Paul Roberts (born 20 December 1963,

Birmingham, United Kingdom Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West Mi ...

) is a former British American football

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

who played for the Birmingham Bulls, Redditch Arrows and also internationally for the

GB Lions The Great Britain national rugby league team represents Great Britain in rugby league. Administered by the Rugby Football League (RFL), the team is nicknamed The Lions. For most of the 20th century, the Great Britain team toured overseas, ...

. Roberts is regarded by the Britball community as one of the best defensive backs to play the game in Britain.

Playing career

Roberts joined the Bulls in 1985. In 1988, Roberts picked off then- Leicester Falcons quarterback

Sean Payton Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Irish English, is a male given name of Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán (anglicized as ''Shaun/ Shawn/ Shon'') and Séan (Ulster variant; anglici ...

to secure a 19-14 win. In April of that year, Roberts, along with Joe St. Louis of the

London Ravens London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

were to be flown to Chicago for trials with the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

and

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

. It was this year that Roberts set a record of 8 turnovers, 5 interceptions and 3 fumble recoveries, that would stand for 27 years. Roberts was instrumental in the Bulls' win over the Nottingham Hoods in the 1991 semi-final, intercepting the ball twice and returning one for the winning score. In 1994, Roberts intercepted the ball 8 times, then a record, since matched by Gareth Thomas. Roberts last played for the Bulls in 2006. Following his move to the Arrows in 2008, Roberts came out of retirement and found himself on the active roster.

International career

Roberts made his debut for the GB Lions in 1986 against the Netherlands in a series of two victories in the European Nations Championship Qualifier. Roberts was part of the Lions squad that defeated France 26-0 at the Alexander Stadium to secure their place in the 1987 European Nations Championship. He was also selected to be a part of the final victorious squad for the 1991 European Nations Championship in Finland, and was one of eight Lions selected to the All-Europe team.

Coaching career

Roberts joined former team, the Redditch Arrows, as a defensive backs coach in 2008. Roberts returned to the Bulls in 2011 under head coach Steve Hannington as a defensive backs coach alongside former Bulls and Arrows teammate Mark Williams. When former Arrows coach Ian Hill took over the reins in 2012, Roberts stayed on as a defensive backs coach for the 2013 and 2014 seasons. When new head coach Mark Pagett installed his staff for

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

, Roberts remained as defensive backs coach. Under his tutelage, Bulls defensive backs have represented the GB Lions national team and others have broken Bulls records for interceptions and takeaways set by Roberts himself during his playing days. Several defensive backs to have played under Roberts have received Team or Defensive MVP awards.

Achievements

Honours

* 1991 All-Europe Team * BritballNow Alltime British Allstar Squad

Records

* Most Takeaways in Birmingham Bulls history * T-Most Fumble Recovery Touchdowns in Birmingham Bulls history * Most Interceptions in Birmingham Bulls history * Most Kick Return Yards in Birmingham Bulls history * T-Most Kick Return Touchdowns in Birmingham Bulls history * Most Punt Return Yards in Birmingham Bulls history * Most Punt Return Touchdowns in Birmingham Bulls historyRegular Career Records
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Paul Living people 1963 births English players of American football American football defensive backs