok
Polish Bowl XIX · Warsaw Eagles · 20:10 · Lowlanders Białystok
8 June 2024 · Warsaw Eagles · 42:13 · Lowlanders Białystok
13 April 2024 · Lowlanders Białystok · 14:36 · Warsaw Eagles
10 June 2023 · Lowlanders Białystok · 35:7 · Warsaw Eagles
6 May 2023 · Warsaw Eagles · 13:2 · Lowlanders Białystok

We have won 5 of our last 6 head-to-head meetings with Lowlanders Białystok.

The group tables worked out so that the Lowlanders had to travel to Kraków for their quarter-final. Despite the long journey and the quality of the opposition, they came away with the win. In the quarter-final in Kraków, experienced import players Matthew Major and Brett Pullman made a huge impact on the Lowlanders' game, scoring three touchdowns between them. Szymon Pietraszko added a field goal and the extra points.

"As is tradition, I think the Lowlanders are a much better team in the play-offs. It was plain to see that their form has been on the rise since their last game against us, so we're expecting an interesting contest. Krzysztof Czaplejewicz has been in sparkling form. Brett Pullman is playing very well at quarterback. I think he's a good QB and bringing him in was a smart move. It will certainly be a completely different game from the regular season, but for us the most important thing is to win it. I believe the way we've managed this season between the league and our CEFL games has given us a lot of experience. We're in our normal training routine, as if we had a game every week. Polish Bowl XX is the most important game for us, so there's no time to ease off right now. We simply need to prepare well tactically, in terms of conditioning and physically. Saturday's game will be the last chance to see the Warsaw Eagles senior team in Warsaw this year, so we warmly invite everyone to Bemowo. The most important thing will of course be what happens on the field, but we've also prepared plenty of great attractions for all our fans. There will definitely be something for everyone, and everyone will definitely get a great, emotion-packed sporting spectacle." – said Osman Sulkiewicz, General Manager of Warsaw Eagles, ahead of the semi-final.

An interesting fact: ever since the Lowlanders joined the top flight in 2015, they have reached at least the semi-finals every single time over 11 seasons, always finishing among the TOP4 teams in Poland. Since 2015 they have won the Polish championship three times with their senior team (2018, 2022, 2023) and once with their junior team (2021). The Białystok side have played 100 play-off games in Poland's top flight. Those are impressive numbers, and they show clearly that the Lowlanders won't give anything away on Saturday.

It promises to be an incredibly tight battle right to the final minutes. Both teams will go all in, both teams have nothing to lose, and both teams are desperate to play in the landmark Polish Bowl XX. Ladies and gentlemen, Saturday's Polish Football League semi-final is simply unmissable!

🏆️ POLISH FOOTBALL LEAGUE SEMI-FINAL
🏈 Warsaw Eagles – Lowlanders Białystok
📅 Saturday, 12 July
🕒️ Kickoff 15:00
🏟️ Bemowo Football Centre, ul. Obrońców Tobruku 11 (opens in a new tab)
🎟️ Tickets – LINK (opens in a new tab)
📺️ Live stream – LINK (opens in a new tab)