discDoctors scoop podium finish at Nationals

On the 20th April, Imperial’s Ultimate Frisbee team − the discDoctors − took to the fields in Nottingham to compete against the country’s top clubs at Outdoor Nationals, the highlight of the competitive calendar for university Ultimate. Battling it out across two days of intense competition, the team found their feet after a sluggish start to secure an impressive third place in the tournament’s second division.

Having endured subzero conditions to earn their spot in the competition at the south-east regional qualifiers in March, the team was surprised to be greeted by warm sun and little wind to speak of − ideal conditions for quick and competitive Ultimate. After a disappointing loss to Newcastle in the opening game, Imperial soon got over their early jitters to brush past a spirited Bristol team. With intense man-marking in defence combined with incisive and flowing attacking play − particularly from David Pryce and Stephan Rossbauer − the team put on a ruthlessdisplay, recording a convincing 13−7 victory.

The final group game saw Imperial take on a well-drilled Nottingham outfit in their most physical encounter so far. The game even saw the team’s first casualty of the tournament, as Ashley Hemingway tore two ligaments competing for the disc, leaving him on crutches for the remainder of the weekend after a hasty trip to A&E. Despite losing out narrowly in a hard-fought contest, the discDoctors had done enough to secure second place in the group after other results fell kindly. This left old foes Portsmouth, who Imperial had recently edged past in a tense encounter during regional qualifiers, standing in the way of a place in Sunday’s quarter-finals.

Now in their fourth game of the day, Imperial really started to come into their own against an opponent that struggled to keep up with the pace of the game. The discDoctors raced to an early lead, thanks in part to an unstoppable performance from James Threadgill, and displayed calm and clinical efficiency in attack to finish with a 9−5 win. Battered, bruised and − in some cases − broken, the team had booked their place in the top eight.

As the wind picked up on Sunday morning, Imperial adapted well to the new conditions in their quarter-final against a Glasgow team that was so far undefeated in the competition. Blistering pace from captain Phil Sandwell and a towering performance from Matthew Okenyi helped the team secure an 11−6 victory, and left them just one win away from a coveted place in the finals. With the team’s momentum gathering, however, they finally met their match in the form of a ruthlessly organised Limerick side. The Irish team employed a zonal marking system that put a lot of pressure on Imperial’s throws in the increasingly breezy conditions. Despite hard work from Pryce and Rossbauer, and James Ward’s unending commitment to putting his body on the line in defence, Limerick’s tactical prowess proved too much for the team. The Irish side went on to lose narrowly to Nottingham in the finals.

Imperial had little time to dwell on this disappointment as they faced up to St Andrews in the 3−4 play-off. The bagpipe accompaniment provided by their Scottish opponents lent the final game of the weekend a suitable element of grandeur, and both teams seemed determined to finish the tournament on a high. Although St Andrews drew ahead as the game wore on, another remarkable display from Threadgill (who only seemed to get faster as the weekend went on), combined with several diving blocks from Rossbauer, helped Imperial draw level and eventually edge their way onto the podium in a sudden-death finish.

While the tense encounter had brought the weekend to a fittingly dramatic conclusion, the aches and bruises are likely to last well into the summer.