A LUDGERSHALL teenager has represented Great Britain in an international American Football match against the 'best of the best'.
Gibril Kubally plays as a linebacker for the GB Under 19 Contact Team. The group faced the Irish Wolfhounds on August 23, under the floodlights of Energia Park stadium in Dublin.
The 19-year-old says the match, which saw the GB team win 35-8, was a 'good experience' as he got to 'play against the best of the best of other countries'.
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Gibril began playing American Football two and a half years ago as he 'always liked watching clips on YouTube'.
After seeing a friend playing the game, Gibril said he kept 'going back and watching them', inspiring him to take up the sport.
"I was just playing at a normal level, and then I got invited for trials and training camps," he added.
Gibril was playing for the Solent Seahawks, a Southampton-based team for all genders under the age of 19, before finishing at the end of the American Football season earlier this year.
The former Wellington Academy student played his first game for GB in September 2023 against France, as a linebacker, a position responsible for holding the team's second line of defence.
To keep his spot on the team, Gibril has had to take part in regular trials, aimed at bringing new players, something he says pushes him to keep working hard as 'someone else could take your spot'.
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Gibril says the sport is currently 'just a hobby', however, he will be attending an academy to strengthen his skills in the hopes of playing American Football professionally.
He described the experience of travelling to Ireland with his teammates as a 'really big thing', saying: "It's really enjoyable and playing against other countries is a lot to look forward to.
"With sport, it's always good to win, but when it's an away game and they have a lot of fans and such, it's good to win against them. It was an amazing experience."
Gibril has been asked to represent the GB Men in the next season, which will see him continue to play internationally.
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