Highlights of 2003: 

O's break the UK record
Irish football reborn
GB enter European championship

The 2003 BSL Division One season kicked off with two of the leagues oldest teams getting off to winning starts. The reigning champions, the London O’s, cruised to victory against the Ipswich Cardinals 43-0 but picked up numerous injuries including the BSL's leading interceptor for the past two years, Scott Rowe with a broken scapula.

Meanwhile, the Birmingham Bulls squeaked past the Chester Romans 19-6. The following week saw Ipswich suffer their second consecutive shutout as the previous seasons beaten finalists, the PA Knights, saw them off 12-0. The other game in week two saw the East Kilbride Pirates send out a warning to the rest of the league as they destroyed the newly promoted Yorkshire Rams 72-6. Jon Sutherland ran for 248 yards, as the Pirates racked up over 400 yards on the ground. Willie Brown also rushing for over 100 yards.

Other teams who made a winning start to the season were the London Blitz who romped to a 44-6 win over the promoted Norwich Devils - Lee Palmer running for 126 yards and 1 TD on just 16 carries, and the surprise package of the year, the Lancashire Wolverines, who defeated Chester 28-14. The Wolverines continued their good form with a hard fought 6-0 win over Birmingham in the first week of May to put them joint top of the Northern Conference with East Kilbride who defeated the Bulls a week later by a score of 26-6. Two Sutherland runs gave the Pirates a 12-0 1st quarter lead, and they moved further ahead in the second half on a hat-trick TD for Sutherland, and a pass from QB Gary McNey to TE Eric Collard.

By the middle of May, Yorkshire had found their feet and chalked up their first win of the season in a nailbiting 14-12 win over Chester, with Jay Alexander's pass to rookie Keith Minick sealing the points.

The London O’s also had a nailbiter in their first meeting of the season with the PA Knights, eventually coming from behind to win 28-25. The lead in the game changed hands six times, and it wasn't until Clive Palumbo's 70 yard run in the fourth quarter that the O's could breath easier. The Knights QB Ashley Heath had a stellar day passing for 271 yards (152 of those to WR Jon Wyse) and 2 TDs.

The Knights were looking like real title contenders at this stage of the season helped by their brief excursion into Europe where they had beaten Zurich 24-7 before crashing out 56-21 to the Tyrolean Raiders.

Norwich’s poor start to the season continued as they were thumped 46-0 by Ipswich in the East Anglian derby match. The Cards had now found their scoring touch. In the same week the Blitz lost their unbeaten record as they crashed 35-6 to the PA Knights. The Knights gained 230 yards on the ground, and Tony MacKenzie led their defense in making 9 tackles. Lancashire also lost their one hundred percent record as the Bulls gained revenge over them by a score of 8-6.

However just as the Bulls thought they had turned the corner they were mugged 14-13 by the East Kilbride Pirates in the first week of June. McNey passed for 2 TD's to Mark Squire to lead the Pirates into a 14-7 lead, but the Bulls came back with Sonny Dosanjh's QB keeper to pull within one. Pirate's LB Bob Lynch then pulled off the crucial play as he stormed through the Bulls line to block Andy Sweeney's PAT to preserve the Scots 100% record.

By the time July came around East Kilbride were sitting pretty atop the Northern Conference with a 5-0 record, with Lancashire hot on their heels with a healthy three wins and just that one defeat to the Bulls. The South looked like a two-way battle between the O’s (4-0) and the PA Knights (5-1). The Knights, however, were starting to show signs of fatigue after playing in so many tough games and made hard work of a 35-22 win over the London Blitz. At this stage of the season Ipswich suddenly came to life and gave the O’s one hell of a fright before succumbing to a 10-7 defeat at the hands of the champions. Andy Boyle kicking a 24 yard field-goal inside the two minute warning to win the game for the Londoners. They followed this promising performance up with back to back wins over Norwich and the Blitz to land themselves a wild card berth.

The long journey to East Kilbride proved to be too much for Lancashire and the Pirates taught them a humbling lesson with a 76-0 rout to sew up the Northern title - Sutherland and Brown running for 369 yards and 7 TD's between them. This left the Wolverines to face Birmingham for the third time in the season in the Northern Wild Card game.

In the South, the O’s needed one more win to break the 63 game winning streak held by the London Ravens, having tied it the week before with their tight win at Ipswich. Standing in their way were their biggest rivals in the South, the PA Knights. The Knights led 22-6 early in the fourth quarter thanks to the unstoppable Anthony Stitt. But it was yet another last minute seat of the pants victory for the O's, as QB Stuart Franklin rallied his troops. He passed for two quick scores to Andrew Boyle, and then with nine seconds on the clock and trailing 22-20 he hooked up with WR Clive Palumbo to give the O's a remarkable 26-22 victory. 


Palumbo catches the winning TD vs PA Knights with seconds to go

Chester and Norwich both battled to the very end, but ultimately both their season's proved winless. Steve Toye of Chester had a good year, notching 50 tackles.

It was all too much for the PA Knights, and after a long hard season they ran out of steam - not helped by an injury in the O's game to their star QB Ashley Heath. Ipswich who were actually building up steam at just the right time then grabbed their chance with both hands and saw off the Knights 13-10 in a titanic Southern Wild Card game which went to double OT. Stephen Wells kicking a 32 yard field goal to win it for the Cards.

The Northern Wild Card saw the Bulls and Wolverines meet up for the third time in the season. After two close fixtures between the two it was more than a little disappointing to see Lancashire crumble by a score of 50-8. This set up a match-up between the two old greats of the British game, the Bulls and the O’s, in the first semi-final. Dave Winter gave the Bulls an early 6-0 lead on Dosanjh's pass, but the O’s stepped up a gear with two TD's from Junior Price and one from Clive Palumbo to battle their way to a 26-6 win over the old enemy.

Ipswich made the long journey to East Kilbride hopeful of causing another upset, and they so nearly did. Cards QB Corey Whitham completed a 20-yard scoring pass to Michael Dunson with Sandy Francis tacking on the PAT to give the Cards a 7-0 half-time lead. Both defenses were merciless in the second half, but McNey managed to get the Pirates back into the game with a pass to Mark Squire to bring them within a point. It was the Pirates's Safety Stuart McNeill who blew the game wide open by recovering a Cards fumble and returning the ball to the Cards 6-yard line to give the Pirates an opportunity to score. And score they did, as Gary McNey hit Willie Brown on a 3 yard pass. to give the Scots a 12-7 lead which they held onto to reach their second Britbowl in three years against the O's.

Two years earlier the O’s had seen them off 37-20, but there were high hopes of a much closer game this time around. In front of over 1,300 fans, Jon Sutherland gave the Pirates a 7-0 lead in the first quarter on a 62 yard run, but RB Warren Keen levelled things up with a 10 yard run. Keen added a 22 yard TD in the second quarter to give the Londoners a 14-7 half-time lead. The Pirates were no match for the mighty O’s in the second half as QB Dominic Dearman (who replaced Stuart Franklin at half-time) passed on scoring plays to Palumbo and Matt Coppinger. In between lineman Paul Evans intercepted a screen pass to score on an 8 yard return. The O's ran away with a comfortable 35-7 win and their seventh straight national title (another record).


Sutherland scores for the Pirates in the final

There was excitement in Division Two as no fewer than nine new sides joined the BSL ranks - from Sussex Thunder on the south coast to Dundee Hurricanes in Scotland. Manchester saw a team return to it's city for the first time in years with Lee Morton's Titans. With Division Two expanded to twenty-five teams it looked certain that a very exciting season was on the cards. This was most definitely the case as a number of teams set out with high hopes of making the final. The quality of the three conferences was evident as only one team, the Plymouth Admirals, failed to win a game all season.

There was controversy in the North, as the Gateshead Senators who had asked for demotion from Division One the previous season due to the retirement of a number of players stormed to the top of the table right from the off. Their two closest rivals, the Nottingham Caesars and the Staffordshire Surge, helped the Senators cause by playing out a 14-14 tie when they met each other in late April. Jack Garnsey scoring a 87 yard TD run to tie the scores for the Surge who trailed 14-0 at one stage.

Other early season contenders were newboys Doncaster Mustangs, Glasgow Tigers and the Dundee Hurricanes. Despite all starting off with 3-1 records each of these teams suffered heavy defeats against the likes of Gateshead, Nottingham and Staffordshire.

By the end of the regular season Gateshead had won all of their games easily with the exception of a 22-14 win over Dundee. Graeme Raith's 84 yard reception on a screen pass created some anxious faces on the Senators, but the Hurricanes could not break the Senators line again. The Senators, however, had been lucky enough to avoid fixtures against the Caesars and the Surge, who finished the season in second and third place respectively.

The Manchester Titans performed excellently in their first season of competitive football. Despite finishing with a 1-8-1 record, many of their games were very tight. They played a couple of entertaining games against the Merseyside Nighthawks which looks like turning into a great North West rivalry. In the Titans very first home game, Jody Forder scored the Titans opening TD of the game on a pass from Rik Lowthion, but Joe Black tied the scores for the Nighthawks shortly afterwards. Lowthion threw a bomb to Tamas Byrne to put the Titans 12-6 up, but again the Nighthawks were not to be beaten and Andy Ley's pass to Dave Webb tied things up again to finalise the scoring in the game at 12-12. Merseyside won the return match-up 19-14 in another thrilling match

The South Eastern Conference was really up for grabs. Pre-season favourites were Cambridgeshire and the Sabres (from Southend), who both made the playoffs the previous season. A strong showing was also expected from Essex Spartans (who had played Division One football just two years before),

As the season wore on, it became apparent that this Conference was rapidly becoming a one horse race. The Chris Wallis coached Cambridgeshire Cats shut out the Sabres 28-0 in game one, with Ken Sweeney running for 108 yards and 1 TD, and Nick Tilbury throwing for almost 200 yards and a score also.The Cats defense was impressive throughout the season registering no less than five shut outs and two other games where they restricted the opposition to less than 10 points. The Cats finished 10-0 and only had a few scares (most notably a 14-8 victory over the Nene Valley Hybrids).

The second place team in the Conference was a huge surprise. The Kent Exiles had had a dismal run in the preceding years, winning less than a handful of matches in four years, but with a professional approach, an extensive advertising campaign for new players, and a new coaching staff headed up by Phil Wood, they turned it around. An opening 39-26 shootout defeat to Cambridgeshire was encouraging, and they then went on a seven match winning run to snatch second place and a quarter-final berth in the playoffs. Their defining moment came in week 4, when they won 14-13 over the Chiltern Cheetahs who were a main rival for a playoff spot. Matt Duncan passed for 2 TD's to TE Graham Deacon, the second one deep in the fourth quarter. Kicker Matt Tompsett slotted through the winning PAT, but they still needed LB Aaron Alexis to block a 24 yard field goal as time expired to preserve the win. Alexis finished with a staggering 17 tackles in the match. Kent's unbeaten record against Chiltern, Essex and Nene Valley was enough to ensure the Exiles gained the only other quarter-final spot from this conference.

Maidstone and, surprisingly, the Sabres both finished bottom of the Conference with disappointing 1-9 records.

The South Western Conference boasted just six sides, but was perhaps the most competitive of Division Two. Before the season, five of the six sides had realistic chances of claiming top spot. In the offseason, Bristol Aztecs appointed the well renowned Brian Smallworth as coach. Smallworth had coached many successful sides both in the UK and internationally and this was a huge coup for the Bristol organisation. In their opening game of the season, they faced their old foes, the Southern Sundevils, in what are always bruising encounters. QB Dave Keen gave the Aztecs the lead on a 6 yard pass to TE Jason Tyler, and this was a lead they held until the fourth quarter when Sundevils QB Ted Baynham found WR Ben Webb for a 61-yard score. Tim Illes added the 2 PAT, and the Sundevils had what turned out to be a winning lead.

Following this defeat, the Bristol team found a different gear, and with star RB Kenny Saro back they ran all over the opposition. Against Redditch, the team ran for 363 yards, against South Wales for 350 yards and against Oxford almost another 300 yards. In their final regular season match against Oxford, Saro ran for 209 yards, taking him to 1,234 on the season, and the team's total eclipsed 2,000 yards!

It was tight for the other playoff spots. The Bristol Aztecs had lost twice narrowly to the Southern Sundevils, but had managed to beat everyone else reasonably comfortably. As such, one would think that the Sundevils should have strolled into the quarter-finals themselves. That was not the case, as they suffered losses to the Oxford Saints (twice) and the Redditch Arrows. Only a last ditch victory 6-0 against the South Wales Warriors secured them a quarter-final spot to finish with a 7-3-0 record.

That defeat also put paid to the Warriors hopes of making the playoffs. They still had time in their season to throw a spanner in the playoff ambitions of the Oxford Saints though. On the last game of the regular season, the Saints needed to win against the Warriors to send the Sundevils on a long journey up north to face the unbeaten Gateshead. If they lost then another unbeaten side would have to be faced, but at least the journey would not be as long or as costly. The Warriors showed great character in coming from 16-0 down to down the Saints 28-19, with Owen Roberts scoring 3 TD's.

The playoffs provided some classic encounters that further demonstrated the competitive standard of Division Two. Gateshead had the most comfortable win when they knocked out the weary Oxford Saints 21-3.

Bristol managed to see off the Kent Exiles by a 27-12 margin. Elsewhere Nottingham finally proved once and for all that they deserved to finish second in the Northern Conference by seeing off the Staffordshire Surge 26-15.

The closest game of all came in Cambridge where the Cats were taken right to the wire and beyond by the Southern Sundevils. On the hottest day of alltime in the UK, both teams struggled with penalties and defenses were well on top. In the second period of overtime, Booty Morrison broke free for a 30 yard run to set up the game winning 24-yard field from Brian Jelley to send the Cats into the semi-finals.

The Semi-finals were even closer. In one of the most hard fought semi-finals in many a year the Gateshead Senators finally lost their unbeaten record to the brave Nottingham Caesars. The Senators appeared to be cruising when a brace of Dave Wilson running scores gave them a 20-3 lead in the first half. By half-time the Gary Stainton led Caesars had reduced the scoreline to 26-17. Crucially Caesars WR Hackshaw held onto a Stainton pass on 4th and goal from the 22 to score and to make it just a 3 point game. Gateshead were rattled, and on the Caesars next possession Terry Mayers rattled in from 52 yards to give them the lead. Gateshead were not finished, and they moved the ball 60 yards to go ahead again with Mike Rumney charging in from 2 yards out. Gateshead led 33-29 with less than 2 minutes left, but the Caesars were not in the mood to leave as losers and Terry Mayers scored again to put the Caesars ahead 36-33. Their defense held, and they had made it to the Britbowl.

The other unbeaten team, the Cambridgeshire Cats, also fell when Bristol sneaked past them 14-12, in the other semi-final. Aztecs QB Ashley Richer put the West Country side ahead 7-3 in the second quarter on a 17 yard pass to Tim Stone. The Cats were moving the ball well, but could not punch it in, and had to settle for two Brian Jelley field goals as the sides ended the first half with Bristol clinging to a 1 point lead. Tough defense on both sides led to no further scoring until the fourth quarter, Two further Jelley field goals put the Cats 12-6 ahead, but a 66 yard hook up between Ashley RIcher and James Wilkinson stunned the hosts as Bristol went ahead 14-12. The Cats stormed into the Bristol half in the dying seconds, but safety Ben Tolley intercepted a Nick Tilbury pass to seal the win.

The final was not quite as close as it looked on paper. Bristol cruised into a 19-7 halftime lead and extended that with another TD in the third quarter. The key to the game was always going to be Nottingham's ability to handle Bristol's running game. 248 yards and 3 TD's for Aztecs RB Kenny Saro was the answer to that. They simply couldn't handle Saro and Bristol's outstanding O-Line. Saro deservedly won the MVP award, and as this book was published he had just been selected to compete in the NFL Europe camp.


Nottingham score vs Aztecs

In front of a crowd of 1,315, it was the London O's and the Bristol Aztecs who took the plaudits on a great afternoon of British American Football.

Although the Caesars rallied late on with leading Division Two QB Gary Stainton scoring their second TD, the Aztecs deservedly won the title with a 32-15 win.

In November, the BSL announced their plans for the 2004 season. Having been concerned with the "yo-yo" effect of teams being promoted to Division 1 and then returning back to whence they came, they looked to create a better structure for the benefit of the whole league.

Division 1 will be expanded to 16 teams, split equally into 2 geographical conferences (North and South). The conferences will be further split into 2 sub tiers which will be known as Division 1 and Division 1A.

Each Division 1A team will play each Division 1 team once, two at home and two away to make the 10 game regular season schedule. This provides a balanced schedule for all and allows teams in 1A a gentler introduction to the topflight. All games between Division 1 and 1A clubs will count towards the final standings.

The Division 1 teams will continue to compete for BritBowl whereas the Division 1A teams will compete for their own separate Bowl Game.

At the end of the 2004 season the 4th placed teams in Division 1 will switch with the top placed team in 1A and the 4th placed 1A teams will switch with the top placed Division 2 teams. Division 2 will continue with their own bowl game, as usual, held on the same day as BritBowl.

Other important decisions made in the off season include the agreement to move to NCAA hash marks next season which brings the League into line with the rest of the UK and Europe.

Post season overtime rules will change from the current "sudden death NFL style" version, to the NCAA version, which gives teams equal opportunities to score, starting from the opposition's 25 yard line.

The coaches met up for a weekend camp on December 6th - 7th to implement the shared play book that is to be used for the GB Lions Youth matches in 2004.

At the Ram Stadium in Dewsbury, both sides struggled to move the ball early on in the windy conditions. England took the lead, when after Alex Dunn had recovered a fumble, QB Ric Hennessy hit WR Grahame Warby for a 20 yard TD. The PAT was blocked.

Both teams traded interceptions on their next possessions. Again Dunn making the turnover for England, and Sean Carney getting the ball back for Scotland. Adam Biggs then picked off a loose pass to get the ball back, but again the England O stalled. The wind was playing havoc with the pass dominated teams, and Scotland's Alisdair Longford held onto another stray pass to give Scotland a chance to set up a field-goal attempt from 37 yards which Craig Wilson nailed to leave the score at 6-3 as the half ended.

At the start of the second half, English QB Hennessy ran in their second score from 30 yards to extend the English lead to 12-3. On their next drive, England's replacement QB David Mead set up a Ford Wilding field goal from thirty-three yards after a series of good passes to edge England into a 15-3 lead.

England added two further scores in the fourth quarter on Cottrell's 12 yard pass to Jacquet and Lennox Johnson's 20 yard run to hand England their winning 29-3 scoreline.

Kyle Walker caught England's fourth interception and seventh forced turnover of the afternoon to complete the win for England. For Scotland, Gary Clark deserves special mention for his personal tally of eleven tackles in the game.

The EFAF published their EuroBowl and newly created Euro Cup schedules at the end of 2003, and two of the top sides in the UK entered the Euro Cup. Both the London O's and the PA Knights would take part in 2004.

A further boost to the game, was the decision of BAFA to enter the GB Lions in Pool B of the European Championships in 2004. The championships were to be held in Amiens in France.

The qualifying for Eurobowl XVII started in April, with 11 teams from 8 countries competing in four groups.

Braunschweig Lions beat out the challenge of the Paris Flash, in Division One, with a convincing 44-8 win in Germany to qualify for the semi-finals. In Division Three, Ukrainian champions, Donetsk Scythians, thrashed the Moldovan champs, Kishinev Barbarians, before falling themselves to Vienna Vikings.

The Spanish champions, the Badalona Drags, raised more than a few eyebrows when they bested the Swedish champs in Division Two, and the reigning champions Bergamo Lions cruised through to their expected semi-final berth.

Vienna then caused the shock of the tournament by beating the Bergamo Lions in the semi-final with a 34-33 overtime win. Braunschweig Lions qualified for their third appearance in a Eurobowl final game by dominating Badalona 50-20 in the other semi-final.

In front of a crowd of 7,878, the Troy Tomlin coached Braunschweig Lions claimed their second Eurobowl title with a 21-14 win over the Vienna Vikings.

The Vikings took the lead on RB Lance Gustafson's 30 yard run, but the Lions hit back in the second quarter through Kim Kuci's 20 yard rush. The Vikings retook the lead late in the first half on Luke Atwood's 20 yard TD reception from Shawn Olsen, but the Lions pegged them back for a second time on Adrian Rainbow's 5 yard run.

Defense's dominated in the third quarter as the pressure rose, but thanks to some superb running from Kuci, he scored his second TD and what turned out to be the winning TD for the German team on a 7 yard run.

The game wasn´t over after Kuci´s second TD, as the Vikings recovered a fumble very late in the game. QB Olson marched his offense down the field, but he could not hit his receiver in the endzone on a short pass.

Having secured a sponsorship deal from local company, Premier Prospects, the Personal Assurance Knights became Britain's only club team in European competition in 2003. They were drawn in Group A of the EFAF Cup, along with the Tyrolean Raiders from Austria and the Zurich Renegades from Switzerland.

In their first game, the Knights became the first British team to win in Europe for four years when they defeated the Zurich Renegades in Guildford. The Swiss Champions came with a determination to run the ball, with RB Urs Gersbach as their main threat. However, they found the Knights D led by Tony MacKenzie too much. It was Anthony Stitt, on his way to 147yds from 25 carries, that opened the scoring with a punishing 4 yard run. Jon Wyse slotted the extra point kick between the posts and the Knights led 7-0. Zurich found the Knights defense in unforgiving form, and Canadian Cameron Saylor leaped high to record his first interception for the Knights as the quarter ended.

The Knights then embarked on a time consuming 80 yard drive that was again rounded off by Tony Stitt - this time from 3 yards out. Jon Wyse again added the extra point and the Knights increased their lead to 14-0. In the fourth quarter, Jon Wyse kicked a 37 yard field goal to put the Knights ahead 17-0. The Renegades hit back on a 72 yard run from Gersbach to pull the score back to 17-7 to the British team.

Late in the match LB Scott Stonelake recovered a Renegade fumble deep in Swiss terrritory, and Dave Tobin burst into the endzone on his first carry in European competition. The ever reliable Wyse slotted the kick and the Knights led 24-7, and that was how the scoring ended. Head Coach Steve Rains commented, "This was a highly efficient fully committed performance from the squad."

The Knights European adventure came to an end though in front of an audience of 4,000 plus a national TV audience in the Tivoli Neue Stadium with a snow topped Alpine backdrop. The Knights could not ultimately cope with the speed and power of the young Austrian team and their American imported players. The Raiders took their first drive in for a score, as American QB Robbie Jenkins picked out Benjamin Dieplinger with a 39 yard pass. The Knights took over but could not move the ball against the Raiders who were clearly fired up by the huge local support.

After falling 14-0 down, QB Ashley Heath led a sensational drive which culminated in RB Tony Stitt acrobatically diving into the endzone from 2 yards out to put the Knights within 7. The Raiders came right back on the next drive, and they scored again to go 21-7 ahead.

Stitt replied with a 32 yard scoring run, after some good work by Heath and Ashaye, but Raiders stunned the Knights right on half-time when they scored on a RB option pass from distance. 28-14 at half-time, but it wasn't, as the Knights used the very same play with Stitt firing a 59 yard TD pass to Steve Belcher to make the score 28-21 at half-time. Things went downhill for the Knights after half-time, as the offense stalled and the Raiders started scoring points for fun. Wade Smith returned a punt over 70 yards for a score, and the Raiders fans started to whip up a frenzy of excitement.

There was no way back for the Knights, and the Raiders eventually ran out 56-21 winners.

Head Coach Steve Rains concluded, "The fact is we were beaten by a better team - but we learned a lot about ourselves and the standards set in European competition. We must now make the effort to ensure we get another chance to compete in the EFAF Cup next year."

The Raiders would take on the group A winners, the Carlstad Crusaders, in the EFAF Cup final. The game was played in Innsbruck, but the Crusaders did not read the script as they cruised to a 28-7 victory. Sweden's first success in European competition.

Due to the increasing number of American Football playing nations in Europe, the EFAF took the step in 2003 of regrouping it's national team competition into a three tiered system. All federations would participate in three levels - C, B or A. Pool C took place in 2003, with the winner taking part in the B tournament in 2004. The loser of the B group will next start in Pool C in 2007. Denmark was awarded the chance to host Pool C, with games being played in Copenhagen.

The Czech Republic were the only team making their first ever appearance in the European Nations Championship. Italy and Russia last appeared in qualifiers in 1998, and Denmark had last played in a loss to Sweden in 2001.

Italy were strong favourites going into the tournament, with a fine pedigree in the competition. They had won the ENC in 1983, when they were hosts, and had been runners-up on three other occasions. They also boasted a large majority of the Bergamo Lions squad, who have been so dominant in European competition over the last few years. In the opening game of the tournament, Pavel Hruzik's 35-yard run for the Czechs stunned the hosts and was the only score in a 7-3 win.

The Czechs next played Italy, and the Italians proved why they were red hot favourites for the championship with a 28-14 victory, with veteran Dino Bucciol passing for 3 TD's in a game the Italians were always in control of.

Russia were next in action, and this was a good opportunity to see how well they would perform at this level. Their side was largely composed of their European Junior Championship winning side of 2002, together with some older players from the Moscow Patriots and Moscow Bears. Russia cruised into a 14-0 first quarter lead, and then Dmitry Lobanov's 80 yard kick off return at the beginning of the second half killed the game as the RusDue to the increasing number of American Football playing nations in Europe, the EFAF took the step in 2003 of regrouping it's national team competition into a three tiered system. All federations would participate in three levels - C, B or A. Pool C took place in 2003, with the winner taking part in the B tournament in 2004. The loser of the B group will next start in Pool C in 2007. Denmark was awarded the chance to host Pool C, with games being played in Copenhagen.

The Czech Republic were the only team making their first ever appearance in the European Nations Championship. Italy and Russia last appeared in qualifiers in 1998, and Denmark had last played in a loss to Sweden in 2001.

Italy were strong favourites going into the tournament, with a fine pedigree in the competition. They had won the ENC in 1983, when they were hosts, and had been runners-up on three other occasions. They also boasted a large majority of the Bergamo Lions squad, who have been so dominant in European competition over the last few years.

When the dust had settled at the end of the 2002-2003 BCAFL season, there remained just two 100% sides - the Stirling Clansmen and the Leeds Celtics.

The Scots had taken the Northern Conference Borders Division by storm with some thumping regular season victories (Glasgow 51-8, UCH Sharks 46-6 Sheffield 32-0). An early season 30-28 victory away to the Newcastle Raiders had established their supremecy in the division, with Newcastle gamely fighting to the end of the season and a 5-3-0 playoff record.

Leeds’s season was built, as all great sides are, on defense. They did not concede more than 8 points in any game, and shut 5 opponents out. The nearest to defeat came to the Lancaster Bombers, who battled all the way to force a 0-0 tie after 60 minutes. The Celtics defense came up trumps again though as they forced a safety to win 2-0 in overtime. Joining them in the playoffs were the UCH Sharks, who were involved in a number of close games to finish 4-2-2

Nottingham Outlaws won the Western Division, and reached the playoffs for the first time in their history. After losing two out of their first three matches, the Outlaws stormed into the playoffs with five straight shutout victories. Successive divisional wins over Loughborough (14-0) and Staffordshire (22-0) sealed the title. Staffordshire’s 20-0 win over Loughborough secured the runners-up spot.

In the South, Oxford and Birmingham were in a ding dong battle for top spot in the Central Division. In week 6, Birmingham triumphed 13-12 against their fierce rivals, but their surprise 8-6 defeat against Plymouth Blitz a week later let the Cavaliers in with a chance of winning the division for the third straight year. In the winner-take-all clash in Oxford, it was the Cavaliers who came out on top this time 14-7.

Only a 33-31 defeat in week 9 to the Southern Sundevils, prevented Hertfordshire Hurricanes from a perfect regular season. They won the Eastern Division in the South, but they were pushed all the way by the surprising UKC Falcons from Kent. The Falcons had never previously reached the playoffs, and posted an impressive 6-2-0 regular season record and a home playoff match.

In the tough Western Division, Cardiff Cobras won the title, with their only loss a devastating 31-0 defeat to their divisional rivals, the Southern Sundevils. The Sundevils themselves lost two games to finish second (0-6 to UKC Falcons in week 6) and (0-6 to Bristol Bullets in week 2).

A word of sympathy goes out to the winless teams, who kept plugging away until the end – Sheffield Sabres, Leicester Lightning, Warwick Wolves and the Essex Blades.

The first round of the playoffs saw wins for Nottingham (15-8 over UCH Sharks), with QB Williams and Verkauf running in scores in the second half. The Sharks scored through Choi with just over 3 minutes left, and their last gasp hail mary pass went incomplete. In another cracking playoff game, the Staffordshire Stallions held off the challenge of the Newcastle Raiders 11-6, with the Stallions defense holding the Raiders on a goal-line stand on the last play of the game.

Oxford met the Birmingham Lions for the third time in the season. The Cavs took the lead on Kingsley Ejiogu's 72 yard run, but the Lions hit straight back on Jake Ourada's 38 yard reception from Stuart Ennis to put them 7-6 ahead. Battison added a field goal for the Lions to put them 10-6 ahead in the third quarter. Oxford almost won it at the death, when QB Charlie Greenbacker hit John Barclay on a 70 yard pass, but a last ditch tackle by Dave Winter preserved the win for the Midlanders.

In the final wildcard game, Southampton held a narrow 2-0 lead at half-time, but ran away with it in the second half against the UKC Falcons to win 30-8.

In the quarter-finals, Leeds Celtics's renowned defense which was ranked number 1 going into the playoffs held Staffordshire to just 10

points, but the problem was their offense failed to score anything. Nottingham's impressive first season under HC Paul Sheratt ended when Stirling's Jon Sutherland ran for 250 yards and 3 TD's in a devastating 42-0 victory for the Stirling Clansmen.

DT Janowski, DE Balogun and MLB Buxton managed 5 sacks between them for the Hurricanes defense as they crushed the Birmingham Lions 23-7. WR Nick Piper scored on a reverse for the Canes, and RB Andy Cochrane scored twice in the second half to ice the win. In a Western Division playoff matchup, the Southampton Stags advanced to the semi-finals with a thrilling 30-24 away victory over the Western Division champions, the Cardiff Cobras. In the semi-finals, Staffordshire travelled to Scotland in good heart to take on the Stirling Clansmen. The Clansmen were unbeaten, but the Stallions had defeated the previously number 1 ranked Leeds Celtics, in the quarter-finals. Stirling opened the scoring on Gary McNey's pass to Carlos Yanes-Roca to go 6-0 ahead. With good blocking by the Stallions O-line, they soon hit back to go 7-6 up. McNey's QB sneak put the Clansmen ahead again just before half-time. In the fourth quarter, Chris Ellis put the Stallions in the lead again, but the Clansmen were not to be denied and they became the first Scottish team to make the College Bowl on McNey's pass to Yanes-Roca.

In the other semi-final, Hertfordshire overpowered the Southampton Stags 49-18. The Canes led 29-6 at half-time, on the back of some superb playcalling and putting into place by QB Junior Price. Cochrane ran in 3TD's, and Price ran one in himself. Cochrane added a fourth TD in the second half, but the Stags fought all the way to the end with Dauley scoring from short yardage, and QB Baynham passing for another near the end.

In one of the best College Bowl's ever, Scotland's Stirling Clansmen took the title with a thrilling 22-17 win over the Hertfordshire Hurricanes. The Canes outgunned the Clansmen on the ground by rushing for 285 yards (Cochrane accounting for 179 of those on 39 carries). The Clansmen had a decent running game of their own, with Jon Sutherland running for 190 yards on 37 carries. Early in the first quarter, a Junior Price interception led to Hertfordshire taking the lead on a 3 yard run by Cochrane. The Clansmen knew their strengths, and after six successive runs by Sutherland he took the ball in from 16 yards out to bring the Scots back into it. McNey's 2 PAT to Fleming was good, and the Clansmen had an 8-7 lead which they held to half-time.

On their first drive of the second half, the Clansmen increased their lead when Sutherland charged over right end from 8 yards out to cap of a 75 yard drive to put them 14-7 ahead. The Canes hit back though on an 80 yard drive of their own on the very next possession, with Cochrane taking the ball in from 5 yards out around the left. Kelly's PAT was good, which levelled the scores at 14-14.

At the start of the fourth quarter the Canes recovered a Sutherland fumble deep in the Clansmen half, and despite their drive stalling Kelly managed to boot a 23 yard field goal to put them 17-14 ahead with five minutes left.

A superb dive ensued as the Clansmen picked up the ball from their own 19, and proceded to drive right down the other end where Sutherland ran in the go-ahead score from 3 yards out. Sutherland added the 2 PAT on a pitch, and the Clansmen led 22-17 with 3.57 left.

Canes then made a last ditch effort to win the Bowl. Cochrane ran 15 yards, and then TE Scott picked up 29 yards on a pass from Price to take the ball to the Clansmen 32. Cochrane and Hartley ran the ball to the Clansmen 6 yard line, where they had a first and goal with 53 seconds left. The Clansmen defense held firm, and Price's last gasp pass fell incomplete as time expired to ice the win for the Scots.


Stirling won the College Bowl in 2003

In September 2003, the Bulldogs embarked on a two match tour of Italy where they would play a domestic team, and then take on the Italian Under 25 National Team.

The selections for the "Class of 2003" took place at the end of the 2002/2003 BCAFL season, with a number of trials, and the Wildcats v Cougars/South v North game, where final selections took place.

With the squad selected, Tony Athersmith led his team into their opening fixture of the year, when they took on the BSL Division One side, the Chester Romans, in July.

Despite being at the end of a dismal season where they failed to win a game, the Romans were happy to take on the Bulldogs, but they probably wish they hadn't, as the Bulldogs romped to a convincing 38-0 win.

Right from the very first kick-off, the Bulldogs were on top, as Dave Winter (Birmingham Lions) returned it the distance for the score. Adam O'Keefe (Nottingham Outlaws) tacked on the PAT to give the Bulldogs a 7-0 lead. On the Romans opening play, they fumbled and Mark Pagett (Birmingham Lions) recovered to give the Bulldogs superb field position. However, they were unable to score and O'Keefe's field goal attempt was blocked by the Romans. The Bulldogs soon extended their lead when QB Stuart Ennis's pass found club team mate Winter for a 50 yard touchdown. O'Keefe again successfully converted the extra point extending the Bulldogs' lead to 14-0.

On the next Chester offensive drive, Tim Smith (Staffordshire Stallions) intercepted a pass, leaving the Bulldogs on the Romans' 29 yard line. A few plays later Ennis made his second TD throw, this time to Jon Rooney (Newcastle Raiders) , and O'Keefe added the PAT to make the score 21-0.

In the second quarter there was no let up from the Bulldogs, as Ennis scored on a 5 yard run to make the score 28-0, and on their next drive O'Keefe added a 34 yard field goal to make the score 31-0 at half-time.

Early in the second half, Mike Paling (Aberystwyth Tarannau) broke a couple of long runs, before scoring himself. O'Keefe tacked on the extra point to take the score to 38-0. The Bulldogs took their foot off the pedal in the fourth quarter, and Chester gave it a go but could not break down the stubborn Bulldogs defense.

After a satisfactory win, the Bulldogs returned to camp late in August, before taking on a much tougher opponent in the London Blitz (a BSL Division One side) four weeks later.

The Blitz trailed briefly 9-7, but then rattled off three TD's in the second half, before the Bulldogs scored a consolation TD near the end in a 27-15 defeat.

Despite, that defeat, the Bulldogs flew out to Italy in good heart. The Bulldogs opened their Italian tour with a 21-0 win over the Titans Romagna. Stuart Ennis connected on a 49 yard pass to Dave Winter, which gave the Bulldogs a 1st & goal on the 1 yard line. On the very next play, RB Mike Paling (Aberystwyth) ran in for the opening score to make the score 7-0 with O’Keefes' PAT.

The Titans were stopped twice going for it on fourth down by the impressive Bulldogs defense, and an Ollie North (Oxford Cavaliers) interception gave them an opportunity near the end of the second half to increase their advantage. Ennis completed a pass to TE Jon Rooney for a short gain and with time running out Paling came up just short on the final play of the half. The Bulldogs led by just seven.

On their opening possession of the second half, the Bulldogs marched down field, and Lawrence Alger (Nottingham Outlaws) scored on a 1 yard run, which with O'Keefe's PAT increased the lead to 14-0.  Onoh Ozongwu (Leicester Lightning) forced a fumble on the ensuing kickoff, and then Ennis threw his second TD of the game, this time to WR Jon Gerring (Hertfordshire Hurricanes) to make the score 21-0. There was no further scoring, and the Bulldogs had got their tour off to a good start.

In the final game of their tour, the Bulldogs rounded off a great trip with a resounding 27-6 victory against the Italian Under 25 National Team. TD's from Winter, Paling, Alger and Hartley secured the comfortable win.

BYAFA was formed in 1988 after the merger of existing Two Touch and Kitted leagues. The highlight must be the BYAFA Micro League final at Wembley before the 1989 American Bowl. 20,000 spectators saw the Newmarket Mustangs triumph 6-0 over the Heathrow Jets.

The 2003 BYAFA Youth Kitted Championship kicked off in June with a new format which would ultimately find a British champion. Five teams competed in both the Scottish Division and English Division. Two sides from each division would qualify for the semi-finals, and those winners would compete for the BYAFA Bowl XV title.

In the English Division, Handforth staked an early claim for the championship with a convincing 32-0 home victory over the Harrogate Hawks on week 1 of the season. Ford Wilding scored 3 TD’s against the Hawks, whose summer camp in Oregon failed to help them against their powerful northern neighbours.

Bath Cardinals, with a largely rookie squad, opened their first BYAFA campaign against the Wessex Stallions. The Stallions were a merged squad between the Southern Sundevils (the BYAFA champions in 2001 and 2002), and their local neighbours, Brockenhurst Exiles AFC who did not have quite enough players to compete on their own in 2003.

Their merged team featured several GB Lions Internationals, and were expected to win comfortably. Bath did not read the script however, with Matt Towl scoring two interception return TD’s and their defense scoring another TD on a fumble return to win the game 38-34.

Lancashire Wolverine Colts (always a dominant side in the North) opened their season with a 38-24 victory over the Handforth Hammerheads, to put themselves in pole position for the English title. They were expected to consolidate their position at the top of the table in July, when they travelled to Bath to take on the Cardinals. They did not expect what happened though, as John Gibbon’s safety gave Bath an early 2-0 lead. Dave Mead hit Sam Fogg for a TD for the Wolverines to put them 6-2 up, but Matt Jenkins returned the second half kick-off 80 yards for what turned out to be the winning score.

Bath were for real, and they qualified for the playoffs at their first attempt with a 28-12 win over Handforth. Tom Evans put the Cardinals ahead on a reverse on half-time. They added a further two scores in the second half against a tiring Hammerheads defense. Bath had qualified for the playoffs, but one spot remained. Lancashire took on Handforth with a place in the English Division Championship at stake. Matt Lord’s 1 yard plunge for the Wolverines sealed a 12-8 victory.

Meanwhile, in Scotland, Inverclyde Sharks opened the season north of the border with a 22-6 victory against the Moray Firth Dolphins. Two TD passes from Campbell to Parker doing damage. They were put to the sword in their next game, however, by the Darren Trainor coached North Lanarkshire Rams, who cruised to a 32-0 win with Donaldson scoring two rushing TD’s. The Rams were looking to go one better than 2002 when they lost the Scottish title match, and they were looking good when they destroyed Moray Firth 32-0 with Martin Wallace passing for 2 TD’s to David O’Rourke, and 2 rushing TD’s from Gallagher.

Standing in the Rams way, were last season’s champions, the Clyde Valley Hawks. They were 3-0, and then got involved in a slug-fest with the Moray Firth Dolphins. In an 84 point thriller, the Hawks claimed a 54-30 victory – Lee Nelson running for over 100 yards and a TD. The following week was the crunch fixture – the Hawks travelled to North Lanarkshire. This was a repeat of last season’s championship game. The Rams took the lead twice in the first half on TD’s from Wallace and then on a 5-yard run from Donaldson, but the Hawks stormed back in the second quarter with two rushing TD’s from Nelson to lead 24-12 at the half. Wallace added a brace of scores for Rams to complete his hat-trick as they came fighting back in the second half, and took the lead 26-24. Moran, however, had the last laugh for the Hawks as he ran in from fifty yards to give them a hard earned victory.

At the end of regular season action, Bath would host Lancashire in the English Championship Game, and the Clyde Valley Hawks would host the North Lanarkshire Rams in the Scottish Championship game.

After a dramatic game earlier in the season, when the Bath Cardinals emerged 8-6 victors, this game was another tight, tension filled match-up between the two best sides in England. It wasn’t until the second quarter that a team got on the scoreboard, and that was the Cardinals who scored on a reverse and pass to Tom Evans. Bath were looking to extend that lead by three on their next drive, but their field-goal was blocked and returned for a safety by Chris Litter to reduce the scoreline to 6-2. Early in the second half, Bath secured a safety of their own, by sacking the Wolverines QB.

The Wolverines charged back in the fourth quarter, and Littler crossed into the endzone to tie the scores at 8-8, and Matt Lord scored on their next drive to give them the lead for the first time in the match. There was no way back for the Cardinals, who had achieved wonders in their first season.

After a tremendous regular season encounter between North Lanarkshire and Clyde Valley, there were high hopes of another classic in the Scottish Championship match. Solid defenses and a bitterly cold wind ensured that the first quarter ended scoreless.

The Hawks’ took the lead in the second quarter, when QB Mark McKenzie scored on a keeper to put them up 8-0. Things then started to go downhill for the Rams, when John Devoy recovered a Rams fumble, and Lee Collins then caught a 28 yard pass from McKenzie. Craig MacMillan scored on an 8-yard run to put the Hawks 20-0 ahead at half-time. There was no way back for the Rams, and the Hawks added further scores by Lee Nelson and Martin Wallace to give them a 32-0 win.

In BYAFA Bowl XV, the Scottish Champions ran out comfortable winners against the Wolverines. Punishing defense and nerves showed as both teams fumbled the ball away on numerous occasions at the start of the game.Clyde Valley's Andrew Reynolds caught the first of his four interceptions of the day which would lead him to MVP honours.

The Hawks took the lead in the second quarter, when the Wolverines gifted them the ball again. This time a blocked punt saw Longford recover the ball and return it to their opponents 21 yard line. Two plays later McKenzie hit Gary Orr in the back of the end zone from twenty yards to open the scoring. Chapman kicked the two extra points to give the Hawks an 8-0 advantage. Unbelievably on the Wolverines next punt, Longford blocked the kick, and Chapman recovered it in the endzone to put the Hawks 16-0 ahead. On their next drive, the Wolverines botched another punt when the ball was snapped over the punters head to put them 18-0 behind, and with seconds left in the half McMillan ran in from 4 yards to give the Hawks an astonishing 26-0 lead. That became 32-0 early in the second half, when Lee Nelson ran in from 20 yards, and Reynolds then returned an errant pass for another defensive score to increase the lead to 38.

Lancashire did not give up, and Sam Fogg took a reverse in from 12 yards to reduce the score to 38-6, only to see Lee Nelson (on his way to 136 yards in the game) dash down the left hand touchline from 52 yards out to ice the win for the Hawks. The Hawks have now won back to back titles. Can they make it three in 2004? In other youth/junior kitted action in 2003, the Chorley Buccanners won the BYAFA Festival of Football Junior Kitted title with three victories out of three. St Peters Pumas and Merseyside Predators also took part in the tournament.

2003 also saw new sides from Bristol Aztecs, London Blitz and Kent take to the gridiron. The London Blitz, in particular, looked impressive in defeating Bristol Aztecs twice, and also the Harrogate Hawks 32-0. Kent Brewers also took part in Kitted action for the first time, and they will be looking to build on their performances. 2004 will hopefully see some or all of these teams taking part in an expanded England Division

After the Irish American Football Association helped to form the Irish American Football League during 2002, the sport found a new lease of life in Ireland. Four sides competed in the IAFL in 2002, and a further 3 teams joined in time for the 2003 season (bringing the total to 7). Cork Admirals joined Division One and Craigavon Cowboys & Belfast Bulls Division Two. Other exciting developments that were announced were that the Carrickfergus Knights were to join the Dublin Rebels at the 2003 Charleroi Trophy and the IAFA were recognised by the Federation of Irish Sports and received provisional membership from the European Federation of American Football (EFAF).

Division One consisted of 4 sides – the returning Carrickfergus Knights, Dublin Dragons, Dublin Rebels and the new boys from Cork. Division Two was made up of the three development sides - Belfast Bulls, Craigavon Cowboys and the UL Vikings.

The season started in March, with newboys Craigavon Cowboys shutting out the Dublin Dragons 16-0 on a pair of 3rd quarter TD passes from Darren Blanton to Paddy Patterson. Craigavon were making their reappearance in Irish football after many years in the wilderness

Two weeks later, 2002 Shamrock Bowl champions, the Carrickfergus Knights, stated their claim for this season's prize with a thrilling 20-14 home win over their biggest rivals, the Dublin Rebels. Marcus Naylor put the Rebels 6-0 ahead, but Steven McDowell passed for 2 TD's to Ian McIlroy, and Shaw scored the sealing TD on a 12 yard run in the 4th quarter for three straight scores for the Knights and a 20-6 lead. Brian Dennehy's 28 yard run was too little too late.

The Dublin Dragons scored their first win of the season with a 28-14 win over the newcomers from the southern tip of Ireland, the Cork Admirals. Ulli Zinnecker scored a hat-trick of running TD's, but Cork were never really out of it and were happy with their performance in their first game.

The Dragons were brought back down to earth two weeks later, by the Rebels who won a one-sided Dublin derby 34-0. Brian Dennehy's 5 yard run and an interception return for a TD by Feargal O'Donnchu gave the Rebels a 14-0 lead in the first quarter, and Dennehy raced in for two more scores in the second half to complete the rout.

In the coming weeks, the Carrickfergus Knights and Dublin Rebels consolidated their positions at the top of the League table. The Knights destroyed the Dublin Dragons 51-0 at Woodburn and then 30-0 away from home against the same opponents. They then won 30-0 away to the Cork Admirals. The Rebels responded with a 40-12 away win against Cork, and a 41-0 thrashing of their local rivals, the Dragons.

Whilst the big two were picking up big wins, the Admirals were getting their act together. They played the University of Limerick Vikings in a friendly, and won their first match 38-24, with Trevor O'Connell and Keith O'Callaghan both rushing for a brace of scores. They then won their first IAFL fixture with a 42-8 thrashing of the Dublin Dragons at home. John Kenny passed for 2 TD's and then rushed for one himself. Their improved form earnt them a playoff berth.

In the other big regular season match up, the Rebels gained revenge for their earlier loss to the Knights with a narrow 12-7 victory at Greystones RFC. The Knights led 7-6, but Sean Shanahan's 16 yard run gave the Rebels the win. It was not enough to take the league championship, and they would have to playoff with the Cork Admirals for the right to meet the Carrickfergus Knights in the Shamrock Bowl.

The Admirals were expected to make a better fist of the playoff berth than they did, as they crumbled to 56-8 at Greystones to the rampant Dublin Rebels. The Rebels, therefore, took on their old rivals, the Knights, in Shamrock Bowl XVII at Suttonians RFC in Dublin. The game started in explosive manner with both teams scoring early in the 1st quarter. The Rebels scored on the first possession of the game on a 4 yard run by quarterback Andy Dennehy. Tight end Simon Mackey added the 2 point conversion to make the score 8-0. The Knights responded immediately when WR Paul McKillop caught a long pass from Stephen McDowell and took it 81 yards to the end zone. The Rebels increased their lead to 16-6 at half-time, when Simon Mackey scored on a 13 yard pass from Andy Dennehy, with Brian Dennehy adding the 2 point conversion.


Shamrock Bowl XVII

The Knights began one of their possessions in the second half on their own 1 yard line, but conceded a safety after running back William Cowan was tackled in his own end zone by the Rebels defense. Both teams then exchanged interceptions - Chris Davidson for the Knights & Feargal O'Donnchu for the Rebels. The Knights then began to move the ball through the air with Ian McIlroy picking up a couple of first downs, then Robert Elliot made the score 18-12 with a 13 yard pass from McDowell. The Rebels then responded on their next drive which ended with a 4 yard touchdown run by the games MVP Brian Dennehy to make the final score 24-12. Of the development sides, the Craigavon Cowboys caused a sensation when they defeated the Rebels 34-12 - Knocker with 2 TD passes, and the Belfast Bulls showed they were not to be messed with when they defeated the Dublin Dragons 32-6. The Bulls and Cowboys played a pair of matches against each other, and on both occasions the Bulls won narrowly. In game one at Woodburn, they prevailed 14-12, after holding a 14-0 half-time lead. Later in the summer, they won again, this time 18-12, with McKeown's 41 yard pass winning the game in the fourth quarter. In a friendly at the end of the season, Craigavon ran the Knights close before succumbing 26-22. The Bulls and Cowboys will be a credit to Division One.

Other Irish news was the appointment of Phil De Monte as the Irish National Team Head Coach. De Monte has coached for many years in the UK, most notably with the Oxford Cavaliers and the Oxford Saints.

At the end of the season, the North played the South in the IAFL Allstar match at Woodburn, Carrickfergus. Defenses dominated the game, and it wasn't until the third quarter when Craigavon Cowboys RB Bobby Murray broke the deadlock on a 2 yard run. Stephen McDowell of the Carrickfergus Knights kicked the PAT and there was no further scoring in the match.

For the second straight year, Ireland was invited to send club sides to the Charleroi Trophy in Belgium - the Shamrock Bowl holders, the Carrickfergus Knights, joined reigning Charleroi Trophy champions, the Dublin Rebels, in the two-day tournament. The tournament also included the Charleroi Cougars and Celtes de Mitry (a French Allstar team). The festival, based at the Complexe Sportif de Roux, also included the Belgium Allstar game between North & South Belgium and an International youth flag football tournament.

The Carrickfergus Knights played the hosts in the first semi-final. The Knights scored on a spectacular 42 yard punt return by Paul McKillop in the first half, but they failed to capitalize on their other scoring opportunities and were stopped 3 times on 4th and goal. The Cougars scored on a 33yd pass to receiver Fabio that deflected off a Knights defender, and the subsequent two point conversion put them into the final.

The Dublin Rebels beat the Celtes de Mitry in a close game in the other semi-final. The Rebels scored first on a 1 yard plunge by fullback Andy Flynn in the second quarter, and Marcus Naylor scored the 2 point conversion which would prove to be the decisive score in the game. The Celtes began to move the ball more effectively in the second half and scored their only touchdown late in the 4th quarter. Crucially though, the Celtes then failed to score a 2 point conversion which would have tied the game and the Rebels moved into the final.

In the final, the Rebels won the Charleroi Trophy for the second year in a row with a 12-0 win against the Charleroi Cougars in blazing heat. The Rebels scored their first touchdown early in the second quarter with a 16 yard run by tailback Sean Shanahan. Late in the half, Charleroi recovered a blocked punt near the Rebels goal-line, but the Rebels defense held strong on a goal-line stand. Charleroi got into scoring position in the third quarter, but were stopped by a Marcus Naylor interception. A couple of first down runs by Sean Shanahan and a pass to Feargal O'Donnchu got the Rebels to the Charleroi 15 yard line in the 4th quarter, and then WR Conor Ryan caught a pass from QB Andy Dennehy to make the final score 12-0 to the Dublin Rebels. Rebels running back Sean Shanahan won the MVP award.

The Knights then defeated the Celtes de Mitry in a one sided 3rd/4th place play-off 22-8. They scored early in the 1st quarter on a 75 yard pass from Stephen McDowell to Paul McKillop, and then increased their lead in the second quarter through a 17 yard field goal and a 13 yard reception by Gary Donnelly. Mitry scored on a 16 yard run in the 4th quarter, however, the Knights responded on their next possession with a 14 yard reverse run by Gary Donnelly to ice the victory.

With a lack of teams entering the British Senior Flag 9-on-9 championship in 2003, it was left to the two stalwarts of the British flag scene to fight it out for the championship, the Leicester Eagles and the Fen Harriers. In August, a re-surgent Harriers side blew away the current BSFL champions, the Leicester Eagles, at Belgrave Rugby club in Leicester by a score of 26-6. Three weeks later, a resurgent Eagles side defended their title by running out 35–6 winners. With the series tied at a game a piece, the Eagles edged the Harriers 41-32 on aggregate. The BSFL 5-on-5 league consisted of 5 tournaments that were played throughout 2003, with the results of all matches counting towards the end of season table. At the end of the year, it was the Chichester Sharks who were crowned as the new champions. Their first trophy, and a reward for their week in week out training down on the south coast. Leicester Eagles, like in 2002, finished as runners-up with Derby Dream Team finishing third. Last season's champions, the Bournemouth Raiders, finished fourth. The Sharks tied with the Leicester Eagles, but based on their two victories over the Eagles at the Independence Bowl in Cardiff they had the better head to head record and thus claimed the title. The BSFL opened the year by sending an Allstar team to Ireland to take on the Drimnagh Cycos in Phoenix Park (Dublin) on Saturday January 25, 2003. The Allstars, made up of players from Bournemouth and Invicta, triumphed 18-12. An independent Team England side, took part in the World Cup of Flag Football 8-man competition in the Bahamas in February. In a pre-World Cup warm-up game, they lost 21-0 to the Leicester Eagles. Chris Wild passed for 2 TD's to Pimperton and Hossack, and then Broughton wrapped things up with a pass to Burt. Come the World Cup. In the round robin section, Team England fell to Team France (made up of French-Canadians) 6-0 and Mexico (who reached the final) 18-0. Those two defeats left them with a tough quarter-final against Canada who won 22-0. Team USA won the final 28-7 against Mexico. Derby Dream Team travelled to Troyes in France and finished second in their 5 team group in the 5-man tournament with a 3-1 record to qualify for the finals group on the Sunday. Unfortunately against some class sides they lost 4 games, but finished ranked 9th out of 21 teams. Their record over the two day tournament was 3-4-0. They played teams from France, Ukraine and Austria. They also played with France against a combined Israel/USA team for the 9 man exhibition game. They lost 34 - 7.

Leicester's young Eagles were forced to battle to the last throughout the day to achieve their BYAFA Youth championship victory. A narrow win over Selhurst Snipers, which went down to the wire, saw them face old foes Birmingham whose win over an emerging Studley Bearcats gave them t