Who would have thought that it would be Wentworth leading the College Sport standings as we reach the half way point of the first term of yet another year? Despite their troubles of the past, it is the postgraduates who top the overall table, one point ahead of reigning champions Derwent, with Alcuin in third.
Of course it is only very early stages, but after Wentworth won the Dodgeball tournament last week, they have demonstrated they can compete with the heavyweights of college sport. All of this might change though on Sunday, with more points up for grabs at the Rowing one-day tournament which will take place in the Roger Kirk Centre from 5pm. By Sunday night we may well have new leaders, and in truth it would be little surprise to see the dominant force that is Derwent back at the top of the standings.
Current Standings:
Wentworth – 20
Derwent – 19
Alcuin – 12
Vanbrugh – 10
Goodricke – 8
Langwith – 5
Halifax – 2
James – 0
However, this weekend is not only about the college rowing event, and indeed we have yet another busy schedule of fixtures, including in football, hockey and netball, where we reach the halfway point of this term’s league.
James currently sit atop the football 1sts league, but with their annual tournament against Collingwood taking place this weekend, their match against Derwent has been rearranged for week 9, providing other colleges with the opportunity to close the gap.
Langwith’s miserable form from last year has continued, and they will once more go in search of their first victory of the season on Sunday, when they meet fourth placed Vanbrugh on 22 Acres. Their fellow college from Heslington East, Goodricke, will also be looking for a return to form after they were demolished 7-0 by James last week.
This weekend they face an Alcuin side who have endured troubles of their own and languish in seventh place with only a solitary point from their first three matches. The final clash of the day sees Halifax meet fifth placed Wentworth, the winners of last year’s spring league. Halifax have appeared somewhat subdued to date this campaign, but last year’s College Cup winners will be looking to move up the table with a victory over the postgraduates of Wentworth.
In College Rugby, Derwent will be looking to continue their dominance on Sunday when they meet Vanbrugh on 22 Acres, but before then Halifax will be looking to make it two wins out of two when they meet an Alcuin side who will be looking to bounce back from last week’s disappointing defeat to James on Saturday.
The action will also continue on the JLD, as teams look to close the gap on James who are now unbeaten for over two years in college hockey. The last team to beat them were Halifax back in October 2011, but since then they have embarked on a remarkable run which has seen them dominate the league format of college hockey.
James, who beat Halifax 4-1 last week, have the week off, and thus Goodricke will temporarily move to the top if they beat Vanbrugh tomorrow, but will have played two more games than their rivals. Halifax will also be looking to record their first wins of the season, when they face a double header against rejuvenated Vanbrugh and Alcuin sides. Finally old rivals Derwent and Langwith will meet at 12:00, as both sides look to claw their way up the table.
Further action will take place indoor, with a host of netball and badminton fixtures, whilst both volleyball and table-tennis will also take place this evening, as the college sport calendar reaches its full swing.