The Sporting Weekly

Winter is upon us and standing in goal for ten minutes makes Jon Snow’s job of guarding The Wall in Game of Thrones look amateur. Many will fall by the wayside, rustling into their kitbags for snoods and gloves. The strong will stay true to their short sleeved beliefs.

With the weekend fast approaching, The Tab gives you the latest in sporting news and results while previewing the upcoming events to feast on over the Christmas period.

UEA finished off strongly at home, in what was for the majority of teams the final fixtures of the autumn semester. The Women’s Lacrosse 1sts capped off an impressive semester with a 25-5 rout of Leicester 1sts.  The Men’s Lacrosse 1sts followed suit with a 30-1 win over Nottingham 2nds. The UEA Tennis 1sts secured an encouraging 8-4 victory over Loughborough 2nds. Elsewhere there were wins for the Women’s Rugby 1sts and the Volleyball team.

UEA Men’s Table Tennis 1sts, one of the biggest success stories this year, took on Oxford 1sts away from home. A 6-11 victory against respected opponents means the team carry a string of excellent performances into the New Year. UEA Men’s Basketball 1sts won a tightly fought contest against Oxford Brookes 54-57 but the Women’s Netball 1sts were soundly beaten 56-21 at Nottingham Trent.

The UEA Pirates have their final fixture before Christmas this Sunday against Imperial 1sts. A close game is expected so if you’re passing by your support is sure to be welcomed.

The Bucs website states that Tennis (44), Volleyball (44), Fencing (43) and Lacrosse (40) are leading the way in UEA’s current point’s positions. Congratulations to these teams.

Colney Lane’s grounds will be closed from the 17th of December through to the 4th of January. Any teams expecting to play fixtures during this time will need to contact the necessary individuals.

Ian Holloway on his dependable but ageing striker Paul Furlong-

“Paul Furlong is my vintage Rolls Royce and he cost me nothing. We polish him, look after him, and I have him fine tuned by my mechanics. We take good care of him because we have to drive him every day, not just save him for weddings.”

Michael Owen, just another glance before we all forget it ever happened. 

They do say that working 45 minutes with 15 minute intervals works best. Well use those intervals to catch the best sporting action this December. 90 minutes can and will be spared considering it’s the Manchester derby this Sunday.

Sunday 9 December: Man United v Manchester City. City limped out of Europe, United are playing pub football at the back. Last season’s 6-1 should pale in comparison.

Sunday 16 December: BBC Sports Personality of the Year. It’s anyone’s guess who is going to win this year. Not for a long time has Britain produced such incredible sporting achievements. Don’t miss the coverage, which starts around 7pm.

14-17 December: England v India, the 4th Test Nagpur. This could be the crucial test in deciding who comes out on top between arguably the two leading cricket nations.