Final Standings
Budweiser League National Division Northern Conference 1987
| Pos | Team | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | *Manchester Allstars | 10 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 387 | 117 |
| 2 | *Fylde Falcons | 6 | 4 | 0 | .600 | 342 | 205 |
| 3 | Newcastle Senators (R) | 3 | 7 | 0 | .300 | 124 | 360 |
| 4 | Glasgow Lions | 3 | 7 | 0 | .300 | 121 | 200 |
| 5 | Manchester Spartans | 2 | 8 | 0 | .200 | 137 | 330 |
Budweiser League National Division Western Conference 1987
| Pos | Team | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | *Leicester Panthers | 9 | 1 | 0 | .900 | 318 | 149 |
| 2 | *Birmingham Bulls | 7 | 3 | 0 | .700 | 224 | 132 |
| 3 | Nottingham Hoods | 7 | 3 | 0 | .700 | 217 | 154 |
| 4 | Cardiff Tigers (R) | 2 | 8 | 0 | .200 | 131 | 280 |
| 5 | Swindon Steelers (R) | 1 | 8 | 1 | .150 | 138 | 263 |
Budweiser League National Division Eastern Conference 1987
| Pos | Team | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | *Luton Flyers | 8 | 2 | 0 | .800 | 293 | 136 |
| 2 | *Chelmsford Cherokee | 8 | 2 | 0 | .800 | 202 | 115 |
| 3 | CMK Coventry-Milton Keynes Bucks | 5 | 5 | 0 | .500 | 209 | 267 |
| 4 | Northants Stormbringers | 3 | 7 | 0 | .300 | 177 | 212 |
| 5 | Cambridge Cats (R) | 0 | 9 | 1 | .050 | 152 | 361 |
Budweiser League National Division Southern Conference 1987
| Pos | Team | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | *London Ravens | 10 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 412 | 86 |
| 2 | *London Olympians | 6 | 4 | 0 | .600 | 266 | 121 |
| 3 | Slough Silverbacks | 5 | 5 | 0 | .500 | 243 | 214 |
| 4 | Thames Valley Chargers | 4 | 6 | 0 | .400 | 168 | 207 |
| 5 | Steel City Giants (R) | 0 | 10 | 0 | .000 | 57 | 424 |
Legend / Key: *Qualified for Playoffs. (R) Relegated to Premier Division for 1988. Tiebreaker: (1) Head-to-Head.
Playoffs
BAFA Budweiser League National Division Playoffs 1987
| Match Day Quarter-Finals |
|---|
|
(Quarter-Finals)
26 - 25Manchester Allstars vs London Olympians |
|
(Quarter-Finals)
41 - 0London Ravens vs Fylde Falcons |
|
(Quarter-Finals)
41 - 0Leicester Panthers vs Chelmsford Cherokee |
|
(Quarter-Finals)
37 - 17Luton Flyers vs Birmingham Bulls |
| Match Day Semi-Finals |
|
(Semi-Finals)
Loss - WinLuton Flyers vs London Ravens |
|
(Semi-Finals)
Win - LossManchester Allstars vs Leicester Panthers |
| Match Day Budweiser Bowl III |
|
(Budweiser Bowl III)
40 - 23London Ravens vs Manchester Allstars |
Recap
The 1987 season was the fourth season of organised American Football Leagues in Britain other than those for US Air Force and Army teams stationed on the island. The Budweiser League’s top Division – the National Division – was contested by 20 teams in four Conferences of five teams – Northern, Western, Eastern and Southern – and the London Ravens (Britain’s first American Football Club, formed in 1983) again emerged the top team, winning their third Bowl game in as many years, 43-20 versus Manchester Allstars [1-4].
Two Irish-named Quarterbacks starred for Birmingham Bulls (Trevor Carthy) and Fylde Falcons (Pat Brennan) while Mike Delaney starred for London Ravens at wide receiver. [References: 6]
After the season, the lowest-ranked team in each Conference was relegated, along with Cardiff Tigers and Bournemouth Bobcats and Leeds Cougars, the Premier Bowl contestants promoted to the National Division. With CMK Bucks (Coventry-Milton Keynes) splitting up again after their merger and also taking part in the Premier Division, and Slough Silverbacks disbanding it left a 15-team National Division for 1988, divided into three Conferences: North, Central and South. [5] Note: for Match Reports and scorers for the Playoffs please click on individual games in the list above.
About the BAFA Budweiser League National Division
The British American Football Association united 100+ teams under the BAFA umbrella for 1987 as the BAFL (British American Football League) ceased to exist with the top three divisions in a league simply called the Budweiser League for sponsorship reasons. The Top division was called the National Division, the second level, the Premier Division and the third level Division One. Below these three divisions was the UKAFA (United Kingdom American Football Association) as a fourth level and then regional leagues making up a fifth level (Thistle League in Scotland, NWWCAFL – North West and Welsh Counties American Football League, BNGL – British National Gridiron League – in the North and Capital League in the South East).
References
[1] Anon. / Mark Lees (Ed.)(1987) “Results – Standings – Fixtures: Bud Playoffs: National” First Down. August 8, 1987. pg. 16. Mediawatch Ltd. Charlbury, Oxfordshire, England, UK.
[2] Anon. / Mark Lees (Ed.)(1987) “Results – Standings – Fixtures: Bud Playoffs: National” First Down. August 22, 1987. pg. 16. Mediawatch Ltd. Charlbury, Oxfordshire, England, UK.
[3] Anon. / Mark Lees (Ed.)(1987) “Results – Standings – Fixtures: Bud Fixtures: National” First Down. August 29, 1987. pg. 17. Mediawatch Ltd. Charlbury, Oxfordshire, England, UK.
[4] Nick Richards (2009) “V – Over to You Bud” TD UK. Touchdown UK. pg,. 79-80. Author House UK Ltd. Milton Keynes. England. UK.
[5] Keith Webster (1987) “Bud Announces New-Look Elite” First Down. October 24, 1987. pg. 22. Mediawatch Ltd. Charlbury, Oxfordshire, England, UK.
Geo-Geneology of Irish Surnames
[6] Vivid Maps (2022) Geo-Geneology of Irish Surnames [Internet] Available from: https://vividmaps.com/irish-surnames/ [Accessed 31 January 2022]
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Thanks to Enda Fahy.
ABOUT THIS DOCUMENT
Researched, compiled and written by Enda Mulcahy for the
Eirball | Irish North American and World Sports Archive
Last Updated: 1 February 2022
(c) Copyright Enda Mulcahy and Eirball 2022
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