Nottingham And South Wales Rivalries Set To Heat Up D1 Quarter-Finals

Uni Of Nottingham Vs Nottingham Trent And Swansea Vs Cardiff Are Two Of The Spiciest Draws Anywhere In The BUCS Playoffs This Sunday. Cardiff's Toby Lock And NTU's Jack Rice Tell Us How Much The Rivalries Mean To Each Side...

This Sunday is set to be a busy day of post-season football across all three BUCS divisions, as Sterling face Hertfordshire and Birmingham square up against Durham for places in the Championship final, and the lower tiers scrabble for promotion.

As if that wasn’t spicy enough, the Division 1 quarter final draws have also thrown up two fiery derby games, with Nottingham up against Nottingham Trent (NTU) and Cardiff Cobras facing Swansea Titans. With varsity events to come in a few weeks, it will be the third of four times the two sets of rivals butt heads this season.

“For any team, the rivalry or varsity game is the biggest, meeting them in the playoffs will only increase the atmosphere and excitement for the game,” said NTU Renegades linebacker Jack Rice.

In 9 previous meetings, NTU have never been beaten by their cross-town rivals, but, as teammate Toby Rose told us in October, Nottingham have been slowly closing the gap on them over the last few years, and their two regular season clashes this season were tight affairs decided by a single score each.

“They were close games,” said Jack. “Both teams have talented squads this year. I'm excited to see how our passing attack will perform tomorrow as it has been getting better and better each game under the control of our first year QB Callum Doherty. But close and competitive games are the best games to play in and tomorrow should be no exception.”

The Renegades finished top of Midlands 1A with a 7-1 record while Nottingham came in third at 4-4, but the pressure of the play-offs add a new dynamic, and Nottingham’s more prolific offence, which averaged 29.5 points per game, will be hopeful of an upset.

As a veteran of the Stirling Clansmen’s 2013/14 championship victory, Rice is familiar with the demands of post-season football and what it takes to succeed.

“Playoff games always have more to them. One team will be out of contention for promotion come 5pm tomorrow, so everyone will give that extra bit of effort. With it being a playoff game as well as varsity, it will be a highly competitive encounter.

“Having played at the highest level of Uniball, I have learned about discipline, work ethic and have experienced the feeling of having a season of hard work pay off with a National Championship. Whilst playing this season I have tried to lead by example when it comes to training mentality as well as how I conduct myself on game day. This being our biggest game of the season, my experience, as well as those of the returning players who have played on the big stage before, will allow us to deal with the pressure and anticipation and give us an edge come game day."

"Everyone’s Going To Fight For It More And Really Want It That Bit More." - Toby Lock, Cardiff Cobras

Meanwhile, in South Wales, one of the UK’s biggest and most fiercely contested university rivalries comes to the BUCS post-season. As the two major cities in Wales, Cardiff v Swansea is always a huge event in any sport, and the spring Varsity event is one of the biggest dates in the area’s sporting calendar.

“Varsity day is the biggest day of the year for any Cardiff or Swansea student,” said Cardiff Cobras linebacker Toby Lock. “Last year we beat Swansea in the last second of the match with a field goal block, that they were kicking to win. I remember being on the pitch and looking to the sidelines, and seeing a sea of red tops running on the field. It was just amazing, to have all these Cardiff students, people I don’t even know, jumping on us and celebrating.”

Toby is hopeful of recreating those ‘Welsh Bowl’ scenes on Cardiff’s turf with potential promotion to the Premier League riding on the result, but with the undefeated Swansea Titans the only side to defeat the 6-2 Cardiff Cobras this season, it’s set to be a tough ask. Swansea secured the Western 1A conference with back-to-back wins against Cardiff towards the end of the season.

“After losing both of those games, it was a bit of a struggle to pick ourselves up again, but that just makes this game mean that much more,” said Toby. “There’s a bit of unfinished business to take care of.”

While Swansea have been post-season regulars in recent times, winning the old Plate Trophy in 2014 and falling to Kingston Cougars in last year’s Division 1 semi-final, this is Cardiff’s first play-off appearance since 2012, making it the first time ever for their current crop of players.

“A lot of our players are in their final year now, and there’s a really a ‘win or go home’ attitude. Everyone’s going to fight for it more and really want it that bit more.”

Regardless of the result, they will still have the festivities of this year’s Varsity to look forward to, but when we asked Toby if a victory tomorrow would give his side the push to go all the way to the Division 1 title, he simply replied: “Definitely.”