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London Blitz (American football)
Encyclopedia
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| Year Formed | 1995 |
| Team Colours | Navy Blue and White |
| Home Field | Finsbury Park Stadium, London |
| Team Motto | "Team! Pride! Blitz!" |
| Conference Alignment | BAFANL Premier |
| Head Coach | Mark Moss |
| Playoff Appearances (10) 1995, 1996, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 |
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| Conference Championships (6) 1995, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011 |
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| League Championships (BritBowls) (4) 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011 |
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| EFAF Cup (1) 2011 |
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London Blitz are a British American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team based in North London at Finsbury Park
Finsbury Park
Finsbury Park is a 46 hectare public park in the London Borough of Haringey. Officially part of the London area of Harringay, it is also adjacent to Stroud Green, the Finsbury Park district and Manor House. It was one of the first of the great London parks laid out in the Victorian...
athletics stadium.
Overview
The Blitz field a senior team in the BAFA Community LeaguesBAFA Community Leagues
The BAFA National Leagues are the primary American football competition in England, Scotland and Wales. They were formed by the British American Football Association in 2010 to coordinate contact football and flag football across all age ranges...
Premiership as well as youth teams. The roster has included both local players as well as players from North America, Jamaica, South Africa and Uganda. The team remained in the Premier division following the 2007 BAFL re-alignment.
The team was formed in 1995 after a merger between pre-existing sides: the Ealing Eagles (1984–1994) and the Woking Generals (1988–1993). The Blitz rose from the lower divisions of the then-British Senior League to the Premier Division. They won the British national championship, BritBowl
BritBowl
BritBowl is the championship game of the British American Football Association Community Leagues, and formerly the British American Football League in the United Kingdom. It is the most prestigious of the league's three bowl games that constitute BritBowl Weekend. Only teams in the Premier...
XXI, in 2007, defeating Coventry Cassidy Jets 14-6. They returned to defend the title in 2008, missing out to a field goal with 4 seconds left to play losing 32-33 against Coventry Cassidy Jets in a repeat of the 2007 match. In 2009 and 2010 the Blitz have cemented their place as the premier team in the UK by winning back to back BritBowls. In 2009 at the Keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster they defeated the Coventry Jets 26-7 in BritBowl XXIII, then in 2010 at Sixways Stadium
Sixways Stadium
Sixways Stadium is a stadium in Worcester, England. It is currently used mostly for rugby union matches and is the home stadium of Worcester Rugby Football Club. The stadium is able to hold 12,068. It opened in 1975 and is located off junction 6 of the M5 motorway, hence the name Sixways.An...
in Worcester facing the Coventry Jets for the fourth consecutive final they won 34-20 in BritBowl XXIV.
The team participated in their sixth consecutive BritBowl in September 2011. They defeated the London Warriors 18 - 0 at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre
Crystal Palace National Sports Centre
The National Sports Centre at Crystal Palace in south London, England is a large sports centre and athletics stadium. It was opened in 1964 in Crystal Palace Park, close to the site of the former Crystal Palace, in the former parkland and also usurping part of the former grand prix circuit.It was...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The 2011 double triumph of EFAF Cup
EFAF Cup
The EFAF Cup is an international competition for European American Football clubs. The EFAF Cup is the second highest level of club competition in the European Federation of American Football , behind the European Football League ,.- EFAF Cup :...
and BritBowl
BritBowl
BritBowl is the championship game of the British American Football Association Community Leagues, and formerly the British American Football League in the United Kingdom. It is the most prestigious of the league's three bowl games that constitute BritBowl Weekend. Only teams in the Premier...
was the most successful season for a British American Football team since the achievements of the London Olympians
London Olympians
The London Olympians is a British amateur American football team, based in Crystal Palace, London. They are the United Kingdom's most successful amateur American football club...
in the early nineties.
In 2010 the London Blitz had their first venture into European competition in the EFAF (European Federation of American Football) Cup (the second highest tier of European Club American Football), the Blitz defeated the Amsterdam Crusaders
Amsterdam Crusaders
The Amsterdam Crusaders are an American Football club from Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Together with the Rotterdam Trojans and Alphen Eagles, Amsterdam Crusaders are the oldest surviving Dutch American Football club.-Beginnings:...
in Holland and Les Cougars de Saint-Ouen L'Aumone (from the outskirts of Paris) at home in the group stage but then lost in the semi-final to the Carlstad Crusaders in Sweden.
In 2011 they again entered the EFAF Cup
EFAF Cup
The EFAF Cup is an international competition for European American Football clubs. The EFAF Cup is the second highest level of club competition in the European Federation of American Football , behind the European Football League ,.- EFAF Cup :...
. They won their group matches comfortably, beating the Amsterdam Crusaders
Amsterdam Crusaders
The Amsterdam Crusaders are an American Football club from Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Together with the Rotterdam Trojans and Alphen Eagles, Amsterdam Crusaders are the oldest surviving Dutch American Football club.-Beginnings:...
again, this time at home and then defeated the Valencia Firebats
Valencia Firebats
Valencia Firebats is an American football team based in Valencia, Valencian Community .-History:The team was established in april, 1993 as Valencia Bats, joining the defunct American Football League for the 1994 season. The following season a new national league is created in Spain, divided in two...
in Spain. The Blitz hosted the Danish Champions the Søllerød Gold Diggers
Søllerød Gold Diggers
The Søllerød Gold Diggers are an american football team from Rudersdal, Denmark. The club was founded in 2003. They are reigning Dansish champions after winning the Danish championship game, Mermaid Bowl in 2010....
in the semi-final beating them 23-7. The final was held at Finsbury Park on 2nd July 2011. In front of a crowd of nearly 2,000 people the London Blitz won the EFAF Cup by beating the Serbian Champions, the Kragujevac Wild Boars 29-7.
The current team captain is Roderick Bradley
Roderick Bradley
Roderick "Rod" Bradley is an English American footballer from Grantham, England.- Education :Roderick “Rod” Bradley is from Grantham, England and was born on the 29th of March 1983. Rod attended Oakham School for seven years between 1994 and 2001 before going to Loughborough to study art...
who appeared on television as Spartan in the 2008/2009 series of Gladiators
Gladiators (2008 UK TV series)
Gladiators was a British television series which aired on Sky1 from 11 May 2008 to 25 October 2009. It was filmed in Shepperton Studios and was produced by Shine Limited. It was a revival of the earlier series of the same name and based on the American version of the show. The US, UK and...
Bradley joined the Blitz in 2005 after attending Loughborough University. The current quarterback is Fred Boyle, who joined the Blitz in 2009 after leading the Hertfordshire Hurricanes for four years at University. Both Bradley and Boyle have represented Great Britain in the sport along with many other Blitz players..
Team colours
London Blitz play in white helmets (with navy blue oval logo), navy blue jerseys with white numbers, white pants, and navy blue socks.Results - Domestic and European competition
| Year | Division (Domestic) | Record | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | BAFANL Premier | 9-0-1* | BritBowl XXV Champions |
| 2010 | BAFACL Premier | 10-0-0* | BritBowl XXIV Champions |
| 2009 | BAFL Premier | 8-0-0* | BritBowl XXIII Champions |
| 2008 | BAFL Premier | 6-2-0* | BritBowl XXII Runners-Up |
| 2007 | BAFL Premier | 9-0-1* | BritBowl XXI Champions |
| 2006 | BAFL Division 1 South | 8-2-0* | BritBowl XX Runners-Up |
| 2005 | BAFL Division 1-A South | 8-2-0* | Semi-Finalists |
| 2004 | BSL Division One Southern Conference | 2-7-1 | |
| 2003 | BSL Division One Southern Conference | 2-6-0 | |
| 2002 | BSL Division One Southern Conference | 1-9-0 | |
| 2001 | BSL Division One Southern Conference | 2-5-1 | |
| 2000 | BSL Division One Southern Conference | 3-5-0 | |
| 1999 | BSL Division One Central Conference | 5-5-0* | |
| 1998 | BSL Division One South West Conference | 4-6-0 | |
| 1997 | BSL Division One South West & Midlands Conference | 5-5-0 | |
| 1996 | BSL Division Two Southern Conference | 8-2-0* | Semi-Finalists |
| 1995 | BAFA Division Three South Central Conference | 8-0-1* | Quarter-Finalists |
| Year | Competition (European) | Record | Outcome |
| 2011 | EFAF Cup | 4-0-0 | Winner |
| 2010 | EFAF Cup | 2-1-0 | Semi-Finalists |
| * qualified for playoffs | |||