Team Northumbria win Stan Calvert Cup

Team Northumbria, the competitive sports arm of Northumbria University, has won the cup in one of the UK’s largest varsity sporting events.

The annual Stan Calvert Cup, a major highlight in the University sporting calendar, sees over 70 Northumbria teams compete against Newcastle University in 24 sports.

The competition, which concluded on Sunday 2 March, reinforces Northumbria’s reputation as being among the best sport universities in the country, as voted by students (The Which? University Guide 2013). The competition commenced on 19 February and took place across a number of venues, including Northumbria’s very own flagship £30m Sport Central.

The Stan Calvert Cup has been held by Newcastle University for six years, which makes the 2014 win all the more significant.

Colin Stromsoy, Head of Sport, Northumbria University, said: “Seeing Team Northumbria lift the Stan Calvert Cup this year was a proud moment for the University. Newcastle are stiff competition, however, we’re sitting comfortably in 8th place in the BUCS (British Universities and Colleges Sport) league this year, so I was feeling extremely positive when the competition kicked off last month.

“In addition to our high BUCS ranking, we also compete in national leagues for football, basketball, volleyball and netball and have a number of Olympic and Paralympic athletes studying at the University. This latest win is testament to our talented student athletes and dedicated and professional staff.”

Hannah Marshall, Student Sports President, Northumbria University, was presented with the cup after the final Stan Calvert game, a rugby union match, at Gateshead Stadium on Sunday evening. Hannah said: “It was pretty tense following the match updates and at times, there wasn’t much in it. But we knew we had won at about 5.30pm when we realised there was just no way Newcastle could catch up. We announced the news and Twitter just exploded!

“Lifting the trophy was just an amazing experience and I’m so proud of everyone who competed, supported and reported on the games. Being a part of the Team Northumbria family has totally defined my time at University and winning Stan Calvert was literally the best day of my life.”

Updates were provided on the University’s dedicated sport website and on Twitter by Team Northumbria’s student media team. To read all the match reports and find out more, visit www.nusportcentral.com.