Rhein-Neckar Bandits

Last updated
Rhein-Neckar Bandits
Rhein-Neckar Bandits.jpg
Founded2003
League German Football League
Based in Mannheim, Germany
ArenaMTG Stadion
ColorsBlack and Red
  
PresidentWalter Burkhardt
Head coachMarvin Washington
Championshipsnone
Division titlesnone
CheerleadersSix Shooters
Website www.bandits-football.de

The Rhein-Neckar Bandits are an American football team from Mannheim, Germany. The club's greatest success came in 2011, when it earned promotion to the German Football League, followed by a second-place finish in the southern division of the GFL in 2012. The current name is since end of 2017 Mannheim Bandits.

Contents

History

The club was formed in 2003 in a merger of two local sides, the Hockenheim Renegades and the Heidelberg Toreros. [1] The club is not related to the Rhein-Main Razorbacks, a team from Rüsselsheim, which folded in early 2004.

The club's first league season, in 2004, was spent in the tier four Oberliga Baden Württemberg, which it finished in first place, winning all ten season games. Four seasons in the tier three Regionalliga Mitte followed, with a second place in 2008 as its best result, a place that also allowed it to be promoted to the German Football League 2 via the promotion round, where they defeated Bavarian champions Aschaffenburg Stallions. [2]

The Bandits spend the next three seasons in the GFL 2, gradually improving their results, coming fifth, fourth and second. The second place in 2011 allowed the team to take part in the promotion round to an enlarged GFL. However, when the Plattling Black Hawks, last placed n the GFL South, declared that they would withdraw their team to the third division Regionalliga the Bandits were granted direct promotion to the highest football league in Germany. [2] The season however had been a tight affair, with the Bandits finishing on equal points with the Holzgerlingen Twister and Darmstadt Diamonds in second place behind champions Franken Knights. The final placings in the league had to be decided by the games played between the three clubs, in which the Bandits had the best record. [3]

In 2012, the club came second in the southern division of the GFL and qualified for the play-off where it was knocked out by Dresden Monarchs in the quarter-finals. The side qualified for the play-offs once more in 2013 but was once again knocked out in the quarter-finals, this time by the Braunschweig Lions. The 2014 and 2015 seasons saw the club finish only seventh in the southern division of the GFL and miss out on the play-offs.

In 2016, the club lost all his games and descended. The team disintegrated and started 2017 in the lowest division, the county league BaWü. The season ended with second place in nine wins and one defeat. After the end of the 2017 season the Teams changed its name to Mannheim Bandits.

Honours

Recent seasons

Recent seasons of the club: [2] [4] [5] [6]

YearDivisionFinishPointsPct.GamesWDLPFPAPostseason
2005 Regionalliga Mitte 4th7130.35010316241295
20062nd1190.55010514122116
20073rd1370.65010613181114
20082nd2220.917121101358151Won PR: Aschaffenburg Stallions (34–8 & 41–30)
2009 GFL 2 (South)5th14140.50014707329301
20104th18100.64314905300225
20112nd20–80.714141004377213
2012 GFL (South)2nd20–80.714141004418439Lost QF: Dresden Monarchs (19–31)
2013 4th18100.64314905395389Lost QF: Braunschweig Lions (21–28)
2014 7th6–220.214143011447560
2015 7th4240.143142012171493
2016 8th0–280.000140014171708Lost RR: Ingolstadt Dukes (6–41 & 0–60)

References

  1. Rhein-Neckar Bandits website (in German) accessed: 16 December 2011
  2. 1 2 3 Football History Archived 2017-09-28 at the Wayback Machine (in German) Historic American football tables from Germany, accessed: 16 December 2011
  3. American Football GFL: Alles über Playoffs, Auf- und Abstieg (in German) suit101.de, published: 11 September 2011, accessed: 16 December 2011
  4. GFL 2 2009 www.football-aktuell.de, accessed: 16 December 2011
  5. GFL 2 2010 www.football-aktuell.de, accessed: 16 December 2011
  6. GFL 2 2011 www.football-aktuell.de, accessed: 11 December 2011