‘Some Team’ wins ‘Yindoors’

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Photos: Jack Western

York’s signature event in Ultimate, known as ‘Yindoors’ took place over the weekend, with teams from across the north of England travelling to compete. The tournament has been held for a number of years, but the turnout this time was particularly impressive.

The open event was won by Some Team, while Dazed & Confused took the women’s title. York entered three teams in the open event, and one in the women’s, putting in respectable performances with developmental teams.

As a newcomer to the sport, I didn’t really know what to expect from Ultimate, but the experience was most definitely enjoyable. Clearly, players require good fitness to compete at a high level, but the sport is also noted for not taking itself too seriously.

When entering the sports tent during the two-day tournament, one was immediately struck by the loud and eclectic music, from ‘Bohemain Rhapsody’ to ‘Mr Boombastic’, ‘Barbie Girl’ to ‘Forget You’. This gave the tournament a laid-back feel, but it would be wrong not to think that at the top level this is extremely competitive stuff.

The team names themselves ranged from the obvious to the obscure. Our own team, York Ultimate was probably amongst the least creative. Hull University sent Hulltimate, while Lancaster University sent Fish.

But it is also a friendly sport, there are no referees; contentious moments are left to the teams to debate and decide what to do. Disputes are kept to a minimum.

There were also awards for the teams who best encompassed the spirit of the event, as voted for by their opponents. Dazed & Confused completed the double by winning the spirit award for the women’s, as well as the tournament as a whole. In the open event, Manor, a team made predominantly of early teenagers, won the award.

My first impression of Ultimate was that it was like a cross between netball and American football. Players can only go as far as their momentum takes them when they receive the frisbee, and have only ten seconds to pass it on. Points are scored for getting the frisbee into the end zone.

This leads to different philosophies of play. There was the short passing teams, those who relied on quick counter attacks, and the long pass (which came particularly to the fore at the frantic finales to the matches).

The open event final was a credit to the tournament and the sport. It was a competitive tournament throughout, with former winners and much fancied YOpen, a local team, finishing only 12th. The final was a close affair with Some Team, predominantly made up of former York alumni and including three ex-captains of the York Ultimate team, defeating Dazed & Confused, a club team from Manchester, 6-5.

Dazed & Confused capped off a good weekend with victory in the women’s final over Legs 11, a team made up (by definition) only of tall players.

York 1 finished 13th in the open event, beating Roses rivals Lancaster along the way, whilst York 3 overcame the odds to finish 17th, one place above York 2. The women’s team came 10th, but the tournament provided good experience and development oppurtunities for teams made up predominantly of beginners.

York Ultimate team captain Jamie Smith told Vision: “The event was really good this year, the quality of the teams has improved immensely since last year. Our team looks good, it’s really exciting.”