Some sports aren’t likely to leave you scarred – volleyball and netball are hardly filled with bone-crunching tackles. The opposite is true of American football; a sport so violent that to play without head-to-toe protection is to invite a concussion. In fact, even with helmets and shoulder-pads, NFL players suffer from a worrying number of injuries. This is a shame for people like us, who find American football to be a fascinating and tactically complex sport, but are rather attached to their spines and prefer their vital organs unruptured. Well, for the less gung-ho, there is a solution: flag football.
This sport takes the strategy and mechanics of American football, and removes the cringe-inducing contact. Unlike touch rugby, however, where a one or two handed ‘touch’ is sufficient to force a player to stop and the ball to be recycled – flag football replicates the importance and difficulty of a tackle in the American game by requiring players to wear flags around their waists which have to be removed by members of the opposite team.
What follows is like a high-velocity mix of tag, keep away and chess; and if that sounds fun in theory, trust us, it’s more fun in practice. It’s also a pretty intense work-out – the game is very stop-start, but when you play, you play with every single bit of energy you can muster.
Flag football is one of several sports played in Abu Dhabi which don’t get a great deal of publicity, but have devoted players and regular tournaments. The Duplays league is open to adult men and a new season is starting in January 2012. The league is open to ready-made teams, both corporate and private, as well as to individuals who can’t rustle up six or more friends to join in. The game is played between two teams of seven over two 22-minute halves. There are no studs or cleats allowed, but shallow turf shoes are fine and regular running shoes should provide enough traction.
The atmosphere is congenial, and regular players are eager to get newbies involved; the more the merrier.
The league is competitive but light-hearted, and people of all skill-levels are encouraged to take part. You can think of this game as being less serious than soccer or cricket, but more in-depth than ultimate frisbee. If this gets your flags flying make sure to sign up!
Games are played on Monday nights. Dhs300 to register as a free agent, Dhs3,000 to register as a team. More information and online registration at www.duplays.com.
Rules of the game
If you’ve never watched a game of American football, some of the rules and terminology can be a little daunting, but here are the basics.
End zone
This is the area at either end of the pitch that the attacking team needs to get the ball into in order to score a Touch Down.
Touchdown
This is scored by being in the end zone whilst having the ball in your possession; the most common form of point scoring in flag football, awarding six points.
Extra point
This is one way of converting a touchdown. The attacking team sets up five yards out from the end zone and attempts to get the ball across the line.
Two point conversion
This is the same principle as an extra point, only attempted from ten yards out. In the same way, if the ball is stopped, possession passes to the defending team.
Field goal
This is a way for the attacking team to get three points without scoring a touchdown. The ball can be drop-kicked or kicked from the ground from at least fifteen yards out.
Downs
The term for when the ball-carrier is stopped or the ball goes dead. The attacking team is allowed four downs between their end zone and the midfield, and four more between the midfield and the opposite end zone.
Blitz
This is when the defence rushes the quarterback when they expect a pass. This is allowed once every four downs. Risky since if the pass is successful the defence is out of position.
