Flag Footballers fifth in the world

When a group of Preparatory School students were introduced to the new sport of flag football last year by teacher, Mason Shaw, they could never have imagined just six months later they would be representing New Zealand at the Flag Football World Championship in Orlando, Florida and finishing an incredible fifth place overall in the world.

“I’m super proud of the team. Although we only had a short time to prepare, the students listened, learnt, and worked so hard to pick up the game and understand their positions and assignments on the field,” says Mason “Making the quarter-finals at the world championships was an incredible moment, especially given there were only two school teams in the entire competition, which had mostly club teams with a few years’ experience.”

Flag football is variant of American gridiron football, where instead of tackling players, the defensive team must remove a flag belt from the ball carrier to end a down.

“There is no contact in flag football, minimal requirements in terms of gear, and it’s a mixed sport, which makes it ideal for children,” says Mason, who has been involved with American football in the Canterbury region for a few years.

“The NFL is giving the sport a big push with youth as it is going to be included in the Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028. They introduced a pilot flag football programme into the North Island a couple of years ago, and I asked if Christchurch could be included in the 2024 competition. We ended up winning our regional championships, and going on to the nationals, which we won too, giving us the opportunity to represent New Zealand in Orlando.”

The team’s six Preparatory School students, Jack Ellwood, Austen Fraser, Liam Gravley, Frank McHarg, Patrick O’Byrne and Mila Rule (all Year 8), and four Secondary School students, Levi Currie, Edward Park, Olivia Quane and Joshua Stewart (all Year 9), represented St Andrew’s with distinction. All flights, accommodation, and costs were met by the NFL, and the students arrived in Orlando to a ‘massive box of swag’ full of NFL team merchandise they could choose from.

During the world championship competition, the New Zealand (St Andrew’s) team lost their opening fixture to Panama 6–8, followed by a 0–21 loss to reigning world champions, Japan. The team bounced back with a 7–6 win over Brazil, placing them seventh out of the 13 teams heading into the elimination stages. A 7–6 overtime win over old foes, Australia, saw the team meet previous finalists Mexico in the quarter-finals, where their journey ended after Mexico secured a 28–0 victory.

The students had some other ‘cool experiences’ says Mason, including going to the Pro Bowl where they got up close to many of their favourite NFL players and did a haka for superstar, George Kittle, of the San Francisco 49ers.

“They even had their own media day, where Levi Currie and Olivia Quane sat in front of a few media outlets and featured in a USA Today story about kids getting involved in sport and having fun.”

Mason says he is very proud of the team’s work ethnic and the way the students portrayed themselves as both representatives of St Andrew’s and New Zealand.

“It’s been a fantastic experience for everyone and has inspired other St Andrew’s students to pursue the sport. There is definitely room for more children to get involved and we have a good lineup of students wanting to trial now.”