BUML Preview Round 9

No Div 1 this week due to all your favourite rep players live Goose, Dom, Briggsy, Gio (but not Reece) and Trevor having Post Tournament Depression. The normal cure for this is to 'play some frizza' as I heard George say once. When he was talking into a loudspeaker. Instead I hear all the Nats players are having a shindig and watching this all night http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBIjjQNvcY4
Div 2

BT v GAT
After not getting a win for 3 weeks, BT hammered Agents last week to get back in the groove. GAT meanwhile are having their own little streak, losing the last 2 weeks in tight ones. Ultimate is a game of momentum and Triangle have it again.
BT by 6

Tsunami v Heroes
Is Chris Brown backing up after helping Slamtown to an 11th place finish at Nationals? All of the fashionistas are certainly hoping so. That kid can dress. Even without Brisbane Ultimate's own Gok, I think Heroes will be too good for a Tsunami team that seems to have lost it's mojo from previous seasons.
Green Tide by 4

Chimichangas v Agents
These teams have very similar records, but those of the loud shorts have a far superior points differential. This says to me that Agents have more problems scoring than Abra at.... anything with ladies. If Chimi's can apply pressure on D, they'll walk away with this one.
Mexican food by 8

GG v WTH?
Another game with potentially another huge name missing. Will Trevor Lovering, youtube sensation, debonair pilot and hammer catcher extraordinaire, play? Or will WTH? be without it's paparazzi magnet? Only time will tell.....
Look the Guardians haven't been very good at guarding their endzone this season and WTH? are undefeated. This should continue.
WTH? by 9

Discheads v Quties A
Both teams are led by Firestorm handlers and both have big rosters. How a draining Nationals campaign has effected the 2 inspirational leaders is anyone guess. The one thing we do know is that JMac can and will hammer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBIjjQNvcY4
Tho can he do it accurately enough that a monster layout isn't required? A telling question indeed. Let's be honest, this game isn't about the big names, but the more than capable supporting casts of both teams. People like Peter Truss, Jessie Henders, Rory Dodd, Calvin Tang and Carl Behrendorff. Cos I like orange and Quties has someone named Tang on their team, I've gotta go with them.
Quties by 2

Div 3

DD v FC
This one looks straight forward on paper. Which would be great if I was using paper. Instead I'm using a computer. So it looks more pixellated. Player to watch: Samantha Lavery on Disco Disco.
DD by 7

MY v BriKAG
I remember when Mellow Yellow were a force to reckoned with in BUML. Led by Jon Good, they dispatched teams in a less than mellow fashion. That was a while ago though, probably before most of BriKAG were born, or at least knew about Ultimate. The lowest AFDA on Brick is 19604. By contrast, that's how many beers Rolo has drunk prematch over the course of his playing career.
BriKAG will do it in a cantering canter by 6

Dump and Burn v Team Lift
Team Lift might not be able to score much on the scoreboard, but they certainly know how to score a good spirit point. The Burners will win this, but Lift will stay atop the spirit ladder.
D&B by 5

GGY v SI
I'm gonna pick Space Invaders for this one purely cos Craig Behrendorff is more likely to read this post than someone from Griffith Go-Yeahs. Hi Craig! Srsly tho, both these teams have very similar records and this should be a tight game. SI have a better defensive record and that's where you win games.
SI by 2

YCTD v Quties B
If Jangles plays he'll be tired and that won't be good for Quties. If he doesn't play, it also won't be good. Based on that and the fact that I like You Can't Touch Disc's name better any of the other puns, they'll win here.
YCTD by 3

BUML Preview

Let's start at the bottom with Div 1

Poachers v Dyspnoeics
Poachers are undefeated this season while last season's champions took till round 3 to get a win. If Dyspnoeics play their trademark patient offence and hustle on D they should be in with a chance, however Poachers off-the-cuff, run & gun style play is very hard to handle when it works and for this reason I'm predicting Poachers for the W.

UQ Lovers v Drop Bears
The Bears are looking pretty good this season. The addition of ladies man Michael 'Musty' Dunne should really help the teams game both on and off the field. Lovers have a fresh look to them this season with the likes of Goose, Atlas and Bonnie taking the reins of leadership. If Lovers put it together they could really trouble the other Div 1 teams. Not this week though. This week they are gonna lose by at least 7.


Div the Second

What the Huck? v Heroes
I think this game should be pretty tight. Tighter than the leash Jess has on Trevor. HEYYOOOO. WTH have gotten 2 close wins so far while the CB led Heroes have a W and a D. I'm tipping WTH by 3.

Griffith A-Team v Tsunami
Without seeing too much of either of these teams this season it'd be hard to tip against Griffith. That said, even though Tsunami have had some heavy losees, they were against 2 very strong teams. I think Griffith will get the cookies, but not by much. Maybe 4. Yeah let's go with 4.

Grove Guardians v Chimichangas
The main questions for me in this game are: Do the Guardians still wear purple and do the Chimi's still display loud shorts? If the answer is yes to both questions, then prepared to be dazzled if you happen to glance at the field. Chimi's by 7.

Discheads v Bermuda Triangle
Discheads used to be a force to be reckoned with in Div 2. Then they left things up to Dave Warren and slipped into mediocrity. I have a feeling this season will herald a return to the halcyon days for the D-Heads (lol). With Seb, Chantelle and Laura headlining, they should do well this season. So well i'm tipping an upset against the zone focussed Bermuda Triangle! D-Heads by 1.

Quties v Agents
Looking at Quties official line-up, it's hard to see them losing at all this season. Mat Ryan, John McNaughton and Mike Neild are 3 of the biggest names in QLD Ultimate. Yet they are 1-1 after losing to WTH. I'm guessing the 3 guys listed are taking a teaching approach to the team, which is excellent for QLD ultimate. Agents are also 1-1 and have plenty of experienced Div 2 heads on the team. Gotta give it to Quties though by 5.


Div 3

Flying Circus v Brick Killed a Guy
I'd be lying if I said I knew much about either of these teams apart from the fact they have top notch names. The offical jersey colour of BriKAG is Ron Burgundy so I'm leaning toward them in this contest. BriKAG by 8.

Team Lift v Space Invaders
Is team lift sponsored by Lift softdrink? Probably not. Maybe they just drink lots of Lift. Or maybe they all caught the same lift in a building and got trapped due to a power outage and in between bouts of I Spy and thumb wars, decided that they should use their new found bondedness to form an Ultimate team. Maybe. Space Invaders are another Heroes team led by the less designy Behrendorff. Even though I'm disappointed they didn't go for a Heroes themed name, I'm tipping Space Invaders by 7.

Mellow Yellow v Yet Another Griffith Team
Yet Another Griffith Team.... Really? Even Craig came up with a better name than that. In spite of the name this team tops the leaderboard currently so they must have something going for them. Mellow Yellow are being overly mellow at the bottom of the ladder so far this season. I think MY have the potential for an upset here, but it's hard to go past the Red Tide of Griffith. YAGT by 6.

Disco Disco v Griffith Go-Yeahs
2 undefeated teams. Who will taste the bitterness of defeat for the first time tonight? Potentially no-one if there's another draw. But who wants to see that?! I like Disco Disco's name. I think it'll transfer onto some sweet hip-shaking moves on the field. DD by 3

Dump & Burn v Quties
It would have been a while since Adam 'Jingle Jangle' Beu played a season of Div 3. He helped Ghost Who Walks to a Div 2 title last year... Can he do the same with Quties in Div 3? His team won't find it easy against Dump & Burn and their established 'Coote'nections ( <See what I did there). I think D&B will get a the W. By 2.

BUML Preview Round 8

Div 1 – JT

Bermuda Triangle v Cadillac

Both teams have lost their last 3. A loss here will spell the end of Bermudas title hopes. I’m not sure what’s going on with Cadillac but I expect them to make a statement in this game. Even if it's "No comment".

Cadillac by 7

Drop Bears v UQ AUG

Are the Uni Games team even back from RADelaide? If this game happens I think the Bears will be too strong, even taking into account their best player, Sophie Stewart, is out. The best part of this game will be hearing stories of Goose related debauchery from the City of Churches.

DB by 9

Dyspnoeics v Poachers

If the ladder is anything to go by this should be a top quality match. The only thing separating these teams on the ladder is points difference. Poachers are the scoringest team in the div while Dyspnoeics have the stingiest D. These 2 teams played out a draw last time so I think this one should also come down to the wire. Lankowski v Blacklock will be the match-up the crowd will be most eager to see.

Poachers by 1

Div 2 – Clay

Chimichangas v Ghost Who Walks

Another top of the table clash! This will really be a case of Chimi’s O v Ghost’s D. Expect lots of zone, lots of cross field hammers and plenty of long points. These 2 teams played in round 1 and Chimis stole a 1 point win. Justin v Geoff should be a good match-up.

Ghost by 1

Griffith A-Team v Heroes

This game could go a long way to deciding which of these teams makes the finals. If prized Heroes off-season recruit and BUML mercenary Chris Brown is ever going to make his mark on this team, the time is now. Without a big game from Brisbane’s No. 1 goat aficionado, Heroes will struggle.

Heroes by 3

Agents v Tsunami

Tsunami will be wanting to get some momentum heading into the finals and tonight should be a perfect opportunity. Agents haven’t had the best season and have struggled to score points. I expect Tsunami to throw on some junk and keep up the trend.

Tsunami by 6.

UQ Fluttershy v What The Huck?

Considering how slapdash the team was at the start of the season, I think UQ have performed admirably this season. No doubt Tomsteve is moulding them into a solid table disc unit that will be reaping the rewards of hard work in seasons to come. I’d like to see Trevor dress up like Nicolas Cage at a WTH? end of season fancy dress party.

WTH? by 8

Div 3 – Jax

Mellow Yellow v Slipped Discs

I smell an upset here. It could be my love of puns or my hatred of bananas, but I think the Slippers have a shot. My only suggestion would be to keep the keep the disc away from Rolo. That guy is a hectic beast.

Slipped Discs by 2

Griffith Go Yeahs v Dump and Burn

3 v 4 with a lot to play for entering the run home. The Go Yeahs should have too much firepower with the disc here. Players to watch out for: Tiffany Tang, Ciarron Beggs, Angus McCall, Sally O'Neissy, Daria Joura and Sam Evans.

Go Yeahs by 3

Ultimate Apostles v Griffith Aunties

It’d be hard to tip against Apostles in this game. At least if I don’t want to be flamed in the comments by their tech savvy leader. So I won’t. In Griffiths favour is the fact their defence has been ok this season. Going against them is their offensive record. They haven’t scored more than 11 this season. If UA can score 12 they’ll win.

UA by 5

Agree? Disagree? Sound off in the comments

BUML Preview Round 4

Div 1 – Shukaku

Bermuda Triangle v UQ AUG

The best part about this game is one team is going to taste the sweetness of victory for the first time this season. Bermuda were always going to take a while to find their feet back in Div 1 but UQ’s results have certainly been less than impressive. How the UQ handlers deal with the Bermuda zone will go a long way to deciding this fixture.

UQ by 2

Drop Bears v Poachers

Both teams are capable of scoring bulk points in a fast fashion. A more free-flowing, run and gun style, will suit the Poachers more than the Bears however. It’s the ladies who I think will be the difference tonight.

Drop Bears by 3

Dyspnoeics v Cadillacs

Both teams are undefeated and will no doubt be amped up for this. New kids Cadillac have firmed to early season favourites and what better way to gauge where they are than against the team that has been a benchmark for reaching finals campaigns over the last few seasons, Dyspnoeics. Noeics are missing a few players and could struggle come the crunch.

Cadillac by 5

Div 2 – Matatabi

Griffith A-Team v UQ Fluttershy

On paper this looks like a big mismatch. Bigger than if Reece Stewart was trying to sky Pete Allen. Form demands I tip the A-Team.

Griffith by 9

Tsunami v Ghost Who Walks

I expect both of these teams to feature in the finals at the end of October. They’ve both got the strike power and defence to go far in Div 2. Ghost’s height should give them the edge.

GWW by 4

Agents v Chimichangas

It’s the battle of warm colours at the Gap tonight. What do you get when you combine Orange and Red? Oranred maybe? Rerange perhaps? Clearly I wasn’t paying attention to Mrs P my grade 9 Art teacher. This game should be loose and fast.

Chimichangas by 7

Heroes v What the Huck?

Heroes will be wanting to get a win in honour of young Michael Strelan tying the knot on the weekend. Congratulations to Mikey and his lovely bride. Speaking of tying the knot, it can’t be too long before WTH?’s own Trevor Lovering pops the question to his better half. I think WTH? will have too much structure for the Heroes.

WTH? by 3

Div 3 – Isobu

Ultimate Apsotles v Dump and Burn

The Ultimate Apostles are similar to Ultimate Juggernaut at the moment: impossible to stop when they get a bit of momentum up. Dump and Burn might struggle tonight.

Apostles by 7

Griffith Go Yeahs v Slipped Discs

The Go Yeahs are a team capable of scoring points with ease, but their defence has been a problem at the start of the season. Slipped Discs are in the same boat without the disc in hand, leaking 28 points in 2 outings so far. If Slipped Discs can control their offence they might challenge Griffith.

Go Yeahs by 6

Mellow Yellow v Griffith Aunties

Are any of the Griffith Aunties actual aunties? Or is the name a reference to the ABC? Either way Griffith will be up against it tonight. Word from the Muddy Farmer is Rolo is determined to not lose a game this season. Casey, Alenka, Pavel, Daisy & Co. will have to be firing on all cylinders.

MY by 5

Semi Final: Slamtown vs Buggers

*note - if you go to google images and type "buggers" you will find a humourous and disturbing photo that I was not game to upload. If only Wetnose was still around!

Without further adieu, (A Jew?! In these parts!!?) I present to you the Semi Finals interviews!!!11oneineoneeleven

First up we have Byron Bay Nice-Guy - Mr Kevin Stahlman!!! Can he out-do the Mayor?

1. Kevvy, undoubtedly you travel further than anyone for BPL. Is there any
uncovered talent down there in Byron that might be exposed when SFC
host home games on the Gold Coast?

It's fair to say that we bring the very best that the Gold Coast has to offer each week to the BPL. Byron has some great talent, but the 2 hour commute has put them off. I doubt the change to some home games next season will get these boys out, but if the SFC roster could include Donovan Moss and Justin Tiefer it would be a great boost and help to get us out of the 5'9" blues.

2. Slamtown recruited formidably during the off-season. Have Al and Abra
really been the saviours, or has your success been driven by the local boys?

First of all, these men came to us, drawn to the orange shorts and good times that is the SFC. No, they have not been the 'saviors', but they have fit in perfectly in places where we were deficient. With aL, he has brought a steady calm and experience to an offence that had potential, but struggled under pressure. Abra brings an infectious excitement and energy. They haven't saved us, but perhaps they were the missing pieces. Now if we could convince Fatty that he'd look good in orange... Formidable recruitment will begin in a few weeks.

3. How easy is it to smack talk the Buggers? Extremely? Would you mind
giving us a demonstration?

How's this: "The Bugs: A coupla old guys and one really tall one" That's all I got, they are a class act, and they're playing great disc. We know we're in for the fight of our lives. It's Slamtown's 3rd season, and we're in it to win it all. We respect the Bugs, but we must smash those c*nts if we're to achieve our goal. See ya Thursday

Cheers Kevvy, and now, it's over to the most Loverable Bugger in Moreton Bay - Trevor!! w00t

1. Trevor Lovering - Australian representative at juniors, given the following feedback:
"Has done f*ck all for the Buggers". You've co-captained Ignition at Nationals, has this
translated to increased initiative on the field on Thursday nights?


I think the best thing that I learnt from nationals is how to work within a team. Its not simply about playing your best, but playing in a way that the team needs you to play. In other words, yes.

2. Are the Buggers any good without Mike? It looked like the answer was "No", until
the final round, where you came back to salvage a hard-fought draw. This must be
an auspicious sign for the team, coming into finals?

I think we have proved that we are still up there with the best while Mike is stuck on the sideline, despite the predictions of some. It is a different team without Mike, and we are all the stronger for it. We are now a team with not only a threatening long game, but a smooth flowing short game. The game against Dojo gave us the kind of momentum that carries teams to the top.

3. Slamtown make a lot of noise, lots of cussing and the like,
but they've backed it up by taking second. But you guys
have got their number, right? You're all over it! Insert Smack:

All the noise and antics from Slamtown are simply a ploy to distract people from the fact that their game is nothing special. We have had our ups and downs during the season, done the hard yards. We know how to play under pressure (unlike some), and there will be plenty of pressure Thursday night.

The Much Awaited Return of Loldiscs!

Check out the Hurdling group on The Book. It's really taking off!

Marvin Gaye with Mixed Nats?

Indeed.

It's an exciting time for Ultimate in South East Queensland, and we're predicting the biggest, most competitive Mixed Nats qualifying series in the North for some time. With the big one being hosted by Brisbane's cooler, older cousin (Melbourne), it is quite likely that many a frisbee player will fancy an excuse to visit the cultural capital in October.

This blogger has been keeping his ear to the ground on the matter since whispers began even at the Australian Ultimate Championship in April.

We have heard that Dusty is keen to shake off the first four letters of his name and train hard over winter. Don't believe it? Neither do we, and in fact we demand photo evidence and a training blog from this veteran partier.

The Heroes club seem to be out in front in terms of organisation, with training more-or-less being underway. This basically involves a bit of forethought into the clubs general Sunday trainings, which will remain open to all. More specific training is rumoured to begin in July. It is likely that the usual conundrum applies here, with enough male interest for 2 teams but maybe just enough women for one.

Word is that Reece and Sophie want to play with young people. Reece plans to get a team together, while Sophie has been attending Heroes training. That said, the Heroes list is aging, and it will be up to Agent Orange star Vanessa to bring the required party and show Soph that 25 year olds can be a bag of fun ;)

Trevor has publicly announced that UQ will be making a bid again this year. Will they go under their usual name of Lovers, or their recent unusual alias of QUTies? One would expect training to begin around August. Lovefest will definitely be on the agenda.

But what will happen with the usuals? We were under the impression that John Doe players were on a 2-year contract, ending after this seasons tournament. But a wise punter in a pub pointed out that Al, Stu and Maylin etc. were a good chance of making Mundi's this year - the Australian Mixed team who will play together at Mixed Nats.

Will we see a Slamtown / Byron collaboration? Will all these ideas fall apart, leaving Heroes, Agent Orange and Discheads all going to Melbourne, as joked about by that wise punter in the pub? We hope not.

It is possible that we will see around 5 teams playing off to qualify. Last year, we were given two spots and a wild-card. Who knows what we would get if we had 5 teams at qualifiers? Probably JdR.

Top 10 of 2009 Part 2

Bloody heck! It's New Year's Eve here at stately Brisbane Ultimate Blog mansion. There are several fatted calves on the rotisserie, the kegs are spiked, the champagne is chilling, and the disco ball is turning. But before we get into the fun, lets quickly count down the second half of the top ten of 2009 ....

5. Trevor Goes Everywhere

The appearance in 2009 of a new club determined to attend every single tournament that it could, oh that happened to be made up of mostly junior players, was a great thing.

4. New Tournaments: Big Sky 9’s, Slamtown Invitational and Brisbane Indoor Ultimate Championships

Three new tournaments arrived on the Brisbane Ultimate scene this year, and fingers are crossed all over that they can become annual annual annual! Each filled a new niche, with Big Sky 9’s obviously a huge success in achieving its ambitious aims – rounds of applause to all involved. (We should mention the Townsville Hat here too. Well done Northerners for enticing a few southerners up too.)

3. Buggers Ascendant

It’s a story that this isn’t a story. Once, nay twice again, the Moreton Bay Buggers took home the Robert Craddock’s Dog trophy for winning the Brisbane Premier League, first in June and again in November. And yet nobody seems too put out by it. Bugger dominance in BPL Finals is just the way of things, like the sun and the tide.

2. World Games in Kaoshing

Well, this did get a lot of attention, and rightly so. An outstanding effort for Ultimate Frisbee globally. For Brisbane rep Mike Neild, its been a roller coaster of a year, and we hope he and his lady are well.

1. UQ Wins AUGs

The week was outrageous. The Final was outrageous. But the University of Queensland were the worthy winners of gold Gold GOLD at the 2009 Australian University Championships on the Gold Coast. The win cemented the club once again as the strongest and most important in Queensland Ultimate. Now, if only they can get it together to go and defend their title in 2010!

Brisbane Ultimate Blog to Present Prestigious Award Once Again

Well, the heirarchy over at the QUDA HQ have invited Wettie and me to get out the tuxes and once again present the Queensland Ultimate Club of the Year Award at next week's QUDA Bash.

A quick search of this blog will demonstrate the esteemed and growing history of the award. Previous winners include the UQ Lovers (2008), the UQ Lovers (2007) and Bootius Maximus (2006).

The award is determined based on a calculation of club results at tournaments during the year. Here's the rules:

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Qualifying Elements
1. Clubs must play two tournaments, or have travelled over 700km for one tournament.
2. Club must be majority Qld or NNSW players.
Players may play for multiple clubs through the year, but only one club per event.
3. Clubs may accrue additional points via multiple teams in the same event.
4. A tournament must have at least four teams to be included, and be by open invitation/qualification (hence, NUFL not included, as only certain clubs can compete).

Determining Points
1. Points are given for placing in relation to the size of the tournament. Last place gets 100 points, each placing above that gets 100 points, but to 10 teams.
2. If there are more than 10 teams, the maximum points are 1000, and the points per placing distributed down to 100 points for last.
3. Points are given for winning Spirit. Points are calculated as 20 points per team at the tournament - so for example, winning spirit at a 8 team tournament is 160 points.
4. There is a travel bonus to recognise that getting a team a distance takes more effort. 50km-700km is 100 points, 700-1400km is 200 points, more than 1400km is 300 points
5. Bonus points up to 25 for miscellaneous at the discretion of the organiser.

A couple of changes to this year:
- A club also qualifies for calculation if it only entered one tournament, but it was a tournament it played in last year (ie it has a history of playing the tournament) - this is to recognise continuity from year to year. So for example, the Brisbane Barbarians, in their third year of playing Regionals, are in.
- We've done away with the 'Captains Voting' element we tried last year - it was too hard.
- If there are two divisions at the tournament, these are treated as two different tournaments. However, points in the lower division are awarded at 75%. So for example, QUTies will probably receive more points for their 3rd in Div 2 at AUGs than Griffith for its 12th in Div 1, but not a lot more.
---------------------------------------------

2009 Tournaments
The following tournaments are currently (hopefully) entering calculations - please let us know if we've missed ones you've played in: BCI, Northern Regionals, Nationals, Eastern Youths, Slamtown Invitational, Brisbane Indoor, Lovefest, AUGs, Mixed Nats and Big Sky 9s.

Qualifying Clubs
We think the following Clubs will be given points (based on the above). Please let us know if we've missed something: UQ Lovers, Mind the Gap, Lounge Lizards, Firestorm, Sultry, Delirium, Thor, Slamtown, Barbarians, Downstairs Mixup, Fresh Fries, Trevor, QUTies and Griffith Guerillas.