Grangemouth Broncos - March EXTRA Report

MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE - 30th March 2005
Our third Committee Meeting of the year will be held on Wednesday at the Ewing Residence for 7:30pm.
A Coaches Meeting is scheduled immediately after the Committee Meeting therefore a prompt arrival
and keeping to the proposed Agenda will allow everyone to have an earlier night.
Could all Coaches please bring 2 passport size photos ... as you will need to re-register with the SFFA.
If you have not completed your Disclosure Form then please ensure you also have the necessary
paperwork for that. If you are in any doubt, please phone & check.
For a copy of the Agenda ... Click Here.
If this date / time or place does not suit then please let Maureen know ASAP ...
just in case we need to make any changes.

CULLODEN WIN SCHOOLS QUALIFYING TOURNAMENT - 26th March 2005
The North / East Scottish Qualifier was held at Bught Park Stadium, Inverness on Saturday.
Six school teams fought bravely to try and secure one of the two Scottish Places available in the UK Final.
Group 1
Glenurquhart High School Gladiators (A) 46 v Fortrose Academy Falcons 14
Fortrose Academy Falcons 6 v Inverness Royal Academy Monarchs 40
Inverness Royal Academy Monarchs 6 v Glenurquhart High School Gladiators (A) 38
Group 2
Charleston Academy Chargers 9 v Culloden Academy Cougars 27
Glenurquhart High School Gladiators (B) 0 v Culloden Academy Cougars 32
Charleston Academy Chargers 32 v Glenurquhart High School Gladiators (B) 0
3rd / 4th Place Play-Off
Charleston Academy Chargers 32 v Inverness Royal Academy Monarchs 22
North / East Scottish Final
Culloden Academy Cougars 29 v Glenurquhart High School Gladiators (A) 15
Culloden Academy Cougars will now represent the North of Scotland when they travel to Birmingham on Saturday 23rd April to face the two English Schools ... for a place in the European Schools Final.

TWO BRONCOS TO FACE THE ENGLISH - 26th March 2005
Following the SDS Seniors Trial in Stirling ... Ryan Hunter and Dave Mooney made the Scotland Squad
to play England in April and then travel to France to take part in the Le Havre Tournament in June.
SDS Coaching Staff ... includes Offensive Coach Jimmy Thomson.
Full SDS Roster
Andrew Jones (Bulls), Paul Arnold (Bulls), Neil Arnold (Bulls), Steven Bramwell (Bulls),
Ryan Hunter (Broncos) David Mooney (Broncos), Carlos Yanes-Roca (Clansmen),
Jim Burns (Steelers) and Scott Couper (Steelers).

FINAL SENIOR SDS TRIAL TO BE HELD IN STIRLING - 26th March 2005
The final re-arranged Senior SDS Trial for 2005 will be held at Forthbank on Saturday from 1pm-5pm.
The cost of the trial will be £5 for all attendees.
The Scotland Squad for the England International (2nd April) and the
Le Havre Tournament (25th-26th June) will be selected at this event.

2005 EUROPEAN SCHOOLS (QUALIFYING) TOURNAMENT - 26th March 2005
The North / East Scottish Qualifier will be held in Inverness on Saturday.

CLOSING DATE FOR SCROLL AWARD NOMINATIONS - 25th March 2005
This Nomination Form has already been submitted to Falkirk Council listing all the
Bronco Players / Coaches suitable for this years Scroll Awards.
The Awards Ceremony will take place in the Falkirk Town Hall on the 28th April.

SFFA ANNOUNCE EVEN MORE ANNUAL AWARDS IN 2005 AND A NEW MVP EVENT
Enclosed in the 2005 SFFA Info Pack is details of the enhanced SFFA Annual Awards and a new
'Pro Bowl' style SFFA MVP Bowl for all the top Players, Coaches and Officials who deserve recognition.
For more information ... Click Here.

SFFA COMMITTEE MEETING - 23rd March 2005
The SFFA Committee are having their first Meeting of the year and will be held in Glasgow @ 7pm.

LET THE GAMES BEGIN - 21st March 2005
The SFFA have just confirmed the SFFA League Tables for 2005.
Cadets, Juniors, Youths and Seniors.
For more information visit the SFFA Website.

WHO HASN'T GOT THEIR SFFA LEAGUE INFO PACK YET ? - 21st March 2005
Every participating SFFA Club should now have a copy of the SFFA 2005 League Information Pack distributed by the League Director.
If your are a Coach, Admin or Nominated Official with a Club and you have not yet seen the said Pack ...
then contact your Club's Head Coach or Download.

COACH THOMSON HAPPY WITH SENIORS PREPARATION SO FAR - 19th March 2005
Following on from their recent wins in Stirling a 7-Man Bronco Squad managed to secure a
53-12 friendly win over the Predators @ Inchyra Park.
Our newest recruit Ryan Hunter was voted Game MVP.

COACH EWING CHECKS OUT HOW THE CAP WILL AFFECT US - 19th March 2005
Coach Charlie Ewing will be the sole Bronco Coach attending the free Coaches Academy Program
in Stirling this weekend.
I am sure that Coach will pass on all that he has been taught ... you have all been warned.

SENIORS READY FOR NEXT CHALLENGE - 19th March 2005
Coach Jimmy Thomson has lined up a friendly game against the Predators.
Our opponents will be training their kids in the morning then coming through to us in the afternoon.
Anyway ... the game is this Saturday in Grangemouth ... Kick-Off 3pm.
There will be no training in the morning.
Players should meet at Inchyra Park for 1pm ... allowing valuable time to prepare for the game.
Changing rooms will be available.

BAFCA ADOPT CAP AS PART OF THEIR OWN CERTIFICATION PROGRAM - 19th March 2005
The Coaches Academy Program is a joint venture between the NFL and the NFF
(National Football Federation) which started back in 2000.
The Clinics are FREE to all existing BAFCA Members.
Any other Coaches wishing to participate who are not BAFCA Members are invited
to come along and join on the day.
The first Clinic will take place at Forthbank Stadium , Stirling on Saturday.
Registration commences at 8am with the Clinic starting at 9am until 6pm.
2nd Clinic - Muirhead Tower, Birmingham University on 22nd / 23rd March.
3rd Clinic - Crystal Palace National Sports Centre, South London on 26th March.

SDS SENIORS ... CONTACT DETAILS REQUIRED - 17th March 2005
Anyone who attended the last SDS Senior Training Session needs to have all their contact details given to Maxi if they still wish to be considered for the Seniors Team ... that includes last years Squad Members.

2005 SFFA LEAGUE INFORMATION PACK IN THE POST - 15th March 2005
All SFFA Clubs should be receiving their Info Pack this week ...
even if the Pack might be a bit shy on the postage ... due to an unexpected over-sight.

CADET, JUNIOR AND YOUTH SDS SQUADS ANNOUNCED - 13th March 2005
All Member Clubs sent their best players for selection to the Scottish Development Squad ...
over 70 SFFA Players from 11 Clubs tried out for the 54 available places.
The following players were selected ... Click Here.
Congratulations to the following Broncos who made the 2005 SDS Squad ...
Scott McKenzie (Cadets), Martyn Paterson (Cadets), Fraser Thomson (Cadets), David Ewing (Juniors),
Kevin Simpson (Juniors), Josh Keir (Juniors), Scott Halbert (Juniors), Ryan Harkins (Juniors) and
Thomas Allison (Youths).

SDS COACHES ... WHAT DO THEY REALLY DO ?
The Scotland Development Squad are about to embark upon another year of training sessions
covering Cadet, Junior and Youth (Sat 12th March).
The SDS have a core staff of experienced Coaches who run training sessions and coach the players through to competition level as part of the Scottish National Team.
During 2005 the SDS Coaches would like to give other Coaches the opportunity to come along and join in these sessions. This will allow Club Coaches to get first hand knowledge of such a large training camp (approx. 60 kids) ... and watch some of the countries most experienced Coaches at work.
If any Coach would like to come along and observe, or would like to put themselves forward as an Assistant/Positional Coach, then ...
contact Charlie Ewing to register your interest and make arrangements to attend.

SDS 2005 TRIALS SET FOR CADET, JUNIOR AND YOUTH - 12th March 2005
On Saturday the SDS - Selection Camp will take place.
The Camp will run from 1pm until 4pm and will be held at Forthbank Stadium, Stirling.
Registration from 12:30pm.
Club Coaches are asked to pre-select players from within their teams and send along their best on the day. This pre-selection allows the SDS Coaches more time with each player to ensure that they make the right choice on the day. For those players selected to the SDS Squad there will be further training...
Sat 30th April from 11am until 4pm.
Sat 18th June from 11am until 4pm.

DAY ONE ... OF THE 2005 SFFA LEAGUE SEASON - 12th March 2005
The SFFA League 2005 officially began on Saturday.
The League will run all through Spring and Summer and finish on the 25th September 2005 ...
with SFFA Finals Day early in October 2005.

RND'05 ... BIG HAIR AND BEYOND - 11th March 2005
You can purchase Red Nose Day stuff online ... simply Click Here ...
OR ... if your wardrope is full ... you can always Donate something instead.

POP WARNER 2005 SEASON STARTS SOON
The Pop Warner Season gets underway on the 24th April and runs until the 4th July.
The Rams currently have a Squad of around 9 ... but really need a Squad of 12 to play 9-on-9 Football.
Therefore ... anyone interested in playing should go along on Tuesdays from 6pm until 9pm
to St. Maurices H.S, Cumbernauld.

FLAMEBOWL 2005 - FINAL DATE FOR REGISTERING AN INTENT TO PLAY - 4th March 2005
There are places for a maximum of 8 Junior and 8 Cadet teams.
Each team will consist of a minimum of 6 players (Max 10).
It has been agreed to initially invite those SFFA Clubs that participated last year ...
then if spaces permit ... extend to a wider SFFA registered audience.
Teams who attended the Flamebowl last year have until 4th March ... to 'register their intent to play'. Thereafter, places will be allocated on a first come first served basis.
To register ... simply E-Mail ... Jimmy Thomson.
For all the latest news and information ... visit FlameBowl 2005.

PRESSING NEWS ABOUT THEM BRONCOS
Ever wondered if anybody ever writes about our success stories ... check out our Broncos Press Office.

UK TO TAKE PART IN THE 2005 EUROPEAN SCHOOL FINALS
The situation at present is that NFL Europe will run 2 Qualifiers in Scotland (North and South/Central).
The Northern Qualifier will be held in Inverness.
The Southern/Central Qualifier venue has still to be announced.
There will be funding for both Events.
One Qualifier from the North of Scotland and one from the South/Central will travel to England
for the UK Finals in Birmingham.
The Qualifiers would have to take place at the end of March.
This will NOT be an SFFA-run-Event and as such BAFA Personal Insurance does NOT apply.
National School Finals should be finished by end of April ...
with the 1st May the deadline for naming the Finalists.
Once again there will be 8 spots available for the Finals in Dusseldorf, Germany.
Stu McKay and Mark Fletcher will help organise both Qualifiers.
For further information contact Stu McKay.

BAFA FEES SET TO RISE
A recent BYAFA Article has indicated that a price hike is underway following the approval of the
Central Registration System which is due to be implemented in April 2005.
Revised Prices
2005 ... £20 (Adults) and £10 (Under 18s)
2006 ... £20 (Adults) and £12.50 (Under 18s)
Clubs that can register all their players BEFORE 1st April 2005 ... will avoid the hike in 2005.

AGM AMENDMENTS TO THE DATES FOR THE SFFA 2005 SEASON
League Starts ... now ... 12th March 2005
League finishs ... now ... 25th September 2005
With SFFA Finals Day early in October 2005.
In conjunction with this is the Child Protection Policy, which ALL Clubs will need to have a signatory in place or at least started the ball rolling for 1st March ...
and then have all relevant people disclosed by the 10th April.
Failure to do so WILL mean your club being removed from the SFFA until you have done so.
THIS IS THE LAW.

PROTECTION OF CHILDREN (SCOTLAND) ACT 2003 COMMENCEMENT
The full enactment of the above Act was due to come into force on the 10th January.
Had this deadline been the case ... the SFFA would have been breaking the law due to the fact that many of our Coaches, Assistants and Drivers have not been screened via Disclosure Scotland.
The Scottish Government has now deferred this by 3 months meaning that we have until the 10th April to comply.

2005 SFFA REGISTRATION PLANS
It is envisaged that by April 2005 BAFA will be taking over the duties of Membership Registration.
BAFA wish to centralise all Associated Organisations Registrations ...
allowing them to consolidate and better collate the available information.
Centralisation will mean that SFFA Members will only be asked to pay the BAFA Membership Fee once (annually) ... regardless of how many BAFA Associated Organisations they are members of.
All Members will be issued with a BAFA Registration Number that will be common to all Organisations.
The SFFA will seek the approval of all Current Members at that time for the transfer of personal details to be included on the BAFA Database.
The SFFA will work closely with BAFA to ensure the smooth transfer of data between both systems.
All Players, Coaches and Admin Staff will still be required to register with the SFFA prior to taking part this Season ... there will be NO exceptions.
Registrations
Renewals ... allow at least a week.
New ... allow at least two weeks.
All Players, Coaches and Admin Staff must be registered at least one week before they can take part
in any SFFA Event.
All Registrations must be sent by post via the Official SFFA Registration Form.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU ... HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU !
Many Happy Returns to Coach Jonathan Ewing and Peter McAllister.
Also to Past Players / Coaches ... Gavin Edwards, Scott Appelbee, Alan Davidson and Alan 'LT' Taylor ...
who ALL celebrate their birthday this month.

WEBSITE NUMBERS FOR FEBRUARY
Due to a new type of spamming ... we are unable to give an accurate record of statistics from last month.
Our site has now blocked those responsible and hopefully we will be back to normal in March.

Return to Summary of News Events.

TRAINING SCHEDULE FOR MARCH
5th Mar ... Normal Training
12th Mar ... Normal Training
19th Mar ... Normal Training
26th Mar ... Normal Training

BRONCOS IN THE SFFA
The results so far ... Click Here.

Return to Summary of News Events.

TRAINING SCHEDULE FOR MARCH
5th Mar ... Normal Training
12th Mar ... Normal Training
19th Mar ... Normal Training
26th Mar ... Normal Training

BRONCOS IN THE SFFA
The results so far ... Click Here.

Return to Summary of News Events.

TRAINING SCHEDULE FOR MARCH
5th Mar ... Normal Training
12th Mar ... Normal Training
19th Mar ... Normal Training
26th Mar ... Normal Training

BRONCOS IN THE SFFA
The results so far ... Click Here.

Return to Summary of News Events.

TRAINING SCHEDULE FOR MARCH
5th Mar ... Normal Training
12th Mar ... Normal Training
19th Mar ... No Training - Friendly Match v Predators
26th Mar ... No Training - SDS Trial

BRONCOS IN THE SFFA
The results so far ... Click Here.

Return to Summary of News Events.

AFL TV HIGHLIGHTS ON NASN IN MARCH
Sun 27th Mar ... Tampa Bay Storm 28 @ Los Angeles Avengers 59
Sun 27th Mar ... New York Dragons 56 @ Columbus Destroyers 55
Sat 26th Mar ... Colorado Crush 66 @ Dallas Desperados 58
Sun 20th Mar ... Colorado Crush 42 @ Nashville Kats 35 (Week 7)
Sat 19th Mar ... Grand Rapids Rampage 48 @ San Jose SaberCats 72
Sun 6th Mar ... New York Dragons 61 @ Philadelphia Soul 54

RE-BRANDING ... BSL BECOMES THE BAFL - 24th March 2005
The BSL is now the British American Football League (BAFL).
The New BAFL has a new logo and national brand awareness programme ...
which will promote the sport, the league and BACL Clubs.
Also ... Sky Sports are to include a round-up of results and conference standings from the BACL in a new weekly two-hour programme dedicated solely to American Football.
The new programme, which goes on air on Mon 4th April (SS3), will be anchored by Nick Rothwell and assisted by either Nick Halling or Jeff Reinebold.

NEW YORK SET TO HOST 2010 SUPER BOWL - 22nd March 2005
New York moved a step closer to getting the 2010 Super Bowl on Tuesday when an NFL Committee approved the Jets' bid to get the game ...
contingent on the construction of a new stadium on the West Side of Manhattan.
League Owners are expected to approve the bid on Wednesday.
Current NFL rules require that a Super Bowl site has to be used by a team for two Seasons before the game
is played ... this rule is expected to be waived because the new stadium won't be ready until the 2009 Season.
Meanwhile ... the 2009 Super Bowl has not yet been awarded ... with Atlanta, Miami, Houston and Tampa
all bidding for the game ... which is expected to be awarded at NFL Meetings this Spring.

2005 NFL COMPENSATORY DRAFT PICKS - 21st March 2005
A Total of 32 Picks ...
Eagles (4), Rams (4), Panthers (3), Patriots (3), 49ers (3), Cowboys (2), Broncos (2), Colts (2), Raiders (2),
Seahawks (2), Titans (2), Ravens (1), Chiefs (1) and Bucs (1).
For more information on the 2005 NFL Draft ... Click Here.

EIGHT UK NATIONALS MAKE NFLE ROSTERS - 21st March 2005
Frankfurt ... Jeff Brown (CB) and Allen Martin (WR)
Rhein ... Ondu Ozongwu (S) and Shaun Smith (LB)
Hamburg ... Aden Durde (LB) and Scott McCready (WR)
Berlin ... Neil Baxter (RB) and Daniel Watts (DE)

2005 NFL REGULAR SEASON OPENERS - 21st March 2005
The NFL have just announced four 'key' games on its 2005 Kick-Off Weekend.
Thurs 8th Sept ... Oakland Raiders @ New England Patriots
Sun 11th Sept ... Dallas Cowboys @ San Diego Chargers
Sun 11th Sept ... Indianapolis Colts @ Baltimore Ravens
Mon 12th Sept ... Philadelphia Eagles @ Atlanta Falcons

SCOTS STILL PART OF GB LION PLANS TO DEFEAT GERMANY IN SWEDEN - 21st March 2005
Mark Squire (EK Pirates), Gary Clark, Lee Collins and Robert Beveridge (Clyde Valley Hawks)
have all made the 81-Man GB Lion Roster for the First Full Camp to be held on 23rd / 24th April
at Crystal Palace NSC. The Lions will only be taking 45 players to Sweden so this is just Stage 1.
The first test for the Lions comes on 28th May when they take on Centre College (USA) at Crystal Palace.
The 45-Man GB Lion Squad will then travel to Sweden to play Germany in the Semi Final on 28th July.

BCAFL WEEK 16 COLEGE BOWL XIX FINAL ... RESULT - 20th March 2005
Birmingham Lions 34 @ Glasgow Tigers 7
For all the latest results and forthcoming fixtures in the British Collegiate American Football League ... Click Here.

LATEST NFL EUROPE NEWS
English Version ...
21st Mar ... NFLE Post-Roster Merry-go-Round Transactions continue.
20th Mar ... NFLE Rosters reduced as cuts are made.
18th Mar ... Saturday sees the final scrimmages after which teams will cut their NFLE Rosters to 48.
17th Mar ... NFLE through the eyes of Walter Payton's son (Jarrett).
8th Mar ... Buy your World Bowl XIII Tickets ... Now.
4th Mar ... NFLEL Fantasy Football is back.
4th Mar ... NFL Europe Punters and Kickers Assigned.
Latest News ... Click Here.

BCAFL WEEK 15 CONFERENCE FINALS ... RESULTS - 13th March 2005
Northern
Loughborough Aces 21 @ Glasgow Tigers 24
Southern
Hertfordshire Hurricanes 14 @ Birmingham Lions 26

BCAFL WEEK 14 CONFERENCE SEMI-FINALS ... RESULTS - 6th March 2005
Northern
Lancaster Bombers 12 @ Glasgow Tigers 47
Loughborough Aces 21 @ Leeds Celtics 14
Southern
Bristol Bullets 8 @ Birmingham Lions 38
Southampton Stags 12 @ Hertfordshire Hurricanes 48

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS - 4th March 2005
A straight arrow Coach leads his team to the 1988 Texas State Semi-Finals in the West Texas City of Odessa, where High School Football is king. Expectations of classmates, coaches, family, and community members exact a toll on the athletes central to the story. Economic and racial undertones pervade this adaptation of H.G. Bissinger's book by the same name ... Friday Night Lights.
Now released in the UK.
To purchase the Region 1 DVD now ... Click Here.

NFL DIARY FOR MARCH
23rd February / 1st March 2005 ... Annual Scouting Combine (Indianapolis)
20th-23rd March 2005 ... NFL Owners' Annual Meeting (Maui, Hawaii)

CFL DIARY FOR MARCH
10th March ... CFL Announces Evaluation Camp Invitees
15th March ... State of the Franchise announcements begin
19th/20th March ... CFL Evaluation Camp

AIFL DIARY FOR MARCH
19th March ... Owners Meeting
30th March ... First Day of Training Camp

FOUR OUT OF THE FIVE BRONCOS KNOW THEIR NFL EUROPE TEAMS
Santonio Beard (Hamburg), Tyson Clabo (Hamburg),
Brandon Miree (Cologne) and D.J. Renteria (Frankfurt).
Mark Mariscal (Punter) will know his team at a later date.
Broncos Website

Return to Summary of News Events.