Bombers Fail To Tame Pumas

Following an impressive display against the London Olympians, confidence was high amongst the Bombers for their game against the Maidstone Pumas. After travelling the 170 miles down to Maidstone in a luxury Coach kindly provided by Prestige Coaches of Sleaford, an air of expectation could be sensed among players and supporters alike.

However, things did not go to plan for the Bombers as Maidstone scored an early safety by tackling #24, Ben Willis in the end zone quickly taking a 2-0 lead. However, the Bombers hit back with a safety of their own in the following kick off when Linebacker Warwick Grosvenor #91 tackled a Maidstone player in their own end zone quickly taking the score to 2-2. Despite some good ball movement by the Bombers offense and some great defensive plays the score stayed 2-2 until the half.

In the second half the Pumas showed good ball retention which saw them march down the field only to be stopped at the 20 yard line. On their 3rd down the Pumas opted to pass and what happened next defined the rest of the match. Luke Parkinson #23 batted down the pass only for it to end up in the hands of another Maidstone player who ran it in for a touchdown. They missed the PAT to take the lead to 8-2.

Yet again the Bombers responded by raising their game and proceeded to dominate the 3rd quarter. Through good offense movement and decisive defensive quality including two forced fumbles both recovered by Rob Taylor. One for a 35 yard return which lead to the Bombers getting within field goal range and both of which were converted by Adam Hennessy with the game going all square in to the 4th quarter.

With both teams looking for their first win of the season the tension mounted. And after a solid start by the offense the Bombers found themselves with a field goal attempt to take the lead for the first time in the game. However, the ball sailed inches wide of the left post. The Pumas quickly capitalised on the miss by running the ball in for their second touchdown of the game with a completed PAT the Pumas took the lead 15-8 with 7 minutes left in the game the Bombers tried to find an answer but despite some solid defensive work and an interception for MVP Gordon ‘Bootsie’ Snell, the Bombers were just unable to find another come back.

The game ended 15-8 with a win for Maidstone. Despite this loss the Bombers put in yet another good performance and will be more than ready for their first home game against London Olympians on the 30th May.

Bombers Show Promise In Season Opener

After a long journey down to London on a luxury coach provided by sponsors Prestige Coaches of Sleaford and despite some poor weather the Bombers were pumped for their first game of the season. On paper, with the size of the Olympians roster compared to the Bombers the game was set to be a ‘walk in the park victory’ for the O's. However, everyone soon realised the difference between paper and reality is rather different.

The first half saw a solid display from the Bombers' defense which kept the Olympians at bay, this coupled with good retention from the offense saw the score at the half at only 13-0. The Bombers had opportunities that weren’t capitalised upon though for example, after a massive 80 yard punt from Barry Lowes #53 to the Olympians 5 yard line the Bombers were unable to convert field position to points.

The second half of the game was one of highs and lows for the Bombers. At the start of the 3rd quarter the quality of the Olympians kicked in with 3 quick touch downs and 2 punt returns. However, the visitors did show some promising moments when Quarterback Tom Vivian, under pressure from a blitz, rolled left out of the pocket and managed to complete a 20 yard pass down field to Running Back Liam Stewart.

As the game continued it looked like the Olympians were going to continue to score with fresh players entering the field of play. However, under pressure from the Bombers D Line the Olympians QB threw a pass to his right which was intercepted by Line Backer #24 Ben Willis. Despite having to run 30 yards and skilfully dodge and weave his way through half the O line he scored the Bombers first touchdown of the season and celebrated in a ‘left side’ fashion. Barry Lowes #53 having earlier kicked an 80 yard punt completed the point after.

As the 4th quarter came to a close the Olympians were able to score two more touchdowns showing again that the Bombers only real weakness is lack of numbers. However, based on this performance the Bombers are on course for their best season yet and have taken the first steps towards establishing themselves as a team to be reckoned with.

Despite the 47-7 victory in favour of the London Olympians they were made to work hard for their victory and in the words of the Olympian’s Head Coach, the Lincolnshire Bombers were “no push overs”.

MVP for the match was awarded to D Lineman Dan Allen (#65) for an excellent defensive display which included 3 big sacks on the Olympian's varying Quarterbacks.

The Bombers now look to next week’s training session to regroup for the match against Maidstone Pumas on the 16th May.

Bombers Take To The Airwaves

On Monday 15 February Linebacker, Warwick Grosvenor and Marketing & Media Manager, Robyn Beattie made their way in to the BBC Radio Lincolnshire studios to talk about American Football in Lincolnshire. “The aim of the radio show was to make people aware that the Lincolnshire Bombers are the only American Football team in the county and are in need of support.” Robyn said.

They had a 10 minute chat with presenter Judy Theobald talking about American Football in the United Kingdom as well as the Lincolnshire Bombers. They discussed issues such as - How American Football differs from other sports, what protection is needed and who can get involved.

When asked about the purpose of the interview Warwick said, “Getting American Football in to the public eye in Lincolnshire is one of our key objectives for this season and beyond.”

"Building links with BBC Radio Lincolnshire is an important part of the team’s ongoing plan to increase the profile of Gridiron and the Bombers in Lincolnshire. They have asked us to stay in touch and speak with them in the future about our progress." Robyn commented.