DCW Poll: Top 25

A name change to better describe the Double Coverage Writers poll, we polled all our regional writers to name their top 25's to give us a more balanced view of the league standings

1. Birmingham -
2. Hertfordshire -
3. Loughborough -
4. Derby -
5. Stirling +1
6. Hull -1
7. Bath -
8. Sheffield +1
9. UWE +1
10. Kingston +2
11. Portsmouth +6
12. Southampton -4
13. Cambridge +9
14. Kent -3
15. NTU -
16. Warwick +2
17. Carnegie +2
18. Glasgow -2
19. BNU +1
20. UEA -7
21. Manchester +2
22. Brighton -8
23. Plymouth -2
24. Gloucester NEW
25. Leeds NEW

The biggest news is #TeamPHD flying up the rankings by nine spots. Having defeated the UEA Pirates, a team many had them pegged to lose to the Cambridge Pythons have deservedly moved up the rankings and look set to claim a playoff spot in only their second year!

In contrast to their SEC rivals, the UEA Pirates have taken the biggest tumble with the biggest fall of the week. A loss to a team ranked below them and a potential fall from Playoff contention will have played a part here.

The other biggest gainer is Portsmouth flying up the rankings in the wake of games actually being played. Defeating the Stags must have played a big part in this and we can expect them to continue their steady progress if they can go 4-4 in their "hell week".

The top 9 spots remained largely unchanged with only the Stags loss moving several teams up a couple of spots. Gloucester and Leeds make appearances at the bottom as their records begin to improve.