BUCS Playoff Preview: The start of the Conference Cups

After last week’s action we now get a clearer picture of who’s at the top in Tier 1 and the Premier Tier but now it’s time for Tier 2 to start their BUCS Playoff journey with a whole host of action anticipated. We get to see new and old matchups as the playoff race intensifies.

National Trophy

Edinburgh Napier (1) vs Stirling (5)

Edinburgh Napier are on fire, the only unbeaten side left in the North, and they now host the Clansmen, after their impressive win over the UCLan Rams last week. The Knights however maybe be too much to handle for Stirling. We have already seen this matchup this season with the Knights winning both times and a third is well on the cards for the Knights. How will the confidence the Clansmen gained from last week affect this matchup the third time around?

Northumbria (2) vs Sheffield Hallam (6)

Sheffield Hallam, take a bow, their dominant display last week over the Nottingham Green, a 23-6 win away from home against a side who looked dominant all season long. But they now face the Mustangs in a tie that will test the mettle of the Warriors, the Mustangs handled Leicester last week with a 28-6 win, this game is going to prove if Northumbria is the real deal or not but also if Hallam’s last two wins are all flukes or not, an interesting matchup ensues in Newcastle.

Brunel (2) vs Bristol (6)

Brunel’s incredible season carries on, a win last week where they burnt UEA 42-0. They now face a Barracuda side who won 20-0 against KCL. An upset could be on the cards again as Bristol travel to West London to face the Burners in a match that will see if Brunel can carry on their impressive season on both sides of the field. Bristol Barracudas have conceded 134 points already this season and the Burners cannot stop scoring, it will certainly be an interesting matchup in the capital.

Bournemouth (1) vs Kent (4)

Kent makes the long trip to Bournemouth, to face the Bobcats who are the number one seed and after the 17-0 victory over Bath, in a shortened game, sees them ready for the quarter-finals this weekend. The Falcons beat Hertfordshire by 3-0. Although it was an uneventful game, we can take away that Kent have an airtight defence and will not allow the Bobcats to score easily, but the Bobcats will look to carry on the dominant offensive display they have all season long. Let’s not forget that Bournemouth have only conceded 10 points this season so far.

Northern Conference Cup

Before looking into the Conference Cup for the North, the Derby Braves are through to the semifinals, as Cambridge conceded the match. The Braves will now have an unexpected bye and will wait to find out if they are to play Edge Hill or Lincoln.

Sheffield (1) vs Sunderland (8)

We have seen this game before twice already with the latter of the two being the most intriguing. A 12-0 victory that day for the Sabres showed how close the two sides could be. The Spartans will look to march down the M1 to show that they can ruin the Sabres playoff party but to do that it will be a big ask as the Sabres have looked the gold standard so far this season in Tier 2.

Edge Hill (3) vs Lincoln (6)

Lincoln travels to Edge Hill this week in a battle that will allow us to see what the true talents of the sides are. The Vikings are coming in after winning the North Western division with a potent offence and a defence that can hold up any offence. They host the Colonials who have a negative point differential although they finished second in the division 56 points scored with 77 conceded. The match-up in the Northwest could be an intense one as divisions collide.

Lancaster (4) vs York (5)

“The War of the Roses”, the first and only time I will root for York, but I am unbiased I promise, the Centurions represent the ‘right’ side of the Pennines as they face up against the dark side. It is a rivalry that has been brewing for centuries and everything will be laid out on the line. York come in hot after three wins out of four games since Christmas but Lancaster are 4-2 and it will be intriguing to see what they are like outside of division play.

Southern Conference Cup

Before we investigate the Southern Conference cup a special mention to Oxford Brookes who have already advanced to the semi-finals as Aberystwyth conceded their game against Brookes due to injuries, Brookes will now wait to see if they will face UWE 2 or QMBL in the next round.

Plymouth (2) vs Greenwich (7)

The Tier 2 South has been an interesting watch all season, with not many unbeaten sides, but one of them is the Plymouth Blitz. The number one side in the South Western facing off against number 3 in the South Eastern. The Mariners are no mugs to this ‘beating higher-seeded team game’, they beat the Kingston Cougars only a few weeks ago, but they need to make the long trip across to Plymouth, with every hope and intention of winning and advancing in the playoffs.

Kingston (3) vs Sussex (6)

Possibly the game of the week in BUCS, a team in Kingston that have been performing so well all season long on both sides of the ball against a Sussex side who could be deemed as unlucky to not be higher seeded. They’ve come up against a good OBU side in their division, with 148 points scored for the Saxons, any other season they could have won their division. But they come against a Cougars stingy defence which will be leaned upon against Sussex, a game that we could see a tight high-scoring affair.

UWE 2 (4) vs QMBL (5)

Could we see another upset at Hillside Gardens? The Vipers will make that gruelling journey to Bristol to face the Bullets in a match that whets the appetite for the neutral. Queen Mary have been better than most of the division winners, 122 points scored with only 47 conceded, the Bullets although they have not scored as many as QMBL they have the better defensive record with only 28 conceded. This could either be a game with both sides scoring at will or a defensive masterclass, Hillside Gardens better prepare for this ultimate showdown.