2016 NAFC Season Review

By Jonathan Entwistle

The 2015/16 season concluded with a disappointing loss to Christchurch in the first annual South Island Flag Football match. For Shane and myself things stepped up from there personally; preparing, trailing and successfully making the New Zealand Makos flag football team. While the NAFC took a back seat for the offseason, we still received much support and help from the club and were able to promote Nelson as the Home of Flag Football. Having two NZ representatives from the (currently) small football community here isn’t a bad feat.

The 2016 IFAF Flag Football World Championships was held in Miami in September 2016. Shane and I as apart of the NZ makos, headed off to take on the worlds best in the tournament. We were highly competitive in every game and ended up coming 9th in the tournament. And also came home with the "Fair Play" team award. Though the final scores didnt reflect this, it was the oppositing teams experience at the international level, is what made the difference. So we certainly did New Zealand proud on the Global stage.​ (Results: Beat Japan 20-14, Lost to Israel 34-15, Lost to Panama 26-13, Lost to Austria 27-12, Lost to USA 46-28, Lost to Great Britain 33-19, Lost to Guatemala 45-39, Beat Korea 40-6)

The 20th of October 2016 saw the opening games of the first Nelson flag football tournament, the ‘Honey Bowl’. Three teams entered; Blue Thugz n Harmony, Green machine and The White Boyz. The tournament began in the pouring rain of mid-October, but displayed the bright future for football in Nelson. Over the next 8 weeks all the teams traded wins and losses, high scores and highlight reel plays. (Click Here for results)

Emerging as the minor premieres were Green Team, led by Captain Tyler McKinnon and Quarterback Ben MacManus. It was a roller-coaster of a season for Green Machine with some extremely memorable moments, including an “against all odds” comeback against The White Boys. Green Machine are a prefect display of the growth of a team during a season, and an ideal representation of our entire club’s growth as a whole. Veteran young-gun Hunter Lines and 2015 standout Simon Baxter led the Green Team receiving core and passed on their knowledge to some exciting new players including; Dexter Rego, Gary Jeffcott and Matt Quinn.

Blue Thugz n Harmony finished second on the table, losing their Captain and Quarterback early in the season to reffing duties. Honey Badgers veteran and strong-armed QB Carwyn Jones stepped in and led the boys on some of the most dramatic drives and electrifying aerial displays. Finding some standout talent in Centre Malcolm Mitchell and Wide Receiver Paul Savage were notable additions to the Badgers family, and displayed the raw talent Nelson has hiding out there. Veteran and defensive star Liam Doherty alongside top veterans Eli Reid and Jake Watson, helped pass on their knowledge to other fresh faces including Greg Anderson and Brody McDonald as well as Malcolm and Paul.

The White Boyz, led by myself at QB and Co-captain Dan Daly were joined by veteran Kevin Black to tame some fresh but exciting talent. An explosive offensive unit introduced receiving studs (and Waimea College sweethearts); Mitch Bateman, Tim Reay and Liam Baird. Returning playmaker Matt Spear was as versatile as advertised, and new additions Ben Newport and linebacking star Jordy Smith were the heart of the White Boyz defense.

The play-off race to a Nelson Flag Football Championship began with a tall order for the third place finishing White Boyz. In order to secure a semi-final game against the second place Blue Thugz, The White Boyz would first need to defeat both the Green machine and Blue Thugz in back-to-back wildcard games. With their backs up against the wall, some magic was worked and some players stepped up in a measure of degrees. A testament to team work and some good old-fashioned high scoring offensive playmakers, The White Boyz made it through the first order of their attempt to run the table. 

The semi-final match between the Blue Thugz and The White Boyz will forever be remembered in Nelson Football history as a spectacular. Fighting for the chance to play minor premieres Green Machine in the Honey Bowl final, everything was left on the field. The final 2 and half minutes of the game recorded 4 scoring drives paired with 4 lead changes. It came down to the wire, and ultimately Blue Thugz simply didn’t have enough time to drive the field and take the lead back in the ping-pong back and fourth of the final few minutes. Carwyn demonstrated time and again his arm strength and big play ability. Speedster Mitch Bateman was integral in many of the White Boyz scoring plays, and again demonstrated the talent Nelson has in its pocket. It was a spectacular game to play in, and a product of much hard work throughout the season.

Green Machine hosted The White Boyz in the Honey Bowl final, lead out onto the turf by Tyler and Ben. Trading scores early, Ben broke the offensive deadlock by picking off (me... Thanks Ben.) The White Boyz Quarterback. White Boyz fought back with some solid defensive stands, led by their season defensive MVP Jordy Smith. His presence in the middle of the field stifled Green Machines short-yardage game and helped The White Boyz build a lead going into the half.

The second half opened with another pair of scoring drives from each team, Tyler making huge plays for Green Machine on both sides of the ball and leading them through the diversity of missing key players. The White Boyz however proved to have too much offensive firepower and were able to hold onto their lead through to the final whistle.

Club President Shane Tinetti hosted the post-match ceremony, congratulating The White Boyz on the first flag football championship, and the other two teams on a fantastic season. I was lucky enough to be named Honey Bowl MVP, while Ben McManus was named season MVP for his standout performances and leadership. 

It was particularly special to be part of the first (of many!) official competition seasons in Nelson. For everyone who played, competed and helped make it a success, again a big thank you. The title defense this coming season will be fierce! ​​​​​​​