Lance Cone is one of the most influential people in the history of Britball. As Head Coach of the London Ravens from 1984 to 1986 he presided over a team that never lost a game. He then went onto become the BAFA Chairman in 1987 at a time when the sport was booming, and retired from Britball in the mid-90s.

Interview conducted March 2004

What was your background in the game before getting involved in britball?
I played for High School and then for the Army. In the 1970s I moved to England, and in 1984 I joined the London Ravens.

How did you become the London Ravens Head Coach?
I was having a drink in a London pub, when someone heard my accent. He said to come along to Hyde Park where this team [the Ravens] trained, and soon afterwards I was asked to coach them.

How did you recruit players?
Radio, TV, newspapers, if anyone knew any big men from the local gyms. We were quite high profile due to our training sessions at Hyde Park, and we gained a lot of people from that.

What do you consider to be the best Ravens side?
Each year I was there they were getting better and better, so it would have to be the 1986 squad.

Cone - the coach

In your view why did some clubs not join the Budweiser League in 1986, and why did the Ravens join it?
I helped to get Budweiser involved as I wanted them to sponsor the Ravens, but they said no as they wanted to sponsor the league. I addressed the AFL clubs, but some like the Birmingham Bulls and the Leicester Panthers, did not want American beer sponsors as they wanted a number of British sponsors. I tried to argue that one major sponsor will do more than a number of smaller ones, so some clubs broke away. After failing to find sponsorship, all the clubs came back and the League was unified

Do you think the Ravens would have been European champions if able to compete in the first Eurobowl competition in 1986?
Well I'm not sure if we would have won it, but we were a better side than the Bulls [who finished third in the competition] so we would have had a better chance than them.

When and why did you leave the London Ravens?
I joined them in 1984, and it was always a three-year plan. We voted to be an All-British side. We beat all the British teams, and we even beat the US Airbase Team [Chicksands]. The club voted to get some Americans on board, and I wanted to spend more time in the summers with my kids, so Ron Roberts came in to replace me.

What brought about you taking over the GB Lions squad for the 1987 European Championship finals?
Warren Tate was the coach and he quit just weeks before the tournament started. I was asked to take over, and I said I would as a one off, which it was.

How did you become BAFA Chairman in 1987?
BAFA was in a real mess in 1987. I was recruited to do 6 months work there to turn it around. The other two directors of BAFA (Charles McNamara and Frank Leadon) made me chairman

When the Ravens lost their opening and only game in Eurobowl 1988, do you think the league schedule (14 regular season game) hindered them?
No, they should have won that game. I was broadcasting at the game for Channel 4. That was the turning point for the Ravens, and they disintegrated very quickly after that. It was a shame as we always had good unity but seemed to have no game plan for Amsterdam.

With no internet/email in the 80s how difficult was it to organise your team, fixtures, BAFA etc
Surprisingly easy. I held the meetings at my house in London, so there was no expense to BAFA. All the chairman of all leagues came to my house for 10am on a Saturday. It was easier to make decisions that way, and I was on “home turf”.

Do you believe NDMA qualifications were too stringent for clubs, and that is why many teams folded?
The NDMA was the flagship league and everyone had aspirations to play in it. That was where the big sponsors and the TV coverage were. They had a minimum standard, but I don’t believe that’s why clubs folded. If a team were good enough they would have made it i.e. the Ravens.

I guess you would have been involved in negotiating the Coca Cola sponsorship of the NDMA in 1990?
Yes and no. I had helped BAFA create close ties with the NFL through the NFL Trust, and Coca-Cola was their sponsor. In my opinion we had to have an American connection in the sponsorship of the league, as with big sponsors it would be easier to get better sponsors for clubs and also promotion of the league. Ron Weisz did the negotiations with them though.

When the Manchester Spartans won the NDMA in 1990, why did BAFA take the view that Ipswich Cardinals (winners of the BNGL in the same year) should play the Spartans in a qualifier for the Eurobowl competition?
The NDMA (Manchester Spartans were champions) had split from the other teams.
The remaining teams were in the BNGL (Ipswich Cardinal were champions).  To
settle who would represent Britain in Europe we decided to have a playoff game
between the two champions.

In 1993, you got the NDMA to merge with the BNGL. Was that one of your great wishes?
Yes. If the sport was to go forward as a unit we had to merge them or we would not have got NFL recognition or Sports Council funding. There would have been a problem with BAFRA who were refereeing the BAFA clubs. For sponsorship reasons too, we had to be a unit for image.

Why do you think many clubs folded in the early to mid 1990s? NFL Europe a factor or lack of coverage on TV?
The profile died as NFL Europe increased their profile.  My original deal with the NFL was for NFL Europe to promote our sport by playing a number of high profile and talented players from Britain.  My idea was to get American Football into schools with the help of the NFL.  The combination of high profile in schools and high profile British amateurs on television should have boosted our sport.

What is your favourite NFL team?
The Chicago Bears. I’m from Chicago

When and why did you retire as BAFA Chairman?
I retired from BAFA in the mid-90s, after we had achieved everything we wanted to. The main one winning the European Championships [in 1989 and 1991].

What do you consider to be your greatest achievements as BAFA Chairman?
There were four main achievements:
1. The unification of the sport (some 300 clubs). I got everybody under one banner (including the refs and the youth game)
2. Getting the Sports Council involved. We had to be unified to get their recognition of the sport.
3. Getting NFL involvement. This was a big boost to the game.
4. Joining the European Football League, and becoming European Champions [in 1989 and 1991].

What was your biggest regret as Chairman?
How fast it all disintegrated after I stepped down.

Have you been or have considered coming back into Britball?
Not at all. The energy levels are not there. You have to devote so much to it.

If you had to pick an All-star British team who are some of the players you would have as a starter in that side?
Victor Ebubideke without a doubt. If he had got to the States before he did he could have made the NFL. He still played NFL Europe and trialled with the NY Jets. His only problem was his hands. Trevor Carthy was a bit small but he was fast and could cut on a dime and had good hands too. Dave Stanton was a great QB who had superb vision and was cool under pressure. Joe St Louis could break open a game. Chaz Jasicki had brains and good leadership. Dave Chambers was an outstanding linebacker, as was John Aska of the London Ravens at middle linebacker.

Who do you consider to be the best import players to have played over here?
There’s so many but on offense Russ Jensen [1988 Birmingham Bulls QB], and on defense Terry Smith [Manchester Spartans safety] stood out

What was the best British game you have ever witnessed?
When I was coach of the London Ravens, we played a game away at the Leicester Panthers. they had been trained for a solid year by some Americans, had an American QB, an American running back, and an American safety. We were trailing at half time, but made some line adjustments and were just outstanding in the second half.

Who are some of the best administrators in the game you have worked?
The most effective was Frank Leadon of the Birmingham Bulls. He always did the most honourable things for the sport.  Charles McNamara was very helpful. He was a solicitor were dealt with all the admin. He dealt with the Sports Council and wrote all the legal constitutions. An immeasurable help. Ron Weitz on the NDMA was excellent. He really made things happen. Angie Atkins was an unsung hero. She did all the right stuff, and always voted the right way for the good of the sport.

Do you have any funny/embarrassing stories from your time in Britball?
When Dan Marino came over in 1986, he was on a strict programme and was not allowed to drink. We got round it by slipping bottles of beer underneath tables though!
When broadcasting, I learnt that you should always go to toilet before the game starts!

The London Ravens recently held their 20-year reunion in London. Cone added that,

“There were men with tears in their eyes, but when you think back all those years ago and we all had one thing in common - a fantastic and unforgettable shared experience.