Loughborough and Exeter maintain perfect starts
Exeter saw off rivals Hartpury to stay top of Premier South A
©EURFC
Loughborough and Exeter continue to dominate the top tier of BUCS rugby, while there may well be a shift in power in Northern 1A plus Leicester go top of Midlands 1A.
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Premier North A
Loughborough University continued their unbeaten start to the season to stay top of Premier North A after five second half tries secured a 16-38 win over Northumbria University at Kingston Park.
The visitors went in with a narrow 6-7 lead at half-time before Jacob Fields grabbed his second and Loughborough’s second try of the evening. Ben Christey, Dan Watt and Sam Pointon added further tries to wrap up Loughborough’s fourth consecutive win and maintain their 100 per cent start to the campaign.
While Loughborough are still the leaders, champions Leeds Beckett continue to hunt them down as they produced an outstanding display to win 12-53 against the University of Nottingham. This win for Beckett is now their seventh victory in their last eight matches.
Durham University took advantage of the fact that the Newcastle University weren’t in action on Wednesday to move up to 2nd as they beat the University of Leeds 14-31 away from home. Durham secured the bonus point in the final stages of the matches after Brodie Wilson had helped them into a 17-0 first half lead.
Results
Northumbria University 16-38 Loughborough University
University of Nottingham 13-53 Leeds Beckett
Leeds University 14-31 Durham University
Premier South A
The University of Exeter made it four wins from four as they came from behind to beat Hartpury College 30-13 at home to stay top of Premier South A. The hosts were down 3-10 at half-time, but a huge team effort turned the game around in the second 40. It is likely that these two sides will be in the Champions Finals so this win for Exeter really does highlight their ambitions for this season.
Bath University came away from Wales with a massive win in tough weather conditions as they beat the University of South Wales 3-15. After a shaky end to last year’s campaign and a tough opening to this season, three wins in their last four leaves Bath right in the thick of a Championship Trophy Finals place as they continue to improve each week.
Bath’s Zack Henry said: “We are very pleased with the result because a wet and windy night in Wales is always tough and especially in the first half we put together some really positive attacking shape which we've been working hard on in training. Our defence throughout the match was solid and we managed to play the majority of the game in the opposition half and grind out the result in tough conditions.”
In the final game in this division, Cardiff University excited their home supporters as they won 27-5 against the University of Bristol to seal their first win of the season and remarkably their first win in 2015 after six straight defeats this year.
Results
University of Exeter 30-13 Hartpury College
University of South Wales 3-15 Bath University
Cardiff University 27-5 University of Bristol
Premier North B
After a week off, Premier North B resumed on Wednesday and Loughborough 2nds clinched their fourth win of the season by beating the University of Worcester 60-7 at home. Loughborough have now clocked up 155 points in their last two matches after they thrashed the University of Manchester 95-5 last week in the cup and they also sit top of this division with a 100 per cent record – just like their 1st XV.
Second placed Nottingham Trent University secured their third win of the season after they beat Durham University 2nds 24-17. They were ahead 24-0 at the break but were forced into defensive duties after the interval as Durham staged a comeback in the second 40, but Trent held on leaving Durham 4th in the table.
Bishop Burton College made it three wins on bounce thanks to a 12-28 away win against the University of St Andrews, while there was no game between the University of Manchester and the University of Birmingham.
Results
Loughborough University 2nds 60-7 University of Worcester
Nottingham Trent University 24-17 Durham 2nds
Bishop Burton College 12-28 University of St Andrews
Northern 1A
Durham 3rds made it three wins from three has they moved top of Northern 1A after a 14-8 win against one of the promotion favourites the University of Liverpool. They were behind 7-8 heading into the final quarter, but found that clinical edge to seal victory.
Last year’s champions – the University of Sheffield – suffered another setback on Wednesday as they were beaten 23-12 by the University of Newcastle 2nds. Sheffield have now lost three of their first four games this season and already find themselves eight points behind the leaders. In addition to this, Sheffield lost just twice in the league last season so it is a surprise to see the start they have made. As for Newcastle, they are now 2nd in the table after a solid start to the campaign.
The University of Hull claimed their second win since promotion from Northern 2B with a gutsy display against Leeds Beckett 2nds. The Humberside outfit triumphed 20-14 which was in fact their sixth straight victory at home. Leeds Beckett remain bottom with just one win so far this season.
Another side who were promoted last season were Manchester Met and like Hull, they also clinched their second win of the season with a 25-15 win over the University of York. Man Met have won their last nine league games at home while York have only one win in their last 10 matches.
Results
Durham University 3rds 14-8 University of Liverpool
University of Newcastle 2nds 23-12 University of Sheffield
University of Hull 20-14 Leeds Beckeet 2nds
Manchester Met 25-15 University of York
Midlands 1A
The University of Leicester went top of Midlands 1A thanks to a 46-7 win over Oxford Brooks as Callum Jamieson’s reports:
This Leicester win came in terrible weather but they played the conditions better and once the first try was scored by winger Ed Goddfrey, it was all one way traffic for the remainder of the eighty. The Leicester backs dominated throughout and scored all the tries bar one from a rolling maul scored by second row Dan Taylor. With Loughborough surprisingly losing, the league appears to be wide open.
As Callum mentioned, Loughborough 3rds lost their first game of the season as they were victims of a 17-10 defeat against the University of Nottingham 2nds. Elsewhere, the University of Warwick remain on the coattails of Leicester with their fourth win of the season while Harper Adams University beat Nottingham 3rds.
Results
University of Leicester 46-7 Oxford Brooks
University of Nottingham 2nds 17-10 Loughborough University 3rds
Coventry University 7-22 University of Warwick
University of Nottingham 3rds 10-20 Harpers Adams University College
Northern 2A
Lancaster University and Keele University played out the only game in Northern 2A this week and it was Lancaster who made it four wins from four thanks to a 13-20 win. After relegation last campaign Lancaster are making a real statement early on this season. In terms of Keele, they challenged for promotion throughout last year, but just one win in their first four games is really hampering their chances this time around.
Midlands 2A
After two emphatic wins on the spin, Nottingham Trent University 2nds were brought back down to earth slightly as they were upstaged by Harper Adams University College 2nds 11-8.
This win for Harper Adams maintained their 100 per cent start to the season and moved them top of the table. Added to that, this was Trent’s first defeat of the season. There is no doubt these two sides will be battling it out for promotion throughout the season.
Elsewhere, the University of Lincoln picked up their third win of the season with victory over the University of Nottingham 4ths which leaves them just two points off the top.
Results
Harper Adams University College 2nds 11-8 Nottingham Trent University 2nds
University of Lincoln 14-7 University of Nottingham 4ths
