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Cardiff Met = Men’s BUCS Football Champions ⚽️🏆@CardiffMetFC @BUCSsport @cardiffmet @CardiffMetSU @CMetSUSport @Dai_Sport_ @WelshSportLive pic.twitter.com/u1a13SpT4x
— Cardiff Met Sport TV (@CMetSportTV) March 23, 2017
Cardiff Metropolitan University are the 2017 B.U.C.S Men’s Football Champions.
A dramatic, closely fought 2-1 win against Northumbria University, at the #BUCSBigWednesday Finals in Bath, meant Cardiff Met took home the title for the first time in their 150-year history – a first class result for the students.
It has been a fairytale 12months for Cardiff Met FC; promotion last year to the top flight of domestic football in Wales (the DafaBet Welsh Premier League) was followed by the students securing a top six place when the league was split at Christmas, meaning they could now get a shot at European qualification before this season ends.
In the BUCS final it was Northumbria University who had the upper hand in the early exchanges, attacking the Met relentlessly down the left flank (an area which was also suffering from some shockingly low-powered floodlights; it seemed someone needed to put another 50p in the meter!)
It was one of these surges that gave the Northerners the lead after 20 minutes. Moments later Cardiff Met were back in it. Emlyn Leiws won a penalty and the Met had a chance to level. Up stepped Tim Parker, who had put one away from the spot in the semi-final two weeks before. He went bottom right, but so did the keeper and the shot was saved. But the Met kept coming, a looping header from Matt Swindlehurst hitting the crossbar as the Welsh side started to dominate in all areas of the field.
Five minutes before the break tempers flared and Northumbria saw red. An ugly, late challenge on Tim Parker and Northumbria were, a little harshly maybe, reduced to ten men. An early bath in Bath for one unlucky student.
Northumbria did have an opportunity cleared off the line acrobatically and spectacularly by the Met’s Emlyn Lewis but that was the last of the chances from Northumbria.
Cardiff Met, one goal down but one man up, began to turn the screw as the second-half went on. Another sweeping Met attack led to a free kick, well within range for dead-ball specialist Gaz “The Swaz” Emanuel. Perched on the edge of the box, Emanuel took one look, one step and drilled it low into the left corner, with the obligatory bit of “swaz” taking it away from the keeper. It was now 1-1 with half an hour on the clock.
The side from the Welsh capital were flowing forward and continued to stretch the 10-man Northumbrian team until finally, mounting pressure gave them the winner they so thoroughly deserved. Northumbria’s keeper, who had been superb all night, had an absolute shocker dealing with this particular corner, somehow pushing it upwards into his own net. Again, the questionable floodlighting at that end may have been slightly responsible for this uncharacteristic goalkeeping blunder.
But the Cardiff Met Ultras (a hardcore group of fans who follow the Met all over the country from Bala to Bath) didn’t care how dark it was, or how the goal went in as they erupted in chant, and bounced on the terraces in pure unadulterated horn-blowing, flag-waving joy.
The trophy was lifted by the Met and it was no doubt a lively bus back trip back across the Severn Bridge to the Cyncoed Campus Student Union Bar. Just reward also to the genius of Cardiff Met’s coaching team; Dr Christian Edwards, a former Wales and Swansea City defender, and his assistant coach Professor Robyn Jones, who played for Sutton United when they beat Coventry City in the FA Cup back in the 80s.
Such are the demands of the Welsh Premier League every weekend and such is the depth of talent within the current Cardiff Met FC squads that the coaches had made the brave decision this season to enter their Second XI into the BUCS main tournament. It was a big risk but they had confidence in their players.
They also resisted the temptation to “stack” the team full of first teamers for the final. An admirable decision, and just what you’d expect from two academics highly qualified in sports coaching. It’s a decision they know will pay dividends next season when the Met could lose several of their current crop of senior players.
With BUCS conquered, Cardiff Met can now concentrate fully on the possibility of a European vacation during the student’s summer break.