Coming into Big BUCS Wednesday, I was unsure what would be the best game of the day. Little did I know, the best game for me would happen on Tuesday night. American Football is one of the fastest growing sports on the BUCS scene, and the standard of play is also improving at an astonishing rate. Being played on Tuesday, despite being a part of the Big BUCS Wednesday proceedings, suggested that it would be less entertaining than the rest of the sports. But this was far from the case.
The Nottingham Golds had played an awe-inspiring season thus far, having enjoyed a dominant playoff run. With a 43-2 victory against Staffordshire in the quarters, and a 41-0 drubbing of the Birmingham Lions in their semi-final, there could not have been be much more momentum going the Golds’ way leading up to this championship game at Big BUCS Wednesday.
Their opponents, however, were the strongest UK American Football side in years. The UWE Bullets were featuring in their first National Championships since 2007. However, their season had perhaps even eclipsed that of Nottingham. Winning the Southern Premiership with an 8-0 record, the Bullets came into the final without conceding a single touchdown in any of their games. The Bullets have also defeated the 2019 champions, Carnegie, on their way through the playoffs.
This Championship game looked set to be a great clash between two quality university sides, embodying what Big BUCS Wednesday is all about.
The game itself began slowly, with neither team being able to break the deadlock in the first quarter. The first to blink were the Bullets, as the Nottingham Gold smashed their way into the end zone at the end of the second quarter. After not conceding a touchdown all season, the Bullets found themselves 0-7 down. Would they be able to cope with coming back from a deficit?
They could. As a matter of fact, they seemed to come back with even more desire after conceding. Scoring a touchdown and a two-point conversion, UWE managed to go into half-time a singular point ahead with the score at 8-7.
After the break UWE seemed to be on a march to victory, as Nottingham’s turnover troubles resulted in two more touchdowns for the Bristolians. With the score at 20-7, the road back for Nottingham seemed very steep. That challenge, however, was met by the Golds, as they immediately returned the kickoff back for a touchdown; an incredible event in a championship final.
After the fantastic kick return, Nottingham were just one score behind UWE going into the fourth quarter. While we expected UWE to stay strong, they then conceded their third touchdown of the affair! Nottingham had made it 20-21 to the Gold with time rapidly running out.
UWE were forced to play quickly, but still maintained their signature finesse, and they bore down on the Nottingham end zone with only a few seconds left. Silence rippled through the stands as the game came down to the last few plays.
Despite a fantastic sack for the Golds, a lack of discipline meant that they gave away just a few too many penalties that allowed UWE to get automatic first-downs and increased yardage. Crucially, the Golds gave away a penalty on fourth and three, giving UWE just a few yards to secure the game. It doesn’t take much of an opportunity for the Bullets to capitalise and, on second and goal, they managed to punch the ball into the end zone.
With the game finishing 28-21, the UWE Bullets came away with a national championship, but in a far closer affair than anticipated. It was a fantastic advert for American Football, and both teams will be returning to their BUCS leagues next year with a hunger to come out on top in 2023.