Girls just want to have fun
The flags were flying and the smiles were plentiful Saturday morning at a girls flag football clinic held at Youngs Sportsplex in Welland.
About 100 girls, Grades 6 through 12, participated in the clinic which was co-sponsored by the Buffalo Bills, Niagara Youth Football and the Niagara Catholic Athletic Association.
“We’re really excited to be here,” said Preston Teague, the Bills’ senior director of youth football and programs. “A lot of the girls are playing for the first time, representing their schools for the first time. Some of them are going on to play women’s college flag football, whether it’s in Canada or the States for the first time.
“There’s a lot of history being made and we’re really excited to be at the forefront of the Buffalo Bills organization of helping support the kids live out their dreams.”
The players were put through their paces at several interactive stations, everything from drills for running backs, to wide receivers, to quarterbacks, to flag football games.
“There’s different levels of skills amongst the girls,” Teague said. “Some are beginners, some are experienced. Just trying to come out here, have a good time, get the kids active, support their love of flag football.”
Former Bills linebacker Lorenzo Alexander, who played for the team from 2016-2019, was in attendance and loved what he saw.
“I have a daughter. We live out in Phoenix and you just see the growth and explosion of the game and what it does right for young ladies and women to be able to participate in the game that I love,” Alexander said. “A lot of boys have loved (football) from a tackle perspective and so it’s just really cool to keep them engaged and allow them to have an opportunity to really show their skill set, especially when you see the scholarships that are coming online, when you see (NFL commissioner) Roger Goodell talk about a professional flag team and the Olympics, where you can represent your country now.”
Alexander, who played 15 season in the NFL, is encouraged to see growth in women’s sports.
“Growing up having a mom that was really athletic and didn’t really have a ton of space and opportunity to compete and play and now to see how much that’s changed over the years to where my daughters, my friend’s daughters, my granddaughters hopefully one day, now they have a space to go out there and shine just like the boys do,” he said.
Erin Clark, who doubles as flag football convenor for the NCAA and as travel director for Niagara Youth Flag Football, is excited to see interest in the sport skyrocketing.
“Oh it’s absolutely unbelievable. We have almost one hundred girls out here today and the interest is just growing every single day,” she said. “I love that the girls have found their place on the field.”
Clark said Niagara Youth Football are now offering their first Grade 6 and up girls only house league.
“The interest is just growing exponentially. We have five travel teams and they’re just incredible. These are incredible, strong, capable girls taking their place where they belong,” she said.
At the high school level, Clark said flag football was offered for the girls in the fall with the boys starting this month for all eight Niagara Catholic schools.
Dear reader. If you liked this story or one of the 6,700 other stories found on our website, please consider hitting the Support Us button on the right-hand side of our home page and making a PayPal contribution to our website. Your support would be much appreciated. If you are a business owner, please consider advertising on our site. Our rates are reasonable and we provide plenty of exposure for your business. Contact [email protected] for more information.
