Tag: Aylesbury Vale Spartans

Blackhawks 2017 Flag Schedule Released

11 Jan
Michael Dilley All News, Flag Football , , , , , , , , , ,

The Blackhawks 2017 flag schedule has been confirmed, and sees them kicking off against Aylesbury Vale Spartans, West Essex Showboats and Ware Wolves on Saturday 15th April in a round of matches hosted by the Showboats.

They are followed up a set of matches hosted by the Blackhawks on Saturday 6th and a trip to the London Rebels on Sunday 21st May.

Three games at the Wolves on Saturday 24th June come next, before the regular season is rounded off with games against Hackney Cougars, Chichester Sharks and Victoria Park Panthers on Sunday 16th July.

The Blackhawks are training this Sunday between 12pm and 3pm in Sandy on Sunderland Road. If you are interested in attending please get in touch either via Facebook, Twitter or the Contact Us page.

Blackhawks to play in SEC North in 2017

30 Dec
Michael Dilley All News, Flag Football , ,

The 2017 season will see the Blackhawks take place in the SEC North along side Aylesbury Vale Spartans, Ware Wolves and West Essex Showboats, all of whom competing for a spot in the 2018 Premier Division.

During the 2016 season the ‘Hawks won once (38-33 in Ware on 25th June) and lost once (27-8 in Bedford on 16th July) against the Wolves, and lost each twice against the Spartans and the Showboats.

The schedule for the 2017 season is expected to be confirmed shortly.

PREVIEW | Blackhawks set for season finale

29 Jul
Michael Dilley All News, Flag Football, Previews , , , , ,

The Blackhawks bring the curtain down on their inaugural season against Reading Lions in the BAFA Flag Southeastern Conference tomorrow.

Aylesbury Vale Spartans – who also face the Lions – are hosting the game. The ‘Hawks were also due to meet the Solent Thrashers but unfortunately they will not be attending.

The Blackhawks have their full squad available and will at full strength for the game, and Jed Parisi says the team are still pushing for an unlikely place in the post-season:

It’s the last gameday of the season and the guys are looking to close the season on a high. We are against some tough opposition but still not mathematically out of a playoff spot.

Schedule

The first game of the day will kick off at 10am, and pairs the Spartans with the Lions. After Highflyers pulled out of the league the reduced schedule for the morning is:

  • Aylesbury Vale Spartans vs Reading Lions
  • Bedford Blackhawks vs Reading Lions
Directions

The games will take place at Fairford Leys Pitches, Coldharbour Way (off Oxford Road), Aylesbury HP17 8QQ:

Game Coverage

If you can’t make it to Sandy to watch the games we will be providing regular updates via the Blackhawks Twitter and Facebook pages.

Keep up-to-date with the latest news, squad details and events with out new mobile app for iOS and Android:

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PREVIEW | Blackhawks look to build on first win

10 Jun
Michael Dilley All News, Flag Football, Previews , , , , , ,

The Blackhawks travel back to East London this weekend for their next round of BAFA Flag Southeastern Conference games.

The matches, which take place tomorrow, are hosted by the Victoria Park Panthers and as well as the Blackhawks feature the West Essex Showboats and Aylesbury Vale Panthers.

The Blackhawks will be without a number of regular players for tomorrow’s game, as Jed Parisi (cornerback), Jonny Stratford (linebacker), Cody Hinton (cornerback), PJ Pateman (cornerback) and Josh Randall (wide receiver) are all unavailable.

In the most recent meetings between the sides the Blackhawks lost 56-0 to the Showboats and 32-18 to the Spartans, but speaking on behalf of the team Jake Cooper said that the team aren’t giving up on the post-season yet:

The guys are looking to take the boost we gained through our first league win last weekend and translate that into further success for the ‘Hawks.

With a crucial fixture between us and the Spartans taking place that if we win, keeps our dreams of play-off football alive, this game day is arguably one of our most important.

We won’t be at full strength due to handful of absentees, however the players that will be travelling down are sure to give their all to try and bring home another W.

Schedule

The first game of the day will kick off at 11am, and pairs the Spartans with the hosts. The full schedule for the day is:

  • Aylesbury Vale Spartans vs Victoria Park Panthers
  • Bedford Blackhawks vs West Essex Showboats
  • West Essex Showboats vs Victoria Park Panthers
  • Bedford Blackhawks vs Aylesbury Vale Spartans
Directions

The games will take place on the old section of Wanstead Flats: Harrow Road, E11 3QD:

Game Coverage

If you can’t make it to Wanstead to watch the games, we will be providing regular updates via the Blackhawks Twitter and Facebook pages.

Keep up-to-date with the latest news, squad details and events with out new mobile app for iOS and Android:

  • App Store
  • Google Play Store

PREVIEW | Blackhawks ready for round two

03 Jun
Michael Dilley All News, Flag Football, Previews , , , , ,

The Blackhawks make the short journey to Aylesbury this Saturday (4th June) for their second round of BAFA Flag Southeastern Conference games.

The games are hosted by the Aylesbury Vale Spartans as well as the Blackhawks also feature Reading Knights, London Rebels and Bishop’s Stortford High Flyers

It will be the Blackhawks’ first games against the Rebels and the Knights, and also sees Wide Receiver Ross Sherratt and Cornerback PJ Pateman make their debuts for the team.

Speaking on behalf of the Blackhawks, Jed Parisi said:

We have been training hard since our last gameday, and with Coach Papworth’s help have been working to iron out the creases.

We have a bunch of new guys who have all added something to the team. The buzz is really good and we are focused on trying to bring in our first win of the season.

Schedule

The first game of the day is due to kick at 10am, and pairs the hosts with the Reading Knights. The full schedule for the day is:

  • Aylesbury Vale Spartans vs Reading Knights
  • Bedford Blackhawks vs London Rebels
  • Bedford Blackhawks vs Reading Knights
  • Bishop’s Stortford High Flyers vs Reading Knights
  • Bishop’s Stortford High Flyers vs London Rebels
  • Aylesbury Vale Spartans vs London Rebels
Directions

The games will take place on the Fairford Leys football pitches, Andrews Way, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire HP17 8QQ:

Game Coverage

If you can’t make it to Aylesbury to watch the games, we will be providing regular updates via the Blackhawks Twitter and Facebook pages.

Keep up-to-date with the latest news, squad details and events with out new mobile app for iOS and Android:

  • App Store
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PREVIEW | Blackhawks to make BAFA debut this weekend

12 May
Michael Dilley All News, Flag Football, Previews , , , , ,

The Blackhawks travel to East London this weekend for their first BAFA Flag Southeastern Conference games of the season.

The games, which take place on Saturday, are hosted by the Victoria Park Panthers and as well as the Blackhawks feature the West Essex Showboats and Aylesbury Vale Panthers.

The only previous encounter between the Blackhawks and any of the teams involved came during the Blackhawk Bowl in February, where the Spartans were victorious over the young ‘Hawks 32-0.

Wide Receivers Connor Stratford, Ryan Moulding and Ross Sherratt all make their debuts for the Blackhawks this weekend as does Cornerback Cody Hinton, and speaking on behalf of the team Jake Cooper says he can’t wait to get the season started:

Along with the rest of the squad I am itching to kick off our debut season in the BAFA Flag Leagues.

Having worked with the majority of the squad for around half a year I have a great deal of faith that this collaboration of players could in time become something incredibly special.

We have players on the roster who have natural ability in abundance, although this may not appear in the pre-season tournament scorelines.

The players have got their heads down and worked week in week out on the lessons learned during those tournaments, and although we are up against arguably the three leading teams in the division this weekend we are looking forward to the challenge.

Schedule

The first game of the day will kick off at 10am, and pairs the Blackhawks up against the hosts. The full schedule for the day is:

  • Victoria Park Panthers vs Bedford Blackhawks
  • West Essex Showboats vs Bedford Blackhawks
  • West Essex Showboats vs Victoria Park Panthers
  • Aylesbury Vale Spartans vs Bedford Blackhawks
  • Victoria Park Panthers vs Aylesbury Vale Spartans
Directions

The games will take place on the old section of Wanstead Flats: Harrow Road, E11 3QD:

Game Coverage

If you can’t make it to Wanstead to watch the games, we will be providing regular updates via the Blackhawks Twitter and Facebook pages.

Keep up-to-date with the latest news, squad details and events with out new mobile app for iOS and Android:

  • App Store
  • Google Play Store

Blackhawks 2016 Schedule Confirmed

24 Mar
Michael Dilley All News, Flag Football , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Blackhawks 2016 regular season schedule has been confirmed, and sees them kicking off against Victoria Park Panthers, West Essex Showboats and Aylesbury Vale Spartans on Saturday 14th May in a round of matches hosted by the Panthers.

They are followed up three sets of matches in June on Saturday 4th, 11th and 25th hosted by Aylesbury Vale Spartans, Victoria Park Panthers and Ware Wolves.

Then comes two rounds of matches hosted by the Blackhawks, on Saturday 2nd July featuring Aylesbury Vale Spartans, Chichester Sharks, , Bishop’s Stortford HighFlyers and London Barracuda, and on Saturday 16th July featuring the HighFlyers, Ware Wolves and Victoria Park.

The regular season is rounded off with games against Reading Lions and Solent Thrashers on Saturday 30th July, in a round of matches hosted by Aylesbury Vale Spartans that also feature Bishop’s Stortford.

The Blackhawks are back in training this Friday evening at Sandy Upper School. The session starts at 9pm, and is expected to cost around £4 per player. If you are interested in attending please get in touch either via Facebook, Twitter or the Contact Us page.

Bedford Blackhawks (Flag) 2016 Regular Season Schedule (hosts in brackets)
Saturday 14th May (Victoria Park Panthers)
  • vs Victoria Park Panthers
  • vs West Essex Showboats
  • vs Aylesbury Vale Spartans
Saturday 4th June (Aylesbury Vale Spartans)
  • vs London Rebels
  • vs Reading Knights
Saturday 11th June (Victoria Park Panthers)
  • vs West Essex Showboats
  • vs Aylesbury Vale Spartans
Saturday 25th June (Ware Wolves)
  • vs Bishop’s Stortford HighFlyers
  • vs Victoria Park Panthers
  • vs Ware Wolves
Saturday 2nd July (Bedford Blackhawks)
  • vs London Barracuda
  • vs Chichester Sharks
      • Saturday 16th July (Bedford Blackhawks)
      • vs Bishop’s Stortford HighFlyers
      • vs Ware Wolves
      Saturday 30th July (Aylesbury Vale Spartans)
      • vs Reading Lions
      • vs Solent Thrashers

      Kick off times for all games are to be confirmed.

      Keep up-to-date with the latest news, squad details and events with out new mobile app for iOS and Android:

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Gallery | 2016 Blackhawk Bowl

28 Feb
Michael Dilley All News, Flag Football , , , , , ,

Selection of photos from the 2016 Blackhawk Bowl, Saturday 27th February 2016.

All photos courtesy of JennaLou Photography. To view the full gallery, check out her album on Facebook.

Phantoms win Blackhawk Bowl

26 Feb
Michael Dilley All News, Flag Football , , , ,

The Northants Phantoms won the inaugural Blackhawk Bowl at Bedford International Athletics Stadium last weekend.

Action began with the Blackhawks facing up against the Phantoms. The young ‘Hawks managed to get two scores in the first half and lead at the halfway point, but after a couple of mistakes and some brilliantly constructed Phantoms drives saw Phantoms take the lead and the game 32-12.

The Blackhawks then faced-up against Northants Titans who demonstrated their experience with a confident victory. An excellent performance from the Spartans saw them see off the Titans, but it was the Phantoms who managed to maintain performance levels to beat the Spartans and tie with the Titans to clinch the trophy.

The final match of the day saw the Spartans overcome the Blackhawks to secure second place.

Speaking after the tournament, Jake Cooper said:

In terms of organisation I am delighted with how the day unfolded. It was a major milestone to play our first competitive football and I’d like to thank all who attended what we hope will become an annual event – I hope the day was enjoyable for all teams involved.

I am extremely happy with how the guys played and how they conducted themselves throughout. Obviously the tournament has exposed a number of areas in which we as a team need to develop and strengthen, but that is to be expected and we look forwarded to trying to address those issues and developing ahead of the Phantoms Charity Bowl on Saturday 27th.

Blackhawk Bowl Scores

Blackhawks 13-32 Phantoms
Blackhawks 0-37 Titans
Titans 13-21 Spartans
Spartans 20-24 Phantoms
Blackhawks 0-32 Spartans
Phantoms 19-19 Titans

Keep up-to-date with the latest news, squad details and events with out new mobile app for iOS and Android:

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Blackhawks to play in SEC North

Blackhawks
20 Feb
Michael Dilley All News, Flag Football , , , , , , , , ,

BAFA have confirmed that the Blackhawks will be playing in the South Eastern Conference (SEC) North Division for the 2016 season.

The newly-formed ‘Hawks will go up against Aylesbury Vale Spartans, Bishop’s Stortford HighFlyers, Victoria Park Panthers, Ware Wolves, West Essex Showboats and Westcliff Storm.

The season kicks off week commencing Monday 4th April, and the schedule will be released by BAFA this Tuesday, 23rd February.

The regional championships will be on 13th August for the south and 14th August for the north, and the date of the final itself is yet to be confirmed.

SEC North

Aylesbury Vale Spartans
Bedford Blackhawks
Bishop’s Stortford HighFlyers
Victoria Park Panthers
Ware Wolves
West Essex Showboats
Westcliff Storm

For further details on the 2016 alignment, including details of the play-off structure and tie-breakers, check out the full article on Pulling the Flag.

The Blackhawk Bowl Flag Tournament takes place this tomorrow (Sunday 21st February) at Bedford International Athletics Stadium, sponsored by Bul-1 Civil Engineering.

The tournament is the Blackhawks’ first taste of competitive action and sees them up against three other teams who are confirmed as attending:

– Aylesbury Vale Spartans
– Northants Phantoms
– Northants Titans

The first game is scheduled to kick-off at 9.30am, the tournament will run until around 2pm and there is free admission for all.

A trophy and medals will be up for grabs for the winning team, and a trophy will also be presented to the runners up.