Final Standings
BAFA Budweiser League Division 1 Scotland Conference 1987
| Pos | Team | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | *Clydesdale Colts (P) | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 223 | 84 |
| 2 | East Kilbride Pirates | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0.500 | 134 | 133 |
| 3 | Ayr Burners | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0.375 | 105 | 110 |
| 4 | Inverclyde Crusaders | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0.375 | 52 | 113 |
| 5 | Lothian Chieftains | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0.250 | 108 | 182 |
BAFA Budweiser League Division 1 Northern Conference 1987
| Pos | Team | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | *Washington Presidents (P) | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0.900 | 488 | 235 |
| 2 | Lancashire Chieftains | 7 | 2 | 1 | 0.750 | 323 | 196 |
| 3 | Leeds Cobras (P) | 7 | 2 | 1 | 0.750 | 297 | 155 |
| 4 | Wirral Wolves (D) | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0.700 | 347 | 146 |
| 5 | Warrington Scorpions | 4 | 5 | 1 | 0.450 | 220 | 271 |
| 6 | Chester Romans | 2 | 7 | 1 | 0.250 | 209 | 256 |
| 7 | Halton Demons (R) | 1 | 8 | 1 | 0.150 | 28 | 284 |
| 8 | Stockport Falcons (R-Y) | 0 | 9 | 1 | 0.050 | 58 | 427 |
BAFA Budweiser League Division 1 Central Conference 1987
| Pos | Team | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | *West Bromwich Fireballs (P) | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0.900 | 244 | 85 |
| 2 | Mansfield Express (D) | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0.700 | 274 | 173 |
| 3 | Stoke Spitfires (P) | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0.600 | 249 | 145 |
| 4 | Walsall Titans (P) | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0.500 | 229 | 156 |
| 5 | Wolverhampton Outlaws | 2 | 8 | 0 | 0.200 | 164 | 320 |
| 6 | Black Country Nailers | 1 | 9 | 0 | 0.100 | 76 | 357 |
BAFA Budweiser League Division 1 South West Conference 1987
| Pos | Team | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | *Bristol Packers (P) | 10 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 676 | 36 |
| 2 | Swansea Dragons (P) | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0.800 | 407 | 133 |
| 3 | Newton GWs (R) | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0.400 | 217 | 319 |
| 4 | Duchy Destroyers | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0.400 | 160 | 373 |
| 5 | Weston Stars (R-C) | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0.300 | 214 | 305 |
| 6 | Exeter Eagles (R) | 1 | 9 | 0 | 0.100 | 78 | 586 |
BAFA Budweiser League Division 1 Southern Conference 1987
| Pos | Team | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | *Farnham Knights (P) | 10 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 414 | 64 |
| 2 | South Star Scorpions (P) | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0.700 | 259 | 108 |
| 3 | South Coast Sharks | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0.600 | 179 | 180 |
| 4 | Merton Admirals | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0.400 | 69 | 169 |
| 5 | Hampshire Cavaliers | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0.300 | 134 | 243 |
| 6 | Wight Rhinos | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0.000 | 61 | 352 |
BAFA Budweiser League Division 1 South East Conference 1987
| Pos | Team | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | *Ashton Oilers (P) | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0.900 | 578 | 50 |
| 2 | Eastbourne Crusaders (P) | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0.900 | 369 | 79 |
| 3 | Medway Mustangs | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0.400 | 274 | 389 |
| 4 | Thanet Vikings | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0.400 | 187 | 248 |
| 5 | Grays Saxons (R) | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0.400 | 219 | 301 |
| 6 | Ashford Cruisers (R-C) | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0.000 | 68 | 628 |
BAFA Budweiser League Division 1 Eastern Conference 1987
| Pos | Team | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | *Basildon Braves (P) | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0.700 | 190 | 117 |
| 2 | Norwich Devils | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0.700 | 169 | 79 |
| 3 | Herts Phantoms | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0.500 | 129 | 91 |
| 4 | Newmarket Hornets (R) | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0.500 | 174 | 142 |
| 5 | Southend Sabres | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0.500 | 114 | 147 |
| 6 | Southampton Seahawks | 1 | 9 | 0 | 0.100 | 112 | 312 |
BAFA Budweiser League Division 1 Capital Conference 1987
| Pos | Team | W | L | T | Pct | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | *Ealing Eagles (P) | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0.875 | 141 | 40 |
| 2 | Thames Barriers (P) | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0.875 | 149 | 98 |
| 3 | Fulham Cardinals | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0.500 | 127 | 91 |
| 4 | London Lasers | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0.250 | 102 | 162 |
| 5 | Chingford Centurions (R-D) | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0.000 | 37 | 165 |
Legend / Key: * Qualify for Playoffs, (P) Promoted to Budweiser League Premier Division, (R) Relegated to newly-formed British National Gridiron League (a merger of BGFL, Capital League, NWWCAFL and members of UKAFL who left that league), C – Changed name for 1988, D – Disbanded after 1987 season, Y – sat out 1988 to return in 1989. Tie-breaker (1) Head-to-Head.
Playoffs
BAFA Budweiser League Division One Playoffs 1987
| Match Day Quarter-Finals |
|---|
|
(Quarter-Finals)
20 - 19Clydesdale Colts vs Washington Presidents |
|
(Quarter-Finals)
12 - 7Bristol Packers vs West Bromwich Fireballs |
|
(Quarter-Finals)
8 - 28Farnham Knights vs Ashton Oilers |
|
(Quarter-Finals)
32 - 0Ealing Eagles vs Basildon Braves |
| Match Day Semi-Finals |
|
(Semi-Finals)
0 - 16Clydesdale Colts vs Ealing Eagles |
|
(Semi-Finals)
6 - 7Bristol Packers vs Ashton Oilers |
| Match Day Division One Bowl |
|
(Division One Bowl)
7 - 27Ealing Eagles vs Ashton Oilers |
Recap
Kent’s Ashton Oilers won the BAFA Budweiser League Division 1 (third level of American Football in Britain) in 1987, defeating Ealing Eagles 27-7 in the Division One Bowl. Ealing had defeated both Eastern Conference Champions Basildon Braves 32-0 in the Eastern Quarter-Final before also blanking Clydesdale Colts 16-0 in the Semi-Finals. The Scotland Conference Champions had shocked high-scoring Northern Conference Champions Washington Presidents 20-19 in the Northern Quarter-Final, with a little luck from a missed Field Goal and a touchdown called back for holding by Washington in the dying minutes of the game [1-4].
Ashton Oilers path to the Bowl was not as straight-forward, having to negotiate Southern Conference Champions, the formidable Farnham Knights, who had a perfect 10-0 regular season, scoring 414 points and only conceding 64 in the process. The Oilers won that game 28-8 before defeating the Bristol Packers 7-6 in the semi-Finals. The Packers had also put up a perfect record in the regular season, putting up a massive 676 points in the process, and only conceding 36. Ealing Eagles had the one loss all season, as did Ashton, to Eastbourne Crusaders, both teams finishing on 9-1 in the regular season, with Ashton winning the head-to-head 51-27 [1-4].
After the season, the eight Conference Champions were promoted to the Premier Division, along with Leeds Cobras, Stoke Spitfires, Walsall Titans, Swansea Dragons, South Star Scorpions, Eastbourne Crusaders and Thames Barriers. Halton Demons were relegated to the British National Gridiron League, along with Stockport Falcons (who sat out 1988 returning in 1989), Newton GWs, Weston Stars (who changed their name to Weston Wolfpack), Exeter Eagles, Grays Saxons, Ashford Cruisers (who changed their name to the Ashford Raiders), Newmarket Hornets and Chingford Centurions (who disbanded after the 1987 season). Wirral Wolves and Mansfield Express disbanded after the season [1-4].
Irish-named running back Paul Reilly starred for Clydesdale Colts [2, 6] For comparison with the Irish American Football League, Ayr Burners defeated IAFL Semi-Finalists in 1987, Belfast Giants 48-0 in 1987, a year after the Burners had defeated Carrickfergus Cougars 28-8. Belfast, by then NI Giants got their revenge in 1988 with a 21-0 win over Ayr in April prior to the season. All three games were played under the name “International Challenge Cup”. Reference: [7].
ABOUT THE BAFA BUDWEISER LEAGUE DIVISION 1
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 UKAFL (United Kingdom American Football League) as a fourth level and then regional leagues making up a fifth level (Thistle League in Scotland, NWWCAFL – North Wales and West Cheshire American Football League, BGFL – British Gridiron Football 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.
[7] Anon. (1988) “Giants get their revenge’”Belfast Telegraph. Tuesday, April 12, 1988. pg. 20 [Internet] Available online at the Irish Newspaper Archive at: https://www.irishnewsarchive.com/ which is a subscription service.
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 John Malone, Paul O’Reilly, Declan Mulvey, Colm McGennis.
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
You may quote this document in part provided that proper acknowledgement is given to the authors. All Rights Reserved.