After the Chicago Shamrox started its second season 1-7, the team has begun to play better as of late and is hoping to finish the 2008 strong as a springboard for next year and potentially make the playoffs in 2008.

Two players, Cody Jacobs and Jonas Derks, have been putting up big numbers in recent Shamrox games.

It took a while for Shamrox forward Cody Jacobs to make his 2008 debut with Chicago after missing training camp, but since his first game against the Rochester Knighthawks on March 1, it hasn’t taken Jacobs long to regain his form from 2007.

In Jacobs’ first game against Rochester, an 18-8 loss at the Sears Centre, he recorded an assist. Since then he has scored 11 goals in the next three games. This included his six goal performance against the Minnesota Swarm on March 29. The six goals set a new team record for goals in a game. Jacobs eclipsed his own record of four goal last season against the Philadelphia Wings.

“It’s just the group of guys I’m with, we have good chemistry going with the offensive guys I’m with,” Jacobs said. “It’s just getting lucky I guess.”

Last season, Jacobs played in 11 games for the Shamrox and scored 14 times with eight assists.

Oshawa, Ontario native Jonas Derks has also been on a tear as of late. In four of the last six games, Derks has recorded at least four points. In the Shamrox second win of the season against Rochester on March 22, Derks netted four goals and an assist. The previous game in Minnesota against the Swarm he scored two goals and added three assists.

Derks was in a serious car accident a week before the season started and after starting the season on injured reserve, he is catching his stride.

“I wasn’t even playing the first two games and probably shouldn’t have been playing in the other two,” Derks said.
“But I’m just getting to feel like 100% again, physically, I just wasn’t able to do the things [earlier in the year] than I can do now.”

On February 16 at the Sears Centre against the New York Titans, Derks dished off an incredible five assists and scored a goal.

But now fans will most likely see a consistent Jonas Derks that is always on top of the Shamrox leader board after every game.

“I expect four or five points out of me every game,” Derks said. “I’m a career four or five pointer.”