Top 5 upsets of the season (so far)

With the year of the upset getting into full swing, this week’s top 5 looks at the best upsets of the season so far. With there being quite a lot of upset’s in this year’s BUAFL season, we can’t mention all the games (such as Exeter beating Cardiff, Leeds beating the unbeaten Sabres and Reading beating Pompey), but nevertheless – let’s head on to the games that didn’t quite make the cut!

Glasgow Tigers 0 - 7 EN Knights – Up until last weekend, the Glasgow Tigers seemed to be destined for a spot in the championship playoffs whilst the 1-4 Knights seemed to be heading for a sub .500 season, but then the Knights pulled off the shock upset victory to claim their second win of the season and all but ended the Tigers hopes of making the championship playoffs. This was also the first time Glasgow had been shutout this season.

Sunderland Spartans 20 - 28 UWS Pyros – After seasons of going winless, who seriously expected UWS to upset the 2-2 (now 3-4) Sunderland Spartans? We certainly didn’t so we were very surprised when we saw this overtime result. With the Teesside Cougars left on the schedule, the Pyros could end up finishing with a 2-6 record, whilst the best the Spartans can hope for is 4-4.

5. Solent Redhawks 13 - 6 Portsmouth Destroyers

When the 2-3 Redhawks hosted the 4-0 Destroyers, we doubt there were many people around the league who thought that Solent were going to win this game. Low and behold, the resurgent Redhawks pulled the upset out of the bag and handed last year’s champions their first loss since 2009, which happened to be at the hands of the Solent Redhawks.

Whilst the Redhawks feature once again later in our list, it will be this game that people will remember at the end of the season should Solent continue their winning ways to claim the fourth and final playoff spot in the TVC. This result will be even more of an upset should the Destroyers end up missing out on post season football.

4. Bristol Barracuda 6 - 42 Plymouth Blitz

The Barracuda seem to have taken a step back this season after going 7-1 last year, but when they played the Blitz they were sitting at 2-1 while Plymouth were 1-2, which means we consider this game the number four upset of the year.

When you look at previous years it’s no surprise that we consider this game an upset. Last year Bristol shutout the Plymouth offence  as the ‘Cuda ran out to a 27-0 victory. Also, this game was the first time that Plymouth beat Bristol since the 9^th of November 2008… that’s quite some time.

3. Reading Knights 44 - 7 Solent Redhawks

This matchup from the first week of the BUAFL season provided the number 3 upset of the year, as the Reading Knights beat the Solent Redhawks by 37 points, it should be noted that BUAFLs preseason rankings had the Redhawks at the number thirteen spot.

This result showed the turnaround for both teams from the previous season, as the Reading Knights (who went 3-5) got off to a fast start, whilst the Solent Redhawks (who went 6-2) got off to the worst possible start before turning things around.

Should these two teams finish with the same record and happen to be battling for a playoff spot, it will be this game that will be this upset victory for the Knights that give them the head to head advantage.

2. Exeter Demons 22 - 21 UWE Bullets

We were debating as to whether this game deserves to be number one; not because of the score or the teams involved, but by how the game was won! In case you haven’t heard, Exeter were down by nine with eleven seconds left. They went on to score a TD, PAT, recover the onside kick and Jamie Sancto stepped up to the plate to nail the 48 yard field goal, giving the Demons their second one point upset of the season.

Apart from the dramatic ending, the victory for Exeter ended the Bullets hope for an unbeaten season and possibly ruined their chances of repeating as SWAC champions. If the Demons are able to win their remaining games and UWE lose to Cardiff, they will be representing the SWAC in the championship playoffs, whilst UWE will be taking part in the challenge trophy.

If we’re not mistaken, this is also Exeter’s first victory over UWE.

1. Kent Falcons 20 - 22 Cambridge Pythons

In a season where rookie teams seem to be playing far beyond what anyone expected, it’s the Cambridge Pythons two point victory over the Kent Falcons that claims the crown as upset of the season.

In what looks was a back and forth game (match report here), the game would end with the rookie team edging out one of the top tier teams from the SEC. What makes this result more of an upset is the fact that most people expected the Falcons to win seven of their eight games that didn’t feature the Hertfordshire Hurricanes.

Whilst this result is the biggest scalp in the short history of the boffins (surely a more suitable team name?) at Cambridge, should they continue to show signs of continual improvement then don’t be surprised to see results like this more often than not.

Join the vote on our Facebook page to decide your number 1 upset this season.