Pugwash News - Issue 07 by Tom Worman

FR EE

pugwash news

Issue 7 Wednesday 09.01.08 upsu.net/news

Portsmouth’s official student newspaper

Inside... NEWS Cosmology Crisis, Student Survey, Orang-utan, NewsBites. Pages 2 - 3

FEATURES Sex and Relationships Homeless Funds, Fighting Flu. Pages 4 - 7

REVIEWS Best of 2007: Singles, Gig, Movie. Page 8

SPORTS Fresher’s POV, Sporto’s Challenge, Sailing Club.

Page 9 - 10

...MORE SPORTS On The Spot, Netball, Lacrosse.

Photos: Tom Worman

Pages 11-12

Web News

Student Rights

Student News

Arts News

A call to students

Facebook sucks officially

NUS want you to know your rights

Travel Opportunities

Exhibition comes to UoP

Want to write for us?

The social networking site Bebo has beaten its rival Facebook to be honoured as being the best-performing social networking site by an independent computing magazine. Bebo recieved a grade of 79% overall, whereas Facebook recieved 74%. The sites were judged on their ease of use, performance, and the functions which they offered. Computing Which? editor Abigail Waraker said: "the success of Bebo in our test shows sites like MySpace and Facebook can't rest on their laurels”. -JL

The National Union of Students are running a campaign to discover the level of student understanding regarding housing rights. As students’ housing choices for next year begin to take precedence the importance of ensuring students know their rights and responsibilities is of great importance. The Housing Act of 2006 highlights and protects the rights of private tenants, outlining the increased roles of landlords, in particular the protection of a residents deposit. -JL

The Global Fellowship Scheme has been launched, with the aim of educating young people on cultures and societies. Candidates for the project, have to be aged 18 to 19 at the beginning of the programme. Students will be asked to suggest a project they would like to do while on their visit, with a view to sharing their experiences with their local community when they return. The programme has the support of many businesses, which will show successful students their operations at work in the chosen countries. -JL

The University’s CCi space is holding its inaugural exhibition. The Regard and Ritual exhibtion will feature work from Shanti Panchal and Julie Held. Both of the artists are immigrants to the UK, coming from a German and an Indian background, with their work focusing upon the ideas of losing a culture and being absorbed into a new one. The show will run from the 7th January to the 8th Febuary. The display is in partnership with the Ben Uri Gallery, The London Jewish Museum of Art. -JL

Pugwash News & Purple Wednesdays is the Union’s student newspaper. If you have something to shout about, from burning issues to match reports, comment to features, or you want to photograph, design or help lay up, get in touch!

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Pugwash News

Inbox

Wednesday 9th January 2008

News

What’s happening at the Union?

upsu.net/diary

Cosmology lacks funding

total budget. This cut may have to involve the Institute’s bursary and scholarships, making it harder for students to study within this area. Nichols states “It's a bad signal to send to our young people – it means less youngsters going into science and once you lose those people they're never coming back.” Nichols stressed the huge developments that the Institute has made and that it is attracting students, research and attention from all over the world, which will be in jeopardy if these price cuts become a reality. Havant MP David Willets, the Shadow Innovation, University and Skills secretary, spoke out against the cuts; he stated the “it is important that science is funded properly”. - JL

Graphic: Zoran Ožetski

The University’s Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation may be left with a huge funding crisis. Bob Nichols, Professor of Astrophysics, is worried that students will be deterred and the Institute may have to cut staff as well. The funding crisis comes due to the Science and Technology Facilities Council, who currently aid in the funding of the Institute, having to cut about £80m of funding due to a merger. The Institute, based in Mercantile House, bases its research into four main area: galaxy evolution, structure formation in the universe, early universe and particle cosmology, and relativistic cosmology. The funding cut is reported to involve about 10% of the Institute’s

All dates TBC.

Time Wasting

Pugwash news & Purple Wednesdays

“Small print”

Contacting us

Editorial Team

Contributors

Produced fortnightly by the University of Portsmouth Students’ Union (UPSU).

To get in touch with the Pugwash News & Purple Wednesdays team, please visit www.upsu.net/newsdesk, e-mail us at newsdesk@upsu.net, call us via the Union’s Media & Publications Officer at 023 9284 3657, or visit us at The Student Centre, Portsmouth Students’ Union, Cambridge Road, Portsmouth, Hampshire, PO1 2EF.

Editors

Thanks for this issue go to:

Editor: Laura Patricia News Editor: Jacob Leverett Design Editor: Tom Worman Features Editor: Chris Burden Sports Editor: Tim Edwards Reviews Editor: Aakash Naik

Ed Butterfield, Harriet Chandler, Tim Dubber, Ben Endley, Wayne Gardiner, Joel Gowney, Phillipa Hall, Alex Harries, Clara Heard, Lucy Henry, William Hobson, Christoph Kurth, Tiffany Lee, Jenny Leggot, Franz Lieber, Alex Milligan, Ben Noot, Ben Norman, Adam Sunman, Fiona Walker and Tom West. Also, anyone we’ve forgotten!

Printed by Quotemeprint www.quotemeprint.com, 0845 130 0667, and now printed on 100% recycled paper - Swampy, rejoice! Pugwash News & Purple Wednesdays bears no allegiance to any political party and discriminates against no-one. There are no Oops or Apologies for last issue (that we know of)!

Sub Editors

Errors & omissions: while we take every care to verify our content, we may occasionally make mistakes. Please contact us using the details above to report any inaccuracies or mistakes.

Design: Andy Donohoe, Kev Wilkins Features: Steph Hall, Matt Blackall, Nicholas Prangnell Reviews: Tallie Kane, Ed Butterfield Sports: Peppa Barnett, Marisa May

To get invloved next issue email: pugwashnews@upsu.net or go to: upsu.net/p/2166

Mini Sudoku

Pugwash News

Wednesday 9th January 2008

News

The Fortnight’s King of the grinners Politics Adam Sunman

Benazir Bhutto assassinated The opposition leader in Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto was assassinated in the city of Rawalpindi. Bhutto was seen as one of the most outspoken politicians in South Asia's history. Since he was educated in the West, the United States hoped that Bhutto could return popularity to Pakistan’s war against extremists. Ms Bhutto was leaving a meeting of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) when an attacker opened fire on her. Almost immediately after, a bomb was set off, leaving some twenty people dead. The former Prime Minister had returned after being exiled from the country. The government has blamed a tribal leader in the lawless South Waziristan province on the Afghan border, Baitullah Mehsud, whom it describes as an al-Qaeda leader. A spokesman for him denied any involvement, calling the accusation "government propaganda".

Violence in Kenya after allegations of election Fraud. European Union observers have condemned the most recent Kenyan election, claiming that results read out in Nairobi were different to those at local level, with voter turnout in one particular area being 115% Mwai Kibaki's challenger Raila Odinga has also stated that he was 'cheated of victory' The main problem with the elections was the turbulence between ethnic groups; violence has erupted throughout Kenya, reminding many of the way in which Kanu used ethnic tensions in order to play off rival groups against each other to maintain power. Kenya has East Africa's most developed economy, however the poorer districts of Nairobi have intermittent electricity, there are no sewers and violent gangs control most of the districts.

Doing more harm than good?

Franz Lieber

University of Portsmouth scientists have shown that orang-utans have a sense of empathy and humour. Dr Davila Ross of the University of Portsmouth Psychology Department conducted the research with the University of Veterinary Medicine, Hanover. The research showed that orang-utans can share emotions and can understand how others in their social group feel. The emotions within the animals are also believed to be contagious in much the same way as humans, with mechanisms in place for mimicking others’ emotions. The research throws in to doubt suggestions that humans exclusively developed the ability to express and understand others’ emotions. Dr Ross explained that "In humans, mimicking behaviour can be voluntary and involuntary. Until our discovery there had been no evidence that animals had similar responses." The team demonstrated that when one orang-utan displayed an open, gaping face, the equivalent of laughter momentarily, later another within the group involuntarily mimicked the same. Ross stated "What is clear now is the building blocks of positive emotional contagion and empathy that refer to rapid involuntary facial mimicry in humans evolved prior to humankind."

A new comic 1 featuring Spiderman fighting for the UN is sparking controversy, with some calling it an “act of desperation”. Falling 500ft from a 2 skyscraper isn’t always fatal; Alcides Moreno fell 47 storeys from a Manhattan building and has lived to tell the tale. A museum has 3 opened praising laziness. The museum is

Tallie Kane Cultural & Social Affairs correspondant

So, you find yourself in your final year with this terrible feeling in your chest. Could it be that when the time comes to leave that you could miss the place? You might well miss it but, as the National Student Survey aims to find out, why? At the end of their final year, students are given the opportunity to participate in the National Student Survey (NSS) run by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). Students’ opinions on the quality of their degree programmes are collated online, in order to assess how the institutions could improve the quality of education served to their students. Data collected by the survey is shared with the University, allowing it to identify areas where improvements are needed. Simple as it may seem, controversy has arisen from the students’ unions of several educational institutions, including Cambridge and

the University of Warwick, who have gone so far as to encourage their students to boycott the survey. In an article on their website, Cambridge University’s Student Union suggest that the questions asked are ‘too simple and too broad to be useful for evaluating student experiences’. It is argued that the points raised in the questions do not account for individual experiences, and accused those conducting the survey of harassing their students unnecessarily: it has been reported that IPSOS-MORI, the company paid by the HEFCE to conduct the survey, have repeatedly called, emailed and contacted students that chose to participate. The survey has the potential to be incredibly useful in improving the ways that Universities and other educational institutions academically manage the student experience, but can also be argued to be an invasion of privacy, and an impersonal approach to ironing out problems which could perhaps be better resolved on an individual basis.

dedicated to all things lazy with TVs, hammocks sofas all on display. In China, “stocks” is 4 a more popular search query than “sex”. An 85 year old man 5 has been prosecuted in Canada for street racing. The man was fined in excess of £1,000, had his car impounded and his licence suspended. An American couple 6 have found a rare and valuable purple pearl in their dinner. The couple were eating steamed clams when they took a bite and found it.

University News

Fees News

Local News

Professor Awarded OBE

Thinking of a second degree?

Down in the Subway at midnight

Professor Martin Severs, an Associate Dean at the University of Portsmouth, was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his work in his field of expertise. Severs was awarded the honour for his work towards medicine. Although Severs is currently listed as UoP staff he is reported to currently be on secondment to the Department of Health. Severs, alongside his academic work, continues to be a practicing Geriatrician. Severs is reported, on the university’s website as saying “I am very proud to have been given a nation-

Cuts of up to £100 million a year to shorter courses and second degrees could spell a huge increase in the cost of education. The funds are being diverted towards first degrees to create an additional 20,000 places for undergraduates in the UK. Ministers have announced that funding first degrees is a "higher priority" than second degrees. Around 170,000 part-time students and those studying shorter full-time courses will be affected by the cuts when they come into force in September. A main establishment to be hit by the cuts is the Open University, who are set to lose £30

Police have called for a local Subway restaurant to have a bouncer. Due to its late night opening, police and licensing authorities have requested that the Subway on Clarendon Road, has a doorman. The aim is for the extra security to prevent trouble and to help police in tracing repeated troublemakers. Licensed security at pubs and clubs is not particularly unusual, however security at a takeaway restaurant is seen by some as excessive. Police have requested that the security is on duty to 3am. Some residents in the area have rejected the call and believe that the premises should simply close earlier.

al honour. Professionally, I am working with great people and personally, the award helps my wife make sense of the long hours I put in!” Severs chairs the national independent NHS Information Standards Board. Whilst in this role he was key in the formation of International Healthcare Terminology Standards Development Organisation The particular academic interest is aimed around interdepartmental communications and information; this interest is mirrored in his role on an NHS advisory board of the National Programme for IT. - JL

million, and Oxford University at £4 million. As a result of the cuts, UK students will have to pay the same amount of fees as overseas students, starting at £7,000. The director of Oxford’s department for continuing education claimed that the government is risking "driving away students who can't afford degrees"; the Government has claimed that it has the right to limit funding for those that already have degrees, claiming that "for the tax payer, funding people for a first degree has to be a higher priority than supporting those studying for a second degree".

Pugwash News

Wednesday 9th January 2008

News and Features

Homeless Student Help? Tallie Kane Cultural & Social Affairs correspondant

of university. I didn’t know that three years down the line my decisions would prevent me from gaining certain much-needed bursaries and gaining an adequate enough student loan, therefore leaving me pretty much broke for the duration of my course. I needed evidence from the social services or police, and it was even asked at one point if I’d been arrested whilst homeless because it would be ‘incredibly useful’ for my claim. I think that’s the first time I’d heard ‘arrest’ and ‘useful’ in a completely serious sentence before. In the official world, I had no proof that I was homeless, all because I survived off my own back, didn’t know I could go to anyone for help, and was scared to ask. To me, it was a “like it or lump it” situation. So should they rethink their specifications? Of course. It is important to consider conducting research into the financial options open to this area of the student body. I can see how it could be difficult, as it would be hard to figure out if someone was telling the truth or not, but this then leaves all of our students that were self-sufficient and unguided to suffer in silence. What’s a finance department to do?

Clara Heard

photo: femuruy on flickr.com

Back in Issue 6, we brought you news that the Student Finance Centre had won an Outstanding Student Financial Support Package for its work on providing help for those who had previously been in care, or who have been homeless, by the Times Higher Education Supplement. A great achievement for the University, of course, that shows the department’s dedication to offering extra financial help to those who have come from a less than conventional background. However, things aren’t so straightforward when deciding who actually receives the benefits of this financial assistance, as I have recently discovered. It all lies in the proof required in order to qualify for this sparkling new package. Obviously, as stated, it is open to those that are care-leavers or who have previously been homeless, and a certain amount of evidence is required to prove you’re not just making it up because you blew all your money on an expensive and blurry pub crawl. The applicant for this grant is offered additional help on finding the funding specifically available to their situation. If successful, an addi-

tional non-income assessed bursary of £1,000 is available, with the possibility of a raise to £1,500 in their final year. This help is undoubtedly valuable to the more vulnerable students that attend our University. You have to prove this, of course, by providing the Student Finance Centre with documentation that this wasn’t an elaborate fantasy constructed by a lack of things to do, that wasn’t drink or course related. However, the definition of homeless is the thing I’m focusing on here: in order for one who claims to have been previously homeless to benefit from this grant, you must have been a Foyers’ resident ie. sheltered accommodation. But what happens to those who weren’t? People that become homeless for one reason or another often do not know the resources available to them and spend months, perhaps years, moving between squats, friends’ homes and anywhere offered to them. I have been in the situation that hundreds of teenagers have found themselves in, where I’ve lived anywhere that will have me, laws permitting. Obviously I was put into a few less than savoury situations and luckily came out of them unscathed. I worked constantly whilst attending college full-time, all in order to eventually get to the great big world

How to choose a REALISTIC New Year’s Resolution

Yes, it’s that time of the year again. People are making resolutions to do things, be things and have things. But who ever actually sticks to their promises? The word ‘resolution’ is defined in the dictionary as "a firm decision to do something; determination: firmness of mind or purpose," and it goes without saying that the majority of resolutions never actually fall within this guideline. By February we’re all too bogged down with exams and part-time jobs to worry about how many calories we’re consuming or whether our fingernails look chewed. I’m not saying that these promises aren’t a good thing. For some, resolutions can work out well. They are an excellent way of changing your life, moving on and making things easier or somewhat happier. But the point is that our aspirations are always set so high. So high that it is virtually impossible to ever achieve what we want to. So how do we stop ourselves from making all those empty promises? Firstly, set a goal: choose carefully! A list of goals as long as your semester two reading list is only setting you up for failure. Take your time and think carefully about what you’d like to change. Grab a notebook and review your 2007. Write down the good points, the bad points and the things that made you proud. Next, list anything that you would have liked to change. Consider whether these changes are realistic and achievable, and why

Comment

Societies Spotlight

Agree? comment@upsu.net

Your Views

American Presidential Elections

Socialist Students

In this, the comments section, we intend to outline some of the debates, arguments and conversations going on amongest you, the students. This issue Adam Sunman considers the American presidential election to date.

The first stage of the American presidential election has kicked off in style, with Obama and Huckabee winning the caucuses in Iowa, the first states to vote. The significance of the first primaries is undeniable, as most states will echo the first few results, creating a momentum for candidates, allowing commentators to tell who will be each Party's candidate from the first two primaries. Many have praised the Democrat's choice, which is seen as more representative of the US society. All three candidates are political heavyweights and should be able to lock political horns with their

The New Year sees a fresh injection of enthusiasm and dedication from the Socialist Student society. After the creation of the Campaign Coalition last term, the campaign to defeat student fees is in full swing. Students responded well to the stalls that were up in the library and in the Union, with many signing a petition which will be taken to John Denham, the Minister for Education. The society is planning a protest on the 2nd of February outside John Denham’s constituency office in Southampton, before a national day of action on the 21st of February, with protests attacking the issue of

If you have something you think needs to be discussed let us know at: comment@upsu.net

If something has pissed you off email us at: grindmygears@upsu.net

Republican counterparts. Many have called for the need for further reform in electoral spending. The reforms led to controls on spending; the dollar still controls every aspect of the electoral race. In the ‘04 election, a combined $600m was spent on TV and radio adverts. In the ‘08 election that has barely started, both major parties have spent $90m on their campaigns. Overall, the ‘08 American presidential election is off with a bang, and will definitely be the political event of the year, with the result spelling disaster, or a brighter future for the world.

you want that change. What difference would it make to your life? Perhaps you’re a bit sick of Pompey and want to go travelling this summer. But be honest with yourself, your goals should be achievable and realistic. Don’t write down “I want to travel the world” when your current student budget can only stretch to a weekend in Paris. Something along the lines of “I want to save up enough money to go travelling around the world in 2009” would give you time to achieve this aspiration and give you a better sense of achievement at the end. Next, make a plan. By the time you’ll have read this, New Years Eve 2007 will be but a distant memory. Most people make their resolutions on this day, but, if left to the last minute, your resolution will be based on your mood at midnight. Next year, think about what you want to achieve a few weeks in advance. This should give you time to work out how to deal with the temptation to lie in bed through a nine am seminar or have another cigarette. Call on your friends to help you, buy in some self-help books and practice some positive thinking. Finally, reward yourself; track your progress and congratulate yourself for completing stages of your goal. However, this doesn’t mean you can go shopping. You’re saving for that trip, remember? Treat yourself to something that doesn’t contradict your resolution. And don’t worry if you slip up, the worst thing you can do is obsess about it!

fees worldwide. But Socialist Students are not solely a campaigning group. Debates and discussions are rife in our weekly meetings, ranging from the Cuban Revolution to the reasons Communism failed. The Socialist Student Society has established itself as a major player in Portsmouth University politics, and we are looking forward to a year of campaigning and political activism. - AS For more email the secretary: adamsunman@googlemail.com

Pugwash News

Wednesday 28th 9th January 2008

Features

An Englishman Sabb Corner Alex in France Harries Tom West

Tom West, a foreign exchange student from the University of Portsmouth, tells us all about his adventures in Toulouse, France, in his regular column. Christmas! For some, a time of religious significance, family and deep introspective reflection. For me, a time of fat thighs, naff cracker jokes and, once again, not receiving everything from my Christmas list. It wasn’t even that long this year. I shouldn’t moan – at least I was able to come home for it, despite a certain ‘budget airline’ not making everything as easy as they claimed they could, I know some who weren’t able to escape their exile and spent Christmas in Toulouse. That was gearing up to be a bizarre experience, let me tell you. I thought Christmas in France would be a conservative, religious affair, but was surprised (and somewhat delighted, if I’m shamefully honest) to find that although the religious significance is more pronounced, the rampant commercialism we caught from America seems to have also infected France. I mean, how else could a country with such a proud gastronomic heritage offer a gift bag of “Five Bottled Waters from around the Globe” (or from five toilets from around Toulouse, depending on your level of cynicism) as the number one present in a major supermarket? If that didn’t weird you out enough, then try and make sense of this: the Mayor’s Office decided to decorate a tree that was going brown and losing its leaves. Come December, it looked more like one of Phoebe’s Christmas ‘twigs’ from that Friends episode. So, I decided to investigate the French Christmas spirit a little. Do they have one? What is it? I cornered two old ladies to get the

Just for a laugh

answers just for you. The first one told me that France does indeed have a Christmas spirit. She said that it involves the baby Jesus and love and sharing with your family and friends. The second one corrected her, saying instead it involves bad presents, too much food and fighting with your family. At least they agreed that family is part of the French Christmas spirit. That’s something, I guess.

“it looked more like one of Phoebe’s Christmas ‘twigs’ from that Friends episode Sounds pretty familiar now, doesn’t it? And we think they’re so different... Well, there is one area where their approach to Christmas is different to our own. They don’t begin their preparations as well in advance as we do. Some shops in England stock gifts and food for Christmas in August these days, but the majority of French shops didn’t start anything until mid to late November. And considering they didn’t leave themselves that long to get everything sorted, no one was rushing around like Speedy Gonzales on crack like you see here in department stores and supermarkets, spending money they don’t have on stuff they neither need nor want! I may learn many lessons whilst on my year abroad but I’ll be damned if I’m going to learn the one about tackling Christmas like the French. I’m one of those people who actually enjoy rushing around like a chemically-enhanced animated Mexican mouse, so there! Anyway, I hope you had a nice Christmas and got everything you wanted! If you didn’t, there are always the sales!

Media Officer (so they tell me... ;o)

Whoah whoah whoah, where’s the time gone? We’ve been in office for almost six months now, and it doesn’t feel like we’ve changed the world yet - what gives? Back in the real world, a happy New Year to you all out there in readerland, and thanks for reading issue seven of Pugwash News, the first (hopefully of many) for 2008. Over the next few months, we’ve got elections, the possibility of a huge society event at the Union, Refreshers’ Fayre, another nine or ten issues of the paper to do, not to mention a million other things to organise, put together, or promote. I’m still amazed at how hard the Union’s groups of student volunteers work on the newspaper, magazine,

Ben Norman Activities and Development Officer

radio station, RAG, VIP (and well done again for the volunteering award!), clubs and societies, and more. I’m running out of space already, so I’ll finish up by saying a huge thank you to all the students and staff who are continuing to work so hard, and watch this space because, over the next few months, the Union is going to be looking very closely at what it does, how it does it, and whether what it does is “right” for the student body as a whole. Vague? You betcha ;o) C ya! /al p.s. Does anyone want to buy an L-reg Ford Fiesta in blue? 73,000 miles, fluffy dice, pink seats...

Anyone who has had the joy of visiting me in the Sabb office will be able to tell you two things: that I consume an obscene amount of tea and that I’m from a strong political background. Many students ask the about the relevance of political issues for my job; what after all do these issues have to do with student activities and development? The answer is simple: a defeat for any of these people is a defeat for us all and a victory for them is a victory for us all. Students are the next generation of both workers and leaders, so save the students and you save the world, or perhaps more importantly, organise the students to save themselves and you save the world. So I ask you all to think globally but act locally.

The Health Hotspot: Flu Jenny Leggott

It’s that time of year again: time for flu! Flu is one of those annoying illnesses which have a tendency to strike you down at the perfectly wrong time, like when you have a deadline looming and, unfortunately, there is no quick cure. However, there are several little techniques you could implement in order to help speed your recovery. So what exactly is flu? It’s simply a virus which gets passed around in little droplets via coughs and sneezes that can spread rapidly. Also, as it’s a virus, antibiotics cannot be used to treat it. Very rarely they will be used but only if there is another bacterial infection alongside the flu, such as a chest infection, but this is a fairly uncommon occurrence. So if you can’t get a quick fix with

some meds from the doctor, what can you do to treat the flu? Well, the best medicine, as basic as it sounds, is actually just resting. Getting some extra sleep will help you to recuperate and will also keep you from spreading the bug to those around you. But don’t go wrapping yourself up tightly in your duvets, this can be detrimental. If you have a fever, don’t wrap yourself in a cocoon. Instead, lay your duvet across your body horizontally with your feet sticking out the bottom and pop open a window. This will help to lower your body temperature and will, in turn, help you to feel much better. Some other things you can try are: •Drink plenty of liquids (This does not include vodka by the way! Hot lemon and honey, hot Ribena – any-

thing full of vitamin C is great.) •Eat light meals when you feel like it (soup is a favourite.) •Take painkillers if you have aches and pains with a high temperature, or general cold symptoms (asthmatics beware of aspirin, which could make you extra wheezy.) •If you feel nauseous drink lemonade or tonic water. •Try a steam inhalation if you’re feeling blocked up. •Don’t exercise vigorously, you will just feel worse. •Pop some Olbas Oil on your pillow (smells lovely and works a treat!)

All in all, flu sucks but there isn’t much you can do about it. My advice is to just enjoy the relaxation period and get your flatmates to wait on you hand and foot as, no doubt, you would do the same for them if the tables were turned.

Photo: Tom Worman

Pugwash News

Wednesday 9th January 2008

Features

An interview with The Enemy When The Enemy came to play at The Union they found time to have a few words with Pugwash News’ Tim Dubber. The Enemy played to a packed out Union with the Union’s very own School of Rock in support. Tickets for the night were in high demand, with the queue for free tickets stretching around the Union building. Tim Dubber: First things first, to start with, how old are you all? Tom Clarke: 19, we are all 19. TD: Cool, I'm 18 so we're all pretty close in age. So, what are your first musical memories? TC: I just remember sitting down at the piano and banging around at the keys, then after that I had a tape that was my mum’s with loads of stuff on it. Zeppelin, Rod Stewart, The Beatles, David Bowie loads of that stuff really. TD: It seems music has taken over your life now; do you regret anything, like not going to university, or are you happy where you are? Andy Hopkins: I'm glad I didn't go to Uni. TC: University wasn't a choice, I

photos: Tom Worman

couldn’t go to Uni, I couldn't afford it. I don't really regret it as I didn't have the choice. I would say music probably takes up 90% of our lives. We spend most of our lives at the moment on the road, we haven't really had a break since October last year. Music has taken over our lives, we are all doing something we love and you cant fucking buy your way into that. There is no set path, it just kinda happens, its dead weird but you wouldn't have it any other way. TD: Where would you like to be with the band in 10 years? TC: That’s a trick question! I really don't know, if you'd asked me a year ago where we want to be in a year we wouldn't have said that we’d be coming back from a headline tour of Japan. Where all the venues were sold out. You don’t imagine, its just wherever it takes you. I don’t know, I’d like to be in some way making music.

went back after playing a few tours. It was our homecoming and we played the smallest room which is about 300 capacity, then we went back and played a few gigs and then played the big room which fits about 1000 people, which at the time felt really big. I’ll never forget that gig. It was in that room where we used to go just to get steaming, just to go out with the lads. It was weird to play a gig in a room that you’ve spent a few drunk nights in. It was quite strange and one my favorite places to play. TD: What’s your drink of choice as we are in the Uni bar? TC: My drink of choice is Becks. Liam Watts: JD and Coke at the moment. AH: I’m on Corona now although it used to be Fosters. More: www.theenemy.com

New Year’s Revolution

TD: Where has been your favorite place to play and why? TC: It’s hard to single out a single venue. For me though some of our earlier gigs. We did a gig in Coventry at a venue called the Colosseum and played three times. It was our first ever gig there and we

Words: Tiffany Lee Photography: Tom Worman

According to a piece of research that has been passed on and on and become increasingly vague and insignificant, not unlike Chinese Whispers, the most common day to file for a divorce in this country is the 2nd January. Obviously, this decision could not be made on the 1st January, when the only decision most of our fragile minds are capable of making is whether we want mayo on our cold turkey sandwiches or not. Perhaps the reasoning behind this decision on this specific day comes from unhappy couples recovering from New Year exhaustion and ready to embark on their quest for a better year. It is the emotional equivalent to clearing out the wardrobe and finally binning that moth eaten tweed jacket that makes you depressed just looking at it. Now, I think it is safe to assume the majority of the student body wasn’t faced with this life defining moment on the 2nd of January. However, there is no doubt a significant percentage of Portsmouth students are aiming to give their love lives a severe MOT in 2008. Amongst the cloudiness that was my New Years Eve, I distinctively remember posting the vital subject of New Year’s resolutions amongst my table of merry chums, who were all dressed as pirates, of course. Personally, I have never been a fan and I can only remember making one trivial resolution in my life, which was drastically abandoned soon into the year. However, this year has seen a revival and all the pirate crew at the table that night had a goal ready for my inquisition. Perhaps the influence of university had encouraged us to be more goalorientated, but it seemed we all took the matter more seriously than ever before. And there were two themes: love and health. Perhaps these two themes actually go hand in hand. If you were to ask the population of a

gym what fuelled their perspiration and drive to boost their self confidence, it would be to impress a significant other or an attempt to find one. Similarly, people look for love to fill an emptiness within them and feel better in themselves. In my case, I’ve opted to sort out the health option, vowing to learn how to cook healthy, natural, non-processed food and avoid the dreaded ‘comfort zone’ at all costs. However, those who choose the other option are definitely setting themselves a tougher task. One pirate from our rowdy table made a particularly interesting resolution. After surviving a tough year of fickle flings and loves lost, it was her noble decision to learn to live by herself without feeling the need of male company. Perhaps it was the prospect of New Year, or the empowering plastic sword in her hand, nevertheless it was an extremely brave statement. Therefore, after relaying this statement amongst my mum’s friends I was surprised to see that many other women were determined to do the same. Perhaps if Bridget Jones had been this brave, instead of hoping to get married, she would have saved herself a lot of trouble, and bumbling plonker Hugh Grant would have had a smaller role. Besides, the divorce rate in this country is as high as it is because people could not make this very decision to learn to be happy while being alone earlier in life, which cues my second vague and unsourced fact. Statistically, you are more likely to get divorced than change your bank, which has encouraged me to consider divorcing Abbey National to ensure I will never have to learn to be alone. So, perhaps the greatest love life resolution is not to have one at all. Let the cards fall on the table and, if it so happens that your year is graced with love, then good for you. If not, don a colourful bandana, grab a sword and shout “arrr harrr” because it worked for my friend.

Pugwash News

Wednesday 9th January 2008

Reviews .. in association with

Singles of the year

Mac dropped it at TDK, at the end of August; as soon as the room heard the intro everyone went ballistic, it was a great way to say goodbye to the summer. The Justice guys created a party monster, which is being remixed all the time. We’ll still be dancing to this in years to come!

‘Fidelity’ Regina Spektor

‘The Way I Are’

Tiffany Lee

Timbaland Feat. Keri Hilson & D.O.E.

2007 saw the celebration of many unjust achievements; Paris Hilton’s release from prison and Al Murray’s comedy award just to name a couple. However, never fear because 2007 was also the year of justice for epic singer/songwriter Regina Spektor, who finally broke into the foreground of music with this enchanting single in March. With a light hearted yet original sound, Fidelity is one of Regina’s more coherent and accessible masterpieces plucked from her energetic imagination where there are absolutely no boundaries. There is an echo of the folk and punk persuasion in the choppy lyrics and staccato percussion; although the way in which Regina exercises and controls her untouchable vocal range in such a modest and un-Leona Lewis like way deserves the greatest esteem. Her album Begin to Hope, also released in 2007, gleams like a collection of uncut gems, each one distinctively different and raw, following no clear rhyme or reason. She will never be Christmas number one, but that is why we love her.

‘Charmer’ Kings of Leon

Tim Dubber

Scott and Neil Wilkinson or “Yan and Hamilton”, as they are known to their fans, make an excellent vocal combination in this new single ‘Waving Flags’ from the Brightonbased four-piece, originally from Cumbria. By mixing fast powerful beats with unfaltering steady vocals they pull off this rocky cacophony with great, swaying, melodious finesse. The result is a sound that’s not dissimilar to Arcade Fire’s newest album. To summarise: if you like Arcade Fire’s new album a little bit, then you’ll like this a little bit too. Their new album, ‘Do You Like Rock Music?’ is out next year, and if this is anything to go by, it’ll be ace.

Live Gig of the year Muse Wembley

Ed Butterfield

Joel Growney

The Kings flex their best Pixies muscles on this track, with vocalist Caleb Followill’s seemingly demonic screams intermittently dispersed through a tale of obsession, seduction, and destruction (in that order), all driven by the dirtiest and downright filthiest bassline of the year. Easily the best song of ‘Because of The Times’, ‘Charmer’ epitomised this new image of the Kings of Leonless concerned with getting the girls and drinking whiskey in the woods, this is a band now consumed with paranoia, self-depreciation and generally getting yourself well and truly messed up. A Kings’ classic.

About forty five minutes in, midway through the gentle waltz of 'Blackout', I manage to tear my eyes away from the stage to take in what is happening around me. I see a woman dancing balletically in mid air, gracefully suspended from a globe above my head. I see searchlights sweeping the monumental stadium I am stood in, and so I see 80,000 people, giving themselves entirely into the force on stage that is Muse. I join them. At about 8pm that night, Matt Bellamy, Chris Wolstenholme, and Dom Howard rose from the crowd, marched to the stage, and without even offering a hello, tore into the space age rock that has become their trademark. Any memories of the support acts become instantly vaporised by the lasers and lights, any echoes of their songs are obliterated by the power and the bombast of Muse's epic sounds seemingly gifted from a galaxy far, far away. Bellamy certainly possesses something otherworldly about him as the show progresses, repeatedly extracting both the sublime and the inhuman from his guitar and piano, and when he is struck large on the screens which flank the sci fi stage set, adorned with radars and towers, he takes on the pres-

‘D.A.N.C.E’ Justice Ben Noot

I choose D.A.N.C.E over tracks by Bat for Lashes, Klaxons, M.I.A etc because it just summed up my summer. I heard this everywhere I went from bars in London to beaches in Spain. It makes everyone who hears it forget trying to look cool and just get involved in having a great time. The moment which made this my track of the year was when Annie

ence of someone not of this planet; a god, a monolith infused with music itself. As my mind struggles to process what I’m seeing, sights countless people will never witness but wish they had, I can’t help but think. Our parents speak of Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, telling us there will never be a band of their likes again. With Muse tonight, we have the proof that they are wrong. That music can still be something more than a trend, or an accompaniment to the latest fashion. That music can still be life affirming, perhaps even life changing. At around eleven pm on a hot June night, the show ends. Outside the stadium, people are dancing in fountains. I let go of everything I took into the stadium with me, and I join them.

Pure FM Movie Show of of the year the Week Hot Fuzz William Hobson

2007's movie of the year wasn't by any means deep, thoughtful or moving. It was, however, pretty unique and despite being utterly derivative, completely original. Owing a lot to their previous masterpiece, ‘Shaun Of The Dead’, Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg's ‘Hot Fuzz’ took its influences from the A-Z of Hollywood action and relocated it to a tiny little village in Gloucestershire. As well as Wright's quirky, irreverent and downright fun directing style the film is filled with great comedic turns, with the once-again brilliant partnership of Pegg and Frost (consistently golden since Spaced) literally providing the bulk of the humour, with Pegg's Supercop perfectly offset by the good-natured, enthusiastic bumbling of Frost's pub-loving village PC. Frost is, as usual, possibly the funniest man alive just by being on camera, asking questions like 'Ever cook any fools?' with both complete innocence and a perfect West Country accent. The supporting cast around these two main characters do the movie a good turn as well, doing a great job in attempting to build the sleepy, idyllic and slightly eccentric town of Sanford into the perfect village and, in doing so, hiding the highest death rate in the country from public view. London policeman Nicolas Angel (Pegg) is understandably suspicious, and once the truth comes out the sleepy village façade is removed, and we get a brilliant, wonderfully funny tribute to Bad Boys, Point Break and every other action movie you can think of, with the Sanford PD well and truly kicking arse and taking names. And, whilst I'm not advocating this kind of thing, there can't be anything funnier than watching Simon Pegg jump-kick an old woman in the face... Send reviews to: reviews@upsu.net

What: The Will and Andy Show, aka Better Than Church Who: Will and Andy When: Sundays 12-1pm. Description: On a good day we provide an hour jam-packed with good music, witty banter/bickering and a range of features, such as; Track of the Week, Then and Now, Cover Lovin’ and Hit, Miss or Maybe. On a bad day, listening to the show is probably still better than getting poked in the eye with a sharp stick (but not by much). For Fans Of: Queen, The Rolling Stones, Madness, musical theatre, beards.

Every week we’ll be showing a chart of the Top 5 artists that the members of our Last.fm group have been listening to, if you want your music scrobbled, log in and add the Pugwash chart

Go to upsu.net/lastfm

Pugwash Top 5 1

The Strokes

Radiohead

LCD Soundsystem

Justice

Bloc Party

Purple Wednesdays Wednesday 9th January 2008

Sports Features

Boxing Team Champions

Sporto Challenge Every fortnight we pit two of our sportos against each other in a fast paced Q&A session to see who’s cooler. Oh, and they have to draw a donkey too... Decide for yourself.

Words: Wayne Gardiner Photos: Lucy Henry

Portsmouth University became the first ever English University Boxing Team Champions. Eleven University boxers travelled to Sheffield to compete in the first ever English University Championships and we walked away with nine medals. The 2006 light flyweight BUSA Champion Suraj “The Pugilist” Popatt, was successful in retaining his title so we was of to a good start. Sarah Patrick took gold and a qualification into the four nations BUSA Championships, along with James The “Baby Bomber” Connor’s gold medal for a well deserved victory. Lawrence “Pretty Boy” Brown at middleweight started the championships in good form, winning his quarter final bout on the Friday by a very wide margin, nearly stopping his boy with a viscous flurry in the third round. In the semi finals we saw something that we did not ever foresee; Lawrence was against an opponent who was bigger than him, had the same record (undefeated in five bouts) and had the same style. This bout should have been the finals of this weight category as both lads threw everything but the kitchen sink at each other, landing with combinations and powerful shots, forcing each other to change style and tactics to try and gain the upper hand. Exchanging blows until the last second the crowd roared with appreciation; the victory went to Lawrences opponent, but it was a victory in itself to have the Great Britain Coach shaking hands with Lawrence and congratulating him on his performance. “Lightning” Luke Jeffrey drew old foe Stuart Garmen in the preliminary rounds, this was going to be a hard contest as Luke had lost to Stuart in a previous bout one year earlier. Both boys came out firing and Luke was boxing well, scoring precise accurate punches, putting him ahead on the judges scorecard. Unfortunately Stuart Garmen’s strength forced him through, overpowering Luke and gaining a late stoppage in the third round. Simon “The Spartan” Easter also displayed precise punching and effective ring control, dominating his opponent until the third round. Boxing is a

cruel sport and Simon got caught with a vicious rear hand causing the referee to give a standing count and surprisingly even though Simon was ready and awaiting the restart the referee stopped the contest in favour of his opponent, upsetting the crowd and of course Simon. Brian “Balls Out” Ogweno went into the quarter finals highly confident and as usual started at an incredible pace, combining power with precision, forcing three standing counts against his opponent, ending in the referee stopping the contest (outclassed). In the semi finals Brian came against experienced boxer Jason Cuddy, who had stopped both of his previous opponents. Brian took the bout straight to Cuddy and both lads exchanged some combinations that would stop any boxer in thier tracks. As the bout reached round three Brian got caught with three shots in a row and the referee stopped the contest. Hamed “The Hammer” Amin qualifying through to the semi finals came against an ex kick boxer from Leeds. At cruiserweight, we already new that these two lads would hit high and fast, but nobody expected the blood bath that commenced in the first round. Both lads would not give ground, resulting in both boxers being covered in blood. Going into the last round there was one point separating them and Hamed started to take control. After a minute into the round the referee stopped the bout so the doctor could examine both boxers. The bout was then stopped as Hamed required a couple of stitches in his upper lip – he was winning at the time. Christoph “BFG” Reiken qualified for the semi-finals and drew an exceptionally hard opponent who had over ten bouts in experience levels more than Christoph, within the first minute of the bout Christoph got caught with a couple of big punches but was still in the bout. I, as the coach, then put the towel in, calling a halt to the contest. I stopped the contest due to the fact that I could tell by experience that Christoph was a little out of his depth and I will always protect his boxers. At middleweight two of our own boys got drawn against each other – Dave “The Headhunter” Hickey and Dave “Young Mutley” Torku. Both lads were good lads, who on numerous occasions shown have thier class

within the boxing ring. The first ,round was extremely close with Mutley using power against Hicky’s speed, causing a very entertaining bout for the spectators. In the second round Mutley landed a good strong front hand squarely on Hicky. Hicky, unmoved by this, continued with his work, landing effective scoring counter punches until we noticed blood flowing down Hicky’s face from the right eye. The doctor called a halt to the contest for safety reasons due to the cut. It would have been nice to see how the bout would have played out. Mutley then proceeded to the Finals against P Benson who is an ex England representative and had boxed over forty bouts; this was Mutleys fourth. The bout was very technical, with Mutley showing his superior strength and Benson pushing speed and experience. As the rounds progressed Mutley held his own scoring effectively whilst winding up the ex England International Boxer. When the bell sounded none of us cared for the result as Mutley had just stood in the ring with a very high calibre opponent and proved his worth. The results showed this by awarding the win to Benson with a margin of only one point. This was some achievement. Coach’s Comments: I was mega impressed with the team that weekend, as I know the calibre of opponents that came out of the woodwork for this event. With three current England Internationals competing it showed that this event could grow to a very high standard. A special mention must go out to James Connor; not only did he win Gold, but he did it whilst hiding a fractured rib – this shows what hardened athletes these boxers are. Portsmouth University won the Team trophy by a clear margin, making them the first ever English Universities Team Champions. (Thank you Lads & Ladies it is a pleasure to coach you).

League Table Top 5 Sportos Marisa May

Andrew Machin

Tim Over

Simon Leach

Phillipa Hall

Fiona Walker

Phillipa Hall

Hockey

Womens Rugby President

Have you ever .... Drank /spent more than £100 on alcohol for yourself in one day? Don’t be silly, I’m a poor student, I mine sweep. Slept in your own sick? 1st year and 2nd year.

Have you ever .... Drank /spent more than £100 on alcohol for yourself in one day? Yes...But only once because I’m usually quite skint! Slept in your own sick? Yeah! Most people know about it!

Slept outside? Does Waterloo Station count?

Slept outside? Yeah, but it was in a sleeping bag I found... Attempted “straight-arm” drinking? Oh God all the time! Played touch cup? ‘Course...who hasn’t? Been naked in public? Yes...Initiations and Naked Calendar Been asked to leave the Union? Yes...I’d thrown up all over myself :(

Attempted “straight-arm” drinking? Yep – messy! Played touch cup? Of course. Been naked in public? No. Been asked to leave the Union? Yup, always managed to get back in though. Missed a lecture to play sports / to do soco stuff? Every Wednesday in my 1st and 2nd year. Participated in “The Ramp”? No, I’m too young.

Missed a lecture to play sports / to do soco stuff? Of course, every Wednesday!

Downed a jug of Snakey B? Yep, chucked the 5p in it...idiot! Gone in the sea after Tantrum / Time? No, it’s cold.

Downed a jug of Snakey B? Ergh touch cup, yes, and was sick straight after. Gone in the sea after Tantrum / Time? No actually, I haven’t.

Started drinking before noon? Oh yeah.

Started drinking before noon? Yes

Is Snake Bite your choice of drink at the Union? Always.

Is Snake Bite your choice of drink at the Union? Of course!

How many societies / clubs have you represented at uni? (1 point for each club) Hockey, Rounders, R.A.G.

How many societies / clubs have you represented at uni? (1 point for each club) Womens Rugby

Now draw us a donkey ....

Participated in “The Ramp”? No...was before my time...sob.

MEDAL COUNT: 3 Gold 2 Silver 4 Bronze Nine medals out of eleven boxers and around seventy five BUSA points for Portsmouth University. FInd out more about boxing online: upsu.net/clubs/boxing

Score

Score: 11

Score: 13

Purple Wednesdays Wednesday 9th January 2008

Sports features and results

Pure Sports goes live on Express FM Fresher’s Point Of View Sports Officer Simon “Darby” Leach and co-presenter Andy from the Pure FM sports show have been offered the chance to take their legendary sports show to the local airwaves on radio station Express FM. Pure FM, the student’s union very own radio station hosts the Pure FM show every Thursday from 1pm to 3pm and the first hour of the show will now be broadcast live on Express FM (93.7fm). The show, for those of you who haven’t tuned in before, is a fun filled round up of the weeks sports news from Portsmouth University clubs, through to national sporting news all mixed together with some (usually) themed music selections, games, discussions and challenges. Make sure you listen live every week for Darby and Andy on the Pure FM sports show. Listen live on: purefm.com

I was keen to play university hockey because, having played for my local club I knew how much of a laugh playing for a team was. I met everyone properly at our first social, a three legged pub crawl around Southsea. I was late, and after a drinking penalty thought I was safe. Knowing very few international consuming rules I was hammered before nine o’clock. In that one night I managed to be tied to Scully, a hockey old boy, drink mulled wine, lose my hockey sock,

and have no clue how I got home; I woke up in pain but it was one of the most memorable nights I've had yet, memorable being figuratively as I can’t remember a lot of details. I played my first match away against Imperial, we lost 8-0 but our spirits were raised on the journey home. We chanted at naked rugby boys and polished off an honourable amount of alcohol. I had to down a pint at the Union as a result of me loosing the Fresher Fact challenge I lost to a fact about a well and an exploding horse. We’ve won a few matches since and had a few cancelled. The other ladies’ teams are storming up their leagues and the men are doing well too. I’m so glad I joined hockey, I can’t wait to be crowned an old-girl next year. Certainly the best decision I’ve made this year so far was to join hockey.

for twenty quid, while the helms have a respectable wine tasting session in the club house! Needless to say when the crews staggered up the sailing club stairs dressed in random clothes at eleven-ish they made it their mission to get their helms equally plastered (which didn’t take long). Another wicked night, with rumors the next morning of skinny dipping, and random bodies found under duvets in the crew house. With heads banging it was a relief that the next day’s racing was postponed till the afternoon due to extreme winds and eventually cancelled. This gave team Portsmouth time to sort out their costumes for the evening, which was a 1967 themed evening in honor of forty years of the Lark class. Knowing the Lark class don’t do anything by halves, the level of entry was going to be high, so the team went for a Captain Scarlet theme, the girls donning white leggings and boots and the boys working some magic with bin liners. With that the team headed into Looe for the last time looking awesome! The club house was filled with Bill and Bens, foot and mouth people, firemen, hippies and Jungle Book characters, with a mass picture session proving the class’ skills at dressing up once again. With live music and double at only one pound fifty, Portsmouth Uni were showing the class how to party hard, with Bradley showing one local in particular not only his partying skills. The

class then staggered out of the club to the Bosuns locker (the local club) where everyone said their drunken goodbyes and how much they loved each other etc! Last day and everyone had to be out of the house early, which was painful with the vacuum going at eight, however it had to be done, as there was still racing to finish, with everyone out on the water by ten. Two races today and all did well. Jon and Alex finished their successful week second student boat, quite an achievement, as Portsmouth managed to miss two days of racing, however were we failed in attendance we certainly made up for in drinking, with the local drink rattler making a lasting impression (possibly on our livers as well, which are still in recovery). All that was left to do was to hitch up the boats and leave a very damp Looe! Another awesome Nationals, which we will all never forget. We would like to thank the Lark class who once again helped us so much through out the week! Another thank you and goodbye goes to Chris Holliman, Alex Cruttenden, Jon White and Rob Woodward who have all graduated so it was thier last Nationals sailing for the Uni! Congrats guys on graduating, you have all done so much for UPSC, it has been much appreciated! We look forward to racing against the “old boys” at the next Lark event!

Portsmouth sails into the Nationals

Portsmouth University Sailing Club

Team Portsmouth were stylishly late for the Lark sailing nationals in Looe this year, due to the graduation ball which took place on the Saturday night of the first day of the nationals. With all good intentions Alex, Joe, Chris, Kate, and Rob went to the grad ball with the knowledge they would have to be up bright and early to tow the boats down to Looe, hence a strict no alcohol rule got put into force for the evening! One step into the James Bond themed Union and that rule was straight out the window and hence an awesome night was had by all. The next morning proved to be hard, with us all hitting the road at the crack of two o’clock; we picked up our boats and got on the road. Unfortunately some rubbish map reading skills and a minor domestic between Kate and Chris on the way lead us to the middle of Salisbury town on a busy Sunday morning, not good! Navman GPS came out and Tina got us to Looe in one piece! UPSC had hit Looe (literally). Ye olde town of Looe was not built to allow double stacker tailors through, therefore a lot of locals got involved when we had to unhitch trailers in another busy town and push the boat through to the sea front, happy days! A quick bit of rigging and we were ready to find the sailing club

for a beverage and a bbq! Once again the Lark class welcomed us, and we met up with the whole legendry fleet in what can only be described as a shoe box for a sailing club, three storeys up. The night proved to be excellent, for at least those that can remember it. Day one and we woke up in our lovely house in the center of town, walked three minutes down the road to the sea front, to see massive waves crashing down on the beach. With nerves running high we were sent out from the beach. The brave ones in the class went first, only to have their boats amusingly surf back in on the waves onto the beach; needless to say the UPSC boats held back a bit, knowing the fragile nature of many of the repairs. Finally we were allowed to launch from the harbor. The crocodile of Larks headed into what now was an extreme swell and dark skies. With crews feeling increasing sick the racing wasn’t looking good; once out on the start line Jon’s crew Alex gave in and managed to vomit in front of the fleet and causing some nice splash back onto Jon. Kate, still recovering from the night before, went quickly downhill and followed Jo and Sarah back in after one race for a cuppa tea and a Cornish pasty. Rob and Fiona, and Jon and Alex stayed out and completed, doing well. Day two and the sun was out for a wicked couple of races, with all

four boats doing well. Once all the boats where back in and the other half of team Portsmouth had turned up (Bradley and Tim, late due to Bradley doing a re-sit), all boats were weighed and tested for buoyancy! Five UPCS boats passed (just), however Bradley’s boat had a mysterious hole in it somewhere that couldn’t be found, so the boat was sunk in the river, where a hole was eventually found and disqualified from racing again, sad times! But Tim and Brad took up the Lark classes second favorite pasttime; drinking, with Bradley (our Fresher), being spotted later on that night, naked trollyed and a little damp in the groin area slumped outside Superdrug! Day three, and the seasickness pills were back out in force! This time big sea and fog. Half the fleet decided not to race, but Chris, Kate, Jon and Alex battled on. Chris and Kate managed to capsize spectacularly just before the start but still managed to get back on and do well. Both helms and crews on both boats holding on for dear life on many of the beats, still all survived and managed to get back in to Looe again for a local delicacy “ a bucket of chips”, loved by all. That night was the famous crews Union; where all crews must attend a drink filled session of ranting about their helms, drinking games, swaping clothes and basically getting as drunk as humanly possible

Purple Wednesdays Wednesday 9th January 2008

Sports news and features

On the Spot

Who are you? Harriet Chandler Age: 21 Club / Society history: Fresher last year, VP this year, world domination next year... First Portsmouth Curry? Random takeaway in halls, it only cost me a fiver. Favourite Movie? Billy Elliot. What puts a smile on your face? Spending time with my nephews. What wipes it off? Being wrong about anything. Most embarassing moment? Too many Purple Wednesday moments to mention, mostly involving talking to people and having no recollection of it until the drunken flashbacks start. Favourite uni memory? Tour! How quickly can you down a pint? Pitifully slowly - ten seconds? Favourite dress up theme? Ballerinas will be fun (don't tell Penny!) Tell us a joke: Did you hear about the scarecrow that won an award? Apparently he was outstanding in his field. What three questions would you ask if you went on a blind date? Do you like cricket? Does my hair look ok? Are you a serial killer? Tip of the week: Start your own pension fund.

Want to be ‘On the Spot’ ? E-mail us at: sportnews@upsu.net

Player of the Fortnight

Athletics

Cheerleading

Wayne Gardiner

Christoph Kurth

Gemma Foy

James “The Baby Bomber” Connor was in the finals of the English University National Championships at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield on the 8th Dec 2007. This was the highest profile University Boxing Championship that Universities across England had ever seen; the standard of boxing was immense compared to previous University championships over the past ten years. James, who has been suffering from a suspected fractured rib and a sprained ankle, came to Sheffield to assist and support the rest of the team. On arrival at Sheffield he got the adrenaline going and decided he wanted to box, so James and I went for a quiet chat and spoke with regards to the safety issues and whether I would allow him to compete. James convinced me that he was fine and I did not want to take this opportunity away, so I allowed him to compete as long as the doctor agreed that he was physically fit to do so. After James was cleared from the doctor he got warmed up and entered the ring gunning for Gold and a spot on the England University National Team. James started the bout brilliantly landing almost at will, outclassing his opponent using technique and skill. Due to his injury I could see that James was not hunting down his opponent, but rather waiting with patience and landing specifically placed shots as his opponent bundled forward. Also taking his injury into account, James opted to stand in between rounds, as he found it painful to sit down and put pressure on his ribs. In the second round James continued with his classy boxing, but did get caught with two body shots. To people watching, this probably went unnoticed, but I could see the pain in his eyes and the emotion as he fought against his body’s impulse to go down. During the final round James came out gunning even though he was in front on points, he started landing four and five punch combinations with strength and aggression. This must have hurt James

I came over from Germany in September to spend uni life in Pompey. But what should I do here except for going to lectures? I couldn’t study all the time. Sports it was then. Long distance running, to be exact. But not alone! So I went to the Freshers’ Fayre, to find out whether there were more people nuts enough to run for miles and miles for no particular reason at all. Soon I found the athletics club. Once I was there, two sprinters came right up to me and started advertising for their club. Long distance people? Dave and Jon assured me there were some. So I joined the same day and paid the twenty five pounds to join – a bargain! Well, I had no Idea what I had gotten myself into. Circuit training, track sessions, socials, races and random house parties! Athletics was likely to fill up my whole week. Did I have to take part in all this? No! Did I want to? Hell yeah! Why? Because as soon as I got to know some of the people, Athletics Club was nothing but big fun to me.

The Cheer girls were thrilled to be invited to perform at the Gosport Christmas Light event on Monday 26th of November. We performed a small routine and excited the crowd of all ages. The girls also involved young children in their routines and encouraged them to give cheerleading a go. The evening brought on more excitement for the girls, as we were invited to entertain the crowds at Portsmouth’s biggest student night, Liquid and Envy. We performed on stage to the club; everyone was suitably impressed and cheered us along. The routine performed was the dance that wowed guests at the University Boxing Match. Next we entertained everyone waiting in the queue before they entered the club, we did stunts, gymnastics, round offs, hand stands, kart wheels even a few cheers to excite everyone. All of our Freshers loved every minute of the cheer filled day and now perform confidently and we will definitely be back to Liquid in the near future.

who obviously really wanted this title. The referee after issuing two counts during that final round then stopped the contest, making James “The Baby Bomber” Connor the first ever English Universities Featherweight Champion. Coach’s Comments: James showed so much heart, courage and class during this bout and has always been one of the squad that the lads have respect for, I wish I had more boxers like him, as we would have an untouchable squad. When his injuries have healed James will compete against Scotland, Wales and Ireland for English Universities in March 2008. (You done us proud mate!) Currrent Titles: Portsmouth University Featherweight Champion 20062007 Portsmouth University Featherweight Champion 20072008 English University National Featherweight Champion 20072008 Selected for England University Boxing Squad 2007-2008

nuts enough to run for miles and miles for no particular reason at all

“

Oh, before I forget: My performance improved as well. Our coach, Sarah Davey, really knows what she’s talking about and there is a variety of opportunities, especially for runners. From 100m to the full marathon distance, every discipline is represented. Okay, circuit training is hard for a tall & lanky long distance runner, and track sessions were not much easier. But the curries after track with the guys, Wednesday’s socials, and the Athletics Club flag waving near the finish line during races, all compensate for any hard training session during the year. So, whether you are up for improving your skills and fitness or just want to have a good laugh, UoP Athletics is the way to go.

Featured

Gotchas...

Team of the fortnight

It’s all a bit of fun

On the weekend of 24th/25th November 2007, University of Portsmouth Sailing Club First Team travelled to Exeter for the Exeter Excalibur event. They ended up winning overall. This was the first event Portsmouth has won in sailing in over eleven years, the first time we have taken down the Scummers in eleven years, and the first time our first team had sailed as a team! Teams consisting of: Jay Whitehead and Kate Hutchins, Guy Brearey and Hollee Kilkenny, Sam Brearey and Jo Coe.

A certain MAPO seen getting jiggy with a foxy lady on the last PWs of the year! Answers on a postcard: How many penes (plural of penis) appear in the Naked Calendar? The toilets in Lemon Sole had a magical quality of somehow making certain Polo girlies even drunker than when they disappeared to the loos together! Which Ski/Snowboarder threw up continuously on the coach to Val Thoren all the way from Guildford? Hockey Fresher Hannah made it to the grand old time of 10pm on New Year’s Eve before having to be taken home minus her shoes. Which hairy rower can't control his alcohol intake? Cannon is looking for love...male or female. Mystery of the missing tie What goes on Facebook, goes in Purple Wednesday. Horny Christian Boy is more Christian than horny Why did the hockey fresher put her shoe in the fish tank? Sleazy gets his chest waxed - fact! Garry Cook should be banned from Facebook.

More: upsu.net/clubs/sailing

Send in your gotchas to us at: sportnews@upsu.net or join the Facebook group at: tinyurl.com/3adt4a

FR EE

PURPLE WEDNESDAYS

Issue 7 Wednesday 09.01.08 upsu.net/news

Introducing the Netball Team

Lacrosse reach the finals

Alex Milligan

Ben Endley

Firstly I would like to thank Rugby mainly for no comments about Netballers exploding during Chrimbo, isn't it nice when we all get on? Isn't that right Fitter and Dani? All of our five teams play in different divisions of BUSA, with our First team playing in Division One. This hasn't been an easy league but worth the battle to play at such a high standard of netball. Unfortunately this year we missed the deadline for British University trials, this is an amazing opportunity for our top girls to play at a very high standard. Bring on 2008 - we will get there. This year our training has taken a different structure; we were selected as one of the clubs to work with the Sports Science department. The strength and conditioning structure has been a great success and has helped all teams focus on parts of their fitness they might not have worked on before (the plank for example). Peta Stead, one of our own girls, takes the session on a Thursday evening. Working hard after a Wednesday night doesn't always go down so well, with some of the girls (Sam Barnes?) but we all put in a good effort. After our training on a Monday evening Kaly Smith and myself take the Intra-mural coaching. This takes place at Langstone campus at 7.30pm, we then take the girls again on Friday at 4.30pm and play a full match. If anyone would like to come down and join us please do not hesitate to participate. It’s nothing too

serious and we cater for all abilities, even if you've only played a little at school. Not only do we train hard, we also play hard (maybe not me though I hear you saying Darbs). This year’s socials have been eventful and alcohol fueled, with themes such as pumpkins, farm animals, school girls etc. This week we had our Christmas dinner, which was a great success, with Freshers all feeling a little worse for wear the next morning. Everyone looked lovely and elegant. We also play every other week against Portsmouth grammar school. PGS have an amazing Netball squad who have just won the Nationals and give us a run for our money (what am I saying we lose every week!) This gives us another chance to stretch our legs in a competitive environment. I am currently trying to organize our own Pompey tournament, inviting most of the southern uni’s; it’s been hard to find a weekend where all the uni’s can do it so might be smaller than we'd hoped for. Look out for info on it as we would love your support. On top of this we want to work alongside RAG to host a twelve hour sponsored Netball game! We would like to invite all clubs to get involved; I know Kissball love a bit of Netball (Lott) and are surprisingly good. It would be a laugh and a great social event, hopefully this will be organized for the new year. Find out more about Netball at: upsu.net/clubs/netball

2007 Sports Roundup

Photos: Tom Worman

The mens Lacrosse side reached the finals of the West & Midlands cup on Saturday in battling style. The closest score line so far this season is a fair reflection on a game that was hindered by farcical weather conditions. The team met early Saturday morning, only to find out that the drizzle we were experiencing on the South coast was nothing compared to the conditions in Stoke, aka ‘the town that time forgot’. Understatement of the Season goes to the Staffs Captain for telling us “it’s a bit damp up here, but the pitch looks ok.” Captain/Driver Chris Mattison, after brief discussion, decided that having woken at the crack of dawn and hired the minibus and driven four hours north, we may as well play and see what happened. What happened was a game that started out hindered by the weather and the ensuing damage to the pitch resulted in the referee having to stop play so the ball could be dug out of the goal mouth for the fourth time. In a game where neither side was really able to build any kind of rhythm to their play, it boiled down to who was more willing to scrap for a result. An excellent performance from the Staffs keeper ensured Pompey had to work hard for every goal. A combination of the conditions and some excellent individual Staffs players lead to some very tired legs in the Pompey midfield. If the lads can take anything from this victory (apart from a place in the finals), it’s that ‘given the same situation, hockey would have sacked it in and gone home.’

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