Gair Rhydd - Varsity Pullout 2018 - 30th of April 2018

gair rhydd Cardiff Uni’s student paper | est . 1972

gair rhydd sport | chwaraeon Cardiff student weekly newspaper Papur wythnosol myfyrwyr Caerdydd Varsity Special Pullout Atodiad Arbennig Farsiti 30th April 2018 | 30ain o Ebrill 2018

WELSH VARSITY 2018

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WELSH VARSITY 2018 Sport Editors Mark Wyatt Rich Jones Reece Chambers Molly Ruth Ambler

Cardiff secure the double with Varsity Shield and Cup victories

Gair Rhydd Editor Liam Ketcher Photography Credits Mike Hall Contributors John Jones Daniel Martin George Willoughby Sam Jones Julia Bortolotto Laura Price Aled Huw Russell Molly May Jackson Rhys Thomas Jack Cutler Aditi Gupta George Cook

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final score: 26-16

elsh Varsity 2018 proved to be another fine sporting occasion – and for Cardiff University it was the most successful in recent memory.

It was business as usual in the Shield, with Cardiff returning to dominance after being held to a draw last year then controversially being stripped of the title a couple of months later.

A 26-16 win reflected the high level which has come to be expected from those in red in Welsh Varsity, but this time their win was mirrored

by the Rugby victory.

It is the first time Cardiff have done the double at Welsh Varsity since 2012, and such a result will rightly be celebrated across the university.

The build-up to the event was far from straight-forward. There was confusion over ticket sales and major concerns over the weather with a mixed forecast.

But once again the sun prevailed and provided perfect conditions for what was a hectic festival of sport based mainly at Swansea’s Sketty Lane venue.

There were noticeably impressive wins for Freshers’ Rugby in front of a huge crowd, whilst Men’s Hockey edged what was, by all accounts, a tense encounter on the astro turf.

Whilst the Men’s Football proved something of an anti-climax again with a goalless draw, there was plenty of entertainment from the IMG and Women’s teams to make amends.

Victory in the rugby for the second straight year was the icing on the cake, with a professional performance capping off a truly stunning season for the club.

The day was not without it’s trouncings though, as both the Cardiff Cobras and Women’s Rugby suffered heavy defeats whilst Swansea’s IMG football side and men’s hockey team were dealt blows of their own.

But ultimately it was a day which could be celebrated by teams and players from across the university.

Win or lose, Varsity is always an occasion to savour, and for many the last opportunity to cherish the chance to play alongside your colleagues in the red jersey before leaving university.

A timeline of the Varsity Day

Cardiff Victories Men’s Rugby.............................Page 3 Freshers’ Rugby........................Page 5 Tae Kwon Do.............................Page 5 IMG Football..............................Page 6 Men’s Tennis..............................Page 7 Men’s Hockey............................Page 8 Ladies’ Lacrosse.....................Page 10 Men’s Lacrosse.......................Page 10 Netball........................................Page11 Men’s Rowing...........................Page14 Women’s Volleyball.................Page14 Women’s Rifle..........................Page15 Triathlon.....................................Page15 Women’s Waterpolo...............Page15 Sailing.........................................Page15 Women’s Badminton..............Page15 Men’s Squash..........................Page15 Men’s Waterpolo....................Page15 Women’s Volleyball.................Page15 Men’s Fencing.........................Page15 Men’s Ultimate Frisbee..........Page15 Women’s Basketball...............Page15 Women’s Squash....................Page15 Men’s Basket Ball...................Page15 Women’s Fencing..................Page15 Swansea Victories Ladies’ Rugby..............................Page 4 Athletics......................................Page 4 Ladies’ Tennis...............................Page 7 Golf.................................................Page 7 Women’s Hockey........................Page 8 American Football.......................Page 9 Men’s Volleyball.........................Page14 Women’s Rowing.....................Page14 Athletics.......................................Page15 Swimming....................................Page15 Equestrian...................................Page15 Women’s Ultimate Frisbee......Page15 Kickboxing...................................Page15 Archery.........................................Page15 Cycling.........................................Page15 Draw Men’s Football.............................Page 6 Women’s Football......................Page 7 Canoe Polo...............................Page15 Boxing.........................................Page15

11: 05am

11:18am

Women’s Waterpolo produced a Cardiff victory.

Swansea 3-8 Cardiff

Cardiff clinched another victory soon after in Women’s Netball.

Swansea 28-41 Cardiff

12:16pm

2: 33pm

Swansea claim victory in Women’s Ultimate Frisbee.

Swansea 10-6 Cardiff

Celebrations as Cardiff Men’s Hockey are victorious.

Swansea 2-8 Cardiff

4:16pm

15: 49pm

Cardiff show their support at Sketty Lane in their numbers

All square after a hard-fought game in the Women’s Football.

Swansea 2-2 Cardiff

8:19pm

8:56pm

Celebrations as Cardiff score another try to extend their lead

Celebrations for Cardiff with the Cup. FT 15-23

FARSITY CYMRU 2018

Replacements B Edward S Starks J Outlaw J Viggers J Reid H Thomas P Lewis J Hale

Mark Wyatt

Swansea XV D Moss P Shrestha O Joyce M Pearce H Williams R Garrett T Lucas W Guy A Dunahm T Harper M Dodd M Jones J Williams J Tharne A Thresher Replacements L Melotti C Francis T Northey L Johnson C Samwells N Hill J Clement D Callaghan

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Cardiff 23-15 Swansea

ardiff University ran out deserved winners in the showpiece rugby match of the 2018 Welsh Varsity at the Liberty Stadium, overcoming Swansea by a score of 23-15.

It was a flourishing performance for the Reds who led at halftime after a James Homes try put them into the driving seat following a nervous start.

Cardiff had to dig deep in the second half, adding a try and two penalties to the scoreline to ensure the victory.

The match was not without its drama though, as Swansea were awarded a penalty try with 5 minutes remaining to close the gap to 8 points and leave Cardiff sweating to see out the game.

Eventually the full-time whistle was blown and a jubilant Cardiff side lifted the Varsity Cup for the second year in a row.

Cardiff head coach Alun Wyn Davies stressed in his programme notes that the match was a “one-off game with all to play for” and it certainly felt that way in the opening stages.

Despite beating their neighbours twice in the domestic season it was Swansea who started the brighter of the sides with some early pressure courtesy of Hywel Williams on the left-wing.

James Davies alleviated some pressure with a penalty kick for the visitors but it wasn’t long before the match had it’s first try as Cardiff failed to clear their lines and Williams bundled over.

Davies converted a penalty once again from mid-range soon after but Rory Garrett made up for missing his conversion earlier in the match when he slotted home one of his own and kept Swansea in a narrow lead.

Prop James Homes managed to run in from close range just before the half and James Davies once again added the extras as Cardiff went into the break 13-8 up.

The tempo slowed dramatically in the second half as Cardiff sought to gain a hold of the match, and they did just that when Chris Williams was quickest to the ball following sustained pressure from the Reds.

Davies converted once again and added a sublime 40-metre penalty for good measure.

Swansea managed to make it a nervy end when they were awarded a penalty try with 5 minutes to go, but Cardiff did excellently to hold on and cap off a fantastic day for the university, who also regained the Varsity Shield earlier in the

day.

“They had us on the ropes a little bit in the first 20 minutes, we expected it to be tough though because they are a good side” said man-of-the-match Davies after the match.

“We managed to stay in the game, keep the points ticking over and eventually get the win so it was a really great game to play in.

“Varsity is the game that everyone wants to play in, everyone works for it all year and it’s a once in a lifetime experience. The crowd is always incredible and the chance to represent Cardiff University on a stage like this is unreal.

“It’s a great feeling [receiving man-ofthe-match] but it’s on behalf of the team this one, I’m just lucky I’m the kicker I guess!”

Watching from the sidelines Alun Wyn Davies cut a nervous figure at times during Wednesday’s heated match.

But despite being able to celebrate with his players at the full-time whistle, he hailed it as an ‘ugly win’.

“We’ve always said that if we look out for the performance then the result will take care of itself and it did. I think we were just superior to them defensively

and that was enough on the night.

“We knew that both teams would make mistakes early on because neither side have played together for six or seven weeks. In the second half I don’t think they looked threatening at all though.

“We had total control but it was an ugly win in the end!”

It’s been quite the year for CURFC who have seen 2 out of their 3 senior sides promoted (the 1st XV will be playing in the coveted BUCS Super Rugby next year) whilst their final senior team had to settle for 2nd place in their division.

“The club is currently in a great position off the back of that win and it’s purely down to all of the players.” said an upbeat Davies “It sounds cliché but it really feels like the whole club is together as one, we’ve had a senior group of 45-48 guys all year round who’ve really stuck at it.

“It may not feel like it, but every member of the club had their part to play this year in Varsity, a really positive impact.

“It was a fantastic end to the season to have everyone in the club supporting us in the stadium, even the boys that didn’t get to play.

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The club is currently in a great position off the back of that win and it’s purely down to all of the players.

Alun Wyn Davies

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Cardiff XV J Mogg H Griffiths R Wall J Phillips H Lang J Davies O Davies J Homes R Jenkins A Rees C Stonehill T Bell T Wilson (capt) A Everett C Williams

Men’s Rugby storm to trophy glory

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WELSH VARSITY 2018

Swans show class in Women’s Rugby Cardiff 10-60 Swansea

Cardiff XV

Swansea XV

M Danks E Ashcroft C Jones E Erskine R Foley A Borthwick M Ifans (capt) L Podpadec H Brench-Jones C Morgan J Coxon A Mawhinney B Lewis G Harvey P Booth

S Bailey E Hennessy C Keight R Higgins E Sheppy R Harris (capt) J McCreery B Williams C Hope A Mokhtar N John R Bishop S Young A Smith B Taylor

Replacements

Replacements

M Ruth Ambler C Butler M Llewelyn J Yandle A Voyce R Eyres L Gillions L Satterly

C Peter A Andrews F Hodges K Hall R Redmond C Dean C Burton V Mince

Rich Jones

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The class of Swansea soon came to the fore, with the league champions starting to dominate most aspects of the game

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George Cook

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Cardiff..............................................10 Swansea.............................................60

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ardiff University Ladies’ Rugby Club put up a brave fight but were no match for their Swansea counterparts in a thrilling encounter at Sketty Lane.

The visitors took an early lead through a Liliana Podpadec, finishing off a ruthless move featuring some powerful carrying from the forwards.

But the class of Swansea soon came to the fore, with the League Champions starting to dominate most aspects of the game.

They took a stranglehold at the breakdown, seizing multiple turnovers to ensure Cardiff were simply unable to keep possession.

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They were also ruthless on the counter attack, exploiting pace out wide to run up the score during a stunning half an hour surge before half-time.

A lack of possession gave Cardiff great difficult in launching a fightback, but they nonetheless got a consolation try as Podpadec crossed for the second time in the match.

The home side dominated for much of the match however as they bundled over another 2 tries before the full-time whistile was blown to the relief of Cardiff.

The impressive Swansea were worthy winners in what was a tough end to the season for Cardiff.

The home side dominated for much of the match

Swansea frustrate Cardiff in Athletics

fter the bus being stuck in traffic, it was touch and go whether the events would actually get delayed so that athletes could successfully compete.

Eventually, about 15 minutes later than planned, the events got underway.

It kicked off with the 4x200m relay with 2 teams from Cardiff and Swansea and the hosts took the glory in these first two races.

Chaos then ensued on the track as officials combined the men’s and women’s 3km event meaning there were at least 30 runners on the track.

However, this did not affect the performance of Cardiff athletes Lauren Cooper and James Heneghan, who outpaced the rest of the field.

In the 600m women’s and 100m men’s, Swansea were victorious sprinting home across the finish line in both of these events.

Sam Adams jumped the distance in the men’s long jump as the morning’s events

came to a close.

There was then a break for the football in between, which gave athletes a chance to soak up some of the atmosphere at Sketty Lane.

As the afternoon schedule begun, the women’s and men’s elim mile saw both Lauren Cooper and James Heneghan claim victory again after winning the 3km race earlier in the day.

The events of the day culminated with the men’s and women’s 4x100m and 4x400m relay races.

Cardiff won the 4x100m for both the men and women with solid performances from all Cardiff athletes.

However, Cardiff failed to clinch victory in both of the 4x400m races although it was still a dramatic event as the Cardiff team slipped on one of the changeovers.

Unfortunately, Swansea won the athletics overall but the Athletics Team still said they had a brilliant day.

FARSITY CYMRU 2018

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Scenes at Sketty Lane as Cardiff win Freshers’ Rugby John Jones

Cardiff..............................................22 Swansea..............................................9

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Minutes laters Sadbri was in again, as he utilised his electric pace to superb effect, bundling over for Cardiff’s third try, and effectivley putting the game to be.

dominant second-half performance from Cardiff Fresher’s team propelled them to victory in a hard-fought match that was watched by a large and spirited crowd.

It was a rather nervy start for the visitors, as Swansea were quickest out of the blocks, and began to pile early pressure on the Cardiff defence, who seemed nervy with the ball in hand.

The passion and determination of both teams was immediately evident, however, with some thumping tackles being exchanged between the two sides within the opening minutes.

This fiery start culminated in a high tackle by Cardiff ’s Adam Sadbri on his opposite number, which caused tempers to flare and punches to be thrown as the game momentarily descended into a scuffle.

Once play was resumed, Cardiff once again seemed to be on the back foot, as Swansea continued to play with a sense of purpose and direction, with clever passes in midfield helping them to advance deeper into the visitor’s half.

Their efforts were soon rewarded with a penalty just inside Cardiff ’s 22, which was duly converted to secure the first three points of the match. However, soon after, Cardiff began to find their feet, and after

a period of sustained pressure, punctuated with some electrifying breaks from both their forwards and backs, converted a penalty of their own to draw level.

Swansea hit back with another penalty conversion and were unlucky not to increase their lead to six points, as a third penalty, taken just short of the ten-metre line, clipped the outside of the post and fell wide.

Swansea remained on top and were well disciplined in the midfield, but with four minutes of the first half remaining, some fantastic passing and overlapping play from Cardiff

saw their full back race over the line and touch down in the corner for the first try of the game, which was subsequently converted.

The home side managed to reduce the deficit to just one point through a penalty shortly before half-time, but their heads had noticeably dropped.

The second half began as a war of attrition between the two 22’s, as both sides struggled to penetrate their opposition’s defensive line.

However, shortly after the hour mark, a powerful break down the right touchline by Cardiff ’s hooker was followed by a quick spread of

play, with a sensational 20m miss pass leaving winger Adam Sadbri in plenty of space to dive over the line to make it 15-9, with a successful conversion putting further daylight between the two sides.

Minutes later, Sadbri was in again, as he utilised his electric pace to superb effect, bundling over for Cardiff ’s third try, and effectively putting the game to bed. Whilst Swansea attempted to launch a very late comeback, Cardiff ’s defence was equal to the onslaught of pressure, and held on to secure a convincing 22-9 win over the hosts.

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Tae Kwon-Do snatch victory

Daniel Martin

Cardiff.....................................................11 Swansea..................................................5

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Bolstered by defeat, Ibraheem stepped up and completely dominated his fight.

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ae Kwon-Do had an early start on Wednesday morning, being one of the first sports of the day.

The event started with the Individual Patterns event. Patterns are a set sequence of moves, and were marked on technique, power and balance. Daniel started off, winning against his opponent. Hari was next up, but unfortunately lost by 0.3 points. Next came Dàvid and Kylie, who both won their rounds.

Next up came Team Patterns.

Similar to individual patterns, team patterns are performed in groups and require the team to perform each move simultaneously. Three Cardiff green stripe girls (Holly, Lulu and Kylie) performed their pattern as an exhibition match. Next came the Cardiff Black belt team (Daniel, Hari and Dàvid) who had a tough match up, but successfully managed to win their match. Both teams performed brilliantly.

After the patterns came the sparring, and Cardiff had a comfortable lead of 4-1. The first match had Dàvid against one of the Swan-

sea black belts. It was a very close match, but Swansea won that fight.

Bolstered by this defeat, Ibraheem stepped up and completely dominated his fight. With the Cardiff crowd now reinvigorated, Kai stepped up to spar her opponent (a black belt who was 4 belts higher than her). This didn’t worry her though, and Kai won her fight by a comfortable margin. Dàvid, fired up from his previous defeat, went into his second fight with fire in his eyes.

Like Ibraheem, Dàvid completely dominated his second fight, even knocking his opponent off his feet at one point.

In the breaking round, competitors had to perform certain techniques in order to break 2 wooden boards. Daniel, Dàvid, Kai and Sofia all successfully broke the boards giving Cardiff 4 more points. Final score: 11-5 to Cardiff.

Both Swansea and Cardiff performed excellently on the day, and both teams should be very proud of themselves. A special thank you to all of the umpires that came to help out on the day, as well as a big thank you to our coach, Master Dean Matthews, for his continued dedication and support.

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WELSH VARSITY 2018

Men’s Football: Cardiff held to goalless draw Reece Chambers

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Minutes laters Sadbri was in again, as he utilised his electric pace to superb effect, bundling over for Cardiff’s third try, and effectivley putting the game to be.

Cardiff...........................................0 Swansea.........................................0

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ardiff University men’s football held out for a 0-0 draw against a strong Swansea University team at Sketty Lane on Wednesday.

Ahead of the much-anticipated clash, Swansea were tipped to win the match given that they are placed a league above Cardiff. However, with the contest bringing much added pressure for both sides, the game was always going to be close.

A goalless draw for Cardiff may not have been the most entertaining of matches, but they did at least prove their worth against a better quality of opposition. Swansea’s quality was clear to see at times dur-

ing the match but the fact that Cardiff prevented the home side from scoring must have given them great hope.

In the opening 20 minutes at Sketty Lane, there were very few chances for either side. Chances may have been limited, perhaps, because of the poor pitch that both sides were trying to play on.

With heavy rain in the days prior to the match, the pitch started cutting up from the early stages of the match. As a result, Swansea’s dominance in possession throughout the opening half an hour of the match produced very few clear-cut chances.

Despite Swansea’s dominance in possession, Cardiff came closest to scoring in the first half. Joe Saad’s

tremendous strike from 20 yards out hit the underside of the bar and looked to go over the line. The referee, though, waved away the appeals from the Cardiff players and the game carried on.

In his post-match interview, Cardiff centre-back Ryan Dabbs admitted he didn’t know if the ball had crossed the line. He did, however, reference Frank Lampard’s infamous disallowed goal in the 2010 World Cup versus Germany.

“Frank Lampard against Germany springs to mind, of course we would’ve taken the goal but we have to move on,” he said.

After that chance, Swansea responded by taking a hold of the game and pushing to open the scoring.

The home side had the ball in the

net by the 35th minute but the goal was disallowed for a push during the corner.

Up front for Swansea, Marley Bishop-Wisdom caused Cardiff ’s backline many issues with numerous bursting runs. The Cardiff goalkeeper Jack Fosberry produced a fine string of saves to prevent the home side from taking the lead.

In the midfield, Swansea’s captain Nick Hyden controlled much of the game with an impressive range of passing. He tested Fosberry on a couple of occasions with a number of long-range strikes.

Throughout the second half, Cardiff managed to get a better hold of the game compared to the first half.

Cardiff ’s captain Matt Evans had a good chance on 64 minutes with a header from a corner but failed to beat the Swansea ‘keeper.

Swansea, though, had the best chance of the game in the 73rd minute in a goalmouth scramble. Nevertheless, Cardiff defended resiliently and cleared the ball away from their own goal.

In the final 10 minutes of the game, there was little to choose between the two sides.

Several players went down with cramp as the game looked to be coming to an end.

There was still time for Fosberry to make another fantastic save for Cardiff.

He was undoubtedly Man of the Match for Cardiff and it was quite fitting that the game finished with a fine save from Fosberry who deserves great credit for keeping a clean sheet against a strong Swansea team.

‘‘ IMG Football: Cardiff win eightgoal thriller

George Willoughby

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Two avoidable goalkeeping erros evened things up early on, but Cardiff responded in much better fashion and deservedly led going into the break

Cardiff....................................................5 Swansea....................................................3

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uthless Cardiff came out as 5-3 winners in a thrilling IMG Football encounter.

Only two goals separated the two teams at full time, but it was a match that Cardiff dominated, and were the thoroughly deserved victors.

It was a frantic start to the encounter, as both goalkeepers made early and costly errors.

Only ten minutes had passed, and the score was already a tense 1-1, with Cardiff looking to find a foothold in the game after a conceding a frustrating equaling goal.

Winger Jordan Badman was an ominous threat in the opening stages of the match, and it would be the Cardiff number 11 that would restore the away side’s lead.

Badman was played through and was bearing down on the Swansea goal. He showed great composure

to round the onrushing keeper and coolly slot home.

The goal breathed confidence into the Cardiff side, and five minutes later the score would be 3-1.

A long throw-in was seemingly going to be dealt with comfortably by the Swansea keeper, but he somehow fumbled the ball right into the path of striker Lewis Richardson.

Richardson made no mistake and finished into the empty net.

Shortly after, midfielder Ben Coombes can count himself unlucky, as his long-range freekick was kept out by a combination of the fingertips of the goalkeeper and the crossbar. A cracking effort that warranted a goal.

Two avoidable goalkeeping errors evened things up early on, but Cardiff responded in much better fashion and deservedly led going into the break.

The game was set-up so that the next goal would be pivotal, and it

was Cardiff that would extend their lead shortly after the restart. Wideman Jonny Genin was set free down the right wing and his dangerous ball into the box was bundled in by an unfortunate Swansea player who could do little to avoid the ball crossing the line.

Cardiff went into a commanding 4-1 lead, and things would get even better for the team in Red. Once again, Genin was influential as he picked out fellow forward Lewis Richardson in the Swansea penalty

area. Richardson showed great poise to slot home into the bottom corner, and Cardiff went into an unassailable 5-1 lead.

Despite two late consolation goals, Cardiff held out for the victory.

It was a match littered with mistakes, but ultimately, Cardiff were the far superior side on the day.

Captain Callum Close will be delighted with the performances of his players, who showed no signs of letting the Varsity setting get the better of them.

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FARSITY CYMRU 2018

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Honours in Women’s Football

Rhys Thomas

Cardiff.......................................................2 Swansea....................................................2

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ardiff came from behind twice to draw 2-2 with Swansea in a hard-fought women’s football clash.

There was only two minutes on the clock when Swansea scored their first goal, a bullet header directed in from a pinpoint perfect corner.

With Cardiff already on the back foot, they were forced to up the tempo and play themselves back into the match, Athina Varnava leading the

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Minutes laters Sadbri was in again, as he utilised his electric pace to superb effect, bundling over for Cardiff’s third try, and effectivley putting the game to be.

charge despite an early knock and getting away a shot on goal under pressure.

At the other end, goalkeeper Lucy Venables made an important save from a Swansea free-kick, tipping the ball around the post.

Katie Davies was next to join in with an impressive, mazy run leading to a corner, and it was Davies who missed one of the half ’s sharpest chances – Varnava’s run and ball through to Moulton being pumped into the box and eluding both Davies and Swansea’s defenders.

A Varnava nutmeg was a highlight for those in red watching, and the away team were on the wrong end of a number of potentially dubious offside calls.

Cardiff remained behind at the interval, but there were reasons to be hopeful.

They started brightly in the second period with Davies having a great chance early on but blazing over the bar. A charge up-field from Amy Marshall led to a Charlie Andrews cross which narrowly missed the attacking players.

The game’s biggest decision came from Varnava’s tricky running into the box, as she was brought down and the referee had no doubt in pointing to the spot. Moulton slotted to the keeper’s left to bring the scores level, much to the delight of Cardiff ’s ultras in the stands.

Despite Cardiff ’s increasing dominance they were not able to keep the scores level for long. After only a few minutes, the home side floated a shot over a backpedalling Venables who couldn’t quite keep it out.

Cardiff ’s intensity as the second-half wore on contributed to semi-regular stops in play for a number of Swansea players who were going down with cramp, and it was clear that the visitors had superior fitness levels.

The next equaliser was always going to come - the home keeper was unable to hold onto a firm strike from substitute Llyweln Edwards, and it was Varnava who nodded in from close range to put Swansea supporters back in their box.

It was all Cardiff after the goal with a number of chances being created.

Varnava again had two good efforts, firstly striking the bar after a Davies through ball and then firing over after an accurate cross from Marshall.

Cardiff had several more chances but were unable to convert. The visitors certainly got better as the game wore on, and Swansea were fortunate to hold on for the draw.

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Tennis make a racquet with Swansea thrashing

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Cardiff Men’s....................................6 Swansea Men’s..................................0

Cardiff Women’s................................1 Swansea Women’s.............................5

Rich Jones

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ardiff cruised to a dominant win over Swansea in the Men’s tennis.

Their six-man team did not lose a single match or drop a set as they stormed to a 6-0 success.

Sam Tullett and Andy Gorvin got them off to a perfect start with a 6-3, 6-1 doubles win - and Joe Hill and Aydin Caglayan also won their doubles match.

With Dom Pearson and Caglayan coming out on top in their singles matches, there was never any doubt of a comfortable Cardiff victory to repeat their 2017 success.

Unfortunately the women’s team could not repeat the success as they were well beaten 5-1.

Bogey for Golf with heavy defeat

Cardiff..................................................1/2 Swansea............................................9 1/2

Sam Jones

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n the Golf, Cardiff travelled down to a windy Pennard Golf Club to take on Swansea.

During the previous year, Cardiff managed to upset the odds and reign victorious over Swansea at Radyr Golf Club, for the first time since the inception of the tournament. However, this year Swansea were looking for revenge and playing at the fortress that is Pennard, it would be

a tall order for Cardiff to retain the title.

The tone was set from the beginning, with Swansea starting strong, taking the first four points from the opening two fourballs comfortably. It seemed that none of the putts were falling for the visitors, this coupled with some great play by the well drilled Swansea players meant that the momentum was firmly with the home team.

The middle groupings put up more of a fight, with club treasurer

Rob Highton losing 3 & 2 and Royal Porthcawl member Lewis Mainwaring narrowly losing 2 & 1. The passion for the event showing as Lewis was reduced to tears after the match had ended, with team members having to console him.

Club Captain and Cardiff match play champion Georges Neill, alongside Social Secretary Charles Wilson showed grit and determination to try and mount a comeback, but the high wind speed was troubling for the pairs relatively high ball flights and

both lost their matches in the end.

However, all was not lost for the visiting team. Club President Isabel Marin restored some pride for the visitors with a hard-fought half point, after sinking a clutch 20ft putt on the 18th hole to avoid clean sweep for the home team.

In the end, the final score was 9 ½ - ½ to Swansea. This was a well deserved victory for the home team as they showed their experience in the challenging conditions and regained the golf title.

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WELSH VARSITY 2018

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Cardiff stun Swans for Men’s Hockey triumph

John Jones

Cardiff......................................................8 Swansea...................................................2

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lick passing and efficient set-pieces were the difference for Cardiff as they ran riot over a sluggish Swansea side.

Cardiff ’s dominance was evident right from the push back, as they won an early short corner, and would have scored from it, if not for the brilliant intervention of Swansea’s goalkeeper, who tipped the goal-bound effort wide. This early pressure was sustained by Cardiff ’s forwards, who deservedly got their rewards mid-way

through the first half, when a bursting run forward was followed by a searching ball across goal, which was tucked away neatly to put the men in red 1-0 up.

Swansea were noticeably rattled by this early onslaught, and conceded a second goal minutes later, as Cardiff worked their way into the attacking D with some masterful short passing, and buried the ball into the bottom corner, past the helpless Swansea keeper.

Against the run of play, Swansea managed to pull one back, as a short corner was well parried by Ben O’Sul-

livan in the Cardiff goal, who could do nothing as the rebound was pounced upon and fired into the net.

However, the visitors were not disheartened by this, and continued to dominate the play, and bagged two more goals from well-worked short corners to make it 4-1 shortly before the break.

Swansea started the second-half brightly, and were camped in the Cardiff end for much of the opening 10 minutes, only to be caught out by a swift counter-attacking move. The away team broke upfield, and a stinging cross from the left was poorly dealt

with by Swansea, as their goalkeeper fumbled the ball into the path of the Cardiff forward, who took his chance excellently to stretch his team’s lead to four goals.

It was from here that the floodgates really opened for Cardiff, as they struck three more goals in quick succession, with Oskar Kolk’s fine finish from a slick short corner move the pick of the bunch.

Swansea managed to pull back a consolation goal with two minutes to go, but it was far too little, too late as Cardiff romped to a fully deserved 8-2 victory after a truly dominant display.

Women’s Hockey lose out in nail-biting clash

Rich Jones

Cardiff...........................................................1 Swansea........................................................2

C

+1

ardiff suffered an agonising 2-1 defeat in their Women’s Hockey match.

The visitors had high hopes of repeating their 2017 victory as they headed to Sketty Lane.

But they were undone by their dogged opponents in a cagey clash and could not repeat the heroics of the Men’s team.

They thought they had scored an equaliser in the second half only for the goal to be disallowed.

And Swansea duly held on to secure the win - a major upset considering they ply their trade at a lower level in the BUCS system, in the same league as the Cardiff 3rd team.

Such a result proves the manner in which the occasion of Welsh Varsity can throw up surprise results, and Cardiff will no doubt be disappointed by a tough end to their campaign.

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FARSITY CYMRU 2018

11

Titans trounce Cobras in American Football

Mark Wyatt

‘‘

It wasn’t the way I wanted to end my Cobras career, but I’m massivley proud of the boys for their efforts at Varsity and all season.

‘‘

Rich Jones

Cardiff....................................................2 Swansea..................................................42

C

ardiff Cobras saw their season come to a disappointing conclusion with a 42-2 defeat at the hands of Swansea.

The Cobras were made to pay for a sluggish start and were unable to threaten what would have been one of the biggest upsets of the day against their Premiership opposition.

With starting QB Max Milburn ruled out through illness, their offense struggled to get going and made costly mistakes early on.

Their first drive ended in a fumble which was recovered by the Titans in dangerous territory before they duly punched in the opening score.

The following possession for Cardiff ended with an interception for a touchdown – and a repeat just moments later left them 20-0 down and all but ended the game as a contest.

They nonetheless showed great fight and determination to recover and put up much more of a fight over the remaining three quarters.

A superb punt from Jak Canham pinned Swansea deep in their own territory just before half-time, and an excellent tackle from Will Rushen saw Cardiff get on the scoreboard with a safety.

But a third pick-six gave Swansea a significant half-time lead which left the Cobras simply playing for pride.

They were able to hold an athletic Swansea offense to just a single score in the second half, and demonstrated plenty of potential in difficult circumstances.

The Cobras will now aim to regroup ahead of a fresh promotion push in BUCS 1A South West next year, with a number of young players gaining vital experience despite the heavy Varsity defeat.

Head Coach Sean Patrick Cook said: “We always knew it was going

to be a tough game.

“Swansea are an excellent team.

They play in the Premiership for a reason and as we expected they were the best side we’ve played all year.

“We were hoping we could keep it close going into half-time and give them a scare, but unfortunately it turned out the opposite to that!

“We made some costly mistakes early on which meant they went ahead quite early, but after that we regrouped and did ourselves proud I feel.

“We were without our starting Quarterback due to illness, and starting as a rookie in Varsity was always going to be tough.

“We managed to give a lot of young players a lot of game time against a strong team on a big stage, and that will only help us going into next year.

“Defensively especially, we held a great offense to only one touchdown in the second half.

“They knew they were in a game

despite the scoreline, and the guys returning next year need to take heart from that and look to build on it.

“As with every year we’re losing a fair few players, but I just want to thank all the leaving players for their efforts. They left it all on the field and that’s all we can ask.”

Meanwhile, President Rich Jones added: “It wasn’t the way I wanted to end my Cobras career, but I’m massively proud of the boys for their efforts at Varsity and all season.

“It’s not always been easy but we’ve shown a lot of character in tough situations after Christmas and it’s been an honour to lead this team all season.

“There’s a lot of potential in the team, and if some of the younger players stick with it and keep working hard, there’s no reason the club can’t be in the Premiership and competing with Swansea in the near future.”

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12 WELSH VARSITY 2018

Cardiff.......................................................10 Swansea......................................................4

Julia Bortolotto

C

ardiff University Men’s Lacrosse team gloriously beat Swansea 10-4 once again at the 2018 Welsh Varsity. As Cardiff and Swansea had not yet played against each other this season, it was interesting to see how they would fare after last year’s Cardiff win.

The match began at 11:30am with instant Cardiff possession. Only two minutes into the game Cardiff player, Nick Goodwin (no.3), scored the first goal. Despite this promising start, there were no more goals in the first half. Many attempts were made from both teams, especially long distant power shots that, unfortunately, just missed the goal and flew off the pitch.

A Cardiff lacrosse player described the first half as notably “ scrappy”, as both teams could not keep possession of the ball for long enough to score, whilst the muddy pitch made ground balls increasingly problematic.

Nonetheless, both teams kicked into gear by the second half and Cardiff scored another two goals within the first three minutes. Swansea quickly followed, scoring their first goal ten minutes later, but Cardiff were never too far behind. A notable moment for Cardiff was player Luke Brierley’s (no.97) one-handed goal in the second half.

Despite being a contact sport, the match was relatively tame, and seemingly focused more on technique rather than aggression. However, that cannot be said for the last three minutes of the game. It appears that, as a Cardiff player was subbed of the pitch he was pushed into the Swansea sideline area and a fight commenced between both teams. It was quickly resolved but time was lost and the match ended shortly afterwards.

Cardiff University rightly celebrated this excellent end to a good season. Once again, expectations rise for next year’s Varsity, but, as this is the Cardiff ’s sixth consecutive victory, it is needless to say that expectations are very high.

Women’s Lacrosse cruise to victory

Julia Bortolotto

‘‘

In the last ten minutes, Cardiff bagged another three goals, bringing them up to 17 by the final whistle. Despite the clear win, Swansea supporters kept up morale and were vocal the whole match on their home turf

‘‘

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Cardiff....................................................17 Swansea....................................................0

W

ell played and well earned.

The Cardiff University Women’s Lacrosse team secured another victorious 17-0 win against Swansea University.

Following the Cardiff Men’s Lacrosse victory, the Cardiff Women’s team sailed to a clear win, not even allowing in one single Swansea goal.

The first goal by Cardiff player Maeve McKenny (no.12) was scored only one minute into the game.

This set the rhythm of the entire match as Cardiff relentlessly kept scoring goals.

The Swansea team appeared to have trouble keeping possession of the ball as Cardiff held a strong defence and secured possession from all the centre draws to allow them to control the pace of the game.

By half time, the score was already 10-0 to Cardiff and, by the second half, the team got a little more creative with their goals.

Cardiff captain Phoebe Smith (no.5) notably performed an overhead stick throw before shooting and scoring.

In the last ten minutes, Cardiff bagged another three goals, bringing them up to 17 by the final whistle.

Despite this clear win, Swansea supporters kept up morale and were vocal the whole match on their home turf.

The Swansea team put up a good fight and stayed alert and dedicated throughout such a tough game.

This marks the end of a successful season for both teams. Swansea finished second in their league, but were always expecting a tough task against a Cardiff side who have enjoyed a solid transition to the Premier League in their first season in the top tier.

‘‘

Only two minutes into the game Cardiff player Nick Goodwin scored the first goal.

‘‘

Men’s Lacrosse come out on top

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FARSITY CYMRU 2018

Strong second half secures Netball win Rich Jones

‘‘

Only three girls, including myself, had played in a Varsity clash before this game, and four of our girls are Freshers, so I think it took us until half-time to really get into our stride.

Cardiff.....................................................41 Swansea..................................................28

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ardiff overcome a nervy start to secure another Welsh Varsity win in the Netball with a 41-28 win.

An early morning win from the girls has become something of a tradition to begin Welsh Varsity day in recent years.

But Swansea threatened to derail those plans with a resilient display, particularly in the opening quarter.

A shaky start for Cardiff meant they went in trailing 9-7 at the end of the first quarter, although they scored on the stroke of half-time to edge 17-16 ahead.

The vocal atmopshere from the Cardiff supporters gave their side an added boost in the third quarter, putting them 30-21 up, before a composed final period ensured they took away a 41-28 win after a gritty performance.

They had an intriguing mix of youth and experience, with Welsh international Leila Thomas returning from the Commonwealth Games to take part but being joined by four Freshers in the side.

Team captain Emily Viggers felt they took some time to get into their stride - but she was proud of

the way their side responded in the second half.

Viggers said: “We have a very good unbeaten record against Swansea which goes back many years, but each year the result has seemed to be getting closer and closer.

“I wouldn’t say that the match itself was tougher than I had anticipated, I feel although it was all the other factors that play a part on an occasion as big as Varsity.

“Only three girls, including myself, had played in a Varsity clash before this game, and four of our girls are Freshers, so I think it took us until half-time to really get into our stride and play our own game.

“Eventually we managed to do that and we started to play as we knew we could to end up getting the win.

“We couldn’t let the crowd and the occasion get to us, and I know we can go into next year with that experience behind us.

“Hopefully the younger girls from learn from the experience and we can start strongly next year regardless of the defeaning support we get every year!”

“They were leading early on, but a couple of goals is nothing in Netball as they can be turned over in a matter of seconds.

“I never doubted that we would come back and take control of the game, even for a second, because I know what we have achieved this season agaisnt some really good opposition in BUCS. “I feel although it was only a matter of time until we settled into our own game-plan and executed it effectivley to make sure we took all of our cenre-passes to goal and made our turnovers and interceptions count on the scoreboard.

“We knew that Q3 would be the time to really make our stand in the game, as this is commonly where teams start to dip.

“So going into that quarter, we were really aware that it was time to push on and start pulling away with the lead - which we achieved!

“From there, it was a matter of controlling the game in a way that we wanted to play it, and ensuring to score from any opportunity we had.

“I want to commend all the girls on their outstanding game-management, as this was a huge factor in the win.”

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14 WELSH VARSITY 2018

Controversial victory sees Swansea take the Men’s Volleyball

Mark Wyatt

Cardiff.....................................................2 Swansea..................................................3

A

controversial call made by a Swansea line judge left Cardiff heartbroken in a tense encounter at Sketty Lane.

Swansea started off the brighter of the two sides, winning the first set comfortably and forcing Cardiff to come out of their shells for the next set.

The early pressure worked well for the away side and they battled back to win back-to-back sets and move within touching distance of

victory.

With all to play for Swansea came out swinging, taking the fourth set and forcing the game into a decider to the delight of the crowd.

At the change of ends it was Cardiff on top, leading 10-9 and needing just 5 more points to seal the win.

With victory in the balance, Cardiff thought they had earned a crucial point when the ball alluded the Swansea defence.

But as the away fans celebrated the point and the home side began to look defeated, a Swansea

line judge made an audacious call which reversed the decision.

Swansea were awarded the point and used the pivotal moment to kick on and take the match in the most dramatic of fashions.

It was a kick in the teeth for Cardiff who had fought valiantly.

Captain Alex Chavasse was upset with the result but was keen to take the positives from an entertaining match.

“I was so proud of all the Cardiff players who took part in the match.” he said.

“We’ve been training hard in

Rowing finishes neck and neck Mark Wyatt

Laura Price

‘‘

Knowing that one more set would be enough to clinch victory, Cardiff impossibly stepped up another gear.

S

wansea retained their Welsh Varsity boat race trophy after a 2-2 draw with Cardiff on an exciting day of rowing.

Blue skies and a raucous crowd set the scene as five races took place between novices, seniors and mixed alumni.

Cardiff got off to a dream start at Swansea Marina as a fast start from the Women’s Novices saw them hold on for an excellent victory.

It was the 12th time the women had been victorious over Swansea in this race out of the 13 races they’ve had.

Yet the Men’s Novices were not quite able to repeat the trick in the next race prior to lunch, with their attempts to overhaul a strong Swansea start undone by a mistake on the first bend which saw them beach

O

themselves on the shallow banks.

After Swansea stormed clear unopposed to level the scores, they aimed to achieve an unlikely win against the odds in the women’s race, which Cardiff have never lost.

It looked like an upset may be on the cards when the hosts edged two lengths clear around the first bend, but Cardiff came roaring back to earn victory by three lengths in what was undoubtedly the race of the day.

With a 2-1 lead, Cardiff just needed one more victory to regain the trophy they lost for the first time last year.

But they were unable to end a run of five straight Senior Men’s wins for Swansea, with the hosts ruthlessly steaming clear to win by a comfortable margin and ensure

preparation for Varsity for the whole season and it definitely showed as it was one of our best sporting performances of the season.

“Varsity is always one of the most exciting sporting events of the year, but going into the year as captain just made the whole experience a little bit more special.

“At the end of the day it would’ve been great to win the match, but it wasn’t meant to be and on a personal note it was one of the best matches that I’ve played in during my volleyball career.”

Cardiff Senior Cardiff Novice (Men) (Men) H Neame J Crump H Perry R Hopkins W Fraser D Farmer H Smallman I FIsh (Cox)

they were the side celebrating.

Gaining an advanatge within the opening 100m it was a superbly strong performance from the Swans who never let their lead slip, to the delight of the army of green fans on the banks of the river.

Swansea have now won the men’s race on seven different occasions, Cardiff Senior Cardiff Novice one more than Cardiff ’s six.

(Women) (Women) The Medals were presented by the Chief Umpire, Stephen Poole, A Tetsall E Martin who has officiated all 13 races since J Ayrton C Gray 2005.

Z Hitchens M Clements He was assisted by Sian Rees and B Wesley H Bailey Dawn Brace.

R Hopley M Graham Swansea’s Steve House was the K Feaviour E Tepper man who organised much of the F Prigent L Howe day’s events and he will now be T Cowie G Haynes looking to take some time off before M Scott (Cox) M Adams Swansea will begin preparation for (Cox) BUCS on May 5.

Cardiff spike Swansea to retain Women’s Volleyball crown

n a busy day for Team Cardiff the Women’s first team took to the Swansea court to defend their Varsity title.

A hard-fought victory in 2017 meant that a close game was expected in this year’s match but an inspired Cardiff side prevailed 3-1 with some blow away moments that Swansea were unable to better.

The atmosphere at the Bay Campus Sports Centre was electric as Swansea supporters outnumbered Cardiff fans three to one.

Despite the hordes of green t-shirts, there was no mistaking the roaring support from Cardiff students who were in fine voice as the match began.

The team got off to a great start in the first set, Captain Sophie Banks showing great presence on the court setting the precedent for the game.

They showed fantastic energy and dominated the court winning the set by 10 points.

Their lead didn’t last long though, with Swansea coming back into the second set with a point to prove, the anti-Cardiff chants started and the Swansea girls got a

L Atkins O Leigh T Haddon F Monon T Owen F Sykes J Boyle L Wakeling A Tatton (Cox)

second wind as they took the second set to equalise the score at one all.

Cardiff looked determined in their response as a rugged opening 10 minutes of the third set ensued.

By this point both teams had found their groove and there was some expert plays on show, Ella Watson demonstrating some skillful blocks stumping the Swansea side.

The sheer determination on court a testament to the hard work both clubs have put in over their domestic seasons.

With both sides locked around twenty points a piece it was going to be a tense finale but the Cardiff support roared the away side into an advantage.

Knowing that one more set would be enough to clinch victory, Cardiff impossibly stepped up another gear.

It was the set that the fans had been waiting for as Andreanne Blanchard served thirteen points in a row to blast Cardiff into the lead.

The team’s moral was unrivelled and Swansea’s response was timid. The girls in Red held on to win the final set 25-7 and secure their Varsity title for yet another year.

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FARSITY CYMRU 2018

Best of the rest Archery Swansea....................................................9 Cardiff....................................................3

Rifle Swansea.............................................1125 Cardiff...............................................1156

Cycling Swansea win

Triathlon Cardiff win

Equestrian Swansea win

Sailing Swansea...................................................5 Cardiff.....................................................6

Kickboxing Swansea...................................................3 Cardiff......................................................2 Women’s Tennis Swansea win

Men’s Squash Cardiff win Men’s Fencing Cardiff win

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15

VARSITY 2018