Students set to end battle for Varsity

THE two rugby clashes between Swansea University and Cardiff University round off the weeklong Welsh Varsity today, writes JOHN JONES.

The competition initially began as a rugby match between Cardiff and Swansea Universities at the Cardiff Arms Park in 1997. However, since then it has grown yearon-year and is now the largest student multi-sport event in the UK, with hundreds of students taking part each year and even more coming along to support.

Throughout the week-long festival of sport, students competed in more than 30 different sports for the coveted Welsh Varsity Shield, including fencing, squash, basketball and Ultimate Frisbee.

This year, the event returns to Swansea, with around 15,000 students set to descend on the city and turn it into a sea of red and green. Cardiff currently hold both the Welsh Varsity Shield and the Cup following their victories at home in 2019 and will be looking for a fourth successive win in the men’s rugby after beating the visitors 78-7 last time out.

The women’s rugby match kicks off the main event at the Swansea. com Stadium at 4.30pm, with the men’s match then lined up to close the day out, kicking off at 7pm.

It was last held in Cardiff in 2019, with the home side taking home the cup, before the event was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The hosts claimed the overall Varsity shield and were presented with the trophy before going head-to-head for the Varsity Cup in the rugby finale at the Principality Stadium.

However, the men’s match was shrouded in controversy even before kick-off, with Swansea forced to effectively field a second-string side due to a clash with their fixture with Nottingham Trent in the play-offs for the BUCS Super League. There was more luck for Swansea’s women’s side, who earned themselves a dramatic 30-27 victory earlier in the day, courtesy of a scintillating last-minute try.

If you can’t get a ticket for the games, you can watch live coverage of both the women’s and men’s rugby matches at the Swansea.com Stadium this evening. S4C will be streaming the women’s game from 4.25pm on S4C Clic, as well as their YouTube and Facebook pages, as well as the men’s game at 7pm.

If you’re watching on Clic, you can choose whether to watch with English or Welsh commentary, while the YouTube coverage is solely in English and Facebook is in Welsh.

Alternatively, we will be running our own live coverage of the games, which you can follow at walesonline’s rugby page.