History

The Beginning

The Nottingham Outlaws were set up at the University of Nottingham in 1995 by a dedicated group of former youth football players, led by James Fisher and James Naylor. There was extensive initial interest among players at the university, and the club benefited by being able to purchase kit from the Bedford Bombardiers, a former BAFA Senior League team. After two months of intensive practice, the Outlaws defeated the Derby Braves in a controlled scrimmage. In the spring, they participated in a tournament at Hertfordshire, where they defeated both the Hertfordshire Hurricanes and Derby again.

League Entrance

In the Outlaws’ first year in the League, they attained a surprising 5-3 record and finished second in the Central Division behind national champion Loughborough Aces. The 2002/03 season proved to be the most successful in the Outlaws history. Following the appointment of Paul Sherratt as head coach, the team won their division 6-2, shutting out every team in the division in the process. In a season that saw them reach the Conference semi-finals, only to lose to the eventual College Bowl winners Stirling Clansmen, the Outlaws were rewarded with the BCAFL Team of the Year Award. Since then, the team has enjoyed moderate success, with three more playoff appearances. In 2008 they beat Stirling Clansmen to win their second ever playoff game and avenging their defeat of five years previous.

The Split

Following the BUAFL proclamation that from the 2009-2010 season onwards players could only be recruited from a single institution the Outlaws split into the University of Nottingham Outlaws and the Nottingham Trent University Renegades. 7 February 2010 saw the first official varsity match between the Outlaws and the Renegades with NTU claiming a 14-6 victory in a closely fought game.