A Look Ahead - The 2014 Open Season

James Burbidge continues his open coverage looking towards 2014.

2014 – A Look Ahead

In case you weren’t aware, the big deal with 2014 is the World Ultimate Club Championships (or WUCC for short). It’s taking place in Lecco, Italy from the 2nd to the 9th of August (1 week after UK Regionals, 2 weeks before Nationals). The UK will be sending 3 teams: Clapham, Chevron Action Flash and EMO. And as Clapham captain Britney points out "World Club years are different. They are different because they are the only time within the 4 year cycle of international competition that clubs can expect undivided attention and commitment from its players. For top clubs who feed various GB squads, this focus is rare and welcomed." 

With the lessons learned from 2013, and new members currently joining the squads, now seemed like a good time to take a look at the three teams.

Clapham are running closed trials this year, having taken a fairly large contingent of new players on last year. They are on a 2-year plan for the competition, which began with trials immediately after Euros in 2012. Britney notes that "Clapham in 2013 was working through new systems and new ways to play the game. We looked different and played different but [the strict framework of our plan] allowed all of us to push in the same direction. This alignment and synergy was probably our greatest accomplishment out of 2013.... [W]e can spend the remaining months between now and WUCC to perfect our systems instead explaining them. With our existing foundation, we can concentrate on looking forward instead of dissecting the past." 

With confirmed appearances at the US Open (4th July weekend) and Windmill Windup (13-15th June), Clapham will be putting themselves up against the best competition they can to prepare. "Just as it will be during Worlds, we will only have one chance to win every battle. This is our aim. Not to win a tournament, not to win a game, but to win a point, to win an individual battle. If you think is sounds too cliché, I invite you to try it. It’s harder than you think when you come up against the best in the world. The pressure is on and we will push each other up to these standards at every single training."


After gold in Europe and a successful trip to Chesapeake, Clapham will be confident they can hang with the best and have a good shot at making semis. But don't ask Britney where they'll finish, "The duty of a captain is not to set a goal to his players but to give them all the tools to reach their apogee. I hate this question because setting your team an end goal only ever leads to disappointment. Either you fall short and underachieve this predetermined expectations or, worse yet, you underestimate your potential and lead your team past this arbitrary objective only to see them lose the drive that pushed them only to reach it. I will say this one final thing. Come Worlds, every CU player will fight with all his worth to win that point, to win every individual battle. If we achieve that, then who knows where we will finish."

Chevron Action Flash have set themselves the goal of making at least the quarter finals. Captains Penny and Josh Coxon Kelly say that Chevy have been preparing for this tournament since Prague in 2010 and plan on attending more tournaments than ever across Europe to get as much exposure as possible to different styles of the game. Chevron finished 13th at WUCC in 2010.

EMO finished 41st in Prague and are looking to place in the top 20 this year.  They acknowledge that they’ll be expecting a very strong team in the crossover, but EMO always enjoy big games and they’ll certainly be up for it. Worlds being an exciting opportunity, EMO have had a large influx of new players – something they’re well able to cope with as a 2-team squad. Apparently they have attracted some well-known players but “I won't be naming any names because I find the Chinese whispers of frisbee transfers strangely enjoyable,” says captain Coddy. He admits though, that the biggest challenge they face is squad cohesion as they integrate the new players with the core from last year.

EMO at UKU Tour 3, Cardiff 2013. Photo courtesy of EMO Ultimate.

One thing both EMO and Chevy captains commented on was the depth of competition this year – particularly in terms of teams who feel they should have a spot in the quarterfinals.  The Chevy captains said: “You will always come up against the usual powerhouses of the US, Canadians, Japanese and the Australians at these tournaments but this year we can also add in a number of European teams who could easily look to make at least the quarter finals. From Europe alone you have strong teams from Germany and Switzerland attending who will look to do damage to all they come across, as well as the UK teams ”

What else is moving and shaking on the UK Open scene? Well there’s the inevitable out with the old and in with the new, both in terms of players (fare-thee-well Mr Retter) and teams. A void for a mid-level team seems to be forming in London where both Tooting Tigers and Burro Electrico are slipping quietly into the night – that’s two full squads of solid players looking for a new home. With Ka-Pow reporting 70+ players registered for try-outs, Fire looking for fresh talent and Flump with a great 2013 season it’s going to be a competitive trial period in the capital.

Up North, Chevron are getting their fingers sticky in other teams' pies (part of their talent tap-up system?) as Liam Kelly is coaching Vision, and Manchester Ultimate continue to keep the doors open to Chevvy players at their weekly trainings. Following a strong debut year (if you forget ManUp) Manchester are keen to stabilise in A-tour and even push into the top 8. DED may be able to tell them a thing or two about the difficult second season and they too have set their sights on a return to top 8 form following a year where Mixed seemed to be their focus.

And, let’s not forget – outside of Tour, this is the year that Jen starts to make its mark on the tournament scene.

All in all, 2014 should be fresh, fun and exciting.

If you are involved in the Open scene and would like to feature or be interviewed, please don’t hesitate to get in touch - burbidge{dot}james[at]gmail{dot}com

We are still looking for a mixed correspondent! Please contact showgameblog@gmail.com if you want to help us cover this huge year!