By Tyler Arthur
The De Montfort University’s American football Falcons team lived up to their high-flying nickname by defeating their Manchester opponents with a record margin at the weekend.
The Falcons, who had endured a long and difficult season, managed to put up their 38 points from a combination of four offensive touchdowns, two defensive touchdowns and a two point conversion – the largest score the Falcons have ever won by.
Joe Bull, 20, a member of the Falcons’ committee, was fired up before the season closer.
“We had something to fight for. We had everything to prove!” he said.
‘Everything to prove’ is the mantra which the team chose for themselves for the season, after a rocky start.
“The whole team picked themselves up for this game and fought for the win,” Bull concluded.
The team travelled for three hours to the Manchester away game, but they did not let the long journey reduce their focus on the final game of the season.
The Falcons were so dominant that the ‘mercy rule’ was initiated – for the first time in the history of DMU’s programme.
The ‘mercy rule’ is a regulation by which if the score reaches a certain point – in American football it is 34 points, the clock (which is famously slow moving) becomes a rolling clock – and no stoppages or timeouts will stop it – to bring the game to an end sooner.
The Falcons, led by Quarterback Tom Proffitt, 22, broke the record in his fourth and final year – making this Tom’s last ever league game for the team.
“The win over MMU was easily the best performance from the team I’ve seen in my four seasons,” he said.
“And it was nice to see it come in a game which meant so much to me, and all of the other graduating players. It is a very positive parting memory with the Falcons.”
