Australian Quidditch Association

On an unseasonably warm July Sunday in Newcastle, UWS were crowned Midwinter Cup champions, claiming their first major title.

 

That is hardly headline news. UWS have been the standout team all season and came into the tournament emphatically distant atop the national rankings. But it was so far from being that simple. The nature of their dramatic triumph amplified the achievement, for they had to fight their way back from an early loss to the dizzyingly dominant UNSW and through an energy-sapping marathon of Sunday action, then find a means to muster something and beat the national champions back in a stunning Final rematch.

 

Saturday Morning

 

 

 

Macquarie Marauders vs Newcastle Fireballs 

 

As is the natural way of things, the hosts must always open proceedings. Instead of old school tradition of pitting Newcastle first up against Wollongong, new age tradition reigned, with Macquarie filling the slot instead. Like so many games between top rivals, it was a rugged defensive struggle. Newcastle are notoriously slow starters, but they held their own admirably in the initial stages, leading 20-10 early. But as time passed, Macquarie asserted their ascendancy, headed by imposing rookie Adam Halliday. He scored two goals himself as the Marauders went to a 40-20 lead, which threatened to expand even further.

 

The Marauders were the better team across the board, narrowly but decisively, rendering Newcastle’s attack impotent. But the Fireballs’ desperate scrambling defence kept them in the contest. Macquarie could only draw two goals clear at the most and led 40-30 leading to the close, allowing Joshua Naismith to snatch a surprise win for the Fireballs with a sensational snitch catch.

 

 

UTS Opaleyes vs Wollongong Warriors

Given Wollongong’s consistent improvement and the struggles of the composite UTS team in getting a squad together, the Warriors were rightful favourites for this game. They showed exactly why initially, with Jacob Fleming quickly opening the scoring and showing himself as a great new leader of the formidable Warrior chasing unit. The opening ten minutes clearly belonged to Wollongong overall, but UTS had just enough strength, particularly in their chasers, to preserve the contest.

 

Honorary Opaleyes Mel Dodd and Katie Filippelloled the way initially, before the tried and true old model took the reins. John Ilacqua and PoyaHeidari went to another gear as the Warriors faded slightly and suddenly and with the snitch back on the field, UTS were ahead 40-30 and it was anybody’s game.

 

But you can always rely on Wollongong to catch a snitch, even without Daniel Lowe. Michael Krysa is present and dangerous, so it was he who took the Warriors to victory, by yet another 60-40 scoreline.

 

University Of Western Sydney vs University of New South Wales

It was the ultimate test straight away for the nation’s two most consistently strong teams, the national champions from UNSW and the Australian No.1 tournament favourites from UWS.

 

Andrew Culf quickly put UWS on the back foot with a pair of early openers, though Chrystal Player was able to pull one back in the second minute.

 

For a seeming eternity thereon, the score lingered at 20-10 in favour of UNSW. There was much expectation that the inexperienced and perilously female-short Snapes would ultimately fade. But the opposite would prove to be the case as their second tier of 2013-spec chasers, James Clarke, Michael Thomson and Phil Vankerkoerle, proved to be the decisive personnel, all under the guidance of the ever-present figure of captain Raj Kapoor.

 

By the return of the snitch, UNSW found themselves 50-10 clear. It was only the never-ending fight of UWS which kept UNSW on their toes, with a pair of late goals to Corey Ingold-Dawes rekindling the snitch’s relevance. But in yet another case of the newest generation unveiling their prodigious talents, Emmanuel Berkowicz spectacularly outran Christian Barquin of all seekers,snatching the snitch and sealing what could definitely be called a minor upset win for UNSW.

 

Macquarie Marauders vs UTS Opaleyes

With both teams having lost their tournament openers, this was a crucial contest for the big boys and the new boys. But it was a new boy for Macquarie who opened the scoring in Nick Burton, before the old boy of the new boys that is John Ilacqua tied it up against his former team.

 

The early running was characterised by the race between points and cards, as yellows threatened to build up at a greater rate than goals. It was curious to behold, for the game was not particularly riotous. The abundance of fouls can more be put down to errors in execution from two slightly off form teams who would ultimately bring up the rear of the field by tournament’s end.

 

It took Macquarie a while to find their feet, but they always looked in control and once their captain Laura Bailey found their second goal, more were to follow.

 

To their credit, UTS fought in the later stages once again, slightly over-running their opposition despite a squad barely half Macquarie’s size. This late revival gave us a fourth live snitch out of four, but it was only a temporary scare as Nick Allan’s snatch emphatically sealed victory.

 

Newcastle Fireballs vs University of Western Sydney 

With Newcastle having struggled slightly but gotten away with victory in their opener, and UWS having impressed but ultimately fallen short, it was going to be interesting to see where the two teams would meet in the middle here.

 

UWS looked to have the run of quaffle play initially, displaying a greater freedom of movement and going 20-0 up in no time with goals to Bianca Connell and Corey Ingold-Dawes. Chrystal Player was the third starting chaser, helping set up both of the early goals as the trio showed that not even a player as dominating as Hannah Monty needs to start for UWS to more than hold their own. But the Fireballs were definitely not far away, particularly thanks to the bludging work of Tom Russell and Joel Murphy. With their defence sound, Newcastle were able to slowly claw back those two goals and time ticked away with the contest locked at 20-20.

 

But then came the UWS captain. Hannah Monty’s amazingly late injection into the game proved a masterstroke, as it reshuffled their structures and began to fray Newcastle’s defence. Monty only needs a little room to move and she will be devastating, as was shown right now more categorically than ever.

 

Suddenly it was a one-way contest. Ten minutes and nine goals later, five of them to Monty herself, had UWS well and truly home, despite yet another snatch from the increasingly wave-making Joshua Naismith.

 

Wollongong Warriors vs University Of New South Wales

This match saw the tournament’s first truly one-sided scoreline, as the national champions swept all before them as they are prone to against anybody. Andrew Culf ran amok immediately upon brooms up, finding enough space to use his speed and panache to devastating effect, quickly scoring a hat-trick of his own as well as setting up his captain RajKapoor and James Clarke for openers of their own.

 

Through the middle portion of the match, the Warriors were able to muster more in defence and slow down the flow of goals, especially as UNSW tried to keep their critically small squad fresh through constant and often complex rotation. But such is the unwavering depth of UNSW, headlined by the late introduction of Minh Diep, there was no true relief for the solid but ultimately outgunned Warriors.

 

Wollongong were unfortunate that of all matches, it was this one which would run for a notably lengthy running time, allowing the score to slightly flatter UNSW.

 

As one would come to expect these days, the Warriors caught the snitch, salvaging some much-deserved pride out of what had been a fruitlessly intrepid effort against a team quickly starting to look nearly unbeatable.

 

 

Saturday Afternoon

 

UWS and Macquarie were probably the two tournament favourites coming in, all things considered.With both having dropped a game on the first morning, there was a real sense of the unknown about this tournament so far. Only UNSW sat alone undefeated, while only UTS were without a success yet, and even they looked threatening. But the afternoon matches would flesh out the order of things, with a high proportion of one sided thrashings, ornamented by a couple of total thrillers, eventually revealing a clear hierarchy after all, just not one that was entirely expected. UNSW were the undisputed top of that food chain.

 

 

 

University of Western Sydney 220* vs UTSOpaleyes 10

 

With their decisive outclassing of Newcastle, UWS showed that they were still every bit the rankings rocking unit of early 2013, despite their slight and narrow blip first up against UNSW. UTS had shown themselves to be highly challenging opponents for two top notch teams, but UWS are a different kettle of fish, slightly too wild for such a new and slapdash team to manage to tame.

 

ArfyPapadam found himself with a rare starting slot and took maximum advantage of the opportunity, leading from the front with an early pair of goals. John Ilacqua’s fourth minute goal and the defensive efforts of beaters Francesca Butler and Andy Cruwys, aswell as Ilacqua himself in goal, kept UWS in check early.

 

The UWS lead struggled to stretch beyond thirty, before Hannah Monty introduced both herself and Corey Ingold-Dawes late into the game this time. It had the desired effect once again, spurring them into frenzied action. But it was Chrystal Player who was the beneficiary on the scoresheet initially as UWS drew well into safety and beyond. A nimble snitch and a late surge of four unanswered goals from Daniel Ormshaw skewed the advantage even further before UWS, with no catches from two matches so far, shook things up this time, with Corey Ingold-Dawes going after and successfully nabbing the snitch.

 

Though UTS were definitely hard done by, the final margin could not be said to have greatly flattered UWS. They are just that good.

 

Wollongong Warriors 100*(70*) vs Macquarie Marauders 80(70)

 

Macquarie’s morning performances were slightly scratchy by their high standards, while Wollongong looked to have really turned up and were at their best against UTS, though they showed their propensity for slight anonymity subsequently against UNSW.

 

From the start it was immediately clear this was anyone’s game and that it would be a particularly high and fast scoring contest. Michael Krysa scored one of the fastest immediate openers of all-time from brooms up, but after this it was all Macquarie for the first few minutes. The honorary pair of travelling Marauders, Brodie Smart and Cooper Gabriel, split Macquarie’s first two goals between them, before Daniel Claxton took up the challenge with a brilliant hat-trick.

 

Despite threatening to blow Wollongong away briefly at 30-10 after three minutes, the Marauders from then on were kept within snitch range. MichaelKrysa and Jacob Fleming were the dominant chasing forces, with a pair of goals each keeping the game alive.

 

Macquarie continued to show off their expert recruiting prowess, with goals to former Fireball Patrick Andersen and former Snape Nick Allan ensuring a 70-40 lead by the time of the snitch catch.

 

But cruelly for Macquarie, they were dealing with the largely unsurpassed seeking talent of Wollongong, who had Ezekiel Azib take them to overtime, before unleashing Krysa to repeat the dose early in overtime and seal a landmark victory for the Warriors.

 

 

University of New South Wales 100* vs Newcastle Fireballs 40

 

This match should once and for all erase any doubt as to whether the UNSW vs Newcastle rivalry being Australian quidditch’s greatest and fiercest. UNSW were indomitable in their first two wins, while the Fireballs had hardly set the world alight, scraping one win over a relatively flat Macquarie with the snitch catch, then being soundly outclassed by UWS.

 

But there is something about UNSW that will always bring the best out of Newcastle, first cultivated through twin overtime matches in late 2012, then cemented by their meeting in the QUAFL Grand Final. The Fireballs were almost unrecognisable here; bringing a fire and vigour, particularly in defence, which no other team can so effortlessly draw from their bellies. Though nothing could match the drama, in a lot of ways this game matched the true substance of the QUAFL decider. Defence was the order of the day as both teams slaved to get on the scoreboard. Likewise, UNSW were again the more threatening side, playing the more attractive and controllingquidditch, but the Fireballs held on through pure defensive spirit.

 

There was nothing to split the sides numerically over the first ten minutes, with UNSW just classy enough to be 30-20 up. From there they did slowly wrestle more and more control out of the contest, with Phil Vankerkoerle in particular making a crucial difference and Andrew Culf netting a hat-trick. But Newcastle kept coming through a pair of goals to Julian Kirkby and Darren Faulkner as the margin constantly flittered frayingly in and out of snitch range. When the catch came the lead stood at 30, fittingly reflecting UNSW’s slight superiority, while still going down to the final catch as any game between these two should.

 

As it proved, Emmanuel Berkowicz caught the snitch and UNSW preserved their perfect record for the day.

 

University of Western Sydney 90* vs Macquarie Marauders 10

 

After both losing first up, UWS had well and truly put their struggles behind them but though Macquarie too had improved their play, results weren’t as forthcoming. This was a must win match for the Marauders if they wanted a realistic chance of making it into the top three on Sunday. Unfortunately there’s not a lot one can do when playing UWS at their best.

 

The Marauders certainly rose to the challenge. Though they still struggled to penetrate in attack thanks to some key missing and experienced resources (not to mention the increasing impenetrability of the UWS beater wall), their defence was resolute. The usually manic UWS goal-scoring machine slowed to a comparative crawl.

 

The clear though hardly immense difference between the two sides meant that UWS were always well in control of the match. But Macquarie did absolutely everything right which they realistically could to keep things competitive and shore up their own sturdy pride.

 

Amber Williams finally broke the Marauders’ duck late in the contest, which was ample reward for a stellar effort against 2013’s runaway standout team. But it was a second win and yet more workmanlike improvement for UWS, giving the Snapes in particular something to think about.

 

 

University of New South Wales 90* vs UTSOpaleyes 10

 

This match was the tournament’s biggest mismatch on paper, with the undefeated UNSW taking on the winless Opaleyes. But UTS have been far from walkovers at any stage and they proved robust again here, restricting UNSW to their slowest start of the tournament yet. Minh Diep scored the opener after the best part of five minutes, after which Michael Thomson slotted a couple from the goal mouth to give UNSW a little bit of breathing space.

 

UTS were largely a match for the UNSW beater game, particularly before AshwinTembe took to the field and given Emmanuel Berkowicz’s newfound seeking expertise, which diverted his attentions from his usual bludging. The UTS chasing machine was also by now showing itself to be very solid and well-oiled as the makeshift UTS-Nargles combination managed to gel by the end of the day. But solid can only do so much against the UNSW dynamo, who were well and truly home and safe by full time even despite the snitch being a particularly fast-returning one.

 

Emmanuel Berkowicz made it three catches for the day and squirted the icing on UNSW’s victory cake.

 

 

Newcastle Fireballs 100* vs Wollongong Warriors 0

 

Finally, against the backdrop of the setting sun, this usual morning tradition was upheld, with the Fireballs and Warriors facing off. Darren Faulkner made it 10-0 in mere seconds, but after that the early minutes were a rather high-speed back and forth stalemate. The kind of bloody scrum that typifies many great rivalries was not the nature of things here, as Wollongong charged energetically forward on the back of Michael Krysa, Jesse Farragher and Nicole Langridge’s aggressiveness, and Newcastle responding by probing their counter-attacks through the subsequent gaps.

 

The Fireballs had the greater execution and structure and slowly began to grind down their favourite old opponents. Faulkner led from the front with four goals, while Adam Graham well and truly came of age with some unstoppably lively runs and a pair of fabulous goals to spark Newcastle’s momentum.

 

In the end, the Fireballs managed seven unanswered goals, before Joshua Naismith brought their final margin to an even century.

 

 

Sunday Morning

 

With a day of play a night of jollity behind us, one final round of matches was required before the make-up of the table would be finalised. UNSW and UWS were by now running away at the front, pursued only by fresh air. Meanwhile third place, a spot in the Preliminary Final and a lingering shot at glory was Newcastle’s to lose. The ladder was by no means settled, with Macquarie at a stretch and Wollongong well and truly still in with a shout at third. But it would require upsets.

 

 

 

 

University of New South Wales 90* vs Macquarie Marauders 0

 

The undefeated table-toppers faced the struggling Marauders first thing Sunday morning, a particularly intriguing encounter given that the already undermanned Snapes were now down to nine, with AshwinTembe unavailable for Sunday. Furthermore, the Marauders often enjoy playing their local rivals, though their 2012 streak of dominance over them has long passed.

 

Neither Andrew Culf nor Minh Diep required very long to net a goal each and get things rolling. Culf’s second goal in the fifth minute made it 30-0, but as the game wore on, UNSW’s scoring slowed exponentially. The Marauders were in a steely mood, looking to prove a point having not quite lived up to their clear talent on Saturday. Following a professional transitional preparation from the first day into a second, they came out even sturdier than they’d steadfastly been against UWS on Saturday afternoon.

 

UNSW were clearly unmatched in the firepower department and no team can out-flank the national champions structurally, so there was not a great deal the Marauders could do to make any impression on the scoresheet. But defensively they improved from stout to heroic as the game went on, particularly in the beating stakes which Ana Barciela and Nick Allan led with aplomb.

 

But as slow as UNSW had to slave for their six goals, they were nevertheless the only goals of the match, so victory was assured even before Emmanuel Berkowicz’s now customary capture.

 

Newcastle Fireballs 110* vs UTS Opaleyes 30

 

Newcastle needed victory here to be sure of third on the ladder and their biggest enemy to avoid was complacency, for the UTS and Nargles combo were unsuccessful in four attempts at victory yesterday but showed themselves to be worthy opposition who cannot be taken lightly.

 

The Fireballs recognised this, with Darren Faulkner brought forward to start and immediately making an impact. After Faulkner’s quick pair of goals, he duly retreated off off-field again in favour of Joshua Naismith. Naismith himself was ruthless, scoring a brilliantly fast hat-trick to take Newcastle to a 60-20 margin in little over five minutes. Beyond this frenzied start though, it was by and large an even game. The remaining ten tough minutes yielded just three goals for either side as the Opaleyes rose to the formidable challenge, led as ever by their (literally) irreplaceable (given gender ratio) talisman John Ilacqua.

 

A timely goal from Katie Filippello left the score at 70-30 with the snitch approaching, so Newcastle couldn’t relax. But though UTS provided a strong challenge, perhaps their strongest of the tournament, the Fireballs never appeared under too much distress and the result never looked in doubt. Julian Kirkby’s snitch catch confirmed victory and a place in the Preliminary Final against UWS.

 

University of Western Sydney 210* vs Wollongong Warriors 30

 

Technically, Newcastle were not in fact mathematically guaranteed of third place. But Wollongong would have to win by at least 370 points to steal the position, something not really realistically possible in any circumstance, even for a team performing as impressively as Wollongong. But the Warriors did continue to amplify their burgeoning strength with a spectacular opening. Michael Krysa was first on the board in the opening minutes then, although Corey Ingold-Dawes quickly equalised, Jacob Fleming pounced to make it 20-10, a lead the Warriors protected diligently for the best part of five minutes.

 

It took a pair of quick strikes from Daniel Ormshaw and Bianca Connell to finally see UWS hit the front for the first time, but from there they didn’t look back, once again showing off their trend of starting slow but mercilessly out-enduring their opponents, grinding all teams into the dust more and more the longer a game seems to last.

 

The match would go on to last twenty five minutes, allowing UWS to methodically rack up eighteen well-shared goals, with no one player scoring more than five of them. Stephen Butler caught the snitch this time, presenting his side with yet another quality seeking option for the consecutive games ahead they would need to win in order to find glory.

 

 

Preliminary Final

 

University of Western Sydney 100* vs Newcastle Fireballs 40

 

By now, UWS’ opening loss to UNSW of more than 24 hours ago was a distant memory, as four consecutive emphatic victories rendered them clear favourites to overcome an improving but still inconsistent Newcastle outfit and move on to face UNSW in the Final.

 

The Fireballs may have lacked that top cutting edge level of dominant and consistent athleticism which have characterised UNSW and UWS both all weekend and all year, but as shown against the Snapes yesterday, they play better against better opposition. UWS knew they’d have a thorough challenge, but they surely couldn’t have expected what they got at brooms up.

 

Darren Faulkner, starting at keeper now, freeing up himself and Joshua Naismith to start together, quickly opened the scoring off their first possession, before Naismith added two more to take Newcastle 30-0 up within three minutes.

 

UWS kept their cool well, refusing to be shell-shocked by such a remarkable start, with Corey Ingold-Dawes and Daniel Ormshaw scoring in response. But a second for Faulkner kept the Fireballs twenty clear and the score stayed at 40-2 for a long stretch of time. By now UWS had their tails up and were attacking vigorously, but the Fireball defence protected the lead. Their beaters were particularly effective in shutting down the key figure of Hannah Monty, who was back into the starting seven for this game but was so concentrated on and well covered that she couldn’t register a score for the best part of fifteen minutes.

 

But Ingold-Dawes found himself with more space to operate in and managed to compile a dogged hat-trick to level the scores, right before Monty’s opener put UWS in front for the very first time.

 

UWS had the momentum now, poking further holes in the Newcastle defence and sneaking further out, to a 70-40 lead. But the margin was only thirty and so overtime was still there for the taking. Christian Barquin prevented that, catching the snitch to win the game 100-40.

 

 

 

FINAL

 

University of Western Sydney 100* vs University of New South Wales 70

 

Midwinter 2013 and season 2013’s two runaway standouts came together again, somewhat inevitably in the end, for the Midwinter 2013 final. This is not the place for reflections on history, to reflect about the first game ever or the QUAFL 2011 final. Not even their encounters over the last few months, or even their meeting one single day ago, come near the kind of magnificence this match presented.

 

Interestingly, it was not the kind of tense defensive struggle often seen in such major matches. The early exchanges were extraordinary open, with neither team able to reign in the spectacular enormity of each other’s chaser units. After only one minute, Andrew Culf and Minh Diep were already on the scoresheet, then Corey Ingold-Dawes pulled one back in the second minute.

 

UNSW’s captain Raj Kapoor was their mightiest force to behold though, scoring the first of his three goals in the third minute, to take UNSW 30-10 up and emphasize their initial dominance.

 

But twenty points was the largest lead any team managed at any time during the match. UNSW were well in control as the first ten minutes played itself out, but Hannah Monty, as if her status as player of the tournament were not yet confirmed, then quickly potted a double to level proceedings at 30-30.

 

The rest of the match was decidedly more low-scoring, as the pressures and fatigues of a final took a slight toll on each team’s offensive zest. With a pair of such unfaltering walls in defence, breaching through to score is hard enough at the best of times against these two teams. UWS struggled most of all, only adding one goal in the next fifteen minutes, allowing UNSW to creep ever so faintly clear at 60-40 as the match careened, one nail-biting minute after another, into marathon status.

 

Just as UWS’s backs began to press firmly against the wall, they rallied towards glory one last time. UWS suddenly swept their way to three goals in as many minutes as the match entered its second half-hour and the showman snitch continued to vault about the field making himself suitably impossible to catch.

 

At long last the capture did happen, right as the UNSW captain added his third goal to appropriately level the scores at 70-70. The clear seeker of the tournament, Emmanuel Berkowicz, was as dexterous and strong as ever, but was beaten by inches to the catch. Christian Barquin snatched victory and captured triumph for his team, the No.1 side in the country now the undisputed No.1 team at a major tournament for the first time ever.

 

 

 

 

 

Results

 

 

Standings

 

Preliminary Final

 

 

 

Grand Final

 

 

 

Analysis

So in the end it was UNSW and UWS at the business end once again, as so often eventuates. QUAFL 2011 feels so unrecognisably long ago that images from that day would barely enter anyone’s thoughts at this juncture.  But that only makes it all the more meaningful to stop and think about once the thought manages to occur, once again our inaugural QUAFL finalists are reigning supreme.  Those two powerhouse units so aptly exemplify the delicate balance between the old and the new in quidditch these days.

 

The game has come so very far in its quality, while retaining its critical essence. The feel and look of everything has come so far, be it the swanky sporting attire of so many teams or the increasingly professional team structures in place. This was the second annual Midwinter Cup, meaning it’s only one year since the almost quaint-looking fun fest that was the inaugural tournament, which our friends from Perth won. It certainly feels like longer.

 

Yet the old always stays. The spirit of quidditch always remains, with any major weekend event turning into a veritable orgy of good feeling and good humour within a family which is somehow growing larger and closer at the same time.

 

Likewise, all our noble teams and their performances were defined in equal parts by elements and persons so old and so new.

 

 

For UWS, this long-awaited maiden major title is deserved reward for a side which has carefully constructed such a concise and elite squad with world class strength in every department. The ‘old’ that is captain Hannah Monty, Daniel Ormshaw, Corey Ingold-Dawes and Chrystal Player continue to behave in a way most unbecoming of such supposed antiques. They dominate all before them, particularly captain Hannah Monty, who was voted player of the tournament to the surprise of nobody.

 

From there, every subsequent new generation has piled endless quality onto the ship. Christian Barquin remains a match for any seeker in the country and with his spectacular deciding snatch in the final, finally found the kind of career-defining moment he’d long been threatening. Bianca Connell is a top class defensive chaser and clinical finisher, easily holding her own within such a vaunted quaffling unit, and then some. ArfyPapadam has such a small role to play, given the existing presence of Ingold-Dawes and Ormshaw and his own globe-leading work with wheelchair quidditch. But he still finds time to sneak onto the field every now and then and duly blow all defences away with his powerful chasing.

 

But what of their Achilles heel, the quidditch-defining art that is beating, supposedly and apparently a comparative weak point? Well now it’s become not just sound, but has fast moved past the merely adequate into being as good as any beating you’ll find anywhere in the country. Barquin is of course the patriarch of the UWS school of viciously aggressive bludging, but Dom Bell and Stephen Butler have graduated with first class honours and ultimately were the key factor in keeping their side alive in the Final, when the initially dominant UNSW threatened to run away well beyond the snitch margin.

 

But even with all this quality, they didn’t have it their own way. Their tournament started with an early rush of UNSW goals past them and although the flow was stemmed, they couldn’t play themselves into the game sufficiently to salvage a victory.

 

From there they slowly built, patiently grinding down Newcastle in a tough contest, before improving through three increasingly one-sided wins complete with their first three snitch catches, to Ingold-Dawes and Butler, rectifying the initial disappointment of two early misses.

 

But to see off the challenge of a peaking Fireballs outfit in the Preliminary Final, then match the all-conquering Snapes, UWS recognised the need to up their game further and produced the goods, brilliantly refining and perfecting their increasingly intricate passing game. It took until this match for Barquin to capture his first snitch, but he caught the two that matter.

 

The real difference wasn’t this chaser game or their reinvented beater prowess. It was the remarkable reserves of endless energy within everyone.

UWS entered the final having played consecutive games with little break, both since UNSW had last played. Yet not only did they stay with the table-toppers, but ground them down. UNSW looked clear and away early but UWS outlasted them, their greater endurance levelling the contest at 70-70 for the final catch. A tied final which comes down to the snitch may be cruel on the losing side, but it is this decisive triumph of endurance over adversity which confirms how unequivocally UWS very much deserve the title.

 

 

The achievements of UNSW cannot be glossed over.They were a monstrous force to behold in the end, despite all the vague pre-tournament postulating and underestimating of the national champions. A squad of ten we said, with only three carried over from their QUAFL 2012 triumph and most precariously, just two girls, looked like a recipe for minor disaster we said. But UNSW always find a method of brilliant resilience from somewhere.

 

Their key inspiration came from Rhiannon Gordon and Holly Shuttleworth, who ran themselves well and truly aground. They didn’t just survive the ghastly commitment of playing every single second of the tournament over both days, but held up their end with considerable quality and style, playing the games of their lives one after the other.The relative demolition of the Warriors was a particular example of their craftiness. As the vagaries of passing time became a challenge for UNSW due to their player shortage, the pair simply pulled a deft late position swap, leaving Gordon to expertly sweep up any Warriors attack with her bludgers and the support of AshwinTembe. Meanwhile, Shuttleworth duly got herself into the scorebooks a couple of times.

 

Likewise, beater turned seeker Emmanuel Berkowicz and the largely untested young chaser pairing of Michael Thomson and James Clarke entered the tournament with sketchy and mysterious reputations as probably solid young players, but left as proven new superstars. Clarke and Thomson have carved out their own niche as dependable and versatile chasers, while Berkowicz was a particular revelation, combining solid aggressive beating with some splendid snatches. He ended up as the only true threat to Hannah Monty for player of the tournament, pushing her close in the final vote count. Meanwhile, Phil Vankerkoerle’s journey from start of year rookie to central UNSW fixture followed itself satisfyingly to completion aswell.

 

Add all this new blood to the evergreen quartet of some Messrs Minh Diep, Raj Kapoor, Andrew Culf and AshwinTembe no less, and you’ve got something very special. It gives you an even greater sense of the scope of UWS’ accomplishment that they vanquished these foes, which looked like a somewhere close to impossible task for much of Saturday.

 

 

 

Newcastle were a curious case. They are clearly a side in transition at the moment, slowly adjusting to Darren Faulkner’s new coaching regime of simple structures for the time being, with QUAFL as the ultimate endgame. There is not the level of complete all-consuming athletic dominance that are the hallmarks of UWS and UNSW’s chaser units, which are both on a wholly different level to anyone as far as deep quidditch and sporting experience goes. But they are still not very far away as ever and could achieve anything with a slight influx of required muscle.

 

The traditional Fireball tournament trajectory was followed again on this occasion, with a slow and largely uninspiring start giving way to a fiery run home.

 

Newcastle got away with the opener, being subtly but visibly outplayed by an underpowered Macquarie unit but snitch snatching a victory out of it. UWS then won with relative comfort, leaving the Fireballs clearly on their heels as of lunch-time Saturday. Though the UNSW match also resulted in defeat, it was a valiant narrow defeat in tense and proud circumstances, a foothold from which to decisively climb towards momentum. Two easy wins followed and by the time of the Preliminary Final against UWS, Newcastle found themselves totally in the contest against a nation-dominating unit at the very top of their game. In the case of both the UNSW and UWS thrillers, Newcastle were a clearly outgunned side as far as firepower, holding on through guile, fight and experience.

 

The key to Newcastle’s inconsistent but eventual top line competitiveness remains their depth of beating and the work of a couple of marquee chasers. Though UNSW and UWS primarily have risen to the very top of the bludging ranks with their elite beaters, Newcastle’s depth remains unmatched, with the quality old guard of Captain Lora Wiggins, Andrew Gibson, Matt Ingram and Thomas Russell bolstered further by the work of Joel Murphy and Kalinda Gibson. The previously lacking chaser depth and overall team adaptability has taken a boost too, with Wiggins, Russell and Murphy beginning to chase more than competently with increasing regularity. Joel Murphy, now with over six months of experience behind him, has developed most notably through the year, emerging as a bellicose beater and occasional adroit chaser with ceaseless energy.

 

But the clear Newcastle revelation of 2013, driven very much home by his Midwinter performance, has been Joshua Naismith. It was Naismith who formed the standout chasing pair with Darren Faulkner, the pair sharing a large majority of Newcastle’s goals and even more opposition defensive attention between them. Naismith also nabbed himself three quality snitch captures on Saturday. One, against UWS, was a suicide snatch while another, against Wollongong, was obsolete given the existing margin. But the tone for his performance was set by a magnificent match-winner in the tournament opener against Macquarie.

 

 

 

 

Wollongong have flattered to deceive for quite a long time now. Since September 2012 it has been unquestionably clear to all that immense talent lies on the surface, but consistent results haven’t been forthcoming. That remains the problem in the wake of Midwinter, but it was nevertheless a major step in the right direction, to peak their efforts in a major tournament and put in a couple of top class pressure performances.

 

Given the long and short term form guide, Wollongong’s opener against UTS was always going to be a big game, presenting both sides with their clearest major opportunity for a win. Though UTS hit the front late and it came down to the snitch in the end, the Warriors were truthfully well in control for much of the match. With a little more efficient finishing they would have been well clear and unthreatened by the UTS comeback. But with a win under their belt, the Warriors were able to play with confidence and momentum, which is always the key to their game. With their minds and bodies well and truly in the game, anything was going to be possible and so it proved with a brilliant upset of Macquarie, where Jacob Fleming came of age with a match-saving defensive performance and two crucial goals.

 

Unfortunately, outside these two wins, Wollongong’s three losses were all heavy. This is the major issue they’ll be seeking to rectify, so that they can be truly competitive against any team. But numbers don’t tell the simple story. For starters, UNSW and UWS are of a completely different level to anyone and can (and do) do that to any team. At different times, the Warriors were competitive, starting spectacularly against UWS and holding off Newcastle for most of their game before slipping off the boil slightly just near the end. What’s more, the Warriors were missing crucial quality, like any team (except perhaps UWS, tellingly). Daniel Lowe was absent. The addition of him alone provides a whole new layer of athletic power to their side. But it was in the beater game that Wollongong were most behind the eight ball, which is hardly surprising given there was no Kurt Rallings, nor their most experienced all-time beaters AmanNalli and Julia Pearson. Even still, promise is there, with Hannah Davidson in particular emerging as a major discovery during this tournament, while Rosanna Kellett also rose to fill the gaping void.

 

But when it comes to chasing, the Warriors are fast building a seriously powerful unit to take it to any out there. Michael Krysa is the rock. Jacob Fleming is the revelation, standing out from the crowd with a consistently amazing Midwinter performance. Other 2013 rookies like Huw Tomlinson and Jesse Farragher are going from strength to strength, playing spirited tournaments and bringing their experienced colleagues with them.

 

An edgy new jersey making its debut at Midwinter aptly epitomised the growing edge and ambition within the Warriors, who came to the tournament with a clear goal of reaching the finals and came close to doing it. The result was a quality achievement, the biggest yet for the Wollongong outfit, but will be considered a disappointment, as no doubt Morgan Legg and Michael Krysa’s ultra-competitive regime must view it as. But Midwinter was an accurate reflection of where the Warriors are right now, not quite there but well and truly closing and beginning to encroach on the midfield.

 

 

 

Midwinter Cup 2013 was clearly a major disappointment for the Macquarie Marauders, who did not achieve the kind of results demanded by the very high standards they set for themselves. In large part, this can be put down to a plethora of critical absences from their number. Names like Kieran Tolley, Carl Quitzau, David Walshe, Dan Phipps, Matthew Freier, Nick Wilkes, Julius Zondag, Edwin Nelson and Alex Hood come immediately to mind, and that is far from all of them. The fact that even without all these names, the Marauders could still bring a nearly full quota of 21 in their squad, emphasized how unprecedented Macquarie’s home base and internal development strength is.

 

With this whole top layer missing, the Marauders were never quite going to match the cream of the crop that UNSW and UWS are. But fifth of six teams is not necessarily representative. A combination of circumstances and bad luck conspired to disadvantage Macquarie, who in this tournament ended up on the wrong end of a tight midfield pack, with very little between any of the teams vying presently to be the third best in the country. Right in that pack is about where Macquarie are at the moment. When margins are so tight this game can be so cruel, particularly to seekers. Macquarie were only two snitch catches away from having three wins and locking down that best of the rest third place they clearly still, on merit, deserve every bit as much as any other team.

 

If numbers ever have told very little of a story it is here. The Marauders could easily be said to have played far better in two losses by a combined total of 180-10 than they did in their three previous games, one of which they won, the other two of which they led before going down by snitch catch.

 

With so much quality and experience missing, new faces would have to show their worth while old faces needed to step up their leadership roles. Ana Barciela once again led from the front as far as the beating team was concerned.  Nick Allan, as well as providing his always powerful chasing presence, showed off an increasing regularity and quality to his beating, combining especially well with his unit leader Barciela. Amber Williams, Allison Hore and Maria Wizbicki combined their everlasting on field consistency with an increasingly visible off field presence in support of perennial leader Laura Bailey. But firepower is what scores you goals and it was on that front where key personnel were missing and new recruits, while unable to fill the impossibly large shoes, did step up nobly. Adam Halliday was especially impressive, while other new faces like Daniel Commander and Nick Burton well and truly made their presences known. But it was the comparatively wise old head of Daniel Claxton who took up the greatest load, leading their chaser unit and topping the Marauders’ goal count for the tournament.

 

Rebuilding and regelling of the kind needed by this new look Marauders unit takes time though, rendering their draw particularly cruel. That was how such a numerical anomaly as playing better in two clear losses could arise. Macquarie were far from convincing in an overall lethargic opener against the equally scratchy Newcastle. The tournament’s cellar dwellers UTS were only narrowly and slavishly overcome, then Wollongong were able to defeat Macquarie for the first time.

 

By games four and five, the Marauders had finally found their feet. Unfortunately, they also found UWS then UNSW facing them down the pitch. They were never going to be able to match such explosive firepower, but their structures were by now so sound and steadfast and both performances, particularly the last against UNSW, were so very gallant and pride worthy.

 

 

 

At the rear of the field, cruelly given their solid efforts, were UTS. The Opaleyes are New South Wales’ newest team and even at full strength are still a step behind their experienced opponents, so they were always going to struggle when far from full strength. Captain Jeanine Howton and foundation icons John Ilacqua and PoyaHeidari were there and on top of their game as ever. But many were missing, with Aidan Howes and MusfiqurSakib most of all being badly missed.

 

With only seven Opaleyes available, four travelling Nargles were drafted in as vital reinforcements. But given the rapidly growing quality of all five other participating teams, the shortage of numbers and of experience in playing together for this squad was cause to worryabout what kind of margins might eventuate.

 

Happily though, this team would gel beautifully in time and be able to hold up their end of bargain more than adequately, to help maintain the high quality of the tournament. No wins were to be had and both UNSW and UWS went particularly to town on their lower level opposition. But all three of the Opaleyes’ other matches were a lot more to write home about. It was their amazing staying power and fighting spirit which was most impressive, coming back from being seemingly buried twice in a row to take the lead against Wollongong and come within two goals of Macquarie. In both those matches it was only a snitch catch between UTS and upset victory.

 

Part of the quality came from just how perfectly the core seven, which SabethKastanias, Nicole Crowne and Francesca Butler filled out with all their crafty experience, was supplemented by their four guests. Mel Dodd and Katie Filippello are an always eye-catching chasing duo, bringing equal parts athleticism and pure subtlety to their combinations with Ilacqua and Crowne. Meanwhile the UTS beater game, which has lagged somewhat behind the ultra-high standard set in this country, was first bettered by the consistent improvement of Kastanias in particular. The second dynamic Nargle duo of MorgynBenstead and Andy Cruwys brought their weight of experience to proceedings and augmented the defensive unit even further.

 

With only eleven players and more distressingly, only two guys, UTS faded as Saturday passed. With Ilacqua so relied upon to make a lot of their play, his fatigue was always going to be an issue. But come Sunday morning and everyone was suitably well rested and suitably well gelled after a whole day playing together. This happy combination allowed the composite team to put up their best performance yet, pushing a Newcastle team which by this stage was reaching the top of its game right to the end.

 

When analysing deeply, though you see just how peerless UNSW and UWS have become, you also see just what a consistently high level was set and continues to be set by all six team (or perhaps you could say all seven teams) at the tournament.

 

Next up for Australian quidditch comes August’s Melbourne Mudbash tournament. The sheer quality of Melbourne’s dominating Manticores unit is already well and truly clear, while Mudbash, with four other Victorian squads, will show us just how rapidly quidditch down south is growing in quality aswell. All things considered, QUAFL 2013 looks like it’s going to be pretty damn good.

 

 

 

Player of the Tournament

Hannah Monty (UWS)

All-Star Team of the Tournament*

Keeper: Andrew Culf (UNSW)

Chaser: Hannah Monty (UWS) – Captain

Chaser: Jacob Fleming (Wollongong)

Chaser: Holly Shuttleworth (UNSW)

Beater: Rhiannon Gordon (UNSW)

Beater: Dom Bell (UWS)

Seeker: Emmanuel Berkowicz (UNSW)

Subs:SabethKastanias (UTS), Joel Murphy (Newcastle), Joshua Naismith (Newcastle)

*Based on final team-voted nominations for Player of the Tournament, final counted results of the player vote and apportionment of appropriate players to appropriate positions.

Leading Goal Scorers

1. Hannah Monty (UWS) – 22

2. Corey Ingold-Dawes (UWS) – 18

3. Andrew Culf (UNSW) – 16

4. Daniel Ormshaw (UWS) – 15

5. Darren Faulkner (Newcastle) – 11

6. Joshua Naismith (Newcastle) – 10

7. RajtilakKapoor (UNSW) – 9

8. Chrystal Player (UWS) – 8

=9. James Clarke (UNSW) – 7

=9. Minh Diep (UNSW) – 7

Leading Goal Scorers (Per Game)

1. Hannah Monty (UWS) – 3.14

2. Andrew Culf (UNSW) – 2.67

3. Corey Ingold-Dawes (UWS) – 2.57

4. Daniel Ormshaw (UWS) – 2.14

5. Darren Faulkner (Newcastle) – 1.83

6. Joshua Naismith (Newcastle) – 1.67

7. RajtilakKapoor (UNSW) – 1.50

=8. John Ilacqua (UTS) – 1.20

=8. Michael Krysa (Wollongong) – 1.20

=10. James Clarke (UNSW) – 1.17

=10. Minh Diep (UNSW) – 1.17