UK Student Archery Association

Heavyweights take control [09/Nov/17]

Look at a national student tournament podium over the last three years and there's a fair chance you'll see Birmingham, Warwick and Edinburgh there or thereabouts.

Results from the first round of the E-League, have now been published on the E-League website. Already the scoring has been white hot as West Midlands rivals Warwick and Birmingham slugged it out on what will surely one of several fronts this season. Between them, the two teams of 4 featured only one sub-580 score and when this one was Birmingham's, Warwick took the maximum 10 points. Fittingly the top individual recurves were one from each - Tom Hall (Warwick) and Eleanor Piper (Birmingham). After round 1, Warwick lead the compound league, Birmingham lead the novice league.

Edinburgh have taken no part in the E-League since 2013. Behind the top two, Southampton finished just ahead of Loughborough in third and fourth in the top flight. In Division 2, Nottingham Trent were the top A team in Round 1. Trent are pursuing what would be a fourth consecutive promotion. Should they achieve this, it would be the first time a team has gone from Conference to Division 1 in successive seasons. Plymouth and Bristol lead Divisions 3 and 4, whilst Nottingham and Oxford make long awaited returns to E-League action in the Conference.

The second round of the E-League is November and all 5 leagues are scheduled to be in action. Entering scores in round 2 is NOT contingent on having entered scores for round 1 - put it another way, you can join in when you like!

Elsewhere, Edinburgh strengthened their line up to win the second SSS match with 2213. Last week's winners St Andrews slipped to third place on 2004 (having scored 2162 in match 1) Strathclyde nipped in to take second on 2059. As you can see on the SSS 2017/18 page, Edinburgh are now top. Scores of 589 from Guy Matzkin, a 570 from Johanna Meyer and 560 from Neringa Siugzdinyte (all Edinburgh) saw the defending Scottish champions home.

Edinburgh also won the novice match, with an all-male team after their all-female success in match 1. Close behind were Strathclyde and they now move second in the table. Edinburgh also won the compound match.

Bradford won NUTC, the NEUAL version of BUTC. Bradford, NEUAL runners up for the last two seasons, beat Sheffield in the final, whilst Newcastle beat York in the bronze medal match.

NEUAL league matches kick off this weekend (10th/11th) although as it happens none of last season's top 4 will be in action, so there will be the opportunity for another club to lay down a marker.

Also getting underway is the BUTTS league and the eye cannot help but be drawn to the Sunday afternoon session at Nottingham Trent. This session promises to keep the judges fully occupied - the only two teams in the hall are Birmingham and Warwick.