Derby Day Special

Derby Day Exclusive Issue U N I V E R S I T Y

O F

E S S E X

S T U D E N T

N E W S PA P E R

THURSDAY 20TH MARCH | ISSUE 155

Essex Still Smiling After Narrow Defeat

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Derby Day

Naomi Jeffreys, Editor Jessica Houlihan, Deputy Editor Saga Eriksson, Head Designer

Editorial The Blades Are Coming… that was the hashtag which was used on Twitter throughout the day from various different media outlets. The blades arrived in the sunshine on a Sunday afternoon and fought the good fight. The Rabbit decided to do something it had never done before, to report on a number of the events, a highlights issue. There were fifty-eight events overall, whether it was, Tennis, Cheerleading or Pole Dancing, we were there, reporting on it all.

I must confess, this was the first Derby Day I had ever been too, and it was certainly something which I can see has a lot of appeal for sporting societies and spectators. The rivalry was there, of course, but more than that, there was also in some events, great sportsmanship. In Cheerleading, UEA supported Essex during their Cheer Stunt routine, perhaps defying the rumours that UEA and Essex are great rivals, this was blown out of the water in that act.

Of course, in this special edition of The Rabbit you can find: a flurry of photos from the sporting event which was Derby Day, a Wimbledon-esque report of Tennis, a cheer-like review of Cheerleading, a six nations style review of Men’s Rugby. And finally a low down on what you need to know about Derby Day and its history, along with a whole host of other delights.

A special thank-you has to go to The Rabbit reporters who enthusiastically and willingly reported on the events. Also, thanks to the Photographic Society and Students’ Union photographers and their eagerness and patience in photographing the day.

This issue couldn’t have been done without you all, so thanks from your Editorial team.

The University of Essex fought the good fight until the bitter end, this year the university was keen to make the events as fair as possible, often employing external referees, which in turn insured it was a better competition as it wasn’t pre determined that we would win.

As for Derby Day 2015, which will be hosted at UEA, we don’t know who will win, but we do know that the sportsmanship and rivalry will still live on.

Your Editor, Naomi Jeffreys

How We Made…

Derby Day Issue 16.03.14 As with most things, this issue began with a lot of meetings and a lot of emails, corresponding between The Rabbit editorial team, The Students’ Union and the Photographic Society. This was the administrative backdrop necessary in order for us to be prepared on the day.

But, when Sunday 16th March 2014 arrived and Derby Day took its place on the University of Essex campus and surrounding areas, there was a real sense that this was right, this was what we should be doing. It was clear that UEA felt the same, with a thirty strong media team based in LTB 4 throughout the day and reporting on the same events as ourselves.

Arriving early at the event, there were UEA sports societies, often huddled in groups, dressed in their yellow and blue sports colours (with spectators doing the same), or wandering around campus asking home students where they could find events. In spite of the divide between the two universities, there was an overriding sense of teamwork, not just in the sporting events themselves, but from both UEA and Essex spectators as well. Of course, there were rivalries, but there was also a lot of communication, respect and support for fellow students.

The weather was on our side, with blue skies and sunshine keeping everyone in high spirits. Our lovely editors who volunteered their time for this issue were each assigned a sport to report on. They took notes, scribbled down scores, interviewed exhausted athletes and, with the help of the Photographic society, managed to capture the Derby Day story perfectly. All of the articles in this issue were written on the day, by writers who reported from the side-lines, meaning that the true Derby Day spirit has really been captured within its pages.

This is the first time a twenty-four hour newspaper covering Derby Day has been attempted at Essex, and so in the days leading up, there was a great deal of pressure on us to pull it off. However when the day arrived, it all came together without a hitch. So much time and effort has got into the production of this issue and, as editors, we would like to say a big thank you to all of those involved.

This issue commemorates, not only the fantastic achievements of our athletes, but also of our dedicated student media team.

Naomi Jeffreys and Jessica Houlihan

THURSDAY 20TH MARCH | ISSUE 154

DERBY DAY

Derby Day – What You Need To Know We are in our fourteenth Derby Day, a sporting event that has been running since 2001. Established by the University of Essex Sports Federation, the aim was to create a local sporting Derby between two main Universities in East Anglia. Hence, Derby Day and a great rivalry was born.

The running score is: UEA are leading overall 10-4, the results are: 2001 UEA(at UEA) 2002 UEA (at Essex) 2003 UEA(at UEA) 2004 UEA (at Essex) 2005 UEA (at UEA) 2006 ESSEX (at Essex) 2007 UEA (at UEA) 2008 ESSEX (at Essex) 2009 UEA (at UEA) 2010 ESSEX (at Essex) 30-15 2011 UEA (at UEA)

2012 ESSEX (at Essex) 2013 UEA (at UEA) 38-11 * we dispute some of the scoring from this fixture.

2014 UEA 28.5-31.5 Fifty-eight teams competed across thirty sports.

Five hundred and fifty students competed from each University. As hosted the games, the University of Essex decided to make the games as fair as possible by paying for external officials to referee and judge the competitions in order to prevent a repeat of last year’s unfair win.

This was the first year in which the University produced a live broadcast of some of the Derby Events, courtesy of SX:TV. Derby Day’s history has shown it to be a day which doesn’t surprise. In its thirteen year history each home team has always won; but sadly not this year. With changes to the rules, such as external referees, it was a tense finale.

It was pool that would be the final decider. This sport went on late in to the night and hordes of Twitter followers were eagerly awaiting the final score. After a nail biting final, UEA eventually took the final point, scoring 9-4 and making them the overall victors.

In a day of highs and lows, both teams excelled at their chosen sports, with some teams showing remarkable comradeship. It was a day which enthralled and enraged both universities, and a day which will remain a legend among UEA and Essex students. #DerbyDay2014

Naomi Jeffreys, Editor

Essex 28.5 – UEA 31.5 “Essex, although we fell at the last hurdle I am extremely proud to be a Blade and a member of such a passionate and determined team.

We fought fairly and with dignity and we will rise from the ashes next year with more desire in our hearts and more vengeance in our veins.”

Sarah Smith, VP Student Activities

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Picture by Adrian Chira

Interview with Hattie Hassall – Cheerleading How long have you been a cheerleader and what made you decide to join the Essex Flames team?

Cheerleading was a whole new experience for me when joining the Essex Flames. I have a dance and gymnastics background, yet I knew fairly little about the competitive side of cheerleading. I joined Essex Flames with the view to improve my gymnastics skills further and in no way expected to fall in love with a completely new sport. I was pretty much sold by my first come and try.

You were chosem as the ‘One To Watch’ for the Flames, how did that feel?

I was extremely honoured to be voted as the ‘One To Watch’ and tried my hardest to represent the club to my best ability. It being my final derby day and year with the flames, being the ‘One To Watch’ made the day that extra bit special.

The Flames have won national and internation-

al cheer titles, how proud are you to be part of such an incredible team?

I don’t think there has been one event with dry eyes, to say it’s been emotional would be an understatement. Our success as a team is completely underestimated. Cheerleading is such a hit or miss sport. A simple bobble, bump or accidental fall can cost you several places so to come home with multiple top 3 trophies is an unbelievable achievement. However, last February the Flames proved it possible as we entered in 4 divisions and came home with a 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 5th. A very proud weekend to be a flame.

For anyone who isn’t familiar with cheerleading, how does it work? How does the competition go and how are points awarded to the teams?

Cheer is split into multiple divisions, but at Derby Day we were split into two divisions so there were two points available. Our first division was Cheer

Stunt which was choreographed by Essex student Jennifer Hynes. In Cheer Stunt you are judged on the difficulty and execution of your stunts, dance, jumps, gymnastics and overall energy.

Our second division was Cheer Dance, choreographed by Essex student Bethan Williams. We did a Pom dance piece which was a ‘Beyoncé’ inspired number. The judges marked us on technique, group execution, choreography and overall impression.

Finally, do you have any advice for people who might be considering joining the Flames?

Throw yourself in at the deep end right from the beginning. All abilities are welcome as we accommodate for all levels with three very different squads; Ignite (non-competitive), Blaze (Level 1) and Inferno (Level 2). We give one hundred percent support inside and out of training, so there is no need to shy away.

Kirsten Alexander

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3-1 Victory for Women’s Hockey The sun was high in the sky as the Essex women’s team entered the AstroTurf to play their hockey match against rivals UEA and their 1st women’s team. The game began at 3:10pm and the team came out fighting and were not going to let UEA have an inch of the field to themselves.

of the ball as the Essex team kept them at bay. Two more goals were scored in the match, another by Tienery who received shouts of approval from her teammates as well as the crowd and a goal by the team’s captain Darcii Williams who whipped the ball in too fast for any of the UEA team to stop her.

With the crowds huge amount of support our team scored thirteen minutes into the first half.

The goal was scored by Tienery McGovern and the Essex supporters went wild with appreciation as our team was off to a great start and had proved to UEA that they were in it to win it.

In the second half UEA did scrape a goal; however that was their only success as Essex wiped the field with them and showed no mercy.

As hard as they tried UEA could not get possession

Amy Bater

UEA fought hard, but in the end, Essex showed they could win, and win well.

Essex Girls Defeated in Netball Though our girls fought their hardest out on the pitch, UEA got away from us and unfortunately we were unable to recover. The girls fought for their lives out there and though they were beaten 43-8 they did not give up until the very end.

There was a huge turnout for both teams, with UEA and University of Essex supporters heckling each other throughout. It really added to the atmosphere as whole sports teams had arrived to cheer our girls on. Also, being one of the last

Pictures by Sohini Banerjee and Lucian Burcea

events of the day, it was particularly heated and tense. The goal keeper Amy Fry held her own against UEA’s goal shooter and though she and the goal attack scored 43 points, she held them off and did not lose her cool in the middle of the attacking force. I am sure I speak for everyone when I congratulate our girls on their game and here’s to settling some scores next year!

Amy Bater

THURSDAY 20TH MARCH | ISSUE 154

DERBY DAY TWEETS

EssexSportsFed @EssexSportsFed You’re missing out if you aren’t catching rowing on Square 3! #Derbyday2014

The Rabbit Newspaper @TheRabbit2014 The current standings for Essex & UEA: 3 & 1/2 - 3 & 1/2 @EssexSU #DerbyDay2014 #Essex #UEA

Essex Flames @essexflames Drew in stunt. Point tbc. Both teams had fab routines.

University of Essex @Uni_of_Essex Congratulations to all of Team Essex!

You did us very proud!

Derby Day 2014 @DerbyDay2014 The crowds are starting to gather for the rugby on pitch 1 @UEWRFC and Men’s rugby!! @EssexSportsFed #derbyday2014 Derby Day 2014 @DerbyDay2014 Top support from both camps today!!

Tweet us with your selfies!!! #supportyourteam #comeonyoublades

Bethan Williams @bwilllie My girls did it again. Beat UEA pom dance.

Our ground, their ground... We win and we do it with class

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Pictures by Sohini Banerjee and Dominik Burcin

A reLAXing win for Men’s Lacrosse From the starting whistle Essex were on top. A face off win meant the Blades had good enough possession to allow number fourteen Will Plom to score an early goal.

Trying to shake it off as a bad start, UEA aimed to recover, but missed horrendously by losing the next four face offs in a row. All of which were a result of four more Essex goals. Thus, the first quarter ended five nil to the Essex boys, with two more goals coming from Plom, and one for both Oliver Watkins and next year’s Captain Joe Holdsworth. The second quarter seemed to be the same tale told again, however this time UEA managed to grab one too, robbing keeper Ben Leggit of his right to a shut out game. The third quarter appeared to cement the victory, as Plom powered on to score two more goals, placing him into the

realm of double figures with ten. Terry ‘The Goal Machine’ Smith also managed to score the third quarter. With the win in the net, Blades needed to do make a spectacular mistake to lose going into the forth. However no spectacle came……other than Sharky ‘The Shark Attack’ Khan scoring his first ever shot for the Blades, securing the win at fourteen to one!

When asking defenceman Laith Saadi, aka ‘Welshy’ how it was defending against the East Anglian rivals, he responded quickly by informing me that: “We had nothing to do all game, and when we did, we did it right”. Saadi’s comment seemed to sum up the game aptly. A comfortable win for Essex Men’s Lacrosse, and signs of good things to come from this year’s freshers, one can happily say the guys have earned a pint.

Jake Stones

THURSDAY 20TH MARCH | ISSUE 154

A Day of Misfortune on the Rugby Pitches After an epic day of Six Nations matches, with high tension and emotion, I waited with bated breath to see what Essex had in store for Derby Day. I had dreams of a finish as amazing as O’Driscoll’s final stand, but unfortunately we weren’t victorious.

The sun was shining, the sky was clear and everyone waited with anticipation for the Men’s 1st team to come to battle.

As support for both sides grew, you knew you were ready for a real fight of stamina, power and skill. However, it was a day of misfortune for Essex as Men’s 2nd team drew, Women’s 1st team lost and Men’s 1st team truly suffered.

It was a match riddled with injuries on the Essex side, giving UEA the perfect opening to thrive.

With a final score for Men’s first of 41-5 to UEA, it wasn’t the prefect finish for a fabulous day of sun and merriment.

Both UEA and Essex were hungry for it, unfortunately luck wasn’t on our side, and the final score failed to mirror the passion of the Blades and their supporters. I have to commend the Essex Blades for their commitment and drive, there’s always next year!

Charis Lynch

Pictures by Sohini Banerjee and Kristin Aakvik

DERBY DAY

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Pictures by Sohini Banerjee

“We’re here for Cheerleading, not Cheerboo-ing!”

One of the first sports to kick off on Derby Day was cheerleading, and before you question it, yes, cheerleading is most definitely a sport. A fast-paced, energetic and dangerous one at that. Multi-award winning Essex Flames took on rivals UEA Angels in the sports hall, competing in two heats : Cheer Dance and Stunt.

A tough act to follow, but UEA’s cheer routine was pretty good, except for a few tumbles in rehearsal, which seemed to knock their confidence. When you’re competing against international competition winners like Essex Flames, you’re going to need to pull out as many stops as possible to even have a shot at winning against our Flames.

Essex Flames Dance routine kicked off the performances, with a fast-paced Beyonce-inspired routine. All of the girls looked incredible, smiling, pouting and pom-ing, and put on an exceptionally good performance, which peaked with an amazing synchronised splits at the end.

Third up was Essex Flames Stunt, which blew UEA out of the water. It’s not hard to see why this lot have won so many titles! Their stunts were incredible, lots of high-energy, throwing-people-up-in-the-air moves, which got the crowd going.

To finish was UEA’s Pom Dance routine, which was all glitter and shimmer and smiles, and another good

shot at trying to end Essex’s two year-streak of beating them at pom routine.

They were unsuccessful, however, as the Flames took the point for Pom, with the stunt being announced as a draw (at time of writing).

Well done Flames!!

Kirsten Alexander

THURSDAY 20TH MARCH | ISSUE 154

DERBY DAY

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Pictures by Sohini Banerjee, Dominik Burcin and Faiz Ali

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Pictures by Faiz Ali

Bitter-Sweet Victory for Men’s Rowing It was a day of mixed emotions for the University of Essex Rowing Club, beginning with a triumphant win for the boys and a disappointing defeat for the girls.

As UEA brought only two members of their men’s team to compete, some amendments were made to the day’s events. James Waller and Elliot Green stepped up for the boys, and competed in a two vs two 1,000 metre race.

Waller had a strong start and Green a strong finish, leading the boys to victory with a fantastic time of 3.04 minutes.

The Rabbit caught up with Elliot after the race.

He told us that: “UEA were close behind, so it was a very evenly matched race. It was a shame the rest of the boys could not compete as planned, but we made the most of what we could do under the circumstances and are very pleased with

the results.”

In a sense, the boys got off lightly, with the girls competing in a four-vs-four 1,000 metre race as well as a 7,000 metre relay. While Essex had the speed to start, UEA had the consistency. After a few shaky changeovers in the relay, it unfortunately was not to be for the girls this year, losing to UEA in both races.

What struck me most watching this event was the overwhelming sense of camaraderie and team spirit. The atmosphere was fierce and intense, with a cacophony of cheers of “UERC” and “keep it going” throughout the events.

A fantastic performance from both teams, well done UERC!

Jessica Houlihan, Assistant Editor

THURSDAY 20TH MARCH | ISSUE 154

DERBY DAY

Pictures by Lisa Ould Issa

LTB Packed for Pole Dancing Win

“If some of the guys in the audience came for the wrong reasons, they obviously stayed for the right ones,” said organiser Olivia Mella, as the completely packed room rocked with excited students from both universities, and she would be proven right as the event unfolded.

one from Essex then one from UEA to show off their skills, with a panel of four external judges then picking a first second and third from each group.

It got off to a wonderful start with Essex’s Cherry Waller starting the proceedings. Olivia Mella was keen to explain that this was a friendly competition, as the girls from both universities saw themselves as a family who supported each other, rather than rivals. This came to the fore as some of the crowd got a bit too over patriotic, and booed the UEA participants. It was said immediately after that there would be absolutely no booing.

The ladies were split into three categories: beginners, intermediates and advanced. Representatives from each university would come up in turn,

After a dazzling display of strength and rhythm, the votes were cast. Essex won the beginners category with Lucie Millet. Lauren Yetman and

As people flooded in to LTB 6 to watch Essex face off against UEA in pole dancing, it was clear that there was a split in the crowd: those who were there to see fantastically talented girls perform, and some that just wanted to see pretty girls not wearing too much.

Chappie Scheller from UEA taking 2nd and 3rd respectively. There was also a victory for Essex in the Intermediate with Olivia taking the 1st place prize. The final advanced category went to the very impressive Fatimah Braimah from UEA. With Essex taking 2/3 of the rounds, they won overall with style. Congratulations to the other competitors not mentioned from Essex: Becky Griffin, Sierra Cowan-Mesplie, Evie Foster, Lucy Harrison, Imogen Dolau, Ingvild Mondail.

Carl Graham

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Essex Triumphant in Tennis Sunday the 16th March was a glorious day for Essex Tennis, not only because of the dazzling sunshine. The Essex Blades smashed through UEA defences and came out victorious in both the men’s and women’s tennis. The men won four matches out of six, and the women won a brilliant five out of six matches. It seems the volleys have finally swerved into the favour of Essex Blades.

Last year saw the Essex Blades men win for the first time after a few consecutive losses, but it was truly brilliant to see them hold their ground and keep that championship title as their own. Although a little unnerving for Essex spectators at the start, since the first two of three matches saw UEA take the lead, the gentleman of Essex fought back and won the next three matches, securing the title of Tennis Derby Day Champions. Dishan de Silva was leading man this year, and he talked to The Rab-

bit about his victory against UEA Alex Wilkins. He admitted that “it was a bit windy, so serving was sometimes challenging”, but he held strong and saw his victory through in two straight sets.

However, the women were the true power houses of tennis this year. They really did appear remarkably relaxed, smiling away despite some very close matches. There were four tiebreakers out of the six matches, since both Essex and UEA gained one set each. This provided a tense end to the tennis day to say the least. But our female fighters triumphed and attained another win for their home team.

The woman to watch, Amel Khierat, did not disappoint either, winning her match in two straight sets as well.

Towards the end of the day saw the hill next to the sports centre become an Essex variant of Murray

Mount/Henman Hill. Many students gathered on the hillside to cheer on their home boys and girls, especially towards the end of the day. Perhaps it should be knighted Silva Slope or Khierat Knoll in honour of our two outstanding winners this year.

Although the sunshine was a tad deceiving for both spectators and players, with a bitter wind creeping into the courts for our players to fight against and the cold causing a Mexican wave of shivers in the crowd, it was a great watch. Our tennis champions proved that they had sharpened the blades of their racquets to see the University of Essex seize a spectacular victory. Congrats Essex Blades!

Katie Clark

THURSDAY 20TH MARCH | ISSUE 154

DERBY DAY

Pictures by Sohini Banerjee and Lucian Burcea

DERBY DAY TWEET

EssexSportsFed @EssexSportsFed Score updates: Tennis men’s 8-4 Essex won!

ESSEX PLAYERS: MENS: Adam Flintoff Dishan de Silva Elias Navas Matt Taylor WOMENS: Amel Khierat Bex Davies Clara Mayerl Elena Bazzinas

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In other Sports News UEWRFC tackled their way to Croydon (and more!)

With the help of members of the Futsal Club, on Monday 10th March, your Women’s Rugby team tackled the distance to Croydon (and more!) in aid of the Demelza Hospice Care for Children, a cause very close to our hearts.

With 116.2km between Colchester and Croydon, the length of the rugby pitch needed to be ‘tackled’ 807 times in total which was set to be both mentally and physically challenging for all those involved. 20 girls were set to take part meaning they would each have to cover 40.5 lengths of the pitch. 3 tackle bags were lined up along each 114m length and at 10am it all kicked off!

The sun beaming down on us, we were only spurred on more, and by lunch time, collectively we had covered close to 1000 lengths of

the pitch… but we didn’t stop there. We pushed until 4pm and by the end of the day we had hit a grand total of 1245 lengths of the rugby pitch – we went to Croydon and even half way back again!

Special thanks to Carl Phillips and Ella Saunders, members of the Futsal club who gave up their whole day to take part and help the event to run as smoothly as possible.

So far we have raised a HUGE £262.44 but you can still donate to this very worthy cause by visiting: www.justgiving.com/UEWRFC-Rugby or by texting WRFC86 followed by your donation to 70070.

Ami Lake Web and Communications Officer UEWRFC

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