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 Towards the end of the 1997 season, the WLAF was starting to re-evaluate
the team's situation in its market, believing that the return to London had not been as big a success as hoped. In conjunction
with general manager Alton Byrd, the team was rebranded the England
Monarchs and travelled the country, playing home games at the Crystal Palace National
Sports Centre, Ashton Gate (home of
Bristol City F.C.) and Alexander Stadium, an athletics stadium in Birmingham - another step
down in the size and quality of the stadiums used. This venture divided opinion dramatically amongst the Monarchs support
and rather than increase interest in the team, attendances slumped to an average of 5,944. The announcement at the end of
the 1998 season that the league would add a new team, the Berlin Thunder,
led to weeks of speculation that either one of the existing teams would be shut down, or that the Monarchs and Claymores would
be amalgamated into a single British team. Confirmation that the Monarchs were to close down came in July that year. Like other WLAF/NFL Europe teams, most of the Monarchs' players were young American "developmental"
players assigned from teams in the National Football League. The
league paid these players' salaries, as well of that of the coaches, who tended also to be Americans, though there were exceptions
- in the early Monarchs Walter McKone, D.O. was a team osteopath and Stewart Parkinson a team manager. A few players of European
extraction also participated, primarily as kicking specialists, although league rules required the participation of at least
one player of European extraction on every other series of four downs. The league's points leader in 1991 was Phil Alexander, kicker with the Monarchs, who is currently Managing Director
of Crystal Palace football club. One exception to the "kicker
phenomenon" was Victor Ebubedike (later Victor X Ebubedike,
and later still Victor Muhammad) who played as running back for the Monarchs for a number of years, and who became the first
European to score a touchdown (versus the Orlando Thunder) in 1991. Notable players for the Monarchs included Stan Gelbaugh, William Perry,
Obafemi Ayanbadejo, Steve "Hollywood" Brooks, Tim Simpson,
and Brad Johnson, a quarterback who would go on to win Super Bowl XXXVII with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Also of note was Dedrick Dodge, a special teams
maven, who went on to win a number of Super Bowl rings with teams
including the Denver Broncos. Notable British players include Marc
'Big Bird' Cohen, one of the best European WR of his time. He is currently terrorising defenses for the Coventry
Cassidy Jets in the BAFL Premier division
and the EFL.\ (wikipedia.org) June 24, 1998 The NFLE suspends operations of the England Monarchs and announces that
the league will remain with six teams in 1999.
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| Coach Lionel Taylor in 1997 |
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| Coach Lionel Taylor as a player in the NFL |
Lionel Thomas Taylor (born August
15, 1935, in Kansas City, Missouri) is an American former collegiate and Professional Football wide receiver
who led the American Football League (AFL) in receptions each year for the first six years of the league's existence. College footballTaylor attended New Mexico Highlands University, where he had starred in
basketball and track, earning all-conference wide receiver honors in 1956 and 1957. Professional
footballTaylor first played eight games with the Chicago Bears of the National Football League(NFL) before
moving to the Denver Broncos of the AFL for the 1960 season. Second in all-time receptions (543) for the Denver Broncos and
their all-time leading receiver in yardage (6,872), Taylor was the Broncos' team MVP in 1963, 1964 and 1965, and an AFL All-Star
in 1960, 1961, 1962 and 1965. Taylor was the first professional football receiver ever to make 100 catches in a single
season, accomplishing the feat in only 14 games (1961). He had four seasons with over 1,000 yards receiving, and averaged
84.7 catches per year from 1960 to 1965, then the highest six-year total in professional football history.
Taylor completed his career with the Houston Oilers in 1967 and 1968. Professional
Coaching Taylor was on the Pittsburgh
Steelers’ staff in the mid-1970s as a part of two Super Bowl winners By the late ’70s, Taylor was offensive coordinator
for the Los Angeles Rams, while Chuck Noll’s Steelers had procured a former college quarterback was trying to make the
conversion to pro safety. That young player’s name? Tony Dungy. Taylor was the Rams’
offensive coordinator in Super Bowl XIV, but two years later, he was dismissed, having never had the chance to interview for
an NFL head-coaching position. Eventually, Taylor would become a pro head coach … but had
to do so across the Atlantic Ocean, for the England Monarchs of NFL Europe. Nevertheless, his sideline legacy became clear
late Sunday night … and it’s one at least as noteworthy as the on-field kudos he earned with the Broncos in becoming
the franchise’s leading receiver and establishing standards that wouldn’t be surpassed for three decades. http://blog.denverbroncos.com/tag/lionel-taylor/ & www.wikipedia.org Location: London, England
Stadium: London Crystal Palace Athletics Arena (23,000),
Bristol Ashton Gate Stadium (20,000), Birmingham Alexander Stadium (15,000) 1998
Owner: Jon Smith
General Manager: Alton Byrd (1997-1998) The final game
of the 1997 season saw Taylor reappointed as head coach for the following year. The off-season was a momentous one in the
franchise's history with the name being changed to 'England Monarchs' in October. It was also announced that the team would
play at three different home venues in 1998 - three games at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre (south London), one at
Ashton Gate Stadium (Bristol) and another at Alexander Stadium (Birmingham). Team Name:
Previously
known as London, the franchise became 'England' in October 1997. Great Britain's monarchy is a vibrant part of the nation's
heritage, and London is the traditional home of the king and queen. All the members of the royal family are celebrities as
well as political and historical figures. 1998 Home Grounds Crystal Palace National
Sports Centre,
Ledrington Road,
London, SE19 2BL.
Three home games have been played at the Crystal
Palace National Sports Centre inside their main athletics area. The capacity is 23,000 and over the years this ground has
seen many great achievements in British athletics. Watch out for the huge power party which will be held in the grounds of
the complex.
The Monarchs are very familiar with the venue, having lived and trained in the grounds for the past two
seasons. It‘s not the first time that gridiron has been staged at Crystal Palace, several British amateur finals have
been held there over the last 10 years.
Bristol City FC,
Ashton Gate Stadium,
Bristol, BS1 4QF. Ashton
Gate is the home of Bristol City FC and had a capacity of 20,000 for their Monarchs game. It was the first time that an American
football game had been staged here.
Alexander Stadium,
Stadium Way,
Off Walsall Road,
Perry Barr,
Birmingham,
B42 2LR.
www.hworth.net/nflel/hist_monarchs.html
The 1998 England Monarchs Uniform The 1998 England Monarchs uniforms were about as simple as you can get. The second generation
of the WLAF saw the London Monarchs with very colorful uniforms with the "crown" log prominent on the jersey.
In 1997, the Monarchs reverted back to their original jersey-look from 1991-1992. When the league changed its name to
NFL Europe, the WLAF look went away and the simple uniforms took their place. The Monarchs new jerseys were red (home)
and white (away). They were made by Champion and had a logo patch on each sleeve. Lender's Bagels was the sponsor
and there was a patch sewn on the left chest. The pants were white with a red and blue stripe down the side and a logo
patch on the hip. These were made by champion too. The socks where white with a dark blue top (or black).
The logo was new for the team also. The Monarchs "crown" was now seen inside of St. George's Cross.
The helmet was white with a blue stripe down the center with the Monarchs logo on both sides. The helmet was made
by Riddell. In the picture below you can see what the initial idea was for the helmet. Also in the photo above with the
cheerleaders, you can also see another idea for the helmet.
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| Logo on helmet below that Alton Byrd is holding |
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| Helmet logo from cheerleader photo above |
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| England Monarchs Promo Helmet (black or dark blue) |
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| 1998 England Monarchs Home Jersey |
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| Home Jersey (back) |
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| 1998 England Monarchs Helmet |
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| 1998 England Monarchs Away Jersey |
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| Away Jersey (back) |
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| 1998 England Monarchs pants |
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1998 England Monarchs Results| Regular Season | | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Attend. | | 04/05/1998 | Frankfurt Galaxy
@ England Monarchs | L, 36-13 | 0-1-0 | 6,541 | | 04/11/1998
(Sat.) | Rhein Fire @ England Monarchs | L, 31-7 | 0-2-0 | 5,523 | | 04/18/1998 (Sat.) | England Monarchs @ Frankfurt Galaxy | L, 23-17 OT | 0-3-0 | 29,312 | | 04/26/1998 | Scottish
Claymores @ England Monarchs | W, 14-10 | 1-3-0 | 6,246 | | 05/02/1998 (Sat.) | England Monarchs @ Amsterdam Admirals | L, 25-24 | 1-4-0 | 10,112 | | 05/10/1998 | Amsterdam Admirals @ England Monarchs | L,
16-7 | 1-5-0 | 6,235 | | 05/17/1998 | England
Monarchs @ Scottish Claymores | L, 27-24 | 1-6-0 | 9,213 | | 05/23/1998 (Sat.) | England Monarchs @ Rhein Fire | L, 12-7 | 1-7-0 | 21,288 | | 05/31/1998 | Barcelona Dragons @ England Monarchs | W,
17-5 | 2-7-0 | 5,215 | | 06/07/1998 | England
Monarchs @ Barcelona Dragons | W, 28-20 | 3-7-0 | 10,834 |
1998 NFLE Statistics - England Monarchs| Passing | | Player | Att | Cmp | Pct | Yds | Avg | Lg | TD | TD% | Int | Int% | Sack | Loss | Rating | | Josh LaRocca | 257 | 122 | 47.5 | 1641 | 6.39 | 74t | 14 | 5.4 | 11 | 4.3 | 23 | 153 | 68.6 | | Wally Richardson | 43 | 19 | 44.2 | 194 | 4.51 | 37 | 2 | 4.7 | 2 | 4.7 | 3 | 21 | 53.8 | | Brian Greenfield | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 39.6 | | TOTALS | 301 | 141 | 46.8 | 1835 | 6.10 | 74t | 16 | 5.3 | 13 | 4.3 | 0 | 0 | 66.2 |
| | | Punt Returns | | Player | Att | Yds | Avg | FC | TD | Lg | | Toderick Malone | 17 | 85 | 5.0 | 13 | 0 | 13 | | TOTALS | 17 | 85 | 5.0 | 13 | 0 | 13 |
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| Punting | | Player | Punts | Yds | Avg | Lg | TB | In20 | Blk | Ret | Yds | Net | | Brian Greenfield | 48 | 2170 | 45.2 | 64 | 9 | 13 | 1 | 23 | 206 | 36.4 | | TOTALS | 48 | 2170 | 45.2 | 64 | 9 | 13 | 1 | 23 | 206 | 36.4 |
| Kicking | | Player | 0-19 | 20-29 | 30-39 | 40-49 | 50+ | All | Lg | PAT | Pts | | Rob Hart | 0/0 | 1/2 | 2/2 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 3/4 | 31 | 19/19 | 28 | | Don Silvestri | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 2/5 | 1/3 | 3/8 | 50 | 0/0 | 9 | | TOTALS | 0/0 | 1/2 | 2/2 | 2/5 | 1/3 | 6/12 | 50 | 19/19 | 37 |
1998 England Monarchs Roster| Player | Pos | G | GS | | Birthdate | | College | | 10 Allen, Alan | WR | -- | -- | | 08/09/1971 | | Idaho | | 70 Augustino, Jason | OT | -- | -- | | 03/31/1973 | | Virginia | | 44 Ayanbadejo, Obafemi | RB | -- | -- | | 03/05/1975 | | San Diego State | | Bailey, Kenny | DB | -- | -- | | 02/03/1974 | | Delaware | | 52 Ballard, Karl | LB | -- | -- | | 06/07/1973 | | Colorado State | | 21 Blenman, Rowelle | DB | -- | -- | | 12/31/1967 | | Harper | | 60 Bloedorn, Greg | C | -- | -- | | 11/15/1972 | | Cornell | | Brannon, Steve | DE | -- | -- | | 11/27/1968 | | Hampton | | 20 Butler, Duane | DB | -- | -- | | 11/29/1973 | | Illinois State | | 66 Capes, Lewis | DE | -- | -- | | 05/26/1971 | | Colorado State | | 77 Castro, Cayetano | OG | -- | -- | | 11/27/1974 | | Wisconsin | | 58 Cottrell, Dana | LB | -- | -- | | 01/11/1974 | | Syracuse | | 72 Couch, Robert | OT | -- | -- | | 09/04/1973 | | Vanderbilt | | 25 Crespina, Keita | DB | -- | -- | | 02/25/1971 | | Temple | | 74 Dittman, Seth | OT | -- | -- | | 07/23/1972 | | Stanford | | 24 Edwards, Tyrone | RB | -- | -- | | 04/28/1973 | | California | | 67 Fequiere, Fritz | OG | -- | -- | | 01/31/1972 | | Iowa | | 80 Fiebiger, Jerod | TE | -- | -- | | 10/09/1972 | | Texas Tech | | 56 Fields, Scott | LB | -- | -- | | 04/22/1973 | | Southern California | | 75 Fowler, Carlos | DT | -- | -- | | 08/30/1972 | | Wisconsin | | Gray, Oscar | RB | -- | -- | | 09/25/1972 | | Arkansas | | 18 Greenfield, Brian | P | -- | -- | | 06/06/1969 | | Pittsburgh | | 90 Hamiter, Uhuru | DE | -- | -- | | 03/14/1973 | | Delaware State | | 22 Harris, George | DB | -- | -- | | 11/13/1973 | | Kentucky | | 8 Hart, Rob | K | -- | -- | | 11/04/1974 | | Murray State | | 2 Hatega, Francis | SS | -- | -- | | 04/04/1973 | | | | 30 Ismaeli, Hudhaifa | CB | -- | -- | | 07/30/1975 | | Northwestern | | 81 Jones, Reggie | WR | -- | -- | | 05/08/1971 | | Louisiana State | | 9 LaRocca, Josh | QB | -- | -- | | 03/09/1973 | | Rice | | 64 MacKenzie, Tony | OG | -- | -- | | 06/11/1973 | | Hastings | | 84 Malone, Toderick | WR | -- | -- | | 11/11/1974 | | Alabama | | 82 Manuel, Sean | TE | -- | -- | | 12/01/1973 | | New Mexico State | | 33 Mitchell, Shon | RB | -- | -- | | 10/08/1973 | | Texas | | 29 Muhammad, Victor | RB | -- | -- | | 02/01/1966 | | Vauxhall | | 54 Neal, Randy | LB | -- | -- | | 10/29/1972 | | Virginia | | 94 Newbill, Richard | LB | -- | -- | | 02/08/1968 | | Miami | | 78 Oltmanns, Chris | OT | -- | -- | | 11/21/1972 | | Kansas State | | 76 Palmer, Emile | DT | -- | -- | | 04/05/1973 | | Syracuse | | 18 Perry-Smith, Ryan | QB | -- | -- | | 02/13/1974 | | Oregon | | 1 Phillips, Bobby | RB | -- | -- | | 12/08/1969 | | Virginia Union | | 26 Rice, Anthony | DB | -- | -- | | 11/29/1973 | | La Verne | | 14 Richardson, Wally | QB | -- | -- | | 02/11/1974 | | Penn State | | 3 Silvestri, Don | K | -- | -- | | 12/25/1968 | | Pittsburgh | | 27 Studstill, Darren | DB | -- | -- | | 08/09/1970 | | West Virginia | | 23 Talley, Charles | RB | -- | -- | | 02/12/1974 | | Northern Illinois | | 91 Tovo, Tom | DE | -- | -- | | 07/20/1971 | | | | 99 Townsend, Larry | DT | -- | -- | | 09/16/1974 | | Nebraska | | 11 Turner, Shawn | WR | -- | -- | | 05/18/1973 | | Utah State | | 63 Warren, Craig | OT | -- | -- | | 07/26/1974 | | Stephen F. Austin | | 39 Watkins, Tony | DB | -- | -- | | 04/04/1971 | | South Carolina | | 96 Williams, Ben | DE | -- | -- | | 05/28/1970 | | Minnesota |
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