Cardiff Blues launch Blues University Cup

The Blues University Cup will see four university teams from within the region compete on the Arms Park pitch in early October
The tournament, which is sure to capture the imagination of students within the region, will be played between teams from Cardiff Metropolitan, Cardiff University, Cardiff Medicals and the University of South Wales.

With a healthy rivalry already in place between the University rugby sides, the 15 a side competition will see two semi- finals and the winner of the final being crowned the inaugural Blues University Cup champion and claim a prize of £2,500 worth of Gilbert equipment.

All matches will be 40 minutes in length and the Blues are aiming to have a carnival atmosphere at the stadium with drinks promotions, food outlets and entertainment in place to add to the occasion.

Tickets will be priced at just £5 for the whole day and are available through University outlets. The University themselves will be keeping 50% of the tickets sales, enabling them to generate revenue that can be ploughed back into their sporting sections.


http://www.cardiffblues.com/news/6424.php

I think this is a fantastic idea and it's a really good way for the Blues to engage the massive student population in the region.

Coleman wrote:

I think this is a fantastic idea and it's a really good way for the Blues to engage the massive student population in the region.

I tend to agree and early October must mean this will be kicking off during Fresher's week, so it could be carnage folks. Might be a good idea aswell to accost those students attending to persuade them to purchase a season ticket on the day while they still have their grant/loan money.

Coleman wrote:The 40 mins a game format with the new pitch should encourage some good stuff. Honestly I can't see past UWIC (Cardiff Met) for winning it as they're regular visitors to the BUCS XV final. Will be a good money spinner for the Arms Park Bars if it's marketed right. A good idea would be to get cheap buses from Tref and also maybe free entry to a Club with the match ticket. Honestly this could be the Blues best piece of marketing (which isn’t hard).

Forget cheap busses and freebies. Been there before remember.
Let them use the train, £4 return Treforest/Cardiff and they can come and go as they please which many are sure to do anyway.

It's not £4 on the train anymore It's £6.40. Which is still no bother i guess. Just this is a good chance for the Blues to capture new fans who have moved in from outside the region.

£6.40?!?!?
Blumming Thatcher!

Whilst I am no lover of the Cardiff Blues, I must admit, during this off season, they seem to be making all the right noises as an ongoing enterprise, I have a feeling that the Blues will be the Welsh dark horses next season.

I really hope so, would it be wrong to consider us a sleeping giant of European rugby?

Coleman wrote:I really hope so, would it be wrong to consider us a sleeping giant of European rugby?

No, no it wouldn't, Cardiff is one of the only capital cities in Europe with one pro team and a potential fanbase that could dwarf most other teams, if the Blues start getting their act together, which it looks like they are, they could become a serious force.

Coleman wrote:It's not £4 on the train anymore :(It's £6.40. Which is still no bother i guess. Just this is a good chance for the Blues to capture new fans who have moved in from outside the region.

Ain't it something like a third off with a student rail card though.

It is a really good idea to try and catch the students at the start of the year when they have cash, also if they leave the advertising the season tickets to them until half way through the day enough of them should he drunk enough to sign up there and then! Really good idea. I think that all the regins should be looking at ways to do things like this (I know the Dragons have the Men Of Gwent 7s), have a fun day out and see people from the region playing in a regional only event.

Yeah, we as a region are very lucky to have 3 Uni's within our borders, the O's should really be looking at something along these lines but i don't know how far along Swansea Met is compared to Swansea U. It's hard with the Scarlets as you've got Lampiter and Aber, but they're miles away and the Dragons have kind of just lost Newport to the Uni South Wales merger (Blues stealing everything off of the Dragons). Should be a cracking day, as everyone loves those battle of the Uni nights out.

Another positive of the new pitch

Coleman wrote: Yeah, we as a region are very lucky to have 3 Uni's within our borders, the O's should really be looking at something along these lines but i don't know how far along Swansea Met is compared to Swansea U. It's hard with the Scarlets as you've got Lampiter and Aber, but they're miles away and the Dragons have kind of just lost Newport to the Uni South Wales merger (Blues stealing everything off of the Dragons). Should be a cracking day, as everyone loves those battle of the Uni nights out.

The Scarlets also have Bangor University and Glyndwr University, Wrexham. They wouldn't have to play the games at Llanelli, surely they could play the games at Eirias Park, Colwyn Bay, or Church Bank, Llandovery, or Park Avenue, Aberystwyth?

International197 all those unversities you mentioned, and Parc Erias are not in the Scarlets region but in RGC1404's patch.

This game will be a good change for the possible future Blues players to experience the pitch first, and playing at CAP first hand. It may even make them more likely to stay within the region, if they are good enough.

I think they are in the Scarlets region, but they're also within RGC1404's region, I believe both regions overlap in the north; the Scarlets as the professional region and RGC1404 as the semi-professional region.



If you look at the above map, you'll clearly see that Bangor, Wrexham and Eirias Park are all located within the Scarlets region. Bangor is within the red (Scarlets) bit, by the island (Anglesey, where George North is from) roughly in the top left of the picture, Wrexham (where Rob McCusker was born) is within the red (Scarlets) bit roughly in the top right of the picture and Eirias Park (Colwyn Bay, where Andy Fenby is from) is within the red (Scarlets) bit roughly in the top middle of the picture. Except for arguably Neath, I think settlements north of the M4 haven't been labelled well on this map, in fact, I believe they haven't been labelled at all.

More completely dumbfounded knowledge there 197. The internet can't teach you what a lifetime of following Welsh rugby can. Hence you being a few years behind with that map you've found through Wikipedia. SS as mod why do you allow this person to continue practicing this 'being Welsh' act when he quite clearly isn't Welsh or a follower of rugby?

The Saint wrote: More completely dumbfounded knowledge there 197. The internet can't teach you what a lifetime of following Welsh rugby can. Hence you being a few years behind with that map you've found through Wikipedia. SS as mod why do you allow this person to continue practicing this 'being Welsh' act when he quite clearly isn't Welsh or a follower of rugby?

To be fair though Saint, the map 197 has posted is the same as the one shown on the Scarlets own website (The Scarlet part of it of course);
http://www.scarlets.co.uk/eng/rugby/clubs.php

Though you and I both know where the boundaries are through following rugby CD, not to mention knowing where the emerging RGC will fit in. I wonder where RGC is situated aye.

The Saint wrote:Though you and I both know where the boundaries are through following rugby CD, not to mention knowing where the emerging RGC will fit in. I wonder where RGC is situated aye.

Not sure where the regional boundaries lie actually or whether they have been amended again.

The boundaries are a mess, a couple of years ago UWIC a club in the heart of Cardiff became a Scarlet’s feeder club. I'm not even sure who Neath are affiliated with anymore. No point covering the Ponty or Ebbw issues as it's a bag of worms. I think that RGC as a region is kind of still part of the Scarlet’s until it becomes professional, but the players aren’t tried to the Scarlet’s Acad because they have their own. But yeah, The Uni's in the Scarlet’s Region are too far from Heart and Soul Rugby Country to be used as a real marketing tool.

Coleman wrote:The boundaries are a mess, a couple of years ago UWIC a club in the heart of Cardiff became a Scarlet’s feeder club. I'm not even sure who Neath are affiliated with anymore. No point covering the Ponty or Ebbw issues as it's a bag of worms. I think that RGC as a region is kind of still part of the Scarlet’s until it becomes professional, but the players aren’t tried to the Scarlet’s Acad because they have their own. But yeah, The Uni's in the Scarlet’s Region are too far from Heart and Soul Rugby Country to be used as a real marketing tool.

Clubs grouped together rather than defined boundaries by the look of it not that it means much at all really;

http://www.cardiffblues.com/community/regional_clubs_map_of_the_blues_region.php
http://www.ospreysrugby.com/ClubDirectory
http://www.scarlets.co.uk/eng/rugby/clubs.php

Can't seem to find a Drags version.

Coleman wrote:I remember years ago on the old 606 boards on the BBC, someone suggested Leinster as a sleeping giant of European rugby and that they could very soon be one of the bigger teams in Europe. The guy was ridiculed, so I find myself very cautious making a statement like that. We don't have the population of Dublin, but I still think that we've got enough potential fans out there to make us a solid top 4 Rabo team and yearly HC quarter finalists. I am bias though. I really hope that we can continue to improve off the field as well as on. Idea's like this make me very hopeful as a Blues fan. Onwards and Upwards!

WTF has population size/potential fans got to do with it

Coleman wrote:Yeah, we as a region are very lucky to have 3 Uni's within our borders, the O's should really be looking at something along these lines but i don't know how far along Swansea Met is compared to Swansea U. It's hard with the Scarlets as you've got Lampiter and Aber, but they're miles away and the Dragons have kind of just lost Newport to the Uni South Wales merger (Blues stealing everything off of the Dragons). Should be a cracking day, as everyone loves those battle of the Uni nights out.

As far as i'm aware the dragons haven't lost Newport Uni. Yes it has merged into the Uni of South Wales, however Newport and Glamorgan will be separate for Sport. Well that was the plan I heard last year.

Typically I leave Newport Uni and the next year the uni of South Wales is invited to this