Good Week / Bad Week | BUCS 18/19 Week Four
The 2018 Opal Series came to its conclusion with another cracker of a tournament in Sheffield, while we saw some headline showdowns all across the University game in Week Four!
But who came off best from this weekends matchups?
Good Week
Again, too many teams to mention in the Good Week column this week as we saw upsets galore!
Honourable Mentions
- The UWE Bullets made quite a statement with their impressive 48-0 victory over the Portsmouth Destroyers.
- The Brighton Panthers picked up their first W back in the middle tier with a 2-12 win over the Kingston Cougars. This young squad seem to have found a new gear after initially opening their campaign with a 40-3 defeat! A win over Kingston, and suddenly despite their 1-2 record could the south coast side be considered playoff contenders?
- And a quickfire round of teams that triggered #UpsetAlerts this weekend:
- The Bath Killer Bees proved they can still sting, outpacing the Cobras.
- Expect Bristol Barracuda to swim up the Power Rankings following a big win over OBU.
- The Staffordshire Stallions didn’t just upset our pundits with their Division Two #GameOfTheWeek win over the Huddersfield Hawks, they embarrassed them! The 0-36 victory significantly alters the shape of the 2A Midlands!
Titans Stand Tall At xpLosION
The Swansea Titans join a very exclusive club of sides that have bested the Birmingham Lions at xpLosION!
The Welsh side certainly weren’t blinded by the bright lights, and despite initially falling behind held the lead through the majority of the fixture thanks to strong play on both sides of the ball.
We’ve seen there were some very unfortunate scenes following the fixture caused by supposed fans of the sport, but this shouldn’t detract from what was otherwise a hotly-contested game between two quality football programmes, and a great advert for the British game.
Cougars Claw Up Another Opal Victory
They’re possibly the most dominant outfit in Britball, when looking at any team within a specific discipline, as the Coventry Cougars stormed their way to yet another Opal Series Title!
They finished their four regular-season tournaments undefeated and essentially unchallenged, and it was pretty much more of the same in the finals - culminating with a huge 67-12 victory over the Sheffield Giants in the Championship game.
Stirling Shock With Win Over Saints
Well now - that’s certainly going to shake up the Power Rankings!
The Stirling Clansmen pull off what might be the upset of the season so far with an outstanding defensive performance against a dynamic Durham offence.
Drawing first blood with a safety, the Clansmen D-line was on tip-top form all day long - including two blocked kicks, as Stirling survived the Saints from 1st & goal from the 1yd line, and blocked the PAT when Durham finally found paydirt in the 4th. A tense trading of possessions highlighted the closing minutes of the fourth quarter, before Stirling’s Mykel Nixon picked off Allen to allow the Clan to kneel out the game for their first regular-season victory over the Saints in three years!
Jets Flying High After Win Over Loughborough
Speaking of Power Rankings shaking significant upsets… the Coventry Jets have left the 1A Midlands looking wide open after they put in an outstanding defensive performance for an 8-0 victory over the #1 ranked Loughborough Students!
Having already impressed when their romp with the Renegades came right down to the wire, the Jets should now definitely be considered postseason, hells conference crown, contenders this year!
But which teams had the worst of it in Week Four?
