Loughborough claim Bath win
Bath missed the chance to clinch their first win of the BUCS Super Rugby season as they were beaten by Loughborough at the Rec.
The hosts, who were celebrating their anniversary, fell to their fourth defeat of the campaign as Loughborough came away from Bath with a comfortable second win of the campaign.
With Exeter not in action this week, Northumbria went to the top of the BUCS Super Rugby table thanks to a convincing win over newly promoted Nottingham Trent while Cardiff Met stunned champions Hartpury and Durham inflicted a first defeat on Leeds Beckett.
In the Women's top leagues, holders Edinburgh were rampant once again while Hartpury defeated Cardiff Met in the south.
A full round-up of BUCS action is below:
BUCS Super Rugby
Bath 12-27 Loughborough (Featured game)
Loughborough University recorded their second win of the season after a solid display against Bath at the Rec.
This BUCS Super Rugby game marked the anniversary of Bath University Rugby and also both sides paid tribute to former Bath player and Chairman George Stephenson who sadly passed away last month.
Owen Waters kicked two early penalties for Loughborough before Bath went ahead through a Jack Davies try.
However, the visitors hit back to lead 20-5 when they went over from close range and that was swiftly followed by a Jack Moates score.
Bath kept themselves in the contest just before the break as Davies grabbed his second, but Loughborough seized control in the second period when Waters crossed, which ultimately sealed victory.
The first period saw a battle for supremacy as both sides tried to get the ball in hand in difficult conditions, with Loughborough’s Musa Yusuff impressing.
Loughborough, who had a first half to forget last week against Northumbria, got themselves on the board with Waters’ two kicks, but it was the hosts who scored the first try of the evening.
Bath No.8 Davies ran in the opening score from close range after two kicks to the corner from Will Flinn, but the momentum then swung in Loughborough’s favour when they scored two tries in 10 minutes with Moates diving into the corner for the second.
Bath winger Jack London then produced the brightest moment of the half for the home side with a dazzling run and after numerous penalties that follow his initial break, the Blue and Gold thought they had their second try through Craig Duncan, but referee Matt Turvey ruled it out for a knock-on.
However, Bath kept pressing and a yellow card to Loughborough captain Ollie Adams allowed Davies to double his personal tally and help Aaron James’ men stay in this contest heading into the break.
The second half began similarly to the first as both sides produced errors, but Bath were still very much in the game.
They were gaining territory via kicks to the corner, but crucially for Loughborough, Bath just weren’t taking advantage.
And after a series of near misses they were punished when Waters scampered over for the visitors to stretch their lead just before the hour.
Loughborough’s defensive work was rewarded and the away side were quite happy to slow the game down as they cruised to their second victory of the campaign.
Northumbria 32-7 Nottingham Trent
Northumbria thrased newly promoted Nottingham Trent to move to the top of BUCS Super Rugby.
With Exeter not in action this week, the northeast side made it three wins from a possible four to reach the summit.
The hosts shone in the first period as Mikey Newstead, Jake Rodgers, Josh Bragman and Henry Mawhood all went over to give them a 32-0 lead.
Trent's Rob Waldron crossed in a cagey second half, but Northumbria had done enough in the first half to seal victory.
Hartpury College 15-22 Cardiff Met
Tom Morgan kicked 17 points as Cardiff Met claimed a hard-fought win over reigning champions Hartpury College.
The visitors led 9-5 at the break thanks to three penalties from their skipper after they had fallen behind following an Elias Caven try.
Hartpury then went ahead after the interval with a close range score, but Morgan was on hand to level things up for Cardiff Met.
Morgan was again accurate from the tee to nudge his side in front and he was on hand again to convert Met’s only try of the game as Tim Phillips crossed nine minutes from time.
Pury did land another penalty on 77 minutes, but the champions could not fashion a late comeback as Met held out for their third win of the campaign.
Leeds Beckett 16-19 Durham
Leeds Beckett suffered their first defeat of the BUCS Super Rugby season as a late Durham penalty secured the northeast side victory.
The away side led 13-7 at half-time, but were three points down with time running out after three consecutive Connor Lloyd kicks.
But, after a try and two penalties in the first period, Durham kept their cool and slotted six points in the final 10 minutes to clinch the win in Yorkshire.
Sam Allan had crossed in the first half for Beckett, but despite Lloyd’s efforts, Beckett slipped to their first loss of the term.
Elsewhere in BUCS
North A league leaders Nottingham made it three wins out of three as they cruised to a 35-7 victory against Birmingham on Wednesday which left them three points clear at the top. Second placed Newcastle outclassed Durham 2nds 40-22 while Loughborough 2nds secured a 49-3 win over Bishop Burton and are level on points with the aforementioned Durham and Leeds, who beat Edinburgh 40-26.
Cardiff have started their journey back to BUCS Super Rugby with a bang as they maintained their 100 per cent start to the South A season thanks to a 56-14 win over UWE. After a play-off defeat last term, Bristol also harbour ambitions of reaching university rugby’s top tier as they edged out USW 19-17 to continue their perfect beginning to the season. Hartpury 2nds are now three points behind the top two after a 36-19 win over Bath 2nds while Swansea beat Exeter 2nds 45-31.
Strathclyde and Leeds Beckett 2nds remain level at the top of North B after both secured wins over Scottish outfits. Strathclyde waltzed to a 55-7 triumph over St Andrews while Beckett claimed a 42-29 win over Glasgow. Elsewhere, Manchester secured their first win of the season thanks to a 34-25 win over Loughborough 3rds. In South B, there were comfortable away wins for St Mary’s and Hartpury 3rds who beat Southampton (56-11) and Portsmouth (52-17), respectively.
In Northern 1A, Newcastle 2nds sliced Durham 4ths apart to beat their northeast counterparts 34-19 and move clear at the top of the table. Newcastle have a five point lead over Sheffield who suffered a 29-23 home defeat against Hull while Liverpool eased to a 33-7 win over Sheffield Hallam. Keele made it two wins from two in Northern 2A as they beat last year’s runners-up Manchester Met 19-5 and there were also wins for Lancaster over Bangor (19-0) and Liverpool 2nds who beat UCLan 24-17.
Northumbria 2nds continued their fine start to the new season as they eased to a 49-12 win in York in their Northern 2B clash. City rivals Newcastle 3rds are tied at the top with Northumbria after they beat Leeds Beckett 3rds 31-23, while Leeds 2nds are off the mark thanks to a 27-13 win over Sheffield 2nds.
In the fourth level of Men’s university rugby, Chester moved top of Northern 3A following a narrow 32-29 win over Manchester 3rds, but there was much better news for Manchester 2nds who beat Liverpool John Moores 2nds 39-31. The other result in this division saw Edge Hill claim their first win of the season against Liverpool 3rds. In Northern 3B, Leeds Beckett 4ths beat neighbours Leeds 3rds 43-14 to remain top of the division while Newcastle 4ths lost 42-20 away at York St John and York 2nds beat Sheffield Hallam 2nds 35-31.
Up in the Midlands, Leicester made it two wins from two thanks to a 10-5 win over Warwick in 1A while there are now four sides all on five points. Nottingham Trent 2nds beat Worcester 24-3 to claim their maiden win of the campaign and it was a first victory for Coventry who beat Birmingham 20-21. In Midlands 2A, Harper Adams are now a point clear at the top following a 26-17 win over Warwick 2nds while Nottingham 3rds beat local rivals Nottingham Trent 3rds 15-12 to make it successive victories.
Elsewhere in the Women’s top divisions, Premier North champions Edinburgh made it three wins on the spin as they thrashed Newcastle 72-0 while last year’s finalists Northumbria started their season with a 36-7 win over Loughborough. Also in the north, Durham clinched their first win of the season after beating Birmingham 64-5. In the South, Hartpury stunned Cardiff Met 47-17 while Oxford made it two wins from two as they beat Gloucestershire 46-0.
