Liverpool John Moores University book their place in National Trophy final following semi-final win

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Liverpool John Moores University Men’s 1st produced a spirited second-half performance to down University of Hull Men’s 1st and book their place in the BUCS National Trophy final.

Hull sprung out of the traps and applied early pressure to the John Moores try line, eventually setting up Reece Hudson for an easy first try of the game. It was not to be, however, as the referee pulled the play back for a forward pass.

Arguably against the run of play, LJMU opened the scoring with a break down the right-hand side. Centre Ellis Keppel travelled 40 metres with the ball, skipping through a number of Hull tackles in the process, and dove over the line to get the actual first try of the game.

An eager LJMU defence proved too eager as a number of defenders shot out of the defensive line, allowing Hull to shift the ball right with pace and into the hands of Deusjes Nzage. The centre sprinted to the line to bring his team level, and he was keen to reignite a war of words that had started with LJMU full-back Jan McGuffie.

McGuffie’s response was to add another try to his team’s tally. John Moores were gifted a repeat set after the visitors conceded a penalty on their own line. The hosts forced a 3-on-1 advantage on the right, and with the ball in hand, McGuffie neglected the pass further right and bulldozed his way over a pair of Hull defenders to inch his team back in front.

University of Hull’s discipline, or lack thereof, began to test the referee’s patience, and it was tested once too often as Hudson was sinbinned five minutes before half-time, falling victim to the referee’s totting up procedure.

HT: Liverpool John Moores University Men’s 1st 8-4 University of Hull Men’s 1st

Hull emerged from the half-time interval with a numerical disadvantage, but that didn’t deter them as Niam O’Grady exploited weak LJMU tackling to break from his own half and give the ball to his full-back Harvey Harrison, who raced away under the posts to score. O’Grady added the conversion right in front of the sticks to regain the lead for the team from Humberside.

John Moores were shell-shocked and looked as though they were a player down. The number of players on each side would then create a huge moment of controversy half-way through the second-half. The Hull players lobbied accusations that their opponents had been playing with a fourteenth player on the pitch. After an extended stoppage, the referee ensured that both teams had their full, and correct, compliments on the pitch and play was allowed to resume.

Having been pinned in their own half for much of the second period at this point, LJMU’s first bit of territory yielded a crucial try from substitute Alfie Robinson. The lead changed hands for a fourth time in the game and momentum swung back firmly in favour of the home side, who would not relinquish control for the remainder of the game.

Hull were hit with a quick-fire double as LJMU captain Ben O’Donnell managed to squeeze the ball out of a three-man tackle and shovel a pass to Liam Meek, edging their side a score ahead. Hull captain O’Grady, perhaps sensing the game slipping away from his team’s grasp, led the complaints, lamenting that John Moores’ play resembled “a hot knife through butter”.

Frustrations amongst the visitors began to boil over as Hudson was sinbinned for a second time, on this occasion for lashing out after conceding a penalty. The home team punished Hull’s ill-discipline and tired defending with one more try. Keppel was gifted the freedom of Ruskin Sports Village for the easiest try he’s likely to ever score. Dylan Irvine added the cherry on top of the cake with the two-point conversion to seal the win and a place in the final against University of Nottingham.

FT: Liverpool John Moores University Men’s 1st 22-10 University of Hull Men’s 1st

Liverpool John Moores University Men’s 1st:

1. Jac McGuffie 2. Dylan Irvine 3. Ellis Keppel 4. Conor Travis 5. Ben Foster 6. Elliot Martin 7. Liam Meek 8. Ben O’Donnell (C) 9. Griff Morgan 10. George Moffitt 11. Jude Lait 12. Joe Chadwick 13. Oscar Halsall 14. Tom Lewis 15. Kynan Selby 16. Raffy Wilson 17. Alfie Robinson

Tries: Ellis Keppel (x2), Jac McGuffie, Alfie Robinson, Liam Meek

Goals: Dylan Irvine

University of Hull Men’s 1st:

1. Harvey Harrison 2. Connor Barke 3. Jordan Smith 4. Deusjes Nzage 5. Lewis Wing 6. Niam O’Grady 7. Leon Stewart 8. Tom Rea 9. T. Jarratt 10. Louis Pearcy 11. Reece Hudson 12. B. Teasdale 13. Eddie Nolan 14. Bobby West 15. Benjamin Uluilakeba 16. K. Peacock 17. Archie Walker

Tries: Deusjes Nzage, Harvey Harrison

Goals: Niam O’Grady

Elsewhere, Sheffield Hallam University Men’s 1st were crowned BUCS Northern Conference Cup winners after a dominant display against University of Liverpool Men’s 1st.

Liverpool were without the inspirational pair of full-back Mason McMurray and winger Samuel Wilkinson for the final at Manchester’s Armitage Sports Centre, but Sheffield Hallam were not in a sympathetic mood and put their opponents to the sword. The South Yorkshire outfit were in a race to outscore the clock, and after Matthew Williams’ early sinbinning for Liverpool, tries from Fleet, Bates, Fitzgerald and Armstrong catapulted Sheffield Hallam into an 18-0 lead.

Daniel Sims’ got Liverpool on the board deep in the first-half, but Matt Coward hit back almost immediately to establish a 22-4 lead for Sheffield Hallam at half-time.

Any hopes of a second-half Lizards comeback were crushed as Hallam extended their lead to 32-4 through tries from James Shaw and Benedict Hewitt. Spurred on by their footballing counterparts on the adjacent pitch, Liverpool produced a late second-half rally. Tries from Tom Birtles and two from James Mcconnell added a touch of respectability to the scoreline, but full-back Oliver Salmon would add one more score to Sheffield Hallam’s impressive and ruthless display and take the final score to 38-18.

The victory is another chapter in unprecedented success for Sheffield Hallam University Men’s 1st. Having not tasted defeat since 2023, their Northern Conference Cup triumph followed an undefeated championship season in the league, and they will fancy their chances of becoming back-to-back varsity champions and securing a monumental league, cup and varsity treble in 2024/25.

In the Southern Conference Cup Final, winger Jared Hughes starred as Cardiff University Men’s 1st were emphatic 34-8 winners over Oxford Brookes University Men’s 1st at the University of Bath’s Claverton Down campus, capping off only their second season in the Southern 2A division with league and cup triumphs. Like Sheffield Hallam University, Cardiff will be looking to complete their treble season with a Varsity victory.

By Patrick Bratin