Many thanks to Stephen Mudd who is the Historian and Author of this excellent document originally produced by David and Doreen Sheppard in May 1994

1984 - How It All Began

In the beginning there was nothing! American Football was a virtual unknown in the British Isles, and any thoughts of playing the game were few and far between, generally confined to the US Forces. Nothing? well maybe that is a slight exaggeration, but for the vast audience of sporting fans, their only experience of Gridiron , as it was then referred to was the annual ten minute slot on ITV's `World of Sport`. Every February we would get Dickie Davies trying to explain to us the finer points as they ran a highlight film from the Super Bowl together with the odd snippet of College action if you were lucky. Hardly enough to launch the sport as a major force within the UK but enough to whet the appetite.

Gambling on the appeal of the American game, Channel 4 television introduced a wily dose of game highlights and suddenly awareness was high as viewers tuned in as they attempted to understand the finer points. Teams began to spring up throughout the length and breadth of the country as sports mad fans attempted to emulate their new-found heroes. The first recognised game of the modem era is generally accredited to the London Ravens as they took on the US Airbase at Chicksands in 1983, but the first actual game of American Football to take place on British soil was long before that You could be forgiven for thinking teams of Americans stationed here during the second world war would hold this record, or even as far back as the first world war, but no, you have to go back to 1910 for this distinction, as teams from the American battleships USS Georgia and USS Rhode Island played on Tuesday 14 December before a crown of 4500 at Northfleet in Kent.

As with a lot of the modem British teams the Cougars began in the most innocent fashion without any thoughts of taking to the field to play the game competitively. There are many stories as to just how the team actually got off the ground and it really depends on just who you happen to be talking to, but the generally accepted, and official club explanation seems to be the most plausible. With interest in the sport growing it was inevitable that people finding the sport exciting would congregate to discuss what they had witnessed on the weekly broadcast. Peter Haddon, Neil Lester, Andy Michaelson and Andy Rose were four such individuals and it was during one such discussion that the idea of forming an American Football Supporters Club was mentioned. Were these four the only ones with an interest in the new sport or was the interest more widespread? There was only one way to find out and an advertisement was placed in the Yorkshire Evening Post to try and locate any other interested parties and invite them to attend what was hoped to be a regular supporters meeting.

The designated evening arrived and the four waited with an air of expectancy at the Jester public house on Harrogate Road. With around fifty people turning up, their suspicions of a wide-spread interest were confirmed and they began a meeting which they hoped would see the birth of a local NFL Supporters Club. The conversation that evening must have been very influential because at some point in the meeting the interest began to shift away from supporting as it was decided that the fifty or so in attendance would be sufficient to start up their own team.

Now knowledge of the finer points concerning the game were not widely known and initial training sessions would concentrate mainly on teaching the very basic elements of the game as explained by Pete Simpson who had just returned from trials with the Houston Oilers. Training began on King Alfred's Playing Fields, Stonegate Road as the newly converted supporters began to get acquainted with just what they had let themselves in for With a message for anyone who was big or ex-rugby to come along, the team were soon sorting through the many prospective players in the hope of finding suitable talent , however training in the cold wet weather was one certain method of sorting the wheat from the chaff.

Training was all well and good, but just what were the team training for? There just had to be more to the new team than getting 'seven bells knocked out of you' in a training session! Fortunately the interest had been much more widespread than the local area and teams were beginning to spring up all over the country and all had the same aim , to play competitive football. The country already had a handful of established teams such as the London Ravens, Milton Keynes Bucks and Northampton Stormbringers, and they were already involved in playing, proving it could be done. The idea of a controlled, organised League was already being talked about but with so many teams of varying standards it was almost impossible to formulate a competitive structure at this early stage. For the immediate future it was therefore decided to concentrate on friendly fixtures and an unofficial league table based on the results.

Back in Leeds, and with the training in full swing, it was decided to approach the local American Base at Menwith Hill in the hope that experienced personnel would be willing to help out and assist. And so it was that Drew Roberts arrived on the scene, little knowing that he would be the man to stamp his influence on the new team and become their first ever coach. Just what he thought when arriving at his first training session is not on record, but he proceeded to show a great deal of patience and not inconsiderable humour as he set about teaching the game to a group of enthusiastic novices.

A few months later and the Cougars had progressed to the stage where they felt they were ready to engage in combat and so arrangements were made to play against the longer established Manchester Spartans. With Drew Roberts at the helm, They tried to establish an air attack which would, in the fullness of time, prove to be the hallmark of the early Cougar sides. However, in the first game against the Spartans he never got the chance to show how effective the attack could be, he ended up in hospital with a dislocated shoulder after only one quarter! Now without their spiritual leader and against a more experienced Spartan side the Cougars could not realistically expect to gain a win in their opening Fixture The fact that they battled to the very end before finally being beaten by a respectable 26 - 7 scoreline suggested that they had the correct attitude towards the game and would soon be registering that all important first victory

Their second run-out was an exhibition game against the Dorset Broncos as part of the Roundhay Park Gala in a match-up the Cougars hoped would bring the excitement and thrill of Gridiron to the large captive crowd. Remember this was the time when the average person in the street knew little about the game, indeed some believed all you needed was an old crash helmet a few pads and a distinct lack of grey matter to take part and therefore any publicity would hopefully educate and help create new fans.

The timescale allowed for the game would suggest a typical exhibition scrimmage played with a running clock and a final score of 6 - 6 ensured both sets of players plus the watching crowds went home happy that evening.

With the aerial game continuing to develop under the passing skills of American high school trained Quarterback Glenn Stevens, and the spectacular receivership of a young and nimble Sammy Pryce, the team appeared to be advancing in the right direction. A visit to the Milton Keynes Bowl, to fulfil a fixture against the very active Bucks, would show just how far the Leeds game had developed as the home side had already played eleven times to produce a very impressive 9 - 1- 1 record. They were a very well drilled and disciplined unit which wasted no time at all in racing into a 12 - 0 first quarter lead. Match practice was obviously beginning to separate the teams as the Bucks controlled the rest of the first half to take the break with a 26 - 0 cushion. The Cougars came out for the second half in a more determined mood to hold the third quarter scoreless before two Stevens to Pryce connections brought a little respectability to the result in the final period. A 32-12 defeat would be looked upon as a major step forward as the Bucks had shut-out four of their previous opponents and all that was needed now was that first win!

Interest in the new phenomenon was now growing with the number of teams kitting up increasing week by week. Games were now being played on a more regular basis as the teams began to establish themselves in front of ever increasing crowds with the Gridiron Bug beginning to bite hard. The increase in games was however creating problems elsewhere as the referees association (BAFRA) were forced to step up their recruitment drive for new members in order to satisfy the demand for officials. The majority of officials were US Air Force officials, but unless their numbers were increased substantially by 'home based Rookies' there would be no way they could cover all games. Fortunately, as with the players, there were plenty of people willing to try their hand and suddenly the numbers of officials in training was on the increase, to leave the future looking good.

With such a growth in the game it was almost inevitable that the media would quickly seize upon the opportunity and introduce a regular publication which in turn would hopefully help to generate more local interest as the television fans became aware of local sides. And so it was with many Cougar fans who read of their local side in the new publication, Gridiron, and decided to check out the action at one of their next Home games, Those Home games were to be the ones which eventually allowed the Cougars to turn the corner, as after turning in performances which were improving with every game, they managed to record their first success with a 27 - 12 victory over the Flyde Falcons. The first win was quickly followed up with a repeat dose as the game against Glasgow Lions for the Cougar Challenge Cup , in front of over 1300 fanatical supporters, ended in a 20 - 6 Cougar victory and was the big win which would motivate the team towards their 1985 League season.

With one further game played before the end of the year, a 26 - 18 defeat away to the Tyneside Trojans , the Cougars had tasted both success and defeat as they strove towards establishing American Football in West Yorkshire. They had begun to develop a style of play which they hoped would allow them to compete with the best and establish them as a team to be respected wherever they went. They had attracted a large and dedicated following and were now looking to develop even further as they headed towards competitive League encounters for the first time.

It was a long way in a very short time, but the Cougar story had really just begun, there was a lot more till to be revealed.