With Michaelmas term well underway, all of Cambridge’s sports clubs have now had the opportunity to test their talent on the British Universities and Colleges Sports (BUCS) stage. The majority of fixtures take place on a Wednesday, meaning that Varsity has the luxury of looking back at two weeks worth of intense competition and a vast number of Cambridge conquests.

Women’s volleyball victory over Bristol (13/10)

In what was one of the first BUCS fixtures of the season that involved Cambridge, the women in light blue, captained by Ana Raffaelli, bested Bristol University by an overall score of 3-0. The set scores came in at 27-25, 25-22, and 25-22 again.

Despite losing 3-0 in their latest fixture against the University of East London (20/10), Cambridge’s side have shown early signs of promise. The opening game of the 2019-20 season in the Women’s Premier (South) saw the Blues suffer a reverse 3-0 defeat against Bristol, but this time round it was the Cambridge outfit that enjoyed debut delight.

Looking ahead, Raffaelli’s side will host Bath this Wednesday (27/10) in their third game of the season at the University of Cambridge Sports Centre. With a 15:50 expected start, the team will hope for a second victory, leaving them one away from equalling their tally of three wins in the last campaign.

Double dominance for Cambridge men’s football (20/10)

CUAFC’s Blues and Falcons secured three points over Leicester University and Coventry University respectively. Both games were played at the Queens’ College and Robinson College Sports Ground.

A 2-1 victory for the Blues was earned by goals from Matt Harris and Cai La Trobe-Roberts, while the combination of captain Nick Sweeney’s opener and Jyotirmoy Paul’s hat trick resulted in a 4-3 win.

As a club, CUAFC has high aspirations both on and off the pitch, recently upscaling their social media presence, working closely with charities such as Power2Inspire and The OLLIE Foundation, and also reaching out to alumni in an effort to bolster the team’s image.

Turning to next week’s fixtures (27/10), the Blues will be hosting the University of East Anglia, while Sweeney’s Falcons will travel to the University of Bedfordshire.

Green Lions overwhelm Oxford in rugby league (20/10)

After making the two-hour trip to Oxford Rugby Football Club, captain Elliott Stockdale led his Cambridge side to a strong 4-38 victory over Oxford Brookes University.

Toby Green put in an excellent debut performance to bag man of the match. Fellow debutant Ben Summers and Richard Denzil Bowen collected two tries each, while Jean-Michaël Maugüé, Rhys Mould, and Alex Allen also earned points. James Mahon smashed four conversions and vice captain Ted Chatfield collected one too.

By kicking off their campaign in South Eastern Tier 1 strongly, the light blues put themselves in good stead to gun for promotion this season, hosting Brunel University this Wednesday (27/10) as they search for another win.

Cambridge women command the Midlands water (20/10)

The women’s water polo side launched their new season in the Women’s Premier (South) division, achieving an 11-12 away victory over the University of Birmingham.

Stretching back to the 2019-20 campaign, Cambridge posted a mixed set of results, placing fourth in the league with three wins, five losses, and two draws. Current captain Anna Leeson, however, will look to better this record as they move forward, taking on an Imperial College team today (23/10) who are yet to have played a competitive game this season.

Blues and Panthers ball out to success (20/10)

Cambridge University’s Women’s Basketball Club (CUWBBC) celebrated victory on two fronts Wednesday night, with both the Blues and Panthers beating Loughborough Seconds 51-43 and Leicester 76-29 respectively.

Charlotte Dawson captains the Blues this season in the Women’s Midlands Tier 1, while Malin Schlode leads the Panthers in Tier 3B. Both sides will be hoping to push for promotion this season, and strong opening wins may well provide the momentum needed to challenge at the top.

Dawson’s side will travel up to Nottingham this Wednesday (27/10) to take on a side that outmuscled Worcester 69-52 during the week. Meanwhile, the Panthers will welcome current league-leaders Nottingham Trent to the Sports Centre in a battle between the front-runners.

Varsity congratulates all of Cambridge’s clubs on their recent BUCS achievements.