Nick Byrne previews the Scotland region of women’s indoor regionals!
Edinburgh
Edinburgh have managed to get a medal in both regionals so far. The pattern would suggest that Edinburgh 3s are going to get a bronze medal this weekend.
As unlikely as that is, their first team may well be able to do the job. There are a lot of very good players on this Edinburgh women’s first team and it would not be a massive surprise to see them in the top three.
It is also impressive to see that, in a year where some universities have struggled to even put together one team for this tournament, Edinburgh have managed to enter three teams and that is a real testament to their recruitment.
Glasgow
Glasgow will be bringing a very strong squad to UWIR this weekend and will be playing hard for a gold medal to match their kit. They have had very successful mixed and men’s campaigns so far, reaching nationals for both, and I would strongly predict a Division 1 nationals spot coming their way this weekend as well.
There are a number of standout players on the team, particularly captain Eva Jones who brings both skilful throwing and an impressive threat in the air.
Dundee
While Dundee are going to be bringing a somewhat inexperienced team, they are still going to post a very real threat to the top teams at this tournament and they are desperate to prove themselves and claim a top four spot.
Their captain, Sophie Baird, is going to be a main player to watch throughout the weekend. Her hight, experience and throws allow Dundee to play an attacking style of ultimate which a lot of teams may find difficult to deal with.
A Division 1 spot if definitely going to be up for grabs for Dundee, and no matter what these girls will gain a lot of experience from the weekend and will show themselves to be a real force to be reckoned with in the next few years.
Strathclyde
Strathclyde have had a dominant women’s team over the past few years and are coming in this year with another super strong team. While there are a few other very strong women’s teams this year, the Dark Horses will still be confident of medalling.
Caroline Charnley and Erina Brown are the two players to really watch, both having played for SCRAM together in the past and played on this university team together for a number of years. Caroline’s speed paired with Eri’s grabs and the chemistry that they have together are certainly a winning combo.
St Andrews
The Saints ladies look to be putting together one of the strongest women’s teams that have played at university level for a while. These girls already have a gold medal from mixed a few weeks ago and it would be difficult to bet against them getting a second this weekend.
Katie Trimm, who was recently selected to play for the GB women’s indoor team, is going to be a dominant player at the tournament. In addition to that I could probably give a shoutout to every player on that team as they all bring a lot to the tournament.
The Saints are definitely going to be the team to beat at the weekend.
Stirling
The Blazettes have had a decent recruitment year and so will be bringing a number of players who are looking to develop their game for the future. This gives all of their players a chance to establish themselves and show off what they can do without any pressure this weekend. Due to the setup of this year’s regionals, there is a very high chance of being able to qualify for nationals which further takes the pressure off this inexperienced team and allows them to work and learn and develop themselves. Hopefully someone will be able to come out and establish themselves so that we will be talking about them as the big name leading into nationals next semester.
Overall
While there are not as many women’s teams as we have had in the past at these regionals, and that is a real shame to see, the quality of the teams entered means that this is still going to be a very exciting tournament.
There is a fairly realistic chance that we may see a St Andrews v Strathclyde final for the third regionals in a row, a matchup which currently stands at 1-1, so this would be a very exciting matchup to watch.
Also, this week Stevo is no longer the TD and so we may actually get to find out who wins spirit without any funny business.
Prediction
- St Andrews
- Strathclyde
- Glasgow
- Dundee
- Edinburgh
- St Andrews 2
- Stirling
- Edinburgh 2
- Glasgow 2
- Edinburgh 3