A POPULAR new non-contact version of American football which is becoming increasingly popular in this country, NFL Flag, has inspired the formation of a new club on the Isle of Wight — the Wight Hell Hounds.
Flag football is designed for those who love and want to play American football, but avoid getting thumped around a pitch for an hour.
This has proved to be the perfect game for tens of thousands of schoolchildren across the country and has led to the formation of adult teams, such as the Hell Hounds.
Flag football has become so popular worldwide, it is being touted as a potential inclusion in the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
American football (or gridiron in the UK), first gained popularity in the 1980s when Channel Four introduced it to the British masses.
From it, an Island team was formed — the Wight Rhinos — who played in a regional league.
It proved popular for a while, but the fad wore off and, despite an attempt to resurrect the sport through the Rhinos name recently, the pandemic scuppered all momentum and it never got off the ground.
But thanks to a group of like-minded Islander, the Wight Hell Hounds are set to embark on a new journey in the sport, through flag football.
They play the first match of a new season in the newly-formed Outlaw League, held monthly in Welling, Northamptonshire, starting tomorrow (Saturday).
They joined the league after they missed out on registration to join the BAFA National Flag League, which they were once part of.
Formed in 2018, the club joined BAFA and registered as an adult flag team, competing in the BAFA Flag League's Southern League 1.
They registered for the BAFA Flag League in 2020, but the Covid pandemic led to its cancellation.
Competitive football returned in 2021, but due to low numbers, the club was unable to complete its fixtures.
But a resurgence in interest in flag football has seen a rebirth for the club, which now has 15 players, ranging in age from 18 to 40-plus.
With a squad off ten for any one game, it allows the team to rotate, with five players allowed on the pitch at any one time.
The idea of this version of the physical game is to makes 'tackles' by pulling off flags worn by players on their hips.
Club chairman, Dean Brooman, a co-founder of the club, said: "We created a team so we could play more regularly and compete in the BAFA National League, run by the UK's governing body for American football.
"After Covid, which had quite an impact on our core team, we made a drive to bring in new players to enrol in a league once more.
"We aim to encourage people to give the sport a try.
"Members have gone on to transition from our flag team to contact teams across The Solent."
Training is at Wootton Rec (at the Isle of Wight Rugby Club) every Monday between 7pm and 9pm.
The club is open to anybody, of any experience, wishing to try flag football, which is relatively inexpensive to play.
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