Issue 1247 - The Courier

More documents

Recommendations

Info

8.StanCalvert2012 Tuesday 6 March 2012 Th eCourier Narrow win at Fortress Cochrane for Tries from Boyle and Malins earn third consecutive Stan Calvert victory as unbeaten Stan Calvert Cup 2012 WOMEN’S RUGBY Newcastle 1sts Northumbria 1sts By Sofie Raine at COCHRANE PARK 10 Despite there being snow forecasted for this tie at Cochrane Park, Newcastle went into this game against struggling Team Northumbria with high hopes of a convincing victory against a side 15 points below them in Division 1A. Although Newcastle were confident of sealing a win they were aware of the threat that a hurting Northumbria posed, especially with the conditions far from suiting Newcastle’s normally fluid play. Newcastle received the kick off and immediately attacked Northumbria, moving the ball nicely across the full width of the pitch before it was eventually fumbled into touch. The Royals stormed into a 5-0 lead within five minutes when Holly Malins scored just outside the post, after decent support play from Roo Chintoh. The try eased the side’s nerves as they appeared to struggle to acclimatise to the horrible weather. However Northumbria were not going to just let NWR walk all over them like in previous matches; this was Stan Clavert and no matter which position they were in the table this meant more. Both sides stepped up their performances for the occasion, with Rosie Neal and Charlotte Flint unable to penetrate Northumbria’s rock solid defence. Northumbria then began to 7 exert some pressure of their own, pinning the Newcastle team inside their own 22 for large periods of the half. With the pressure being kept up by Northumbria, the outsized Newcastle pack struggled to counter Northumbria in the scrums despite the words of Captain Phoebe Lebrecht ringing in their ears, “its not the size of the dog that matters but the fight inside”. The ground gained from stealing scrums was lost at breakdowns, the ball becoming stuck in rucks. With the ball coming loose and the end of the first half near, there was no respite for Newcastle who were still trapped in their own 22. An attempted clearance up the centre of the pitch from the Royals wasn’t properly followed up and Northumbria’s stand-off took control of the ball and drove the ball over the try line to the Poly’s delight. The conversion was good, leaving NWR in a situation not known to them all season, behind on the scoreboard 5-7 at half time. The spirit of the Royals was not dampened and after half time they came back with pressure and determination, the reason NWR sit undefeated at the top of their league. With constant pressure being exerted on Team Northumbria, Newcastle returned the favour of the first half by camping inside Northumbria’s 22. Phoebe Lebrecht kicking for position with the wind made all the difference and with Sarah Bannon and Hannah Rosa causing great disruption to Northumbria’s line outs, Newcastle began to turn the screw. Ruck after ruck formed with Penny Miles being stuck in every one of them, securing clean ball for halfback Hannah McShane to whip the ball out to the back and Livvy Coombs making fantastic breaks with Pat Lapierre. The kicking game wasn’t working at all for Northumbria, with hardly any territory being gained from their clearing kicks. Newcastle took advantage of these poor clearances and consistent pressure eventually paid off when the quick thinking and pace of halfback McShane allowed for clean ball out to the winger Lauren Wallace, a neat switch back into Emma Boyle confusing Northumbria’s defence and allowing Boyle over the line to score Newcastle’s second try of the match. With no conversions it left the score poised at 10-7. Newcastle kept the pressure up in the 22, but with the greasy ball and cold fingers and toes setting in, the telling score never arrived for the Royals. With calls going against Newcastle, but not really giving an advantage to Northumbria, it was hard to tell who wanted a hot shower more; NWR, Northumbria and the referee all suffering from the conditions. With minutes left to play a scrum was engaged, the ball popping out to the side to Pat Lapierre who used her Ace of Blades: double win for fencers Stan Calvert Cup 2012 FENCING Newcastle 1sts Northumbria 1sts By James Docherty at SPORTS CENTRE For as long as anyone can remember, the points between the fencers have been shared. All that changed this weekend over four frenetic hours in the Sports Centre. Newcastle Men’s 1sts Northumbria Men’s 1sts 124 119 4 0 In a massive coincidence, both the Men’s and Women’s teams chose exactly the same weapon order of Sabre, Foil and Epee, which suited Newcastle in the Men’s match, but probably favoured Northumbria in the Women’s. With the Men’s match starting first, returning saberur Pat “Prodigal Son” Navein acted like he’d never been away, racing out into a 5-0 lead from the first match. With tidy fencing from Tom “Southerner” Patterson and Andrew “Dixy Chick” Dixon giving fine backup, Newcastle quite literally put Northumbria to the sword and left them without an answer. By the time any thought had been given of how to deal with the relentless attack from the Royals, Newcastle had run out convincing 45-29 winners. Foil was always going to be a close affair, with Northumbria known to have strength in the point-scoring weapons. Perhaps trying to make amends for their sabre score, Northumbria started quickly and built up a safe lead. Some thoughtful fencing from Rob “The Good Captain” Walker, and Grant “Needs a Nickname” Turnbull kept Newcastle in touch, with Dixy Chick attempting to close the gap in the last bout of the weapon. Sadly, the lead was too great and eventually Northumbria ran out 38- 45 winners, leaving Newcastle as winners if they could score more than 38 points in the final weapon, Epee. This would be no easy feat, as Northumbria were known for their strength in this and so began a tactical battle for the first Fencing Stan Calvert Points. Northumbria knew they had to take the match to Newcastle to stand any chance of winning and did exactly that, chasing down points and fencing aggressively to take points and put Newcastle on the back foot. However, more tactical work from the Good Captain and Dixy Chick kept the target in sight and Captain “Navy” Dan Grant pulled off points of epic proportions to pull the match back and leave Northumbria floundering. Eventually Dixon took to the piste, needing two points to put the match beyond Northumbria and take a historic victory for Men’s Fencing. The effort by both fencers was clear as neither wanted to make a mistake. With an explosive fleche, Dixon surged forwards and landed the hit, giving Newcastle the critical points and victory over Northumbria. The remaining points played out with Northumbria ending up 45-41 winners, but Newcastle triumphed overall and gave great momentum for the Women’s Team going into their match. Newcastle Women’s 1sts Northumbria Women’s 1sts 134 122 Women’s sabre was a much closer and even affair, with teams trading points tit-for-tat in an entertaining encounter. The Newcastle team of Ambreen Drummond, Sarah Willis, Holli Prescott and Captain Laura Mason doggedly pressured Northumbria , nipping away at the lead they had created; eventually tying the score at 44-44. Captain Mason timed her final attack to perfection and delivered an excellent hit, taking the weapon by the narrowest of margins, 45-44. Foil was a one-sided encounter, with Northumbria’s unfamiliarity with the conventions of the weapon seized on by an eager Newcastle team. Mason and Prescott ensured Newcastle maintained their lead through the bouts, with Drummond’s distance and timing sublime, undoing Northumbria and leading to Newcastle claiming an excellent 45-33 victory. This gave Newcastle a 13 point lead for Epee, a weapon they had lost by 20 points the last time they faced Northumbria. However, Stan Calvert often brings out the best in people and this was no exception. Mason delivered excellent hits into the Northumbria fencers’ preparations, with Willis also fencing well. The winning point was won by vicepresident Prescott, a fitting final act following her three years of excellent fencing for the women’s team. In the final, irrelevant bout, Mason undid the tactics of Northumbria’s finishing Fencer, closing the gap they had maintained throughout the weapon. Although Northumbria ran out 45- 44 victors, Newcastle took the match overall and succeeded in delivering four Stan Calvert points to the cause.
Th eCourier Tuesday 6 March 2012 StanCalvert2012.9 NWR season goes on Comeback queens earn Badminton draw while men secure decent win instinct to kick the ball out for full time. Newcastle picked up the Stan Calvert points but the score of 10-7 illustrated the battle of the game. Nevertheless it is now three consecutive Stan Calvert wins for NWR, and yet another match unbeaten during their fantastic 2011-12 season. Full Results round-up p.12 >>>>> NWR captain Phoebe Lebrecht sets the tone for yet another win at fortress Cochrane Park Photography: Sam Desbruslais Stan Calvert Cup 2012 WOMEN’S BADMINTON Newcastle 1sts Northumbria 1sts By Rory Brigstock-Barron at GATESHEAD STADIUM Three doubles wins and an inspiring singles victory from Jessica Wilkins helped Newcastle University Ladies Badminton come from behind to draw their Stan Calvert fixture against BUCS superiors Northumbria. Things didn’t get off to the best start for the Royals in their first two singles encounters, as both Jessica Wilkins and Victoria Howarth lost to impressive opposition. Wilkins match was a close one, and she started strongly against Mandy Lam whom she lost to in a close league encounter earlier in the season. The Newcastle ace got the better of the first 12 points, ending a fantastic rally with an angled shot in to the corner to make it 8-4. Lam came back strongly winning the next five points, out manoeuvring her opponent and cutting off the angles fantastically to take the lead. Lam didn’t look back from here on and closed out the first 21-17, despite Wilkins coming close to turning the tide. The second game was to be even closer. Wilkins, after a shaky start, began to dominate and the match seemed to be going to a decider as she led Lam 17-12. However, Lam once again showed her resolve and skill to outlast Wilkins and once she levelled the score at 19-19 never looked like loosing. On the next court, stand in Victoria Howarth battled hard but went down to impressive Poly captain Holly Robson in two. The doubles presented more hope for Newcastle with seasoned pair Kat Turner and Kirstin Miller having won both of their matches in the side’s previous encounter this season and Rocio Osuna and Chloe Yim coming close as well. Turner and Miller raced through their first match, dominating the court against Northumbria’s second pairing of Kerry Myers and Hannah Tipler. The match started fairly even with the Newcastle duo a little slow to get going until an excellent angled shot from Turner decieved the Poly pairing and gave the Royals a 5-4 lead. A smash from Turner then took their advantage to two points as the girls began to pull away. The lead was extended in the first to 13-9 when Miller smashed the shuttle in to the corner and from this point Tuner and Miller didn’t drop a single point in the game to take the first 21-9. Bouyed by their performance in the first the girls flew in to an 6-0 lead thanks to some impressive smashes from both Turner and Miller. The Rest of the game followed a simlar patern to the first and whilst Myers and Tipler tried to claw their way to find a foothold, Newcastle’s top pair were just too good. The final score in the match being 21-9, 21-10. Osuna and Yim were not quite as 4 4 successful in their first game but put in a good performance against Northumbria’s top pairing of Vicky Henry and Rebecca Godlen, almost forcing a third after being 19-17 up in the second. Once the impressive Mandy Lam managed to get past Victoria Howarth, the Royals were 4-1 down and needed an unlikely singles victory in order to draw the tie. The burden rested on the shoulders of Jessica Wilkins and after she lost the first against Holly Robson things did not look hopeful for the Royals. Yet, after clawing her way back in to the game Wilkins managed to force a third, and with the pair exhausted, managed to close out a crucial victory against a very talented opponent, 21- 19 in the third. Wins in the remaining doubles matches would seal an unlikely win for Newcastle and although both pairs made hard work of it, they came out on top to spark off the kind of celebrations that left onlookers thinking they have won the fixture. Stan Calvert Cup 2012 MEN’S BADMINTON Newcastle 1sts Northumbria 1sts By Rory Brigstock-Barron at GATESHEAD STADIUM The Men’s side also had a good result on the day and although they would have expected to beat a Northumbria side in the league below them, being without a league win this season, there was certainly potential for an upset. Two victories each for Ben Lambden and doubles pairing of the two Adams (Lodge and Attaheri), coupled with a single victory from Josh Au Yeung was enough to take a deserved 5-3 win against the Poly denying them any Badminton success in this years Stan Calvert. The two Adams were in a fierce doubles encounter early on but came through in the end, just too quick for the Northumbria duo at the net. Perhaps the most crucial of the mens victories was Josh Au Yeung’s first singles match, in which he went to three games with Northumbria’s top singles player. Au Yeung (pictured bottom right) looked exhausted at the end of the encounter which perhaps explains his loss (again in three games) to Northumbria’s second singles player who had a relatively short game when he was easily despatched by Ben Lambden. Lambden’s first victory coupled with the second for Lodge and Attaheri left the score at 4-1 to Newcastle after defeat for the second doubles side. Wth Lambden going in to his second singles match against Northumbria’s number one, a win would seal the overall victory. The club President did not fail to deliver and finished off his opponent in two to take the pressure off his team mates and put another two points on the overall leadrboard. Despite being pegged back in the last two matches Newcastle deserved their victory. 5 3 9 Won An exhaused Jessica Wilkins helped Newcastle to an unlikely draw - Moises Bedrossian Josh Au Yeung hits a smash in his crucial win for mens badminton - Moises Bedrossian
Page 1 and 2: www.thecourieronline.co.uk Tuesday
Page 3 and 4: Th eCourier Tuesday 6 March 2012 ne
Page 9 and 10: Th eCourier Tuesday 6 March 2012 na
Page 11 and 12: Th eCourier Parents often wonder ab
Page 13 and 14: Th eCourier Tuesday 6 March 2012 .1
Page 15 and 16: Blind Date First impressions? Jack
Page 17 and 18: Th eCourier Penny Pincher Rosie Jen
Page 20 and 21: 20.fashion thecourieronline.co.uk/f
Page 22 and 23: 22.listings6th-11thMarch thecourier
Page 24 and 25: 2.electionsSabbaticalOfficers Why s
Page 26 and 27: Tuesday 6 March 2012 Th eCourier 4.
Page 28 and 29: 2.StanCalvert2012 Tuesday 6 March 2
Page 36 and 37: 10.StanCalvert2012 Tuesday 6 March
Page 38 and 39: STAN CALVERT CUP 2011/12 - RESULTS
Page 40 and 41: 6.electionsPartTimeOfficer CAMPAIGN
Page 43 and 44: Th eCourier Tuesday 6 March 2012 6t
Page 45 and 46: Th e Courier Tuesday 6 March 2012 T
Page 47 and 48: Th eCourier Tuesday 6 March 2012 Sa
Page 49 and 50: Th eCourier Tuesday 6 March 2012 Pr
Page 51 and 52: Th eCourier Tuesday 6 March 2012 A
Page 53 and 54: Th eCourier Tuesday 6 March 2012 sc
Page 55 and 56: Sport thecourieronline.co.uk/sport
Page 57 and 58: Th eCourier Tuesday 6 March 2012 in
Page 59 and 60: Th eCourier Tuesday 6 March 2012 in
Page 61 and 62: Th eCourier Tuesday 6 March 2012 BU
Page 63 and 64: Th eCourier Tuesday 6 March 2012 BU

Issue 1247 - The Courier

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?