Match Analysis- Southern Cup Final 2018: London QC vs Werewolves of London
Well, here goes nothing.
To get the ball rolling, I'm gonna start TQ off with my thoughts on the Southern Cup Final 2018. Of the two UK regions, the Southern final has always been a much closer affair than any Northern final down the years and this season was a cross-city derby between London Quidditch Club (Abbreviated to LQC for the rest of this article) and Werewolves of London (Abbreviated to WoL for the rest of this article), widely regarded as two of the clear front runners for April's British Quidditch Cup. Naturally, this feels like a good way to begin this venture into the unknown.
Game footage can be found here courtesy of the QuidditchUK Youtube channel- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-O2d1S6KrY
Stats mentioned are created by yours truly based on the footage provided. There may be an element of human error involved.
Final Score- LQC 60°-70* WoL
LQC WoL
Goals: Seb Waters x2 Aaron Veale x2
André Govett Tom Norton
Bex Lowe Luke Twist
Ben Malpass
Luke Trevett
Snitch Catch(es): 0-1 Jordan Garvey Aymer-Jeffrey
Cards: 2 (Both Yellow) - 2 (Both Yellow)
Turnovers caused by bludger:
2 (Both Lewis Boast) - 1 (Anjit Aulakh)
Offensive efficiency:
37.5% (6 goals from 16 offences) - 22.22% (4 goals from 18 offences)
Grand Designs
The first thing that strikes me about this game is how remarkably similar the two teams set up. This is hardly surprising when you consider the amount of cross-over between both rosters, featuring many players who have played and trained together with Team UK. On offence, both teams implement a box formation, splitting the opposition half of the pitch into 4 quadrants with a quaffle player in each with the hoops situated in the middle. On the defensive end, we tend to see a hybrid man-zone setup with a point chaser on quaffle, a chaser marking one of the two chasers behind hoops, the remaining chaser zonally marking the space to the front open side of the hoops to protect against a 'crash ball', a keeper protecting the hoops and beaters side-by-side in the heart of the defence. Below is a poorly made diagram of this created on the ever-reliable Microsoft Paint that gives a rough idea of what this looks like.
'A game of two halves'
While the two teams set up in a similar fashion, they find different levels of success when it comes to the way in which they score their goals based on their individual strengths and weaknesses. WoL have a plethora of shooting talents in the likes of Primary Keeper Aaron Veale (number 14), Luke Twist (7), Tom Norton (13) and Captain Ed Brett (18) so they use the Box to 'spread the floor' and allow their beaters to create shooting lanes in front of the hoops for these players to exploit with powerful shots. LQC on the other hand have a nucleus of ex-Warwick quaffle players who favour more of a passing offence, targeting small gaps close to the hoops with well-timed cuts and short-range drives. In this game, we see some fine examples of LQC's passing ability at 19:52 and 23:35 when they capitalise on the WoL beaters over-extending on defence.
The match swings on the effectiveness of both teams to execute their preferred methods of scoring as well as struggling to score using their opponents' preferred method. Initially, WoL's shooting game gives them the upper hand and if it weren't for a couple of narrow misses from Luke Twist, their lead could've been more substantial. LQC don't manage to get their passing going early on and resort to also playing a shooting game however their loopy/floating shots are picked off by the WoL defence. Once LQC's passing clicks into gear and they start to successfully hit passes out to receivers behind hoops, they find their way into the lead as the efficiency of the WoL shooting offence decreases. During this purple patch for LQC, WoL test their long-range passing game out but it doesn't prove to be as clinical as LQC although they do manage to score off a couple of short range drive and dish opportunities. Interestingly, there are very few attempts at counter attacking and driving offences in this game seeing as both teams are renowned for their potency on the break and driving offences are a staple of quidditch as we know it. I feel like both teams recognise each others strength in transition and with regards to driving, LQC & WOL equally respect each others tackling ability (as demonstrated by Tom Stevens' monster tackle and subsequent turnover at 27:51) and also lack a bit of confidence to play this kind of game (e.g. at 12:47 LQC Keeper Seb Waters (10) goes for a floating shot instead of taking the open opportunity to drive at the hoops guarded by Tom Norton. Norton blocks the shot). WoL's transition defence particularly impressed me. Aided by their hard shooting offence, they repeatedly scramble back in numbers on defence to deny LQC any easy breakaway scores. This hustle is exemplified by Vice Captain Asia Piatek (1) at 11:39 who following a turnover by LQC beater Lewis Boast (27) immediately engages Ben Malpass (20) in contact. While she doesn't manage to complete a tackle on Malpass or force a turnover, her presence alone delays any potential fast break opportunity and buys her teammates vital seconds to get back on defence to quell the attack.
The isolation of Tom Stevens
Both teams predominantly stick rigidly to their respective box formations throughout. Although this suits WoL's style of play, it ends up hindering LQC from using one of their biggest assets- Tom Stevens (59). It's hardly uncommon for a receiving chaser to have a quiet game in quidditch however, for a player of Stevens' calibre, it's certainly peculiar how little influence he has on this game. It's not until 27:05 (unsure of on-pitch game time at this point but definitely a fair way through the opening 18 minutes of the match) that Stevens appears to get his hands on the quaffle for the first time which he immediately returns to Primary keeper Seb Waters. For most of his time on pitch, the LQC captain looks to fill one of the receiver spots behind the hoops with a sole goal of cutting in on the hoops to score, a trend also followed by his substitute Luke Trevett (23), the third member of the former Warwick 'golden trio' along with Waters and Malpass. For the WoL defence, these movement patterns become predictable and it becomes much easier to mark Stevens out of the game. With a bit more movement within the Box formation from the back of the pitch to mid-pitch, LQC could really take their passing game to another level but for the mean time in this game, a combination of Waters and Malpass happily playing a two man game at mid-pitch, some good man and zonal marking from the WoL chasers, rigid use of the Box and a lack of a supply of good quality passes leads to Stevens having a frustrating game. In contrast, I was impressed with André Govett(8)'s movement and spacing during his brief stint (starts around 27:12 and lasts roughly 5 minutes). In this time, he picks up a goal and nearly two (if it weren't for a clutch beat by WoL's Anjit Aulakh (22) at 29:07) whilst also getting some time on the ball and making runs both into the hoops and back out again into the open space. His movement here makes him unpredictable to defend against and ultimately allows him to have an impact during his short time on pitch.
Snitch On Pitch
There's not much to say here. LQC hold bludger control at the end of the seeker floor (32:30) which gives seeker Jonathan Purvis (7) a couple of attempts on the snitch yet two bludger deflections and a beat on Purvis from WoL's Aulakh removes LQC's bludgers from the area around the snitch and gives seeker Jordan Garvey Aymer-Jeffrey (666) all the time he needs to make the grab and secure an historic victory for the Werewolves. Pretty much all sports come down to the finest of margins and that is certainly true of quidditch as a whole and especially snitch range SOP beater and seeker play. More commonly known as 'Trev', the WoL seeker had a notably impressive tournament, making 8 snitch catches in around 4 minutes total pitch time*. Clinical to say the least.
*= according to a source from Werewolves
Verdict
Overall, a very even game as expected. While LQC held an edge over WoL, it wasn't enough to allow them to pull away although had the game lasted longer, the introduction of human battering ram Theo Baldwin-Evans may have turned the tide. It can't be understated though how important a victory this is for Werewolves of London. In their 4 seasons of existence, this is their first major tournament win having suffered many heartbreaking bracket play defeats to the likes of Velociraptors QC, Warwick QC, Southampton QC and more recently LQC themselves at Battle Royale III. For years, Werewolves have contended but never quite made it over the line in the big games, gaining them the unfortunate tag of a bridesmaid team. Victory here should allow them to overcome that monkey on their back and give them the confidence to take into the rest of the season. Having said that, LQC did still outscore their city rivals and will surely be looking to bounce back at the European Qualifier Tournament in the capital next week. I look forward to seeing how they respond to this setback.
That's it for my opening article. I hope you enjoyed it. If you did, then please let me know and if you have any suggestions for articles you'd like to see me write in the future then get in touch via the comments section below or via the facebook page.
Live The Game.
FP.
To get the ball rolling, I'm gonna start TQ off with my thoughts on the Southern Cup Final 2018. Of the two UK regions, the Southern final has always been a much closer affair than any Northern final down the years and this season was a cross-city derby between London Quidditch Club (Abbreviated to LQC for the rest of this article) and Werewolves of London (Abbreviated to WoL for the rest of this article), widely regarded as two of the clear front runners for April's British Quidditch Cup. Naturally, this feels like a good way to begin this venture into the unknown.
Game footage can be found here courtesy of the QuidditchUK Youtube channel- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-O2d1S6KrY
Stats mentioned are created by yours truly based on the footage provided. There may be an element of human error involved.
Final Score- LQC 60°-70* WoL
LQC WoL
Goals: Seb Waters x2 Aaron Veale x2
André Govett Tom Norton
Bex Lowe Luke Twist
Ben Malpass
Luke Trevett
Snitch Catch(es): 0-1 Jordan Garvey Aymer-Jeffrey
Cards: 2 (Both Yellow) - 2 (Both Yellow)
Turnovers caused by bludger:
2 (Both Lewis Boast) - 1 (Anjit Aulakh)
Offensive efficiency:
37.5% (6 goals from 16 offences) - 22.22% (4 goals from 18 offences)
 |
| London QC and Werewolves of London battling it out at Battle Royale III, October 2018. The best of friends. Photo Credit- Hannah Dignum |
Grand Designs
The first thing that strikes me about this game is how remarkably similar the two teams set up. This is hardly surprising when you consider the amount of cross-over between both rosters, featuring many players who have played and trained together with Team UK. On offence, both teams implement a box formation, splitting the opposition half of the pitch into 4 quadrants with a quaffle player in each with the hoops situated in the middle. On the defensive end, we tend to see a hybrid man-zone setup with a point chaser on quaffle, a chaser marking one of the two chasers behind hoops, the remaining chaser zonally marking the space to the front open side of the hoops to protect against a 'crash ball', a keeper protecting the hoops and beaters side-by-side in the heart of the defence. Below is a poorly made diagram of this created on the ever-reliable Microsoft Paint that gives a rough idea of what this looks like.
 |
| Key- Red Xs= Offensive quaffle players Red Triangles= Offensive beaters Blue Squares= Defensive quaffle players Blue Triangles= Defensive beaters Black Circles= Hoops Grey Circle = Quaffle Red Circles= Bludgers |
While the two teams set up in a similar fashion, they find different levels of success when it comes to the way in which they score their goals based on their individual strengths and weaknesses. WoL have a plethora of shooting talents in the likes of Primary Keeper Aaron Veale (number 14), Luke Twist (7), Tom Norton (13) and Captain Ed Brett (18) so they use the Box to 'spread the floor' and allow their beaters to create shooting lanes in front of the hoops for these players to exploit with powerful shots. LQC on the other hand have a nucleus of ex-Warwick quaffle players who favour more of a passing offence, targeting small gaps close to the hoops with well-timed cuts and short-range drives. In this game, we see some fine examples of LQC's passing ability at 19:52 and 23:35 when they capitalise on the WoL beaters over-extending on defence.
The match swings on the effectiveness of both teams to execute their preferred methods of scoring as well as struggling to score using their opponents' preferred method. Initially, WoL's shooting game gives them the upper hand and if it weren't for a couple of narrow misses from Luke Twist, their lead could've been more substantial. LQC don't manage to get their passing going early on and resort to also playing a shooting game however their loopy/floating shots are picked off by the WoL defence. Once LQC's passing clicks into gear and they start to successfully hit passes out to receivers behind hoops, they find their way into the lead as the efficiency of the WoL shooting offence decreases. During this purple patch for LQC, WoL test their long-range passing game out but it doesn't prove to be as clinical as LQC although they do manage to score off a couple of short range drive and dish opportunities. Interestingly, there are very few attempts at counter attacking and driving offences in this game seeing as both teams are renowned for their potency on the break and driving offences are a staple of quidditch as we know it. I feel like both teams recognise each others strength in transition and with regards to driving, LQC & WOL equally respect each others tackling ability (as demonstrated by Tom Stevens' monster tackle and subsequent turnover at 27:51) and also lack a bit of confidence to play this kind of game (e.g. at 12:47 LQC Keeper Seb Waters (10) goes for a floating shot instead of taking the open opportunity to drive at the hoops guarded by Tom Norton. Norton blocks the shot). WoL's transition defence particularly impressed me. Aided by their hard shooting offence, they repeatedly scramble back in numbers on defence to deny LQC any easy breakaway scores. This hustle is exemplified by Vice Captain Asia Piatek (1) at 11:39 who following a turnover by LQC beater Lewis Boast (27) immediately engages Ben Malpass (20) in contact. While she doesn't manage to complete a tackle on Malpass or force a turnover, her presence alone delays any potential fast break opportunity and buys her teammates vital seconds to get back on defence to quell the attack.
The isolation of Tom Stevens
 |
| London QC Captain Tom Stevens lining up for Brooms Up at Battle Royale III, October 2018. Photo Credit- Hannah Dignum |
Both teams predominantly stick rigidly to their respective box formations throughout. Although this suits WoL's style of play, it ends up hindering LQC from using one of their biggest assets- Tom Stevens (59). It's hardly uncommon for a receiving chaser to have a quiet game in quidditch however, for a player of Stevens' calibre, it's certainly peculiar how little influence he has on this game. It's not until 27:05 (unsure of on-pitch game time at this point but definitely a fair way through the opening 18 minutes of the match) that Stevens appears to get his hands on the quaffle for the first time which he immediately returns to Primary keeper Seb Waters. For most of his time on pitch, the LQC captain looks to fill one of the receiver spots behind the hoops with a sole goal of cutting in on the hoops to score, a trend also followed by his substitute Luke Trevett (23), the third member of the former Warwick 'golden trio' along with Waters and Malpass. For the WoL defence, these movement patterns become predictable and it becomes much easier to mark Stevens out of the game. With a bit more movement within the Box formation from the back of the pitch to mid-pitch, LQC could really take their passing game to another level but for the mean time in this game, a combination of Waters and Malpass happily playing a two man game at mid-pitch, some good man and zonal marking from the WoL chasers, rigid use of the Box and a lack of a supply of good quality passes leads to Stevens having a frustrating game. In contrast, I was impressed with André Govett(8)'s movement and spacing during his brief stint (starts around 27:12 and lasts roughly 5 minutes). In this time, he picks up a goal and nearly two (if it weren't for a clutch beat by WoL's Anjit Aulakh (22) at 29:07) whilst also getting some time on the ball and making runs both into the hoops and back out again into the open space. His movement here makes him unpredictable to defend against and ultimately allows him to have an impact during his short time on pitch.
Snitch On Pitch
There's not much to say here. LQC hold bludger control at the end of the seeker floor (32:30) which gives seeker Jonathan Purvis (7) a couple of attempts on the snitch yet two bludger deflections and a beat on Purvis from WoL's Aulakh removes LQC's bludgers from the area around the snitch and gives seeker Jordan Garvey Aymer-Jeffrey (666) all the time he needs to make the grab and secure an historic victory for the Werewolves. Pretty much all sports come down to the finest of margins and that is certainly true of quidditch as a whole and especially snitch range SOP beater and seeker play. More commonly known as 'Trev', the WoL seeker had a notably impressive tournament, making 8 snitch catches in around 4 minutes total pitch time*. Clinical to say the least.
*= according to a source from Werewolves
 |
| Werewolves of London- Southern Cup Champions 2018. Photo Credit- Rosie Inman |
Verdict
Overall, a very even game as expected. While LQC held an edge over WoL, it wasn't enough to allow them to pull away although had the game lasted longer, the introduction of human battering ram Theo Baldwin-Evans may have turned the tide. It can't be understated though how important a victory this is for Werewolves of London. In their 4 seasons of existence, this is their first major tournament win having suffered many heartbreaking bracket play defeats to the likes of Velociraptors QC, Warwick QC, Southampton QC and more recently LQC themselves at Battle Royale III. For years, Werewolves have contended but never quite made it over the line in the big games, gaining them the unfortunate tag of a bridesmaid team. Victory here should allow them to overcome that monkey on their back and give them the confidence to take into the rest of the season. Having said that, LQC did still outscore their city rivals and will surely be looking to bounce back at the European Qualifier Tournament in the capital next week. I look forward to seeing how they respond to this setback.
That's it for my opening article. I hope you enjoyed it. If you did, then please let me know and if you have any suggestions for articles you'd like to see me write in the future then get in touch via the comments section below or via the facebook page.
Live The Game.
FP.
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