There might not be any funeral homes in Johnston (yet) but there are undertakers – the Johnston Undertakers, a flag football team in the New England Flag Football Association. The team is getting ready for its season’s opener, scheduled for Sunday, April 4.

The team was formed by a bunch of guys who loved to play in flag football pickup games. One of the original members is Vern Lomba of Johnston. He and Steve Horgen, Ken Enos and Rich Whitlock had been playing flag football in Cumberland, and in the spring of 2005, decided to form a new team.

According to their Web site, the new team, dubbed “The Misfits” and consisting entirely of players who came from other teams, competed in its first year in the now-defunct Rhode Island Flag Football League.

Soon after, a new league was formed in Warwick called the New England Flag Football Association.

“The Misfits at the time had gained sponsorship from two places – Coca-Cola of Providence and Tri-State Livery Service, owned by Jim Melia, our own offensive linemen who had played on the Misfits,” said Lomba. Melia is also a Johnston resident.

A shortage of players on the team forced the Misfits to merge with another team called the “Rhode Warriors,” which also needed more players.

“In the fall and winter of 2005, the Rhode Warriors played in Division II and made it into the play-offs, shocking the NEFFA, and won the first D-2 Super Bowl upsetting the [Johnson and Wales] Red Storm,” said Lomba.

In the spring of 2006, Melia helped to form the Undertakers.

“The Undertakers were formed with the intention of building a family-like environment and playing strong football, win or lose,” said Lomba.

In the winter of 2006, the Undertakers merged with the “Cumberland Muckaneers.”

“A staple in RIFFL as well as NEFFA, this merger with the Mucks would benefit both teams – the Mucks needed younger players and the Undertakers needed some experience,” said Lomba. “Since the merger, the Undertakers have been to the semi-finals twice and had two Super Bowl appearances and one victory.”

Lomba has since taken over the team’s general management from Melia.

“I started playing in Pop Warner in Lynn and Swampscott, Mass.,” said Lomba. “I moved back to Rhode Island for two years then back to Mass. and played one year in high school in Salem, Mass., before returning back to Rhode Island. Some friends from work and I would play pick up games on Sundays and Thanksgiving day morning. Then we heard about a league that played in Warwick on Thursday nights, we thought it would be fun – a bunch of guys playing for about an hour then going to drink some beers afterward. We soon found out how competitive some of the teams are, having sponsors, holding practices [and] recruiting.”

The Undertakers, sponsored by Melia’s Tri-State Livery Service, are now part of the United States Flag and Touch League and have competed in several NEFFA/USFTL-sanctioned tournaments; they plan to compete in the national eight-man tournament held every January in Florida.

The team has also created a team “Hall of Fame,” after several members stopped playing. Members have been honored by having their jersey numbers retired. They include #1, quarterback Bobby Christian; #75, defensive lineman Ken Enos; #77, defensive lineman Shane Harrold; and #54, defensive lineman and captain Christos A.

Although they now have a history and Hall of Fame, team members still are basically a bunch of guys who love to play. They mostly know each other and refer to each other by their nicknames.

John Green of East Greenwich, better known as “Freeney” after his favorite NFL player on the Colts, proudly speaks of his involvement in the team. He got his nickname when he wore a Freeney jersey to tryouts for the team.

“I play the same position,” he pointed out.

He and fellow member Tony Chamberlain of Providence, known as “Yayo,” have been friends for years, having played tackle football together at East Greenwich High School. Their team won the state championship in Division III in 1999, and were recognized by Governor Lincoln Almond at the time.

Green had also played semi-pro for the Woonsocket Sentinels.

“We used to play pick-up games in Coventry, then were asked to play in an organized league,” Green said, explaining how they became involved with the Undertakers.

“We’ve been playing a long time – once we found out about this league, we had to join,” said Chamberlain, the offensive captain of the team. “We were rookies when we started back in 2007, now we’re the core of the team.”

The team plays in two seasons, fall and spring, with games on Sundays, rain or shine. There are about 30 guys on the roster and members come and go based on work and family schedules. They play eight-on-eight games and the age range of the players is 18 to 55.

“We all seem to mesh together – it’s amazing,” said Chamberlain.

He was hoping team member Ken Enos, who recently announced his retirement after playing six years for the team, would change his mind and play one more season.

“They play like they’re 20,” Chamberlain said of some of the older players.

Several members of the Undertakers, including Green, also play with the Silverbacks, based in Central Falls, which is their travel team. They competed in Florida in January against teams from all over the country.

“I believe we came in sixth out of 20-something teams,” said Green.

Chamberlain said the team has grown every year, to the point they’ve had to divide the players and make new teams.

“We’d actually like to get more people involved,” he added.

The league is mixed, although most players are male, and the number of teams varies from year to year – “I think we have 18 this year,” said Green.

The Undertakers have also held charity games, holding a fundraising tournament for a family member of a fellow player known as “Lefty.” The team’s logo looks similar to the Patriots’ logo but with a skull as a face.

“Jim Melia is an undertaker – and he made our logo,” Green explained.

Their main rivals are “The Untouchables.”

“We usually meet them in the play-offs,” said Chamberlain.

Despite the name, the game is quite intense. At times, the Undertakers have been plagued by injuries.

“It is very physical,” warned Green. “[But] it’s a fun time; at the end of the year we have MVP trophies, Super Bowl trophies – we keep stats.”

The season opener is scheduled – tentatively – for Aldrich Field behind Aldrich Junior High School in Warwick. A permit to play on the field has yet to be received from the city of Warwick. For more information on the team and an updated schedule of games, visit www.undertakersfootball.com or www.leaguelineup.com/undertakers.