Is there anything better than beating another university in the best sport there is? Yes, indeed there is; beating 5 teams in one go! Tournamental this year was not only a hockey success with us winning the trophy back from the old boys but also a huge success in terms of raising money for the club and building new bridges with other hockey clubs (although spanking them all may have compromised this). On the weekend of 9/10thof March, the mixed hockey teams of Reading University, Surrey University, Nottingham Trent University and Coventry University as well as our old boys came to Warwick for a weekend filled with fun, costumes, alcohol and even some hockey. As tradition dictates, our guests arrived on the Saturday for a night out at Kasbah in Coventry. This years’ theme for the night was ‘musicals’ with some great High School Musical, Lion King and The Wizard of Oz costumes. Warwick’s theme was Beauty and the Beast although most of us looked more like beasts than beauties. Shout-out to Nottingham Trent for their amazing Little Mermaid costumes, we will have to raise our costume bar next year to match your efforts! The night started in a private area upstairs in Kasbah which gave all of us a great opportunity to mingle and to scout for potential mating opportunities. We then progressed to the main part of Kasbah to cut some filthy shapes and to enjoy the ‘pleasures’ Kasbah has to offer. I would love to give you some juicy gossip from the night, or at least some details, but frankly, I have no recollection of anything past 10pm so secrets will stay secrets I guess. What I do remember is that eventually Dappy showed up for some sort of show; previous to the night I had asked “What is a Dappy” so I’m not really qualified to discuss this part of the night either really. Let’s move on to the parts I do remember... After a short night for most of us, the long-awaited hockey tournament began on our water-based pitch. To get all those poor hungover souls started easily we limited the initial group stage to half pitch matches. The group results were as follows: Group 1 Reading : Warwick – 0 : 3 Nottingham Trent : Warwick – 1 : 2 Nottingham Trent : Reading – 4 : 2 Group 2 Surrey : Coventry – 2 : 5 Old Boys : Coventry – 1 : 4 Old Boys : Surrey – 7 : 5 We then proceeded to full pitch matches in which the 3rds, 2nds and winners of the two groups played each other. Surrey beat Reading 2 : 0 in the match of the 3rds and Nottingham Trent won against the Old Boys 2 : 1 in a tight match of the 2nds. Finally, it was time for the finale – Warwick against Coventry. Using our superior intellect we won; solid 2 : 0 win #varsity2.0 #teamwarwick It should be noted that the match was cut short by about 10 minutes because the pizza arrived early and we just couldn’t be bothered to watch Coventry struggle any longer- they struggle enough with their degrees it just felt like bullying at this point. Really, not much was going to change in those 10 minutes. All teams played really well and the atmosphere of the tournament was friendly and chilled (most of us weren’t able to really do any competitive hockey due to the previous nights’ shenanigans) which was exactly what we were going for. Afterall, Tournamental is about strengthening those inter-university bonds and not about winning a trophy (though winning does make it more fun, can’t lie about that). Thank you to everyone who attended, especially those who travelled far to join and those who took the brave step to attend for the first time! It has been a pleasure organising the event and spending the weekend with all of you! Hopefully see you all next year ♡ Now, for the last time ever, Peace, hugs and lots of tournaments love xx Sara #TournamentsSecOut WE WON! An incredible effort from the team, winning 3-2 against Cov! Big thank you to everyone who came out to support!
For the full team list and match report, check out the Varsity 2019 section on the website here 16/02/19 - Mixed vs Medics (episode III return of the mixed)
I'm writing the match report which tells us 2 things: 1) I must be a dick most days 2) you guys need to get a bit more creative with your picks 😉 The team put in a massive shift today and came out on top 1-0 against a tough Warwick medics side. The game got off to a cagey start with both teams finding their feet. Probs for the best as Alex didn't actually have the right keeper kit on (you had 1 job 🙄😉). Luckily Alistair was a lamb and ran and got it for him so all was well. I can't remember most of the first half tbh apart from I did my standard talk throughout the whole match and chat a lot of shit. I do remember the goal tho cos I was involved, and as it was the only goal I'm gonna go through it in some detail for yall. So settle back, get a drink, maybe find a blanket to cuddle up under with any significant others you may or may not have, and let me tell you all about it. I'll give you a minute just to get comfy....you ready? Okay let's go. Ella made a beauty of a run, behind their defence, I passed it through some geezers legs (now guys, I don't like to brag but was very happy with this pass - on record he was good tbf - and I'd finally gotten one over on him yeet), Ella controlled it beautifully and headed for a 1 on 1 with their keeps. He ran out and Ella.... ran straight into him. This turned out to be a stroke of pure genius, selfless play cos what she did was take out the keeper, meaning when it bounced back I could slot it into an open goal (despite trying my hardest to miss and going post and in). Ella actually injured herself in this so that's the kind of commitment we need *cough* Andy *cough*. Can't rememeber shit of the rest of the half tho so soz if I missed something good you did. Know we had lots of chances tho and really put some good pressure on and were worthy of our lead. Our defence was solid and they were getting no change out of it. We went in 1-0 up and were reasonably confident. The second half, man that was a good half. First half of it we absolutely dominated them (I'm talking bdsm shit) up front and really should have come away with some more goals. Ellen was an absolute beast in midfield tackling, intercepting and playing the ball around beautifully. Katarina had her defender in her back pocket all day long was always in a great position and always beat her man and got the pass away (soz probs should have finished more of them). Oli did good things but atm can't remember any specifics apart from when he took it round 2 (tekkers tbf) for a 2 on 1 but rather than sweaty it to me for an open goal he shanked it wide on his reverse (I still haven't forgiven bitch). Second half of second half we had much more torrid task with medics having a alot of ball and putting a lot of pressure on. Radhika Billy Pledge Baker and Lydia put in some brilliant last ditch tackles with Billy even saving one on the line (didn't realise you had it in you pal 😉). Lydia displayed some new revolutionary defending involving her hands (catching the ball and earning a green card) and her face (trooper playing on still). The match came to an exciting climax with everyone defending for their lives (parked that bus pretty damn well thank you very much). Some super saves and strong tackles led to a superb result for Warwick. We had 1 last chance on the last play of game we got a counter. I got passed the ball about halfway between the 23 and the halfway line and headed to goal. It was at this moment I realised I was cramping up. Managed to run through it and get 1 on 1 with the keeper, put it through his legs to run round and finish...but at this point my legs actually died and I fell over. AND NOONE CAME TO HELP ME STRETCH THE CRAMP OUT WHILST I LAY IMPETENT IN THEIR D. I also missed a chance at another goal cry. MOTM was Kat for another superb (SUPERB I SAY) performance up and down The wing. Also shout out to el who teamed up brillisntly with her - all our attack came through them 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 I got DOTD for once again 🤨 but not sure what for really... It could have been the cramping up again or maybe taking my trackies off in the middle of the pitch just as we were trying to start.. Maybe other things idk. Next match is varsity and the signs are certainly promising! Shout out to Alistair for hearing my plea for someone to write this for me cos I was so busy (I did embellish parts, not sure you'll be able to work out where😉). And also f**k the freshers, especially pledge. That is all. Written by Nick Metcalfe Between our Mixed Hockey, Netball and Lacrosse sessions we raised £198, whilst trying new sports and making friends in the process! 💗
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