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(Lots of) University Football 2015-16


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As it says on the tin.

Details for the forthcoming university season have now been released meaning the likes of Stirling, Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt know their schedules.

What seems like a constant proliferation of the university football program over recent seasons has continued again. Scottish 1A expands from 5 teams to 6, playing 10 games each instead of 8, and the Queen's Park Shield (which is of course now played as a separate knockout cup) is now all-in at the Last 16 instead of the Quarter-Finals. They also seem to have cut the number of byes in the British Trophy such that only 2 teams go in at the Last 16.

So there will be a heck of a lot of university football next season, but a lot of glory to be won over the course of it.

Here are the relevant divisions + fixtures:

British Premier North - Durham, Loughborough, Northumbria, Nottingham, Sheffield Hallam, Stirling

Scottish 1A - Abertay, Edinburgh, Heriot-Watt, Napier, Strathclyde, Stirling 2nds

Wednesday 30th September

(S1A) Stirling 2nds v Strathclyde

(S1A) Edinburgh v Heriot-Watt

+ Stirling - no game

Wednesday 7th October

(BPN) Stirling v Sheffield Hallam

(S1A) Napier v Edinburgh

(S1A) Heriot-Watt v Stirling 2nds

Wednesday 14th October

(BPN) Northumbria v Stirling

(S1A) Heriot-Watt v Strathclyde

(S1A) Stirling 2nds v Napier

(S1A) Edinburgh v Abertay

Wednesday 21st October

(BPN) Loughborough v Stirling

(S1A) Strathclyde v Edinburgh

(S1A) Abertay v Stirling 2nds

(S1A) Napier v Heriot-Watt

Wednesday 28th October

(BPN) Stirling v Durham

(S1A) Heriot-Watt v Abertay

+ Stirlings 2nd v Edinburgh - moved to Dec 2nd

Wednesday 4th November

(BPN) Stirling v Loughborough

(S1A) Strathclyde v Stirling 2nds

(S1A) Heriot-Watt v Edinburgh

Wednesday 11th November

(BPN) Sheffield Hallam v Stirling

(S1A) Edinburgh v Napier

(S1A) Stirling 2nds v Heriot-Watt

Wednesday 18th November

(BPN) Stirling v Northumbria

(S1A) Strathclyde v Heriot-Watt

(S1A) Napier v Stirling 2nds

(S1A) Abertay v Edinburgh

Wednesday 25th November

(BPN) Nottingham v Stirling

(BT R1) Stirling 2nds v Loughborough

(BT R1) Heriot-Watt v Manchester Metropolitan & Cheshire

(BT R1) Edinburgh v Leeds

Wednesday 2nd December

(BPN) Durham v Stirling

(S1A) Stirling 2nds v Edinburgh

+ Heriot-Watt - no game

==================== Christmas break ====================

Wednesday 27th January

(QPS R1) Robert Gordons v Stirling

(QPS R1) Glasgow Kelvin College v Edinburgh

(QPS R1) West of Scotland v Heriot-Watt

Wednesday 3rd February

(BPN) Stirling v Nottingham

(S1A) Edinburgh v Strathclyde

(S1A) Stirling 2nds v Abertay

(S1A) Heriot-Watt v Napier

Wednesday 10th February

(S1A) Abertay v Heriot-Watt

(S1A) Stiring 2nds v Edinburgh

+ Stirling - no game

Wednesday 17th February

British Championship R1

British Trophy R2

Wednesday 24th February

British Championship R2

British Trophy R3

Wednesday 2nd March

British Championship SFs

British Trophy SFs

Wednesday 9th March

Queen's Park Shield R2

Wednesday 16th March

British Championship Final

British Trophy Final

+ Queen's Park Shield SFs

Wednesday 23rd March

(Varsity) Edinburgh v Heriot-Watt

etc.

==================== Easter break ====================

Wednesday 4th May

Queen's Park Shield Final

dates tbc? - British Premier North playoffs

dates tbc? - internationals

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There are a few posters on here who go along to some games. Given they are almost invariably in the afternoon and are mainly played on open parks (though Edinburgh often use their stadium pitch and Stirling have occasionally used Forthbank IIRC), crowds are usually pretty sparse; but there's sometimes more fellow students, members of staff and retired codgers than you might expect.

I believe there are even some arch-groundhoppers who go to them.

EDIT: Aberdeen Uni who are in the North Juniors also have a neat little stadium, but they're in the second tier of the Scottish region. I don't know if Glasgow Uni will be moving their university league games to the Excelsior Stadium or keeping them at the Garscube playing fields. Abertay Uni use Forfar. Napier Uni use Spartans.

They always play the QPS Final at a stadium e.g. Falkirk Stadium, Station Park and Ainslie Park all hosted.

IIRC, the British Championship Final was at Bramall Lane when Edinburgh reached it in 2011.

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It'd be interesting to know the criteria for the different institutions... I know Edinburgh used to be students + staff + limited number of alumni, and I think they raised the alumni cap.

Someone previously suggested Stirling allow 'outsiders'?

Heriot-Watt tweeted this on July 2nd, they're linked with Currie Star for youth development etc.


HWU Football Club @hwufc

It is now only current students, capped number of graduates and @CurrieStarFC players that can play for the club

EDIT: Of course, in the context of this thread the criteria are different in BUCS or SSS competition. (This may not be 100% accurate but you'll get the drift).

On the one hand only current students are allowed - not sure about staff, presume not - but on the other hand students with other clubs can feature as they are technically masquerading as select XIs.

This is why, for example, Sean Muhsin used to play for Spartans yet would turn for Heriot-Watt in the Scottish Universities League of a midweek. Stirling have had the odd student with Stenhousemuir / local Junior clubs but turning out for them on Wednesdays, and even ex-pro and Scotland B international cap Darren Dods played for Napier in 2013-14 while with Forfar and even got called-up for the Scottish Unis. Of course clubs often won't allow it, fearing injury.

Similar situation with the Scottish Police League, Cup and national team.

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They have a terrible record since rejoining the Aberdeenshire FA in 2007.

I think the hope was that moving from the Amateurs to the Juniors last season might help them improve but it hasn't happened yet, at least.

This was their first outing in the Aberdeenshire Cup, in the past they haven't entered (probably as the ties are so early in the season and their students are all away).

In the Shield they have never won a tie. Lost 4-1 (to Banks o'Dee), 12-1, 0-6, drew 2-2 with Inverurie and lost 3-4 aet, lost 0-6, 9-1, 2-6, 3-0.

Of course it has to be remembered that they are not one of the stronger unis - aren't in the top BUCS Scottish division and finished 8th out of 12 in the North Juniors East District in making their debut last season. They have 2nds, 3rds and 4ths in the Aberdeenshire Amateurs.

It's actually interesting to see where the unis play on Saturdays. Stirling and Edinburgh are LL of course - Stirling having 2nds in EOSL and 3rds in the Stirling Amateurs, Edinburgh having 2nds in the Lothian Amateurs. Heriot-Watt are EOSL and have 2nds & 3rds in the Lothian Amateurs. RGU play in the Aberdeenshire Ams; Strathclyde and Glasgow in the Caledonian Ams; St Andrews in the Fife Ams; and Dundee in the Midlands Ams.

None of the rest seem to play Saturday football although I couldn't say for sure.

Within the Wednesday uni leagues themselves the distribution of first-teams down the tiers are:

British North - Stirling

Scottish 1 - Abertay, Edinburgh, Heriot-Watt, Napier, Strathclyde

Scottish 2 - Aberdeen, Dundee, Glasgow, Robert Gordon's, St Andrews

Scottish 3 - Glasgow Caledonian

Scottish 4 - West of Scotland

Scottish 5 - Queen Margaret's

Scottish 6 - Highlands & Islands

In at least the last 2 seasons, the last 3 weren't allowed to enter the Queen's Park Shield (aka Scottish Unis Cup) although a pair of colleges were. This season they have let West of Scotland in and increased the number of colleges to three.

Something I hadn't noticed was that they have regionalised the lower reaches of the Scottish divisions for the coming season. To last season there were 9 nationwide levels; but coupled with the admission of colleges - who'd previously had their own separate leagues - level 4 is now divided into two regions; levels 5 & 6 both into three regions with one of the level 6 divisions being larger and playing each other just once; and due to a lack of teams level 7 is two regions, so an unusual situation of the lower level covering a theoretically wider area than those directly above.

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Did ex-Rangers striker Jean-Claude Darcheville not play for Stirling Uni for a bit?

I thought that was a myth over him studying to become a horse vet :lol: but Wikipedia says he played 2 games for them in 2012 so must be true...

Where do Stirling uni play ?

First team (i.e. Lowland League) play their games at Forthbank Stadium:

http://nonleaguescotland.org.uk/stirling.htm

but they register Gannochy:

http://nonleaguescotland.org.uk/stirling2.htm

for the purposes of the South Challenge and EOS Qualifying cups, presumably to avoid extra rents and clashes with Stirling Albion games.

Second team (i.e. East of Scotland League) play at Gannochy.

Third team (i.e. Stirlingshire & District Amateurs) uses a back pitch at Gannochy.

In the university competitions on Wednesday all their teams play at Gannochy, including 3G pitches on occasion, but the first-team have occasionally played matches down at Forthbank in the past.

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  • 1 month later...
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stirling 2nds v heriot wat1st today

Mates lad plays for h-watt and said that stirling had all their players booted out to allow all their 1st team players in whose game got cancelled surely thats just cheating ! and a kick in the stones for their normal 2nd team but heard Stirling are always at it and do it in the lowland league and eos aswell

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stirling 2nds v heriot wat1st today

Mates lad plays for h-watt and said that stirling had all their players booted out to allow all their 1st team players in whose game got cancelled surely thats just cheating ! and a kick in the stones for their normal 2nd team but heard Stirling are always at it and do it in the lowland league and eos aswell

Stirling cheating?? Who would have thought it?

The smell of Charlie's sour grapes must be reeking. More people are starting to smell them.

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stirling 2nds v heriot wat1st today

Mates lad plays for h-watt and said that stirling had all their players booted out to allow all their 1st team players in whose game got cancelled surely thats just cheating ! and a kick in the stones for their normal 2nd team but heard Stirling are always at it and do it in the lowland league and eos aswell

Ive watched their game v northumbria uni for the past few years and they've ALWAYS used a mixture of players from ALL their teams but MOSTLY LL players. Not sure what your getting at but if they didn't play LL players in the BUCS league I certainly wouldn't go along.

I couldn't comment on their eos/LL sides but I'm fairly certain they angered one or two teams from the eosfl and LL more recently as these leagues have totally different rules altogether.

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Ive watched their game v northumbria uni for the past few years and they've ALWAYS used a mixture of players from ALL their teams but MOSTLY LL players. Not sure what your getting at but if they didn't play LL players in the BUCS league I certainly wouldn't go along. I couldn't comment on their eos/LL sides but I'm fairly certain they angered one or two teams from the eosfl and LL more recently as these leagues have totally different rules altogether.

I remember last season there was a thread when near the end of the season with Stirling EOS near bottom of the League Stirling were at home to Lothian and Shelly moved half the EOS team out and brought at least 6 players down from the Lowland league side and took the team herself now thats cheating morally in my opinion but amazingly its allowed in the rules !

As for the Uni leagues i would imagine they can do what they want and if their 1st team players were available as their game was off then thats why they played them all in their 2nd team

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Windofchange your friends son needs to check his facts about the Stirling Uni team. Stirlings LL team from Saturday V Selkirk

Ryan Marshall ,Callum Burns ,Jack Nixon ,Danny Ashe, Ben Cuff, George Leigh, Kyle Fauds ,Andrew Gillen ,Paul McCafferty, Peiman Pavulnen, Chris Geddes. Subs Vilian Komitski , Lewis Bonar, Jeff Kessie, Lewis Hunter, Tim Hughes(Sub goalie)

so from that LL team the sub goalie(who always plays 2s) 2s game was off. played and Lewis Hunter played against Heriott Watt, this is a fact so your comment about the 2nds booting all their players out to allow the 1st team players in is laughable.

Stirling have 4 or 5 first year scholars who train with the first team but play for the 2nd team on Wednesdays and Saturdays in the EOS league.

My friends son is at the club so wanted me to clear this up for you

Good luck for the weekend

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Windofchange your friends son needs to check his facts about the Stirling Uni team. Stirlings LL team from Saturday V Selkirk

Ryan Marshall ,Callum Burns ,Jack Nixon ,Danny Ashe, Ben Cuff, George Leigh, Kyle Fauds ,Andrew Gillen ,Paul McCafferty, Peiman Pavulnen, Chris Geddes. Subs Vilian Komitski , Lewis Bonar, Jeff Kessie, Lewis Hunter, Tim Hughes(Sub goalie)

so from that LL team the sub goalie(who always plays 2s) 2s game was off. played and Lewis Hunter played against Heriott Watt, this is a fact so your comment about the 2nds booting all their players out to allow the 1st team players in is laughable.

Stirling have 4 or 5 first year scholars who train with the first team but play for the 2nd team on Wednesdays and Saturdays in the EOS league.

My friends son is at the club so wanted me to clear this up for you

Good luck for the weekend

cheers for the update

never mentioned their Lowland league team that's nowt to do with the Uni league

point made was the Uni first team had a match and this was cancelled so those selected for the Uni first team came along and played for the Uni 2nd team (fact)

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