CHESTER ROMANS suffered the narrowest of defeats in their opening NFC 1 South clash against Nottingham Caesars.

The longstanding American football team, amongst one of the oldest in the United Kingdom, fell to a 7-6 reverse in their home clash against the Caesars on the weekend.

Despite scoring the only touchdown of the game, the Romans were unable to hold on to a lead which would have seen them claim victory in their opening game of the BAFANL NFC 1 South division.

Speaking before the momentous game, which was marked by Roman soldiers from the Deva Victrix 20th Legion leading the players out on to the field, Head Coach Levi Edwards said:

“It’s huge to get off to a strong start. Playing Nottingham will be a good test that presents us with some challenges, but if we take care of the little things, the big things will take care of themselves.”

Unfortunately, though, the occasion proved to be a little too much for the team as the side made errors which ultimately proved to be costly.

Following the result, Edwards added: “We struggled in terms of getting off to a slow start and not taking care of the little things which let us down.

“We didn’t execute well enough to win the game. At no point were we out of it, but it shows that after this step up our execution has to be better.

“It was a really big occasion for us, but we came out cagey with players having first game nerves.

“Space was there for us to attack when they left large areas we could get into, but we didn’t execute, and that probably cost us 18 to 21 points. Those are the little details you have to clean up and take care of if you want to win at this level.

“But it is positive to know that we are on that cusp of being very, very good. It’s just a matter of it all coming together.”

Nottingham Caesars took the lead when penalties against the Romans backed them into their own end zone leading to the Midlands side claiming two points for an early safety.

The Caesars then extended their lead by scoring a field goal to make it 5-0, but the Romans responded in perfect fashion when Byron Ward threw an inch perfect pass for the wide receiver Aaron Powell to claim and score a touchdown with.

Chester missed the chance to score the bonus point after touchdown when their attempt was blocked, leaving the teams with a half-time score of 6-5 to Chester.

After a tense third quarter went by with neither side claiming any points, Nottingham capitalised on another Chester mistake in the final quarter to claim another two-point safety – giving them a 7-6 lead, and ultimately victory.

Chester Romans are now without a victory against Nottingham in three matches after also suffering slender defeats to the Midlands side back in 2015.

But the Romans have another chance to put that right when they face Nottingham again in a reverse league fixture on April 28.

Elsewhere in the NFC 1 South division, Sandwell Steelers stormed to a comprehensive 48-0 win over Doncaster, while Shropshire Revolution battled to a 15-8 success at home to Lancashire.