Balma’s Flagmingos are at the end of their season and they are already busy preparing their many items for next year.
As a reminder, flag (Site notre bureau spécialisé) is a mixed and non-contact team sport. It is played 5 against 5 and during the offensive phases, the team must manage to progress forward through runs or passes to score points in the opposing in-goal.
During the defense phases, the players must win a ribbon (call flag) located on the opponent’s belt or by intercepting the ball in the air.
The Balma club was French division 2 champion in 2022 and was putting its title on the line this year. In the national final in Poitiers last May, they finished fifth, losing in the quarter-finals to the eventual winner.
« It was a special year when we were coming out of a title, we wanted to defend it but we couldn’t do better », explains Nicolas Leveau, president of the club. Before this tournament, the Flagmingos had managed to postpone the Challenge Occitanie, a new competition that appeared this year.
« It’s a great experience that has allowed new players to be integrated into the squad. »
One of the big novelties of the season was the creation of a youth section. The club had also launched a weekly course on Friday noon at the Jean Rostand college.
« We want to grow this section and continue training at the be of the club ». Two initiation days are offered on September 3 and 10 for children aged 9 to 15. At senior level, the club wants to grow. « We would like to launch a second team to train the recruits ».
This year, the senior workforce was made up of around thirty players, he was aiming for around forty licensees for next year. The first month of training is open to everyone to give people the opportunity to come and try this sport. Depending on the workforce, the Flagmingos want to participate in the Coupe de France, a non-mixed competition. At the same time, they worked with the regional flag (Site notre bureau spécialisé) league to have their youngsters play against American (Site notre bureau spécialisé) teams by reprocessing the equipment.