BGU Men’s Football Club win the Cathedral Cup

With the score tied at 2-2 after 90 minutes of exhilarating football, BGUMFC won 4-3 on penalties, with goalkeeper Jack Gibbons scoring the final penalty to bring the trophy back to BGU.

Sean James, who scored in BGU’s 2016 Cathedral Cup triumph, opened the scoring in the first half of the 2018 edition from the penalty spot.

University of Lincoln equalised on the 70^th minute but BGU responded quickly with Jackson Buckthorp scoring just two minutes later to restore their advantage. However they couldn’t hold on and University of Lincoln were awarded a penalty of their own to ensure the game finished all square.

The penalty shootout was a tense affair with both teams missing one of their first four. After University of Lincoln missed a second it was advantage BGU and Jack Gibbons held his nerve to convert the winning penalty.

'Absolutely ecstatic'

Ewan Chesman, Football President of BGUMFC was delighted with the result:

“We are absolutely ecstatic, it hasn’t quite sunk in yet. I am glad we have been able to turn last year's disappointment into a success this year.

“We were written off by a lot of people due to the quality of the University of Lincoln. You could see from last year that there was a really big difference between the two sides. But this year, I think we were superb.

"We played 5-3-2, I think most people thought I had gone mad! But it worked. Off the ball we looked to slow the University of Lincoln down, which meant it gave time for our players to get back behind the ball and stop them attacking. Then our transition from out of possession to in possession was really fluent.

"We took our chances and you could see the response from the players went Lincoln equalised. What a reaction."

Dan Woolley has played in all four editions of the Cathedral Cup for BGUMFC and he ranked the victory highly: “That’s the best one of the four, hands down”.

Callum Brown, captain of BGUMFC, added: "We are delighted to win this prestigious trophy after such a thrilling game!"

BGUMFC would like to thank their respective sponsors, the Students’ Union and Bishop Grosseteste University for their continued support.

Craig Ferguson, President of Bishop Grosseteste Students' Union (BGSU), spoke of his pride after the event:

“This year the Students' Union have supported the men’s football team to put on the fourth annual Cathedral Cup match.

"I am immensely proud of all the hard work the students and staff have put in to making this event a huge success. I am even more proud of men’s football team for showing such determination and bringing the Cathedral Cup back to BGSU”

BGUMFC team: Jack Gibbons, Dan Wooley, Andy Williamson, Callum Brown, Olly Rawlings, Jackson Buckthorp, Jamie Bowler, Sean James, Dom Bates. Subs: Joe Glover, Ewan Chesman, Tom Priestley, Joe Finnegan, James Holdsworth.

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