Varsity Squads and Season Round-Up!

CULNC has had a great season! The Blues have finished the season unbeaten in the league, earning a hard fought and well deserved promotion into Midlands Tier 1. Lent Term saw some fiercely competitive matches and a heavy schedule of 9 matches. Highlights include a nail-biting one goal victory over Worcester 2s in the league, and a very tense victory over Nottingham 2s in the Cup which was ultimately decided by the Blues being the first team to reach a winning margin of two clear goals, after the score was tied at the end of both full time and extra time. The Blues have only suffered two defeats the whole season, to a strong Nottingham Trent side in the Cup and to an even stronger Oxford side in Varsity.

This promotion sees the Blues enter into the top 10% of university netball teams in the country and achieve Blues for the first time since 2018. This is a huge achievement given that university netball is the most widely played women’s team sport in the country and that university netball becomes more and more competitive every year, but I have every confidence that the Blues will step up and hold their own. The 2022-23 season will be a very exciting one for the Blues!

The Jays have had a tough season in a difficult league, but the quality of their play and the strength of their team was rightly rewarded with a brilliant two-goal win over Oxford 2s in Varsity. The Jays led right from the start, but Oxford stayed in the game and even briefly took the lead in the final quarter. Despite the roars from the crowd creating a massive sense of pressure, the Jays held their nerve and produced a stunning final quarter to take CULNC’s only Varsity win. The Jays remain in Midlands Tier 2, and, with many Jays staying on next year, are on track for a really strong 2022-23 season.

The Swallows finished 3rd in Midlands Tier 5, in what was a very tightly contested league. They won six out of ten league matches, including a 75-25 victory over Coventry 3s. The Swallows were unlucky at Varsity, losing to a strong Oxford 3s who have just achieved promotion into the league above, although there were sparks of brilliance from the defensive end with Captain Georgia Tooth being awarded the MVP by Oxford. This year’s Swallows team has been the strongest yet, and the Swallows will be determined to look for promotion next season.

The Wrens have had a great inaugural season, drawing with ARU and finishing the season on a 38-29 win against ARU Chelmsford! There has been fantastic individual improvement across the team, but the Wrens also finish the season playing incredibly well as a team, even taking the fight to the Swallows in some of their training matches. The Wrens put up a strong performance in the first ever 4th team Varsity, unfortunately coming away with a loss but having played some great netball.

College netball has also been brilliant this term! The Ladies league is currently being led by Jesus 1s, and the Mixed league is also being led by Jesus 1s. A fiercely competitive Mixed Netball Cuppers saw Pembroke come out on top, with Ladies Cuppers postponed until early next term because of bad weather.

CULNC has achieved so much this year, from the popularity of the Development Squad to the promotion of the Blues, and it has been a real pleasure to Captain the club this year.

GDBO.