James Dennis reviews the Last 16 Championship Knockout Draw
(5 February 2010)
With the end of the regular BUCS season coming to a close teams are preparing themselves for the business end of the year. The knock-outs provide a chance for Durham to pit themselves against the best teams in the country and it's possible that the Palatinates could have their best season in years.
Next weeks fixture schedule can be found at: Fixture Schedule
Badminton
Women’s badminton have been dealt a helpful draw in the Last 16. A home tie against Leeds presents the girls with a real opportunity to make the Quarter Finals again. Injuries will present a challenge for the Palatinates but they will still have every chance.
Basketball
Men’s basketball have had another excellent season finishing first in Northern Conference Division 1. They go away to a tough Middlesex University side on February 17th. The Palatinates have high expectations for the knock-outs having only lost one game in the season by the narrowest of margins and have every chance of reaching the Super Eights.
Hockey
Every year the Hockey Club have a heavy program of knock-out fixtures and this year is no different. On February 10th the Men’s and Women’s 1s enter the first round. The Men’s 1s have had a tough year and face a Bristol side who have also struggled. The Women’s 1s have performed strongly this season coming second in their league, giving them home-field advantage against a very capable Cardiff out-fit.
Women’s 1s Captain Ruth Gordon said, ‘our aim in BUCS is definitely to reach the Championship Final’.
Club captain Andy Evans has high hopes for the club with the Men’s 2s, 3s, and 4s and Women’s 2s and 4s all going through to their respective knock-out competitions. The Men’s 3s have already qualified for the third round beating Leeds 3s and Leeds Met 2s respectively. The Men’s and Women’s 2s have both received byes due to high league rankings this season and both play on February 17th.
Fencing
All four of the fencing teams have qualified for the knock-out competitions including the men’s side that produced a dramatic 135-73 win against tough rivals Birmingham last week, leaving the Palatinates third in the table. They face Western Conference Champions Cardiff but Captain Mike Turner is very confident they will come away with a win.
The Women’s 1s, spearheaded by V.C. Scholar Kira Roberts, take on South Eastern Conference Champions Kings College London but again Turner feels very confident about the team advancing to the next round.
The Men’s 2s face York and the Women’s 2s play Keele, both teams stand a good chance of qualifying.
Lacrosse
A talk with Emily Blatter, the women’s lacrosse coach, revealed a side primed for the knock-outs. The team who finished 2nd in their league behind a Birmingham side they could have beaten away from home.
Injuries played their part in the two defeats to Birmingham but Emily feels these injuries have now been overcome and other players from the seconds have stepped-up to fill the void.
The Palatinates recent 23-0 victory against Manchester proves that they are ready for their first knock-out game against St. Andrews next week. With two home draws the team have put themselves in a great position to go far and Emily feels that they can.
‘The Knock-Out tournament is our chance to make a strong statement and to show our opponents just how good we really are.’
As for the men, they have not lost a game all season and go into next Wednesday facing Sheffield Hallam who Durham beat comfortably in the regular season.
Men’s captain Andrew Gardner said ‘I'm confident we'll do really well and are up to the challenge, and that the National Championship is an attainable accolade.’
Netball
After convincingly winning the Northern Conference the first team have gained the chance of promotion to the Premier League of netball but for now all eyes are on the knock-outs. The great season has landed Coach Marie Ewing and her team in the Championship Knock-out tournament giving them a chance to play against the best.
First round is away against top of the Premiership Leeds Met which will be a fierce task with the Met only losing one match this season. The girls led by Captain and V.C. Scholar Abi Ryan are relishing the opportunity to take on the challenge. The team, having only lost one match this season and gaining in confidence with every match and feel they can go far.
Squash
Women’s Squash had a great first term finishing the league season top of Northern Division 1. The Last 16 of the knockouts doubles up as the promotion play-off in squash so next week against Leeds University presents an exciting challenge for the Palatinates with victory securing Premiership status and a place in the Quarter Finals of the British Championship.
Tennis
Women’s tennis go into the knockouts in a slightly unfamiliar position as favourites to beat Bath University. The Northern Premier League second seeds will have a tough run to the Semi Finals if they are able to dispatch Bath on Wednesday with Bournemouth likely to be waiting in the wings. However confidence is high in the camp and a long run is very definitely a possibility for the Palatinates.
