British and Irish Quidditch teams
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In the Harry Potter books, thirteen teams play in the British and Irish Quidditch League. The League was established in 1674, and the teams compete annually for the League Cup.
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[edit] Appleby Arrows
Founded: 1612
Robes: Pale blue, emblazoned with a silver arrow
Location: The North of England, so probably Appleby-in-Westmorland, Cumbria (though might possibly be the village of Appleby, Lincolnshire)
Achievements: Arrows fans will agree that their team's most glorious hour was their 1932 defeat of the team who were then the European champions, the Vratsa Vultures, in a match that lasted sixteen days in conditions of dense fog and rain.
Other information: The club supporters' old practice of shooting arrows into the air from their wands every time their Chasers scored was banned by the Department of Magical Games and Sports in 1894, when one of these weapons pierced the referee, Nugent Potts, through the nose. There is traditionally fierce rivalry between the Arrows and the Wimbourne Wasps.
[edit] Ballycastle Bats
Robes: Black with scarlet bat logo.
Location: Ballycastle, Northern Ireland.
Achievements: Twenty-seven times League champions and the second-most successful team after the Montrose Magpies (see below).
Other information: Have a famous mascot, Barny the Fruitbat, who is also featured in Butterbeer advertisements.
[edit] Caerphilly Catapults
Founded: 1402
Robes: Light green and scarlet vertical stripes
Location: Caerphilly, Wales
Achievements: Eighteen times League champions and winners of the 1956 European Cup.
Notable player: 'Dangerous Dai' Llewellyn, who was eaten by a Chimaera whilst holidaying in Greece.
[edit] Chudley Cannons
Robes: Bright orange with a speeding cannonball and black double 'C' logo.
Motto: Modern day - 'Let's all just keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best'. Prior to 1972: 'We shall conquer'.
Location: Probably Chudleigh, Devon, England.
Achievements: Twenty-one times League champions prior to 1892. Have not won since.
Other information: Fervently supported by Ron Weasley, despite the team's poor performances.
[edit] Falmouth Falcons
Robes: Dark grey and white with a falcon's head emblem on the chest.
Location: Probably Falmouth, Cornwall
Motto: "Let us win, but if we cannot win, let us break a few heads."
Notable players: Best known for producing the two makers of the Comet Trading Company, Randolph Keitch and Basil Horton. Also known for their hard play, particularly shown by their world-famous and frequently suspended beaters Kevin and Karl Broadmoor (1958-69).
(NOTE: Broadmoor is an asylum for the criminally insane)
[edit] Holyhead Harpies
Founded: 1203
Robes: Dark green with a golden talon on the chest.
Location: probably Holyhead, Wales.
Achievements: The defeat of the Heidelberg Harriers after a seven-day match in 1953 is widely considered to be one of the finest games of Quidditch ever played.
Other information: The only all-female professional Quidditch club.
Captain: Gwenog Jones
[edit] Kenmare Kestrels
Founded: 1291
Robes:emerald-green robes with two yellow 'K's back to back on the chest.
Location: Probably Kenmare, County Kerry
Notable players: Darren O' Hare, Kestrel Keeper 1947-60, captained the Irish National Team three times and is credited with the invention of the Chaser Hawkshead Attacking Formation.
Other information: Popular world-wide for the spirited displays of leprechaun mascots and accomplished harp playing of their supporters.
[edit] Montrose Magpies
Location: Probably Montrose, Angus
Robes: Black and white, with one magpie on the chest and another on the back.
Achievements: Best record in League history: 32 League wins, 2 European championships
[edit] Pride of Portree
Founded:1292
Location: Portree, a town on the Isle of Skye
Robes: Deep purple with a gold star on the chest
Achievements: Won two championships in the 1960's
[edit] Puddlemere United
Founded: 1163
Robes: Navy-blue robes emblazoned with two crossed golden bulrushes.
Location: Possibly somewhere on the River Piddle in Dorset
Achievements: The team has won the League 22 times and the European Cup twice.
Notable players: Puddlemere United is the team that Oliver Wood signed onto after leaving Hogwarts.
Other information: Puddlemere United is the oldest team in the British & Irish Quidditch League. The team's anthem, "Beat Back Those Bludgers, Boys, and Chuck That Quaffle Here", was recorded by singing sorceress Celestina Warbeck to raise money for St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries shortly before the publication of the edition of Quidditch Through the Ages that can be purchased by Muggles (non-magical people). Albus Dumbledore is apparently a fan of this team.
[edit] Tutshill Tornados
Founded: 1520
Robes: Sky-blue with a dark blue double "T" on the chest and back.
Location: Probably Tutshill, Gloucestershire
Achievements: Won the league five times in a row, in the early 20th century, a British and Irish record. Began their winning streak again in 1995.
Notable players: Roderick Plumpton, who played Quidditch for England and holds Britain's record for fastest capture of the Snitch (3.5 seconds.)
Other information: When the Tornados' new winning streak began, Ron Weasley complained most people seen wearing Tornado badges bought them last season. When he found one on Cho Chang he accused her of jumping on the bandwagon. She replied that she'd supported the Tornados since she was six. According to The Quibbler, the Tornados were winning the League through a combination of illegal broom-tampering, blackmail and torture.
[edit] Wigtown Wanderers
Founded: 1422
Robes: Blood-red with a silver meat cleaver on the chest.
Location: Wigtown, Dumfries and Galloway
Notable players: The founding team were the seven children of Walter Parkin, a wizard butcher. The four brothers and three sisters were a formidable team that rarely lost a game. According to legend, this is partly because the opposing team was intimidated by the sight of Walter standing on the sidelines with a wand in one hand and a meat cleaver in the other. A descendant of Parkin is often found on the team over the years.
Other information: Kennilworthy Whisp is a fan of this team.
[edit] Wimbourne Wasps
Founded: 1312
Robes: Horizontal yellow and black stripes with a wasp on the chest.
Location: Probably Wimborne, Dorset
Notable players: Ludo Bagman's old team.
Other information: Adopted the wasp as their emblem after a game against the Appleby Arrows in the mid-seventeenth century, in which one of their beaters batted a wasps' nest towards the opposing seeker, who was so badly stung he had to retire. Their fans are known as Stingers, and they make loud buzzing sounds to distract opposing Chasers taking penalties.
[edit] References
[HPQ] Quidditch Through the Ages by J.K. Rowling (2001; Kennilworthy Whisp), ISBN 0613329740
