Heading overseas to undertake a preseason tour is common in many sports. Household name soccer clubs from across Europe are currently fine tuning their skills across multiple contents before the new season begins.
The practice is less common in flag football, but the Great Britain women’s team took the unusual step of traveling across the pond to the United States for a final minicamp before the road to Chengdu takes them to The World Games in China.
Head coach Jack Reed welcomed his squad to his home state of Massachusetts and his alma Mata Dean College to begin an intense four-day visit.
The reigning European champions took advantage of the regular student’s summer break by staying in dorms at a vacant Dean College, and as the only guests on campus hit the practice field and worked with a nutritionist and a chef to prepare their meals.
The second day of the visit saw practice switch to Reed’s hometown of Leominster, followed by a series of warmup games against the Leominster Flag Football League U17 boys’ team, which includes a quarterback committed to Division I college football, at Crocker Field in Fitchburg.
To round off a busy first full day, the Lionesses enjoyed a team bonding dinner at the Il Camino Italian restaurant, which is owned by the Daigneault family of Mark Daigneault, the head coach of the NBA Oklahoma City Thunder.
The squad entered competitive tournaments, first winning the Summer Lift Off six-team competition in Cambridge and the Flag Football Life We Run the World tournament in Leominster. Quarterback Jess Allen, who will lead Great Britain from under center in Chengdu, was named MVP.
There was time for the 12 players who will represent Great Britain at The World Games to have lunch in Boston and visit the Patriots Place restaurant and shopping complex in Foxborough beside the Patriots’ Gillette Stadium home.
“It was a well-executed trip,” said coach Reed. “Aside from the promising signs we saw on the field, there was constructive downtime, such as a campfire session one night where everyone got to talk about the team’s culture and values.
“It was a great combination of practice, video sessions, scrimmages and games that provided us with some competitive football. We learned how to win some close games and one in overtime was key to what we were looking to achieve.
“We really came together as a team and we wanted to have an extended camp rather than the two days we usually have together when we meet up in England.”
Reed has added an international flavor of coaches to his sideline team. Panamanian Marki Ostrander has been named defensive coordinator, with Reed handling the offensive duties. Brits Fraser Thomson and Andrew Mathers will serve as assistant defensive coordinator and receivers coach respectively. Paul Manera, who led Australia to the silver medal at the 2023 IFAF Asia-Oceania continental championships, is the team’s offensive Assistant coach and scouting lead. Video coordinator Ieuan Tucker and team manager Ellie Tracis complete the GB backroom staff.
Great Britain will be the earliest arrivals in Chengdu as they plan to hold a mini camp in the city and attend the Opening Ceremony of The World Games before taking on reigning champions Mexico, the third-ranked team in the world Japan and Italy in Group B.
First time entrants at The World Games, GB lost a heartbreaker to Japan when they last met at the IFAF Flag Football World Championships in Finland, suffering knockout round defeat when a pass fell incomplete on the last play of the game. The fifth-ranked nation in the IFAF Flag Football World Rankings beat Italy 28-12 in Finland to claim seventh place overall.
In Limerick in 2023, Great Britain were crowned European champions, posting an 8-1 record, beating Italy, Denmark, Finland, France (twice), Sweden, and Ukraine on the way to a 26-19 final victory over Spain.
Player to Watch: QB Jess Allen
Head Coach: Jack Reed, 1st Year
World Ranking: 5th
Form (last 5 games): W vs ITA / L vs CAN / L vs JPN / W vs SUI / W vs PAN
2024 World Championships: 7th 2023 European Continentals: 1st 2022 The World Games: Did not qualify 2021 World Championships: Did not enter
