American Football makes its mark with first competitive fixture

Over the past year, the Royal Navy American Football Association has worked tirelessly to introduce the sport and achieve the Royal Navy’s first competitive American Football fixture.

The association started at the end of 2020 with just a handful of individuals. With regular grassroots and training camps conducted, the sport has continued to grow within the Service, culminating in October with the first Inter Services fixture, when the Royal Navy played the RAF at HMS Excellent. 

WO1 David Smith said, “The team of 35 players consisted of 5% of players that had never played a competitive match prior, but showing commitment and determination to represent the Royal Navy in a new and growing sport, they ran out onto a redesigned rugby pitch at HMS Excellent in a Royal Navy shirt in a huge moment of pride.” 

The fixture itself was a hard-fought and competitive match, and up until the fourth quarter, it was a close match, but eventually, the RAF won 24-6.

The final score did not detract from the effort evident from the team in their history-making debut; the fixture was the first Inter Services fixture, and LH Truslove scored the Royal Navy’s first-ever touchdown.

The main drive for the association over the last three years has been to increase participation. WO1 Smith commented, “For me, grassroots is so key because it is about selling the sport and participation; not everyone can be an elite level athlete, but you can enjoy American Football and represent the Navy if you enjoy it.”

American Football is not just for players in the Royal Navy either; the association actively encourages aspiring coaches to get involved. WO1 Smith said, “There are enough coaches and players that if you have never even heard of American Football before, you can come and learn from the team and get involved.”

WO1 Smith had no prior experience when starting his coaching journey in the sport, “When my son was 14, he was an outstanding football goalkeeper and one day decided he was bored of playing. We watched American Football together, so he decided to join a junior team, having never played before. With no prior experience, I decided to coach and am still coaching now. You really can start from nothing.”

Having played for Great British Juniors, David’s son now plays for the Royal Navy team alongside several players who play for civilian clubs. David said, “It is that little sprinkle of those who have never played and those who have great experience merged to make a team that makes it work so well. There is no restriction on who can get involved; there is a huge breadth of experience but none required.”

Overall, it has been an excellent year for the RNFA, and they look forward to 2024, grassroots events, further camps, and continuation of weekly training around the UK. With an Army fixture in the pipeline for the New Year, all looks good for the continual development of American Football in the Royal Navy.