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
1988 - IN
WITH THE BIG BOYS
Expectations were high that following our exceptional season, and in reaching
the Premier Bowl Final, we would be considered for inclusion into the National
Division for 1988. We did not have long to wait as the new league structure was
announced prior to the end of 1987, but the news was not welcomed by all. It was
announced that the National Division would be slimmed down from the previous
seasons 20 clubs to consist of what was considered to be the best 15 clubs
currently playing and would be split into three conferences. The Cougars, like
their conquerors in the Premier Bowl the Bobcats, had indeed been promoted but
the big shock was the relegation of five teams instead of the expected two.
New plans were also announced for the lower levels of the league, and
Budweiser's statement that they were looking for 'Quality rather than quantity'
probably on reflection did them more harm than good. Whilst it undoubtedly
stabilised the future of football at the highest level, it also had the effect
of negating the previous years work and once again Britain was to find itself
having numerous fledgling leagues rather than the one governing body which it
had hoped for.
For the Cougars the reality was that they were once more back where they really
should have been all along, and were to be faced with a mammoth 14 game regular
season (a decision which the governing bodies were later to reflect on as being
a mistake) plus hopefully, a play-off spot. Confidence was high, as it always is
prior to the season, but in truth the squad needed to be strengthened if the
Cougars were to make any impression in a tough Northern Conference which would
group them with the Glasgow Lions, Fylde Falcons and both the Spartans and
Allstars from Manchester.
The league allowed each team to have up to four
Americans on its roster, and the quality of these players would undoubtedly
increase a teams prospects of having a memorable season. Having weighed up all
the pro's and cons the Cougars had decided to bring over two Americans in order
to add strength as well as experience to the team. Brad Sper a Quarterback from
the semi-pro team Eastside Express in Cincinnati and Dan Moore a Linebacker -
also from Cincinnati with playing experience at Clemson, were the two signings.
The close season had seen the Cougars lose the services of Quarterback Glenn
Stevens, as the player had signed with conference rivals Fylde, and the signing
of Sper together with the acquisition of Adie Daniel from the Mansfield Express
gave us depth at the Quarterback slot. The defence would be tested by better
offences than the previous year and the experience of Dan Moore could be coupled
with the existing talents of the 'D' to produce an effective unit.
Preparations for the season did not go smoothly as both our planned pre-season
games against the Manchester Heroes and Leeds Cobras had to be cancelled, and a
training accident resulted in the premature retirement of popular Defensive Back
and Kicker Barry Crawley. All the news coming through indicated that our
American imports were settling down well and looking good, but what was really
needed was some actual game time.
The Cougars had been handed a Home start to the new campaign and had been paired
against the long established Northampton Stormbringers, who after a
disappointing 3 - 7 record the previous year could be considered as one of the
weaker sides and would be a good yardstick against which to measure our
expectations. One thing was for certain, the Cougars would not lack conviction as
they were determined to prove the experts, who had predicted them to finish
bottom of the conference, wrong.
Approaching half-time in the opening game and the experts looked to be right!
The Cougars were trailing by 20 points and had never looked like mounting a
serious challenge. Offensively they could not move the ball and were playing
three downs and punt whilst on defence they were performing little better.
Northants had taken the opening kick and driven downfield for the opening score
and they were moving the ball at will. Two more touchdowns followed and at 20-0 the Stormbringers were coasting when faced with a fourth down they decided to
punt. A poor snap and good penetration from the 'big men' resulted in the punt
being blocked and returned for a touchdown by Paul Muscroft. The Cougars had
their first points and the half-time break would give Coach Brogdon time to
analyse and adjust for the second half.
Suddenly we were watching a different team in the second half, a team that
believed it could win and they were setting about the task as best they could.
Lady Luck smiled on the Cougars when Tiggy Bell fumbled on a run only for the
ball to be recovered and advanced by Adie Daniel (playing at Tight End) for
another score. Northants responded with a 50 yard halfback option pass which
found American Quarterback Zuzek alone in the end zone, only for the Cougars to
reply with a drive capped with a 1 yard run by Paul Pryce.
Trailing by only 19 - 26 and entering the final quarter the Cougars turned the
ball over on a costly fumble which was capitalised on as the Stormbringers
Quarterback immediately fired in his third touchdown of the day. Their fight
back had run out of momentum and a further Northants touchdown late in the
quarter completed the scoring as they ran out winners by 39 - 19.
The Cougars had been surprised by the vast difference in class between National
and Premier Division football and one thing this defeat taught them was that
there were to be no 'easy' games as even the relatively weak sides were far more
experienced at this level than they were themselves.
Our second game was the long journey north to meet up with our old enemies the
Glasgow Lions, who like ourselves had lost out at Home on opening day. The
Lions, again like ourselves were fielding a team with experience at Quarterback
in the shape of Mike Hasskamp and this turned out to be the day he showed just
what he could do. Our defence began by coping well against the Lions running
game, but against the pass they found it difficult to penetrate the Lions
offensive line and were unable to sustain any pressure on the QB. Facing the
amount of time given Hasskamp opened with a 30 yard bullet for a 6 - 0 lead
early in the game.
The travelling fans were then warmed up with a couple of Cougar touchdowns from
running back Paul Pryce and they led briefly by 13 - 6. Those, unfortunately,
were to be their only points of the day as the Glasgow aerial display went to
work. A 58 yard catch and run caught the defence napping and was quickly followed
by an 8 yard dart for a 20 - 13 Lions lead at the halfway mark.
The Lions scored again on their opening drive of the second half with a 1 yard
Quarterback sneak and Hasskamp who finished the day with over 400 yards passing,
rounded off the scoring in the fourth quarter to leave the Cougars standing 0 -
2 for the season.
Two games played and two games lost but the only real difference between Leeds
and their opponents had been the contributions to the game made by the
oppositions Quarterbacks. The Cougars had played solid football for a team
that was, in effect, just learning its trade in a higher class of football and
but for the efforts of two men had matched their opponents for long periods of
each game.
The opposition Quarterback was again to play a vital factor in the Cougars next
two games, back to back fixtures against old rivals the Manchester Spartans, and
once again the Cougars were to finish up losers. The first game at Bramley was a
really dour defensive struggle, not the best kind of spectacle except for the
real connoisseurs, and a total of over 400 yards in penalties made the game hard
going even for them. Every time Leeds got their offence to fire on all cylinders
they were hauled back by a penalty flag. The Spartans were suffering a similar
fate but they had the cushion of a 14 - 0 lead built up in the first quarter
with a short yardage run and a 30 yard scoring pass. The scoring was completed
in the final period when Spartan QB Hazen Choates found the end-zone himself on
a 12 yard weaving run to leave the Spartans 21 - 0 victors.
Our visit to Manchester for the return was a much better game but despite a
bright start and sustained pressure, the Cougars were again to travel home empty
handed. Indeed leading 13 - 7 going into the second quarter through a 55 yard
pass to Sammy Pryce and a one yard Chuck Brogdon run the Cougars were looking
the better team. The Spartans then hauled themselves back with Choates
connecting with his target receiver for a 57 yard TD pass before Paul Pryce
restored the Cougars lead 21 - 14 on a short yardage run. The third quarter saw
the Spartans ride their luck as a poor pass was almost intercepted by the Cougar
secondary only to bounce straight into the hands of the grateful receiver, and
one play later the Spartans led 22 - 21.
Unable to move the ball the Cougars were forced to punt and a good kick pinned
the Spartans deep in their own half Good defensive work kept them there and only
a scramble by Choates kept them moving. The Leeds defence (as many others were
to do that season) were finding it difficult to lay hands on this man and many
times when he appeared to be caught he would wiggle free and off would go a
pass. The Spartans next score was such a play, as breaking free from the tackler
he swung out and let go a real bomb that finished 65 yards downfield for the
touchdown. This together with a final quarter field goal made the scoreline 31 -
21 to the Spartans.
And there we were at 0 - 4. The players were beginning to adapt to the higher
level of competition but a combination of tough opposition, penalties and Lady
Luck had meant the Cougars had lost four straight games for the first time in
their history and although spirits remained high a win was badly needed.
Just
the right time for the Allstars to arrive in town because although they had
played in the Bowl game the previous year they were nowhere near the same team
due to the walk-out of their American trio and were struggling with a 1-2
record. Now the Cougars did not need any motivating for this game as there
wasn't much love lost between the sides following events in 1985 but once again,
trailing by 19 - 0 midway into the third quarter, following a successful field
goal it appeared as if another defeat was on the cards. Leeds offence, which had
been completely shut down in the first half, suddenly came to life on the
ensuing kick off. The kick was returned 40 yards by return man Eddie Harry, and
having great field position the Cougars finished a short drive with a Paul Pryce
touchdown.
The crowd was alive and backing their team. Two quick fire rushing touchdowns by
Harry and Bell stunned the Allstars and although they regained the lead on a 40
yard pass and run, which was almost intercepted, the Cougars were not going to
be denied. Now in full control Leeds scored twice more, with the second coming
on a spectacular Sammy Pryce reverse, to register their first win of the season
by 38-26.
The win had
come just at the right time as our next game was to be the Premier Bowl re-match
with the Bobcats, and this was THE one which the players wanted to win. It
didn't matter that the Bobcats were 0 - 4 and we were 1 - 4, this was like a
championship game for both sides.
This game will be remembered for two main reasons. Firstly the game was covered
by local television and shown in a five minute slot on BBC Televisions 'Look
North' programme, the second and most significant being the now famous touchdown
that never was. Trailing 16 - 0 through touchdowns by Harry and Bell, the
Bournemouth side had rallied to 16 - 12 when the incident occurred as they drove
to the Cougar 5 yard line. Penalised five yards, they took the snap at the ten
and star rusher Dinham swept right to the five yard line. Thinking he was in the
end zone he threw the ball back over his shoulder for a stunned Dan Moore to
recover. The Bobcats protested. Oh how they protested, but the Cougars had the
ball and the Bobcats chance was gone. Dinham blamed the pitch markings saying
they were faint but as he was running into the corner, the end zone maker cones
would seem to dislodge this argument and I believe he simply forgot they had
been penalised and believed he had only 5 yards, not 10 as it actually was, to
go to the endzone.
So we were now a much healthier 2 - 4 and on a winning streak with confidence
visibly improving It would take a good team to beat us and the Cougars were sure
their next opponents would not be that team as they travelled for a tricky away
fixture against the Luton Flyers. This was the game that almost took place
without the growing band of Cougar travelling fans as the M1 roadworks resulted
in their late arrival but what they saw compensated for all the earlier
inconvenience. For the first time the Cougar offence 'clicked' with Brad Sper
having his best start of the season with two scoring strikes to Sammy Pryce. The
defensive unit kept the Cougars in front during a 'ding dong' second half which
saw the Flyers twice stopped when attempting to convert on fourth and inches,
and the recovery of a last minute onside kick preserved the Cougar lead for a 28
- 24 victory.
Our next two fixtures would give a measure of just how far we had progressed as
we were to lock heads with the London Olympians and the team upon whom they had
just inflicted their first ever defeat, the famous London Ravens. To continue
the winning streak against such a class of opposition would require almost
superhuman effort from the players, plus a maturity, and experience only gained
through regular exposure to this type of fixture. Well the Cougars certainly
could not be faulted on their efforts as they held the powerful Olympians to
just one score at the half, with some inspired defensive play and awesome
tackling. They then had the audacity to take the lead early in the third
quarter on a Tiggy Bell 7 yard run plus two-point conversion. At this point the
Cougars were on top and their opponents looked worried.
They were in one hell of
a game and needed to produce something quickly to regain their momentum, a
steady drive from the kick-off ending in a 39 yard run restored their confidence
and from that point they never looked back to run out 26 - 8 winners.
The Ravens game was a big disappointment not because of the result but because
of the Ravens themselves. They were human after all and despite a very biased
report of the game in the football press, they were fortunate to finish up
winners by such a convincing margin the final 26 - 6 scoreline. They didn't make
many friends that day and the supporters were left to wonder if their fans knew
the meaning of the word fun.
A threat to
call in the local constabulary if we continued with our 'we've got style' chant
due to it's bad language? could have spoiled the game had it not been so
laughable. Indeed the most threatening thing of the day was the constant ping,
ping of golf balls from the local driving range as they struck the back of our
stand. Boy, how they made us welcome that day.
A postponement to our scheduled game at the Allstars gave us two weeks to
reflect and prepare. Our 3 - 6 record was by no means great but it was a heck of
a lot better than it had been, and the Cougars now had the knowledge that they
could play with the best. Speaking of the best we were now due to move from
Bramley to allow re-seeding work and were to conclude our 'Home' games at the
vast natural bowl of Odsal Stadium, Bradford.
Two good attendances were recorded for the remaining two home fixtures, and the
spectators were treated to two closely contested games The first against the
Glasgow Lions going right down to the wire with the Cougars going for the
previously unheard of field goal in an attempt to break a 12 all tie with just
twenty seconds remaining in the game. Finger nails were being chewed as
Linebacker Glenn Stowe connected and the kick was on its way sailing through the
uprights to cheers of delight as the Cougars came from behind for a valuable
win. The second game against the Fylde Falcons unfortunately went the opposite
way as the Cougars trailed 12-0 approaching the half-time break A brave call
with seconds remaining resulted in a 16 yard Sper touchdown pass to Eddie Harry
which when converted left them very much in contention.
Unfortunately that was as close as they got as both defences, with the aid of
numerous penalty flags, prevented any second half touchdowns, although Leeds
came as close as the one foot line before being snuffed out Fylde added a second
half safety, by sacking Sper in the end zone, plus a late short yardage field
goal to extend the lead to nine points and then held on to register a 17 - 8
victory.
The return leg of our double header with the Falcons never lived up to
expectations as the Cougars were well and truly 'bombed out' by the Fylde attack
on the synthetic carpet at Deepdale Preston. Only trailing 13 - 0 at the half we
again looked to be in contention, but we were never in the hunt as the Falcons
romped to a 40 - 6 win, with our only, score coming on a 2 yard Sper keeper late
in the third quarter. Despite this reverse, we were amazingly, still in with a
chance of making the Play-offs as a wild card qualifier provided we could win
both our re-arranged game against the Allstars plus our last scheduled regular
season game against the Birmingham Bulls!
The win at Birmingham was never a real possibility as the 10 - 1 - 1 Bulls took
an early 7 - 0 lead before the Cougars only real threat fizzled out. Stopped on
the Bulls 1 yard line they attempted a field goal only for the ball to be kicked
along the ground to be returned the length of the field for a touchdown by the
grateful Bulls. The final score of 47 - 0 reflected the vast difference between
the sides as the Bulls marched on and the Cougars missed the Play-Off stage for
the first time in their history. The game against the Allstars finally took
place in early August and we completed the season with a typical end of season,
nothing to play for 22- 9 win to give us a respectable a 4-9 record. On
reflection, the Cougars would use this season as a learning experience upon
which to launch a serious challenge for the future. Their initial experience
with American imports had been fairly successful and a shopping list for the
next campaign would be a little more stringent in its selection criteria, it
would have to be. No team could afford to stand still as the British game was in
its ascendance and anyone left behind now would never catch up.