Leeds Bobcats
| Founded | 2008 |
|---|---|
| League | BAFA National Leagues |
| Division | NFC North 1 |
| Location | Leeds, West Yorkshire |
| Stadium | West Leeds RUFC |
| Colours |
Gold Helmets White, Navy & Gold Jerseys White & Navy Pants |
| Head coach | Miles Stanford |
| General manager | John Sewell |
| Division titles | 2016, 2017 |
| Playoff berths | 2016, 2017 |
The Leeds Bobcats are a British American football team based in Leeds, West Yorkshire who play in the BAFA NFC 2. The club was formed in 2008 as a youth football team following ties with the Celina Bobcats from Texas. A Bobcats senior team began playing associate Football from 2011 onwards until being granted BAFA status in 2014 in order to debut in the 2015 season. The cub has since grown from strength to strength from then onwards making it to the playoffs in their second season.
History
Early history
In 2008 members of the Leeds American Football team youth squad were invited to Texas by the Celina Bobcats, who were the Division Three All Star State Champions, following tuition and guidance to form their own team back in England, the Leeds Bobcats were born. In 2010, the Bobcats Youth team won its first trophy after defeating the Colchester Gladiators in the final of a 5 team tournament. Several members of the Bobcats juniors went on to represent Great Britain at youth level and in 2011 the majority of the team progressed to senior level and the Bobcats became a Senior associate team.[1] In 2017, former Running Back and Special Teams Coach, Miles Stanford was to replace Paul Goodward as Head Coach as he vacated the position after a very successful tenure.[2]
Debut Season
In 2014, the Bobcats were granted BAFA status in order to debut in the 2015 season. The club were entered into the BAFA NFC South 2 along with the Lincolnshire Bombers, Leicester Falcons, Sandwell Steelers, Humber Warhawks and the Peterborough Saxons. The Bobcats debuted in a 54-0 defeat by Sandwell and would only record two victories over Humber in their first season, although the club heavily improved from a poor start and came close to beating both Peterborough and Leicester.
Home ground
The club is based at West Leeds RUFC, Blue Hill Lane, Leeds, LS12 4NZ.
Team Records
| Year | Div | Conf | W | L | T | PFor | PAgt | PApg | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 2 | South | 2 | 8 | 0 | 193 | 315 | 31.5 | 0.20 |
| 2016 | 2 | West | 9 | 1 | 0 | 368 | 131 | 13.1 | 0.90 |
| 2017 | 2 | Central | 10 | 0 | 0 | 437 | 111 | 11.1 | 1.00 |
| 2018 | 1 | North | 0 | 9 | 0 | 54 | 346 | 34.6 | 0.00 |
Fixtures/Results
2015
| Date | H/A | Teams | Result | W/L |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 05/04/15 | A | Sandwell Steelers v Leeds Bobcats | 44-00 | L |
| 26/04/15 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Sandwell Steelers | 06-57 | L |
| 03/05/15 | A | Humber Warhawks v Leeds Bobcats | 16-52 | W |
| 17/05/15 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Lincolnshire Bombers | 26-40 | L |
| 24/05/15 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Leicester Falcons | 07-27 | L |
| 21/06/15 | A | Peterborough Saxons v Leeds Bobcats | 40-13 | L |
| 28/06/15 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Peterborough Saxons | 16-28 | L |
| 05/07/15 | A | Lincolnshire Bombers v Leeds Bobcats | 27-15 | L |
| 19/07/15 | A | Leicester Falcons v Leeds Bobcats | 36-13 | L |
| 02/08/15 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Humber Warhawks | 46-00 | W |
2016
| Date | H/A | Team | Result | W/L |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10/04/16 | A | Chester Romans v Leeds Bobcats | 25-34 | W |
| 17/04/16 | A | Halton Spartans v Leeds Bobcats | 08-26 | W |
| 24/04/16 | A | Walney Terriers v Leeds Bobcats | 06-26 | W |
| 22/05/16 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Crewe Railroaders | 72-07 | W |
| 05/06/16 | A | Walney Terriers v Leeds Bobcats | 00-40 | W |
| 19/06/16 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Crewe Railroaders | 01-FF | W |
| 03/07/16 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Chester Romans | 38-41 | L |
| 10/07/16 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Walney Terriers | 42-03 | W |
| 24/07/16 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Halton Spartans | 46-12 | W |
| 14/08/16 | A | Crewe Railroaders v Leeds Bobcats | 29-44 | W |
| 21/08/16 | H | (P-QF) Leeds Bobcats v Shropshire Revolution | 52-21 | W |
| 28/08/16 | A | (P-SF) Newcastle Vikings v Leeds Bobcats | 51-14 | L |
2017
| Date | H/A | Team | Result | W/L |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30/04/17 | A | Northumberland Lightning v Leeds Bobcats | 00-46 | W |
| 07/05/17 | A | Carlisle Sentinels v Leeds Bobcats | 06-18 | W |
| 14/05/17 | A | Walney Terriers v Leeds Bobcats | 00-32 | W |
| 21/05/17 | A | Knottingley Raiders v Leeds Bobcats | 06-62 | W |
| 04/06/17 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Walney Terriers | 62-12 | W |
| 11/06/17 | A | Morecambe Bay Storm v Leeds Bobcats | 26-44 | W |
| 25/06/17 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Carlisle Sentinels | 52-07 | W |
| 16/07/17 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Morecambe Bay Storm | 66-08 | W |
| 30/07/17 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Knottingley Raiders | 01-00 | W |
| 13/08/17 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Gateshead Senators | 54-46 | W |
| 20/08/17 | H | (P-QF) Leeds Bobcats v Staffordshire Surge | 52-08 | W |
| 27/08/17 | H | (P-SF) Leeds Bobcats v Glasgow Tigers | 20-38 | L |
2018
| Date | H/A | Team | Result | W/L |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14/04/18 | A | Yorkshire Rams v Leeds Bobcats | 31-0 | L |
| 06/05/18 | A | Glasgow Tigers v Leeds Bobcats | 21-6 | L |
| 03/06/18 | A | Lancashire Wolverines v Leeds Bobcats | 49-12 | L |
| 10/06/18 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Glasgow Tigers | 16-20 | L |
| 17/06/18 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Lancashire Wolverines | 0-58 | L |
| 01/07/18 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Gateshead Senators | - | |
| 08/07/18 | A | Northumberland Vikings v Leeds Bobcats | - | |
| 15/07/18 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Yorkshire Rams | - | |
| 22/07/18 | H | Leeds Bobcats v Northumberland Vikings | - | |
| 05/08/18 | A | Gateshead Senators v Leeds Bobcats | - |