Quidditch is Here To Stay
After a 2 year hiatus, the British Quidditch Cup is back in full force. This year saw the UK’s finest teams gather at the Sheffield Hallam University Sports Park for two days of intense action, with the community and university-based teams separated into their own flights for the first time.
Teams from as far away as Stirling and Exeter were keen to get going for the first matches of the day, especially as the weather, unfortunately, put a stop to the previous Northern League fixture in the winter. Day 1 kept the teams in tight group competitions, to determine their rank for the bracket stage to come.
Day 2 brought a frost to Sheffield with fierce games starting at 8am to determine who would make it into the bracket play and into the finals of both flights. With the sun climbing higher, the final match-ups unfolded into some intense quarter & semi-final matches, building up to two incredible finals.
BQC Results
In the community final the Werewolves of London went head to head with the London Quidditch Club for one last time this season, resulting in a fierce battle with Werewolves coming out on top after 45 minutes.
Werewolves 170* - 160 LQC
The final match of the weekend was our university final, a southern showdown of Southampton QC against the Exeter Eagles. This ended with SQC beating Exeter to the score cap at the last moment.
Southampton 130* - 120 Exeter
This year we’ve been fortunate to welcome a new wave of community clubs to the sport, now competing at their first BQC and taking the fight back to the long-established community clubs. East Midland Vipers, Kelpies, and West Country Rebels all put in a huge performance for their debut competitive season.
Dev Cup 2022
This year also saw the return of Development Cup, our tournament that focuses on coaching and team development opportunities. Bristol Bears and Glasgow Grim Reap were joined by a combined Welsh university team, made up of players from Bangor Broken Broomsticks, Swansea Swans, Cardiff Crows, and Chester Centurions.
The three teams battled it out at Derby Rugby Football Club over a double round-robin and the Welsh university team emerged victorious, wining all their games. It was great to see Welsh quidditch not just represented but bringing their game!
All the players and volunteers present brought a brilliant atmosphere (not to mention an array of flags) and really made the event a good time.
The Scores Are In!
Full scores for both events are available on Quidditch Scheduler, here for BQC and here for Dev Cup. We've also included the full team rankings from both events below.
QuidditchUK are very grateful to have been supported by Utility Apparel, MCM, Epione, and Cameraworks in making BQC such a success. Our events would also not have been possible without the amazing work of our officials and volunteers who stepped up to help in the run-up to and throughout the weekend.
Image credits to Paul Watts / QuidditchUK
