Sport Varsity Cup: A Season of One Try

With the Varsity Shield lying in wait for UP, it is time to review the season. It was a winless shocker that deserves no sugar-coating, but perhaps some perspective can be given to answer a few tough questions. Were UP as bad as it seems and is this the first time that a Varsity Cup team had fallen this hard from glory?

Except for this year, the poorest showing from UP was in the 2010 Varsity Cup. They placed sixth with 14 points. Which is double the amount they saw themselves with at the end of this year. This year however, they find themselves rock bottom of the log with seven points. Is this an honest painting of the season? Tuks found themselves denied three victories against NWU, CUT and Shimlas; as well as a draw against UJ, with only a single try and conversion needed. This would have meant that 14 more points could have been secured if one single break through run or driving maul had worked in these games. These points would have placed UP sixth and just behind maties with points difference. That is shockingly close. UP could have had an unlucky season compared to a horrible one.

This is not the first time a major team in the Varsity Cup had a shocker of a season. Ikeys Tigers during the 2016 Varsity Cup ended the season with three points, even though they won the competition in 2014. However, they avoided relegation due to the way the Varsity Cup operated at the time. Back in 2016, the team ending at the bottom of the table had to play a relegation game against the winner of the Varsity Shield. Ikeys won it and secured another year in the Varsity Cup. With all of this, it can be seen that UP were much closer to a better season than what the log would suggest. They are also not the first champions to find themselves at the bottom of the table without a win. So, with UP letting their headcoach go, hopefully they will only spend one season in the Shield before bouncing back to claim their place in the Varsity Cup once again.