I don’t know about you, but some of my fondest memories of PE lessons are in the pouring rain, on a muddy field, playing rugby against your mates. These lessons were remisicent of the days of British Bulldog in the playground, with an oval shaped ball added to the mix. Rugby is a British sport through and through, with the name for the sport coming from the Midlands town it was invented in. Top marks for creativity.
The sport’s popularity is mirrored at universities, with 123 institutions having at least one team entered into BUCS. As a result, Rugby Union definitely has a claim to be the most popular BUCS sport. Teams all over the country are gearing up for the return of fixtures following the festive period. Before games resume, let Freshered recap the BUCS Rugby Union season so far, as well as giving a handy reminder of the league structure as the season nears the business end.
League Structure
The sheer number of BUCS rugby union teams means an extensive league network is in place to facilitate the competition between the universities. No matter what the league, each team plays each other once. The premier tier is the pinnacle of university rugby. This is split into three leagues for the men, and two for the women. The men’s top league is known as ‘BUCS Super Rugby,’ with the two leagues below spilt into North and South, 1 and 2. For the women, the Premier National league sits at the top, with the one tier below equally divided into North and South.
The promotion and relegation for both the men’s and women’s premier tier is far from straightforward; let me try and break it down. The Men’s Super Rugby is made of ten teams, and the Women’s Premier National contains six. Only the bottom placed team is threatened with relegation in both cases. Both top leagues’ relegation is decided through a play-off system.
The highest placed first teams (as second teams cannot compete at the top level) in the second division face off to determine who will get a chance at promotion. The winner of this match then faces the top division’s bottom side in a winner-takes-all affair. Promotion between the Men’s North/South 1 and 2 leagues is decided in the same way. With me?
And it does not end there. Below the premier tier there are another five tiers for the men, and three for the women. These are spilt into five regions: Northern, South Eastern, Western, Scottish, and Midlands. And to complicate things further, the men’s South Eastern and women’s Northern have an extra tier due to their number of teams!
Teams in tier 1, below the premier tier, can earn promotion if they win a playoff of their own. This is done regionally, with the two first placed teams with the most points playing. The team promoted into the North league will come from either the Midlands, Scottish or Northern league, and the new team in the South league from either the Midlands, South Eastern or Western league.
In the tiers below, you’ll be glad to hear there is no playoffs, with the leagues following the more conventional system of the top team being promoted, and bottom team being relegation.
Season Recap
Men’s Super Rugby
The top division of Men’s BUCS Rugby has certainly lived up to its’ name so far this season. With teams having played 10 or 11 games out of 18, the top two sides are only separated by one point. Durham lead the way on 44 points, losing only one game all season. Exeter are the team challenging them for the title, sat on 43 points, but boasting a far superior points difference which could prove pivotal. At the bottom of the table, Northumbria are cast adrift, sat 11 points from safety. it looks all but certain that they will take on the relegation playoff, which at this stage of the season would be against Nottingham, given Exeter’s second and third teams’ dominance of the South 1 league.
Women’s Premier National
There is a bit more daylight between first and second in the women’s top division. Durham are currently four points clear of the closest challenges Loughborough after six games. The leaders have picked up five wins so far, and will look to consolidate their position at the top as the season progresses. They face bottom side Northumbia when the league resumes in February. Unfortunately, there does not look to be a way back for the team at the foot at the table. They are currently 16 points from safety, sitting on -5 points due to the concession of a walkover.
See also: Why should students get involved with local sport?