Young Pirates scythe through Britain’s best
EK side scrape into tournament... then triumph in it
East Kilbride Pirates’ under-17s have been crowned the best of British.
The town’s American football team came out on top at the Britbowl final in Derby on Sunday, defeating Chorley Buccaneers 51-22 to lift the trophy.
Pirates battled it out with the top seven teams in Britain and their club chair, Amanda McDonald, has described the victory as “A Cinderella story.”
The team managed to sneak into the event on a wildcard – and then claimed some big scalps on the road to glory.
Youngsters from East Kilbride Pirates pulled off quite the shock at the weekend after they went from wildcard entry to U17 Britbowl champions.
The squad were crowned the best of British in Derby as they beat Chorley Buccaneers 51-22 in the final.
Pirates managed to sneak into the tournament by virtue of being the bestsecond place team in their conference, but they were punching above their weight as early as the first round as they knocked out number one seeds Kent Exiles, winning 26-14.
Another scalp followed when they disposed of Leeds Academy Assassins 27-13 in the semi-finals, securing their place in a third consecutive U17 final.
In the searing heat the Pirates managed to save their most dominant display until last, as they bossed the Buccaneers, racing into a 27-13 lead at the break.
Logan Gallagher led the Pirates offence to score after score, while Matt and Greg Black also found the endzone repeatedly.
Their displays along with contributions from a number of EK natives — including Jordan McSorley, Colin McIntyre, Ryan Griffiths, Robbie Lunn, Hayden Van Henten and Sandy Lever – helped Pirates post the biggest score of the day, as they ran out 51-22 winners.
Pirates chair Amanda McDonald was overjoyed for the young side.
She said: “This really was a bit of a Cinderella story — we were the ‘wildcard’ entrant to the National Finals for being the best second placed team in the seven National youth conferences, but everything just went right on the day.
“Before we knew it, we were competing in our third consecutive U17 National Finals game.
“All of our players and coaches gave it everything, and due to our great depth and talent across the squad, we were able to stay the course over the day and come home with the title.”
The trophy triumph is some welcome good news for the Pirates after their senior side were relegated last month and this would suggest the club have a bright future ahead.
Amanda added: “The fabulous support of all our team, parents and family members, many of whom came to cheer the squad on, was a huge boost.
“A lot of credit must go to head coach Jim Dorman, whose experience, energy and passion has taken us to a fifth consecutive youth Britbowl appearance overall and second national title.”