BUAFL Week 4 Top 20 Rankings

A few surprise results this week means there have been some moves within the Dbl Coverage rankings.

Once again the top 5 remain the same as previous weeks, but the gap between them is so close you could easily switch them round. Two teams have left our top 20 rankings, they are: Northampton Nemesis and former top 10 members Bristol Barracuda.

Anyway now it’s time for the rankings!

1. Hertfordshire Hurricanes (3-0)

Another blowout victory for the ‘Canes this week against Canterbury in the less than impressive SEC. Next week Herts travel to LSBU hoping for a repeat of last year’s score line (39-0) but we at Dbl Coverage (and probably the rest of BUAFL) are hoping the Spartans can give the ‘Canes a challenge and make a game of it.

2. Portsmouth Destroyers (3-0)

In what could have been considered a trap game for the reigning champs but the Destroyers managed to run out 24-7 victors. After putting away one unbeaten team on Sunday, Portsmouth now faces OBU Panthers who are also off to an unbeaten start. Life’s never easy when you’re the BUAFL champs.

3. Birmingham Lions (3-0)

I don’t know if the Lions schedule is getting easier or the Lions offence is just starting to find their rhythm after posting their highest score for the season. A 59-8 victory over the Outlaws has all but cemented Birmingham’s place atop of the MAC until they face the Aces.

4. Loughborough Aces (3-0)

The only blemish on the latest Aces blowout was conceding points for the first time this season, otherwise the Aces offence continues to roll as many expected. Facing off against the Jets in their next game expect Loughborough to remain unbeaten as we head towards the Christmas break.

 5. Hallam Warriors (3-0)

Wow! A week after dumping 97 on Lancaster, Hallam went and embarrassed Huddersfield in a 105-0 victory, I hope they send flowers to the Huddersfield AU after this massacre. Yes they may be 5th in our rankings but the margin between teams 1-5 is tiny, Hallam could easily beat anybody in our power rankings.

6. Southampton Stags (4-0)

Once again the Stags rise up our rankings! After a 36-14 win over local rivals Solent, the Stags now find themselves sitting in our number 6 spot. Unfortunately for the team they don’t have another game until February now. We’re hoping the long break off doesn’t affect the team as they are showing they are once again a team not to be under estimated at the midpoint in the season.

7. UWE Bullets (3-0)

UWE find themselves sliding down a spot after an 18-0 victory over Tarannau. I’ll admit I was expecting a blowout but once again the SWAC serves up a surprise result affecting our rankings. UWE face Bath Spa who gave UWE rivals Bristol more than they bargained for a couple of games ago, so UWE you’re officially on upset alert!

8. Newcastle Raiders (3-0)

The Raiders were on their bye this week keeping them at 3-0. With other teams losing in their the Raiders are now the only unbeaten team in the Borders Conference and the only team in the BUAFL not to be in a tie for the top of their division.

9. UH Sharks (3-0)

I wonder how many pints the Sharks offence owes their D and Special Teams after a 7-2 victory? The win over Leeds Carnegie sees Hull rise up to the number 9 spot in our rankings. A huge showdown this week against Hallam (good luck with that) will show if Hull are ready to compete with the top calibre teams in the country.

10. Kent Falcons (3-0)

Even though the Falcons won 56-6 at the weekend, Kent find themselves sliding down as other teams are beating a better standard opposition. After starting 2-1 last season, the Falcons will be glad that they have improved on their previous record and now have the opportunity to remain unbeaten over the winter break with a victory of Greenwich on Sunday.

11. Derby Braves (3-0)

Derby welcomed DMU to BUAFL with a 62-6 beat down over the rookie team. Now with a potent offence the Braves could cause an upset in the MAC conference, depending on how they perform against the Outlaws this week will allow people to compare them to the two top dogs in their conference.

12. OBU Panthers (3-0)

The Panthers just keep on winning after a terrible season last year. This week’s 33-0 victory over the Holloway Bears kept the Panthers hopes of playoff football alive but more importantly moves them up to number 12 in our rankings! A journey to the U this weekend may just burst the Panthers bubble.

13. Sheffield Sabres (3-0)

Seriously who are the Sheffield Sabres (Editor – apologies for his northern ignorance)?!? Over shadowed by local rivals Hallam, the Sabres comprehensively ended the feel good story of the year by beating Bangor 52-6. Sheffield’s next game against Lancaster should see the Sabres improve to 4-0 before they return to BUAFL in February to face off against the Warriors.

14. Cardiff Cobras (2-0)

Cardiff may well be the best team in the SWAC (remember they beat UWE last year) but due to postponements they find themselves only 2-0 at this moment in time. If the Cobras continue
winning then they should find themselves rising in our rankings. Cobra hammered the ‘Cuda 46-6 this weekend to rise up to 14 after previously being unranked.

15. Glasgow Tigers (3-1)

After dropping out of the rankings Glasgow return to where they will feel they should be. A 20-0 victory over Stirling ended the Clansmen’s perfect record, but unfortunately for the Tigers a loss in their final game of the season against the Raiders may see them miss out on the Championship playoffs due to Stirling’s fortunate schedule.

16. Imperial Immortals (3-1)

Imperial remain in the number 16 spot after having a respectable game against the Destroyers, from what I’ve heard it seems that if the Immortals O was clicking they could’ve pulled off a possible upset. Either way Imperial now find themselves at 3-1 with plenty of time to prepare before they face the OBU Panthers.

17. Leeds Carnegie (2-1)

Just like Hull, the Carnegie offence probably owes a few pints to their D for not getting the score needed to win. With the emergence of Bangor and Sheffield Sabres in the Northern Conference, Leeds will need to win their next matchup against the Bradford Bears to keep their playoff hopes alive.

18. Stirling Clansmen (3-1)

As I said last week in our top 20 rankings “Until Stirling face a good quality opposition, they won’t be moving up for quite a while with better teams firmly placed above them.” Well this week the Clansmen came up against the Tigers and got shutout, losing 20-0. Fortunately for the Clansmen faithful they now return to their easy schedule as they head towards the playoffs.

19. Essex Blades (2-0)

No game for the Blades this week which is the main reason for them sliding down a spot on our rankings. A relatively easy game against new boys Cambridge this week before Essex faces off against conference leaders Hertfordshire in two weeks time.

20. Bangor Muddogs (3-1)

We all knew it was going to end soon, but our prediction guy didn’t see it happening this week (Editor - Naivety on my part…). Bangor’s unbeaten streak is over, but their playoff hopes shouldn’t be. Fortunately Bangor can get back on track in their next game as they face Huddersfield who will still be feeling the effects of the thumping loss to Hallam.