Inter Services Football: Can the RAF retain both their men's and women's titles?
Inter Services football returns with both the women's and the men's tournaments taking place alongside each other as the senior teams of the Army, Navy and the RAF look to lift the 2023 Inter Services trophy.
The first round will see the reigning men's and women's Inter Services champions, the RAF, head to Portsmouth to face the Navy as they look to get their title defence off to a flying start.
The men's game will take place in the historic heart of the city at Fratton Park Stadium, home of the 2008 FA Cup Champions Portsmouth FC.
The women's game will take place at the home of Navy Football, Victory Stadium at HMS Temeraire.
Extra pressure will be on the shoulders of the RAF women's and men's teams this year as both are coming into this year's Inter Services as the reigning team champions.
Last year, RAF ladies beat the Army 2-0 in Aldershot last year, with Philippa Wilson's early strike and Bethen Jewett's stunning goal, to secure the Inter Services title.
When the RAF and the Navy met at the Inter Services last year, the RAF comfortably beat the Navy 2-0 at RAF Cosford with goals from Jeorgia Carr and Philippa Wilson
The RAF men absolutely dominated last year's Inter Services with a 4-1 win against the Army to secure the title, after a hat-trick from Mike Campbell and a curling striker from Jake Gosling.
The RAF also beat the Navy in Shrewsbury at last year's Inter Services opener with a 2-0 win.
The Navy men will look to emulate their U23 counterparts, who won the U23 Inter Services title last month, as both the men's and the women's teams will look to win against the RAF before they face the Army in Aldershot the following week.
The Navy v RAF women's game will take place on 14 March from HMS Temeraire and the men's game will take place on 15 March from Fratton Park Stadium.
This year, all six matches from the men's and women's tournaments will be broadcast live on the Forces News YouTube channel.
You can also watch on catch-up via BFBS TV (for serving personnel only).
Find out more about how you can watch here.
Key players
RAF Men: Jake Gosling
A key player for the RAF, the UKAF player contributed to the RAF's scoring effort at last year's Inter Services, scoring a curling strike against the Army. Gosling also scored a hat-trick at last year's RAF Cup Final to help RAF Cosford win the trophy.
Navy Men: Danny Kerr
UKAF captain and Royal Navy captain, Kerr is pushing towards 100 appearances for the Royal Navy and is an absolute key man for the dark blues on the football field.
RAF Women: Pip Wilson
Wilson's goal against the Navy at last year's Inter Services was fundamental to helping the light blues win the Inter Services last year. Wilson also scored against the Army, where the RAF secured their Inter Services title last year.
Navy Women: Ciara Boylan
An experienced player, Boylan's experience with the Navy and as part of the UKAF women's football team will be crucial for the women to go further in this year's tournament.
Did you know?
The RAF men had a dominant seven-year record wins in the Inter Services between 2007 and 2014. Their domination came to an emphatic end in 2015 after the Army beat them 4-0 in Aldershot.
The Army went on to dominate for another four years between 2015 and 2019, before the RAF took back the title in 2022 after a two-year break due to Covid.
Jon Knighton, Sports Editor, BFBS Sport, says:
For the first time, BFBS is showing all six of this season's Inter Services senior football games live, as we did for the men's Under 23 Championship.
The opening games in Portsmouth look like they'll be very close affairs.
Just looking down the squad lists for both matches, there is so much experience in the teams, it is going to be a very difficult call to predict who will come out on top.
For the women, the Royal Navy have three players who could be game changers. Rosie McDonnell, Anthea Kaptein and their skipper Nat Bavister, will have crucial roles to play when they take on the RAF.
For the Air Force, Cat Beaver will look to dominate the mid field. If she controls the game, the RAF have a great chance of winning the title again.
The men's contest, which is being staged at Portsmouth FC's Fratton Park for the first time in several years, will also be an intriguing tussle. Both squads feature players who made outstanding contributions to the Under 23 Championship.
For the Navy it will be interesting to see if Manny Roche gets a starting place, after his brilliant performances to help the Navy to the development title. The under 23 captain Jack Wright is also in line to play and will be a vital cog in their defensive line.
For defending champions, the RAF, there is also a huge amount of experience not only at Inter services but also at UKAF level. Jake Gosling is a proven match winner and given half a chance he'll find the goal.
The Army squads will be looking on to see how these matches go, as they prepare for the fray next week in Aldershot.
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