UKU Open C Tour 1 2015 Preview

Jordan Brown previews the C Tour.

The third division of Open Tour is likely to be a bit more interesting in terms of upsets. Judging by the many, many posts to Britdisc, Camden have done a lot of training and will be unlikely to cough up their spot at the top of C Tour easily. St. Albans did a fair amount of work last year to climb to the top of the division as well but their pool is looking strong. Devon 3 have a squad tough enough to rival Devon 2, so they’ll be difficult opposition. However, the team probably most mis-seeded is Gravity. Despite having not played in Open Tour since 2012, the team used to compete in the middle of B Tour. They now find themselves seeded 17th in C Tour and will be looking to head towards the top of the table.

Leamington Lemmings and Devon 2 sit at the top of their respective groups and neither team are going to buckle easily. Lemmings have drafted in a bunch of young, athletic players recently while Devon’s second team has always enjoyed being a tough opponent for anyone that crosses them in C Tour. While Flyght Club 1 could have potentially threatened them in the pool stages, it looks like they’ve spread their players across two even teams which could mean a slightly weaker squad.

Further down the pools, Cambridge 2 will be aiming to snatch the top spot in their group from Sneeekys 2 but Pool P should see Hampshire 1 hold seed at the top. The last two pools in C Tour feature Manchester’s Black Sheep and White Sheep at the top of their groups. With a ton of training under their belt as well as having performed together throughout the mixed season, they should do well – were it not for the couple of teams that are likely to scupper their plans.

Black Sheep’s group features Flash – aka the 2015 GB Grand Masters Beach team. Featuring Si Barlow, Benji Heywood and Steve Giguere to name just a few, you’d expect them to finish towards the top or to even win the division. Over in Pool R, Brighton Shiny are bound to feature a strong roster that are likely to do some damage to White Sheep.

I think Gravity or Flash are likely to come out on top of C Tour. However, if they top their groups and win crossovers, they’ll play each other in their quarter final. Should that happen, I think that Gravity could possibly take it but it’s by no means a certainty.

My prediction for top 8 are:

1. Gravity

2. St. Albans

3. Leamington Lemmings

4. Devon 2

5. Flash

6. Camden 1

7. Cambridge 2

8. Hampshire 1