It’s been back-to-back weekend action for our Scottish student handball players. On Sunday 26th of February eight Men’s and Women’s student teams took to the court to play out the final competition of the Scottish Student Handball Calendar – SS Handball Final 4! This competition sees the top 4 men’s and top 4 women’s student league team finishers compete to be crowned Scottish Student Handball Champions. Stirling University impressed all by qualifying for both the men’s & women’s competition in their first year in the student league.
Final 4 Teams:
Women’s
Stirling University
Edinburgh University
Strathclyde University
Glasgow University
Men’s
Heriot-Watt University
Stirling University
Edinburgh University
Strathclyde University
It was an early start for our students with the first Semi-Final match throwing off at 9 am at Oriam, Scotland’s Sports Performance Centre. The morning saw an unexpected turn with 4th seed Heriot-Watt men’s team defeating 1st seed Strathclyde University by 1 point in their Semi-Final match. This allowed HW to head to the final to face 2nd place league finishers Edinburgh University. In the women’s competition Glasgow University & Strathclyde University comfortably sailed past Stirling and Edinburgh University, respectively, to create a Glasgow Derby Final.
After a tight match Edinburgh University Women’s team defeated Stirling University, again only by 1 point to claim bronze in the women's championship. In the men’s competition Stirling University came out strong, giving the league winners a run for their money – with the score ending 18-16 to Strathclyde. Over in the Women’s Final it was Strathclyde who came out victorious with a near-enough 10 goal lead against previous Scottish Student Handball Champions, Glasgow University HC. Those who remembered last year’s Men’s Final experienced some deja-vu … The Men’s Final, a capital clash, Edinburgh vs Heriot-Watt finished full time at a tie 16-16. Nail-bitingly, the final went straight to penalties. This time it was Heriot-Watt’s time as Champions, as the Watt won the shoot-out 4-2.
The students didn’t have much time to rest as the following weekend (4th & 5th March) all Final 4 teams, with the exception of Glasgow Uni, who had stepped up to fill Heriot-Watt’s position, headed south to compete at the BUCS National Championship.
The Final 4 competition provided the rankings for the Scottish teams’ entry into the different BUCS Events. Strathclyde & Glasgow University Womens’ teams alongside Edinburgh University Men’s Teams qualified for the Top Tier competition, the BUCS Cup. Edinburgh & Stirling Women and Strathclyde & Stirling Men’s University Teams took part in the 2nd Tier, BUCS Trophy, with Glasgow Uni men qualifying for the BUCS Men’s Shield.
It was a fantastic weekend for all involved. Special mention to Glasgow University Women’s HC for winning silver in the BUCS Cup, keeping their title as the 2nd best Women’s Student Handball Team in the Country! Congratulations also to Edinburgh Women and Strathclyde Men who won silver, and Stirling Women who won bronze, in the Trophy competition.
Many thanks to BUCS and England Handball Association for organising a great event. 
