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Loughborough and Cardiff set early BUCS Uni Touch Champs running
The first BUCS University Touch Championship Events did not disappoint with Loughborough and Cardiff taking home the silverware.
Twelve teams took part in Round 1 North at Sheffield Hallam University Sports Park, with Nottingham Trent 2s joining the competition for the first time.
Loughborough 1 and Durham 1 remained undefeated in the pool stages with Nottingham Trent 1 and Cambridge drawing 2-2 in their final game. Edinburgh, once again joining us from across the border, narrowly scraped a qualification into the top eight quarter finals, pushing an uncharacteristic Leeds 1 into the Bowl competition having scored one more try in their pool games.
The quarter finals saw Cambridge narrowly beat Manchester for their first ever qualification into the Cup semi-finals, alongside Loughborough 1, NTU 1 and Durham 1.
Durham 1 lost out to NTU 1 in the Cup semi-final but eventually took third place after a great game with Cambridge. Loughborough 1 and NTU 1 saved the best until last in a gripping Cup final that saw Loughborough come out victorious 7-6.
The Plate final saw Edinburgh comfortably see off Loughborough 2 for their first silverware of the season.
Meanwhile the Bowl saw Leeds 1, Leeds 2, Durham 2 and Nottingham Trent 2 take on one another with Leeds 1 coming out on top and NTU 2 beating Leeds 2 and placing 11th on their debut. Leeds 1 will hope to build on what was a rusty start to the season and find their way back up the ladder.
Congratulations to Alice Summers (NTU) and Marcus Went (Edinburgh) who took home MVP awards.
A week later, the competition headed south to Surrey Sports Park in Guildford with 15 teams looking to start their seasons well.
Essex Uni Touch joined the competition for the first time, narrowly defeated by Surrey 2 in an epic Shield Final that went to a 3v3 drop-off.
The reigning champions, Bath Hawks, started characteristically very strongly as did Exeter Hurricanes, last season's runners up, with both squads showcasing new talent. Cardiff Dragons were also showing great strength in their pool games, only conceding one try to Bath 2. In a shock result, Surrey 1 held Exeter 1 to a 4-4 draw, the Stags playing with new-found form thanks to their coach, England Men's Open captain, Dom Tripp.
In the afternoon the Cup was where all the drama came, with Surrey taking on Bath and Exeter taking in Cardiff in the semi-finals.
Bath overcame Surrey by the skin of their teeth with a 2-1 win, and while Surrey were evidently disappointed with the result they should take solace in the knowledge this was the first time they had qualified into the Cup tier of a competition.
The day was Cardiff's though, firstly beating Exeter 3-2 in the semi-final before dispatching the Bath Hawks 5-3 in the final to take home their first ever competition Cup win.
The Plate Final was another brilliant game with Exeter 2s beating Bristol Cobras 5-3. The Bowl competition saw Oxford take on Exeter 4s, the former taking the win 4-1 having narrowly beaten Southampton in the semi-final.
MVP awards went to Emma Oliver and Vince Parker, both of Surrey.
This Saturday, the UTC returns to Sheffield for Round 2 – North, where Birmingham 2 and Edinburgh 2 will join the competition for the first time. NTU will be looking for revenge on Loughborough with Durham, Cambridge and Edinburgh hot on their heels.
Pool A - Loughborough 1, Birmingham 1, Leeds 1, Edinburgh 2
Pool B - NTU 1, Manchester 1, Durham 2, BYE
Pool C - Durham 1, Loughborough 2, NTU 2, BYE
Pool D - Cambridge 1, Edinburgh 1, Leeds 2, Birmingham 2
Check out THIS LINK for the full schedule, which will update with results during the day!
