Remembering the London Monarchs of 1991

My London Monarchs jersey.

Back in the late 1980s to early 1990s, Channel 4 showed a lot of sport, that the other channels (BBC and ITV) didn't show. This included Sumo (Chiyonofuji was one of the greatest exponents of the sport), Baseball and American Football. I would sit and watch the Sumo and American Football, with my mum, and soon I was hooked. My neighbour and friend, Colin, also started watching the baseball and American Football. 

Later, we both had our own baseball mitts, bat and ball and would often be outside seeing who could make the best catch, best pitch and longest hit.

We then discovered that the National Football League (NFL) was going to start a World League of American Football (WLAF), and that London would have its own team. This was great news to us, so we followed the story with interest.

Sure enough, in 1991, the World League launched with 10 teams; London Monarchs, Barcelona Dragons, Frankfurt Galaxy, New Jersey Knights, Orlando Thunder, Montreal Machine, Raleigh-Durham Skyhawks, Birmingham Fire, San Antonio Riders and the Sacramento Surge.

The London Monarchs would use the iconic Wembley Stadium as their home venue, while using the International University, Bushey, for their training. We were over the moon. We could easily cycle to Bushey to watch them train and Wembley was just a few stops along the Metropolitan line.

The London Monarchs were to play their home matches at the iconic Wembley Stadium, which would also be the venue for the first World Bowl at the end of the season. We then discovered that the London Monarchs would be using the International University, Bushey, as a training ground and that some of the players would occasionally pop into the Red Lion, Bushey, for the odd drink. 

The International University and the Red Lion pub were close enough for us to walk or cycle to, while Wembley Stadium was just a few stops along the Metropolitan line.

We caught the odd glimpse of Stan 'The Man' Gelbaugh (quarterback) and Jeff Alexander (running back), along with others as they trained, by peering through the fence of the International University. We also saw the London Monarchs cheerleaders, known as the Crown Jewels, practising their moves. Every time we visited the Red Lion, we missed the players, but the walls were slowly being covered by signed photographs of the players. (I shall have to go and see if any of the photographs are still up.)

Wembley Stadium: Saracens v Leinster & Alysha dancing with Tinie Tempah

Ready for Saracens v Leinster.

Saturday October 16, 2010.

The day started well, with me having a bit of a lie-in. Emma had gone to work and Alysha had stayed at a friends the night before, so I had the house to myself. Music on (Iron Maiden), coffee brewing and the day couldn't have started any better. 

I was really looking forward to going to Wembley to watch the Saracens take on Leinster. Also, Alysha was going to be dancing on the pitch at half-time with a 'rapper' named 'Tinie Tempah' and it would be Len's first Rugby match and his first visit to the new Wembley Stadium. (The old Stadium was opened in 1923 and was demolished in 2003. Arsenal played their European Games there from 1998 - 2000. The new Stadium was opened in 2007, over a year later than planned.) 

Len was due round at about 1 O'clock, which gave me ample time to work out what I was going to wear. It took me all of 0.086 seconds to decide on my Irish Rugby shirt. The Saracens are good but, the chance to see people like Shane Horgan, Gordon D'Arcy, Johnny Sexton and Brian O'Driscoll was why I was going to wear my Irish Jersey. 

Well, Len arrived just after Alysha left, (Alysha went with my mum and mum's friend, Soo) at about one-thirty, and we settled down to watch a bit of TV. You see, Film Four were showing the first 10 Star Trek feature films over the course of the weekend. (Five each day). Now, Len and myself like Star Trek so we started watching the first film. 

It wasn't until about two-thirty that we decided that we had better make a move, so we took a stroll to Watford Junction to catch our train. Our train left Watford Junction on time, at 15:21, and it didn't take long to get to Wembley Central.