xEUCF 2013 - Open Division

UKU Open Nationals 2013 saw London's Clapham Ultimate secure their thirteenth consecutive win in a clean sweep. Chevron Action Flash achieved revenge in a repeat of 2012's semi final against Fire of London, but were unable to dislodge the perennial UK Champions. 

Brighton Ultimate improved by one to gain their highest ever placing of third, and guaranteeing themselves a spot in the upper 'Elite' bracket. They will be joined by the Cinderella story of the weekend, Devon ultimate - who have threatened an international breakout before (Nationals 2010 saw them miss out by a minor margin), but are now consolidated as surely the UK's favourite underdogs as they rise above Fire 1, EMO, and Kapow! to place 4th, after completing a late-game-comeback-sudden-death-victory over none other than Fire, a result foreboded by the epic Tour 2 Matchup.

Fire nevertheless secured the all important qualification, and Kapow! overcame a rollercoaster season to get the crucial win against EMO for the final spot, a result that jars with the two team's respective tour performances. On to Bordeaux...

The Grapevine - 20/09

The Grapevine - ultimate links and news from around the globe.

Understanding Ultimate gets literary in an interesting post that meditates on the relationship between artistic creativity and sport, and argues convincingly for the benefits of self imposed constraints in ultimate training.

The UKU have announced a new ultimate event at Fistral Beach in partnership with BUCS open to all...

Getting excited for xEUCF? The schedule for all divisions is now available...

Take a moment to fill in this feedback form for Nationals and xEUCF if you haven't already!

From across the pond...

Lou Burruss discusses the history of offensive tactics in a post that will be of interest to anyone concerned with 'the gap' between UK and US teams that has been discussed of late...

The commercialisation of US ultimate continues as Keith Raynor argues for an aggressive branding of College teams.

A storm is brewing in European ultimate and its set to break out at Bordeaux. Keep an eye out for our xEUCF previews early next week! - JCK @ tSG.

Jen Ultimate: The Interview

Those with a keen eye will have noticed a recent ripple in the UK Ultimate social media sphere under the mysteriously simple name of 'Jen'. With a website and Facebook identity already established, as well as a concerted effort for word of mouth distribution by its founders, Jen nevertheless still seems to have the ultimate community unsure and left with a host a plethora of questions. What is Jen? is it a British Nexgen? Doesn't it threaten most tour teams? Why "Jen"?! The Showgame got in touch with co founder and captain Sam Bowen to get some answers...

Ranelagh at EUCR-S

Mark Earley returns with An Irish Eye looking back at Ranelagh's performance at EUCR-S.

Two weeks ago Ranelagh travelled from Dublin to Bern in Switzerland for EUCR-S hoping to have a crack at a region renowned for its strength. It was only the second time an Irish team had attempted qualification for EUCF and was to prove more difficult than the last attempt (when a Dublin Ultimate team full of pick ups finished 1 spot away from qualifying in 2010 in Nantes). The team was nearly at full strength, but also had a lot of new young players as well the established core.

Day one saw Ranelagh (9) face Italian champions CUSB (3) in the first game of the day. It started well for the Dublin team as they took the lead having started on D and stayed ahead until midway through the first half. Bologna fought back with a couple of breaks of their own and lead for a while until another Ranelagh surge saw them take half 8-7. In the third quarter of the game a combination of increased defensive pressure and some Ranelagh miscues saw Bologna jump out to a 3 point lead which they held onto to see out the game 14-10.