Lincolnshire Bombers

Established	2005 (as Lincoln Bombers)
Team colours	Black helmets Red and Black shirts Black pants Red socks
Home field	Christ's Hospital School, Lincoln, Lincolnshire
Conference alignment	British American Football Association National Leagues - NFC South 2
General Manager	Sam Pick
Head Coach	Michael Etheridge
2016 regular season record	(0-10)
Playoff record	None
Playoff appearances	None
Divisional Championships	None
BritBowl appearances	None

The Lincolnshire Bombers are a British American football team based in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England.^[1] The team in its current form was founded in 2005.^[1] They currently play in the BAFA NFC South 2 League for the 2016 season.^[2] The original team the Lincoln Bombers were formed in the late 1980s and in 1992 the team was renamed the Lincoln Saints.^[3] Following several mergers with other regional clubs The Saints disbanded leaving the county without an American Football team until the club reformed in 2005.

History

Early History

American Football was first played in Lincolnshire in the early 1980s, with sides such as the Scunthorpe Steelers, Boston Blitz and Lincoln Bombers being the county's first exponents of the sport. The 1990s saw a period of change after Scunthorpe’s' demise, the Lincoln Bombers became the Lincoln Saints, going on to achieve glory by lifting the BNGL First Division title in 1993; the Boston/South Lincs Blitz would eventually merge with nearby teams in King's Lynn and Peterborough to form the North Sea Hurricanes. Both teams would eventually disappear in the mid nineties; however a strong youth presence would be maintained in the county with the Haven/UCLA club in Boston and the Lincoln/Doncaster merger in the UDL Longhorns.

The Lincoln Saints, who evolved from the Bombers' original incarnation, participated in the British National Gridiron League between 1992 and 1993. The side won the 1993 BNGL First Division Bowl with a 51-14 win against Redbridge Fire.^[4] The Haven/UCLA outfit converted to senior football at the turn of the millennium and would become known as the East Midland Saxons senior team. Having lost their facilities in 2002 the team moved to Spalding for two seasons and then, after reorganisation, moved out of the county to Peterborough. In 2005 Lincolnshire was effectively without gridiron of any sort until the arrival of team founder Iain Bushell. Iain had played previously for the Manchester Titans and Teesside Cougars clubs and on his relocation to Lincoln was keen to revive the sport in the county.

Reformation

The name "Bombers" was resurrected due to the county's continuing links with the Royal Air Force, and Iain's personal links with the RAF Waddington base. He was initially helped in his task by former Bombers & Saints kicker, Nigel Smith. He then recruited former Haven/UCLA & East Midland GM & Head Coach Pat Megginson who was looking for a new challenge since leaving the (now) Peterborough-based Saxons. A healthy squad started to take shape featuring ex-Nottingham Caesars players - and one time Lincoln juniors - Ian Askew and Neil Armitage plus former Haven/UCLA & East Midland Saxons players Nige Epton, Mat Dean and Chris Henry. Former Saints coach Tony Hughes, Herts University player/coach Jeremy Brown, Dale Bridges and David Quincey (returning to football from the old Boston Blitz organisation) helped strengthen the club off the pitch, along with a highly professional management team. The Bombers are now a truly county wide team, with members now representing a number of towns across Lincolnshire putting the county firmly back on the Gridiron map!

2012 Season

After one of the longest losing streaks in British league history, the Bombers finally won on the opening day of the 2012 season against the Durham County Presidents.^[5] The 2012 season will undeniably go down as one of the worst seasons, weather wise, for British American Football. Having the season shortened due to the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations and the Olympics was issue enough but then persistent rain only made things worse when trying to reschedule matches! Unfortunately, the Bombers had to accept a 1-1 draw for their home match against the Sheffield Predators due first to a waterlogged pitch and then the inability of BAFRA to provide referees for the rescheduled match. Crewe Railroaders visited RAF Cranwell on 8 July and were soundly beaten by the Bombers, 53-8. An eleventh hour save by the management teams at Staffordshire Surge, Lincolnshire Bombers and Crewe Railroaders allowed the return fixture between the Railroaders and the Bombers to take place at the Longton Rugby Club on 15 July, after the weather left Crewe with a waterlogged pitch. The result of this match was a 30-30 tie. The Bombers closed out their best season to date with a win over the DC Presidents with the final score of 39-9.^[6]

The American Revolution

In 2013 Texas native Michael Etheridge took over as Head Coach and the following year the team would go on to add fellow Americans to the roster. Laron Worsley (RB), Eddie Parliman (LB), Michael Brewer (DL) and Jonathan Culver (WR) The star performer would be Culver, who could operate at Quarterback and Running Back if called upon. The team were voted the "BAFA Underdog of the Year" for the 2014 season following a 4-5-1 record in which the team pulled off impressive victories over the Oxford Saints, Sandwell Steelers, Peterborough Saxons and the Shropshire Revolution. At the end of the season Jonathan Culver scooped the end of season awards but was the only American player retained for 2015, although he would be joined by Quarterback Taylor Umland.

The Bombers 2015 campaign was hit and miss with a substantial amount of injuries effecting a promissing and play-off chasing season. The team would finish the year with a 4-6 record in the newly formed BAFA NFC 2. Offensive Linemen Mikey Gray, a former local wrestler would scoop all the major awards at the end of the season, while the departing Jonathan Culver was inducted into the Bombers Hall of Fame. In 2016 The Bombers suffered a mass exodus of playing staff during the off season which culminated in the loss of some of the clubs better players. A fresh faced Bombers unit heavily loaded with Rookies respectfully battled to a 0-10 record.

Name

The Bombers take their name from "Bomber County" the nickname given to Lincolnshire during World War Two which was home to a large concentration of Royal Air Force and USAAF bomber stations. The Bombers were initially just called the Lincoln Bombers but prior to finding out whether or not they had made it into the BAFL for 2007, it was decided that they would, from then on, be known as the Lincolnshire Bombers. Reasons include media coverage throughout the county, and the desire to represent the home towns of many of the players.

Bombers Youths

The Lincolnshire Bombers Youth team, ages 14-19 began operating in the 2015 season under the stewardship of club founder, Iain Bushell.

Home Ground

Between 1992 and 1993, The Lincoln Saints played their home games at Mulsanne Park, the home ground of association football club Nettleham F.C.. Having being reformed in 2005, The Bombers played their home games at RAF Cranwell near Sleaford but have since moved and now operate from Christ's Hospital School close to Lincoln Cathedral. The club's current training ground is the Rugby field at HMP Lincoln Prison having previously trained in the town of North Hykeham.

Hall of Fame

Former Head Coach, Tony Hughes was inducted into the Bombers Hall of Fame in 2014 as well as General Manager Mark Harrison. Also inducted was Quarter Back and club founder Iain Bushell and in 2015 American wide receiver Jonathan Culver was also inducted.^[7]
Iain Bushell (QB) 2005-2014
Jonathan Culver (WR) 2013-2015
Mark Harrison (DL) 2005-2011
Tony Hughes (Head Coach) 1985-1990
Michael Sharp (OL) 2010-2016

Player of the Season

Year	Player's Player of the Year	Coaches Player of the Year
2014	Jonathan Culver (WR)	Kevan Woollas (DL)
2015	Mikey Gray (OL)	Mikey Gray (OL)
2016	Charles Osei (OL)	Charles Osei (OL)

Team Records

References

External links

• Lincolnshire Bombers Official Website
• Lincolnshire Bombers Official Facebook
• Lincolnshire Bombers Official Twitter
• BAFA National League Team Information Page