The long awaited, much anticipated battle between Good and Evil for the state of Queensland was finally fought in the dying hours of day 2, AMUC 2011, Melbourne.
The teams took a moment to stare each other down, before 7 of the bravest, most powerful Heroes, members of the Justice League, took the line, facing the nastiest, most cunning Villians - The Injustice League (lame.. but see wiki).
The Villians struck first (disclaimer - I'm making some of these details up), putting two on the board. Heroes responded, but Hugh Osborne made it his personal business to stop all good work done by the women and men in white (Heroes away outfit, chosen to represent light in the battle against darkness). Hugh got horizontal on many occasion, attacking from behind to steal the disc away.
Townsville's male line was massive, all over 6'. Becky and ..... were the known pickups, but homegrown Villian Dee was most impressive in her first AMUC, again, laying out and catching everything.
Heroes managed to hang on, the Villians taking half, 8-7. Captain H was caught spying on the Justice League at half time, and was immediately captured and escorted back to his camp, not being executed in cold blood, you know, code things. One anonymous Heroes member said at half time "For the rest of the game, we're in this no matter what happens now."
What happened then is the Villians marched in a few more points, taking the score to 13-9, frustrating the Heroes who were not using their super powers when the end zone was in question (mismatch).
I believe it was at this point that a contested call was made on an end-zone bid. The disc went back to 20m out and quicker than the speed of light, Jo had cut and received the disc.
There was a glimmer of hope. The city of Melbourne and the state of Queensland was in peril. A bunch of no-bodies came to look on. With the MIB(/WIB)crying out for a Hero, the Justice League lifted. The Elongated Man, James, was seen marking his man harder than everyone had ever seen before. He was reaching to grab the disc in field whilst it had sailed way out. Along with Bevan and MVP Sophie, these Heroes dominated the field. Hugh gave it his all til the death, but came up "injured" and relucant to leave the field.
Gavin wandered on to the field and this humble blogger let him. We are glad that he did, because it was Gavin who received the disc from Keisha$$#@ sophie (not bell) to win... time is up.
Showing posts with label Mixed Nats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mixed Nats. Show all posts
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
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.
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.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
A Return From Obscurity
Tournament Junkies have nothing to whinge about for the latter part of the year. Those who traveled (or refused to travel) to Bathurst for Mixed Nats or Townsville for Men's Northern Regionals will be thrilled to hear that
Mixed Nats returns to Melbourne in 2011!
This is good news for those who like coffee, cooler weather, direct flights, trams and cycling (Around the Bay in a Day the following weekend, sounds like a good holiday).
Held between the 8th & 10th of October, reconnect with the AFDA website for more details. (enjoy it's clunky dinosaur interface while it lasts!)
Mixed Nats returns to Melbourne in 2011!
This is good news for those who like coffee, cooler weather, direct flights, trams and cycling (Around the Bay in a Day the following weekend, sounds like a good holiday).
Held between the 8th & 10th of October, reconnect with the AFDA website for more details. (enjoy it's clunky dinosaur interface while it lasts!)
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Should We Change the Size of Nats and Mixed Nats?
Following Mixed Nats 2010 (continuing a string of highly appreciated events over the last several years), AFDA has hit the ground running in inviting State and National administrative types their views on some of the key issues surrounding Nationals and Mixed Nationals.
We here in the stately Brisbane Ultimate Blog mansion of course (as you readers have no doubt come to expect) have some views, so we'll try to discuss over the next few weeks, starting with the size of Nats and Mixed Nats.
One of the things that regularly comes up is the size of Nationals and Mixed Nats. Since about 2005, the Open and Women's divisions at Nationals have been generally capped at 16 teams, and Mixed Nats at 24 teams. (There have been a few variations - Nationals 2006 allowed two WUCC-bound Masters Clubs expand the Open division to 18, and Mixed Nats this year grew to 28 because of the number of NSW teams wanting to go and the availability of field space. The Women's division also periodically doesn't fill its division.)
The reasoning for capping is generally two-fold. One is it builds the quality of play. As Ultimate grows, keeping the numbers at Nationals the same should see the quality of play continually improve because its frankly harder for chumpy players to get there (see Open Nats in 2003 and 2004). Without a cap, the event becomes a bit of a free-for-all, with a very wide range of talent involved, including near-beginner people who didn't know the rules etc etc (shocking eh?)
The second reason is to smooth out and support volunteers hosting the event. A routine size helps establish basic standards (eg you must have at least 9 fields to host Nats) and knowledge (eg you need to order this many discs). Volunteers (both hosts and AFDA) are always desperate for feedback (ie acknowledgement of their work) and Nationals players generally provide their feedback in terms of comparisons to other years, and negative feedback can be devastating, so there's a driver to try to do at least "the same as last year".
Keeping the cap steady is also powerful for establishing continuity from year to year (9th out of 16 is a definite improvement on 10th out of 16 the previous year, as opposed to being 9th out 12 one year and 10th out of 27 the following.) Having a clear and entrenched structure also helps people plan from year to year - they get to know the qualification system, the draw structure and so forth. This saves a lot of angst - people have appreciated the certainty in size we've had over the last six years. Good policy is by definition something you don't change often, after all.
Still, the other perspective is that its unfortunate that people who really want to go miss out on going to Nationals/Mixed Nats. If the sport is growing, why aren't our major events, after all? Ultimate is about including everyone we can and so forth.
And capping also discourages elite players from going 'long term' and getting involved in weaker teams and risking missing out, meaning that our major events don't contribute to growing the sport outside the event (not that they have to, but it seems most people want us to do everything we can to grow the sport in the ongoing search for greater legitimacy).
Consistent apping also means that there is very little turnover in the players attending Nationals from year to year. If someone wants to crunch the numbers, that would be very interesting, but annecdotally you'd have to assume that somewhere upwards of 75% (quite possibly in the 85-90% range) of the people who attended Nationals 2010 would've attended Nationals 2009 and probably Nationals 2008 as well. We all know that going to Nationals is a great way to grow a journeyman player (and group of players) to the next level, and that this delivers on all fronts when that person gets back home. But equally, these group of people have a vested interest in the present system which shouldn't be ignored when thinking about this.
So the view for change here in the stately mansion is twofold.
A simple approach would be that AFDA could continue with the current caps as minimums, BUT if a host can provide a suitable venue and AFDA is confident they can do it, then AFDA should be willing to enlarge divisions. This needs to be done at the bidding stage. In weighing up bids, if there are differences between them as to the number of teams hosts can welcome, then this should be a factor in deciding. And when the successful host is announced, people need to be told then the number of teams that will be invited (ie several months out and well before players start preparing).
But here's something more daring. In future, AFDA could *require bidders* to describe how they would *concurrently* run Bashionals with Nationals.
Same host (or two hosts in partnership), same weekend (maybe only 2 or 3 days rather than 4), same admin including promotion, same social events (huge muthaflarking parties!), but using a separate venue within the same city - because deep down, its field availability that determines size, but players want to feel like they are part of something BUG. Bashionals becomes clearly Nationals Division 2. If it was keen enough, AFDA could even make Bashionals 'real' by shrinking Division 1 from 16 down to 12 teams (or 24 down to 16) for a few years to establish its numbers as well as making a clearly quality statement about both Div 1 and 2. And the winners of Div 2 could even an automatic Wildcard to Div 1 the following year or something.
Your thoughts welcome in the comments section below, but you can also email AFDA and State/Territory admin types with your constructive views - they love to hear about it.
We here in the stately Brisbane Ultimate Blog mansion of course (as you readers have no doubt come to expect) have some views, so we'll try to discuss over the next few weeks, starting with the size of Nats and Mixed Nats.
One of the things that regularly comes up is the size of Nationals and Mixed Nats. Since about 2005, the Open and Women's divisions at Nationals have been generally capped at 16 teams, and Mixed Nats at 24 teams. (There have been a few variations - Nationals 2006 allowed two WUCC-bound Masters Clubs expand the Open division to 18, and Mixed Nats this year grew to 28 because of the number of NSW teams wanting to go and the availability of field space. The Women's division also periodically doesn't fill its division.)
The reasoning for capping is generally two-fold. One is it builds the quality of play. As Ultimate grows, keeping the numbers at Nationals the same should see the quality of play continually improve because its frankly harder for chumpy players to get there (see Open Nats in 2003 and 2004). Without a cap, the event becomes a bit of a free-for-all, with a very wide range of talent involved, including near-beginner people who didn't know the rules etc etc (shocking eh?)
The second reason is to smooth out and support volunteers hosting the event. A routine size helps establish basic standards (eg you must have at least 9 fields to host Nats) and knowledge (eg you need to order this many discs). Volunteers (both hosts and AFDA) are always desperate for feedback (ie acknowledgement of their work) and Nationals players generally provide their feedback in terms of comparisons to other years, and negative feedback can be devastating, so there's a driver to try to do at least "the same as last year".
Keeping the cap steady is also powerful for establishing continuity from year to year (9th out of 16 is a definite improvement on 10th out of 16 the previous year, as opposed to being 9th out 12 one year and 10th out of 27 the following.) Having a clear and entrenched structure also helps people plan from year to year - they get to know the qualification system, the draw structure and so forth. This saves a lot of angst - people have appreciated the certainty in size we've had over the last six years. Good policy is by definition something you don't change often, after all.
Still, the other perspective is that its unfortunate that people who really want to go miss out on going to Nationals/Mixed Nats. If the sport is growing, why aren't our major events, after all? Ultimate is about including everyone we can and so forth.
And capping also discourages elite players from going 'long term' and getting involved in weaker teams and risking missing out, meaning that our major events don't contribute to growing the sport outside the event (not that they have to, but it seems most people want us to do everything we can to grow the sport in the ongoing search for greater legitimacy).
Consistent apping also means that there is very little turnover in the players attending Nationals from year to year. If someone wants to crunch the numbers, that would be very interesting, but annecdotally you'd have to assume that somewhere upwards of 75% (quite possibly in the 85-90% range) of the people who attended Nationals 2010 would've attended Nationals 2009 and probably Nationals 2008 as well. We all know that going to Nationals is a great way to grow a journeyman player (and group of players) to the next level, and that this delivers on all fronts when that person gets back home. But equally, these group of people have a vested interest in the present system which shouldn't be ignored when thinking about this.
So the view for change here in the stately mansion is twofold.
A simple approach would be that AFDA could continue with the current caps as minimums, BUT if a host can provide a suitable venue and AFDA is confident they can do it, then AFDA should be willing to enlarge divisions. This needs to be done at the bidding stage. In weighing up bids, if there are differences between them as to the number of teams hosts can welcome, then this should be a factor in deciding. And when the successful host is announced, people need to be told then the number of teams that will be invited (ie several months out and well before players start preparing).
But here's something more daring. In future, AFDA could *require bidders* to describe how they would *concurrently* run Bashionals with Nationals.
Same host (or two hosts in partnership), same weekend (maybe only 2 or 3 days rather than 4), same admin including promotion, same social events (huge muthaflarking parties!), but using a separate venue within the same city - because deep down, its field availability that determines size, but players want to feel like they are part of something BUG. Bashionals becomes clearly Nationals Division 2. If it was keen enough, AFDA could even make Bashionals 'real' by shrinking Division 1 from 16 down to 12 teams (or 24 down to 16) for a few years to establish its numbers as well as making a clearly quality statement about both Div 1 and 2. And the winners of Div 2 could even an automatic Wildcard to Div 1 the following year or something.
Your thoughts welcome in the comments section below, but you can also email AFDA and State/Territory admin types with your constructive views - they love to hear about it.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Mixed Nats Fireside Chat - with Big Hugh!
Editor's note - so in running short of time this week, we've neglected to post this interview! Obviously the Townsville Ultimate Blog is too focused on its upcoming League Finals to provide adequate coverage to the TownsVillains assault on the senses of the people of Bathurst. Anyway, here we go again.
Brisbane Ultimate Blog: Hi Hugh - thanks for coming in to talk about the TownsVillain's trip to Bathurst. How does the team think it will go?
Hugh: The team can field a relatively strong line and is the best team Townsville's produced for a Mixed Tournament with enough depth for a few really good lines, but still some new legs out there. For two of the players this will be their first ever tournament. Sadly we've lost the ever reliable Matt DeWitt only a week out as he's one of the best handlers Townsville's produced and we wish him well with his health.
BUB: How do you think the other Queensland teams will go?
Hugh: I've only had a cursory glance at the other 3 Queensland teams and I think I saw their results from Regional Qualification. I think John Doe will finish in the top 8 but the others don't look quite as strong. I think the Villains will be a better team than the other two Queensland teams just based on how we went against John Doe at Halibut, it was a pretty close result. However, their preparation and team structure will have improved dramatically since then.
BUB: Looking at the draw, who do you expect to beat?
Hugh: Our pool has recently been bumped up to 7 teams with the same number of top qualify places to go around so competition in the pool will be even more fierce. With challenging but potentially beatable teams at the start of both our pool days, these middle ranked teams will really decide how we finish the tournament. If we come out strong at the start of the day we could earn ourselves a higher spot.
We're hoping for a top 12 finish, and it would be a dream to finish in the top ten but realistically I think we'll be fighting hard in the 12 -16 bracket. Still a noble result if we get it. I think the new unknown challenges for our team will come from how we start the day, the larger pool and the loss of just one experienced player from the team.
BUB: Bathurst is slightly out of the way - is anyone on the team got any unusual travel plans?
Hugh: Bathurst has been a pain in the arse for those from Townsville to get to - its funny seeing people from frickin' Sydney or Melbourne whine! For us it's already difficult enough to get a team to afford the flights. University for most of the team is heating up so SADLY this doesn't leave anyone with any time or motivation to go on a exciting historical gold mine tour of the region or learn about the history of car racing. But still, we're sure Bathurst is going to be well worth getting too.
BUB: Let's talk party. Do your own thing, or team costume for the party?
Hugh: Party theme was announced only recently. We'll try and come up with a theme, but already having trouble thinking outside the box. Hopefully we get to sift for gold on the first morning with the late start and maybe that'll bring some inspiration.
BUB: Are your handlers, receivers, or defenders going to win games for you?
Hugh: One of the American pick-ups we've received this semester has been Shelby, he's gonna probably be used as a handler though would usually play mid or deep. At Halibut his gun flick against most zone defences either broke through them or sent rocket hucks to our speedsters who only had to outpace the deeps long. It'll be pretty hard to beat.
Deanna Finn is a newby and youngin' but is already understanding the immediacy of cutting and has good timing on her cuts both deep and long, with her speed it might see her wrack up a few points.
Obviously we've got the likes of Mike Larson who'll be doing much of the captaining of the team on the field, lots of insight into the other teams strengths/weaknesses will see some creativeness on D and O and will be interesting to have. Intense focus on shared goals from the whole team will be our real driving force and is what'll win the tight games for us.
BUB: Anyone carrying any injuries?
Hugh: Shelby recently rolled an ankle. Mike's feet are a bit fucked up. Sarah's done something to her knee. Chris did an ankle too. Hopefully we'll be right come Friday and we'll rest up when we get the chance. Then we'll battle the sore dancing feet and hangovers on Saturday and Sunday.
BUB: How much preparation has the team done?
Hugh: Team preparation has mostly involved improving fitness through playing hard points and using limited to no subs in the three local Ultimate Frisbee nights in the week as well as personal preparation.
The Townsville Royalty Hat was timed to coincide with preparation for the tournament and gave all our players a good run in the heat with almost no subs in general but even less for Mixed Nats players. It was placed two weeks out to give everyone time to recover.
As far as team tactics, a lot of clashing events took the wind out of the sails in the later part of preparation to implement anything too new but we'll play our game and we'll do it well.
BUB: Do Halibut or Lovefest results count for much?
Hugh: The Halibut result is encouraging. It was a slightly different team from what we have now but the core was similar.
BUB: Who do you like to play against more - ACT teams or SA teams?
Hugh: Don't really know. I think ACT would be nicer just because their top team we won't beat but we'd stand a chance at any lower than that just going off 2008 Mixed Nats results. I don't know much about SA teams but they look to have more depth, we're facing their number 1 seed as the top of our pool so we'll find out soon enough, no point intimidating ourselves beforehand.
BUB: Thanks Hugh - best of luck then!
Hugh: Can I just say, "Hi Simon!" And "Let's f$%king do it Townsville!"
Brisbane Ultimate Blog: Hi Hugh - thanks for coming in to talk about the TownsVillain's trip to Bathurst. How does the team think it will go?
Hugh: The team can field a relatively strong line and is the best team Townsville's produced for a Mixed Tournament with enough depth for a few really good lines, but still some new legs out there. For two of the players this will be their first ever tournament. Sadly we've lost the ever reliable Matt DeWitt only a week out as he's one of the best handlers Townsville's produced and we wish him well with his health.
BUB: How do you think the other Queensland teams will go?
Hugh: I've only had a cursory glance at the other 3 Queensland teams and I think I saw their results from Regional Qualification. I think John Doe will finish in the top 8 but the others don't look quite as strong. I think the Villains will be a better team than the other two Queensland teams just based on how we went against John Doe at Halibut, it was a pretty close result. However, their preparation and team structure will have improved dramatically since then.
BUB: Looking at the draw, who do you expect to beat?
Hugh: Our pool has recently been bumped up to 7 teams with the same number of top qualify places to go around so competition in the pool will be even more fierce. With challenging but potentially beatable teams at the start of both our pool days, these middle ranked teams will really decide how we finish the tournament. If we come out strong at the start of the day we could earn ourselves a higher spot.
We're hoping for a top 12 finish, and it would be a dream to finish in the top ten but realistically I think we'll be fighting hard in the 12 -16 bracket. Still a noble result if we get it. I think the new unknown challenges for our team will come from how we start the day, the larger pool and the loss of just one experienced player from the team.
BUB: Bathurst is slightly out of the way - is anyone on the team got any unusual travel plans?
Hugh: Bathurst has been a pain in the arse for those from Townsville to get to - its funny seeing people from frickin' Sydney or Melbourne whine! For us it's already difficult enough to get a team to afford the flights. University for most of the team is heating up so SADLY this doesn't leave anyone with any time or motivation to go on a exciting historical gold mine tour of the region or learn about the history of car racing. But still, we're sure Bathurst is going to be well worth getting too.
BUB: Let's talk party. Do your own thing, or team costume for the party?
Hugh: Party theme was announced only recently. We'll try and come up with a theme, but already having trouble thinking outside the box. Hopefully we get to sift for gold on the first morning with the late start and maybe that'll bring some inspiration.
BUB: Are your handlers, receivers, or defenders going to win games for you?
Hugh: One of the American pick-ups we've received this semester has been Shelby, he's gonna probably be used as a handler though would usually play mid or deep. At Halibut his gun flick against most zone defences either broke through them or sent rocket hucks to our speedsters who only had to outpace the deeps long. It'll be pretty hard to beat.
Deanna Finn is a newby and youngin' but is already understanding the immediacy of cutting and has good timing on her cuts both deep and long, with her speed it might see her wrack up a few points.
Obviously we've got the likes of Mike Larson who'll be doing much of the captaining of the team on the field, lots of insight into the other teams strengths/weaknesses will see some creativeness on D and O and will be interesting to have. Intense focus on shared goals from the whole team will be our real driving force and is what'll win the tight games for us.
BUB: Anyone carrying any injuries?
Hugh: Shelby recently rolled an ankle. Mike's feet are a bit fucked up. Sarah's done something to her knee. Chris did an ankle too. Hopefully we'll be right come Friday and we'll rest up when we get the chance. Then we'll battle the sore dancing feet and hangovers on Saturday and Sunday.
BUB: How much preparation has the team done?
Hugh: Team preparation has mostly involved improving fitness through playing hard points and using limited to no subs in the three local Ultimate Frisbee nights in the week as well as personal preparation.
The Townsville Royalty Hat was timed to coincide with preparation for the tournament and gave all our players a good run in the heat with almost no subs in general but even less for Mixed Nats players. It was placed two weeks out to give everyone time to recover.
As far as team tactics, a lot of clashing events took the wind out of the sails in the later part of preparation to implement anything too new but we'll play our game and we'll do it well.
BUB: Do Halibut or Lovefest results count for much?
Hugh: The Halibut result is encouraging. It was a slightly different team from what we have now but the core was similar.
BUB: Who do you like to play against more - ACT teams or SA teams?
Hugh: Don't really know. I think ACT would be nicer just because their top team we won't beat but we'd stand a chance at any lower than that just going off 2008 Mixed Nats results. I don't know much about SA teams but they look to have more depth, we're facing their number 1 seed as the top of our pool so we'll find out soon enough, no point intimidating ourselves beforehand.
BUB: Thanks Hugh - best of luck then!
Hugh: Can I just say, "Hi Simon!" And "Let's f$%king do it Townsville!"
Nice Photoshopping There
Mixed Nats has started!
Livescoring is available. Don't forget them southerners are on daylight savings time.
There's also some stuff being shown via youtube. Alas, we can't see it at our present location, but post any tips in the comments!
We love the tinkering on this profile shot of our pal Reece.
We should also point to the full preview over at Forcesideline!
Livescoring is available. Don't forget them southerners are on daylight savings time.
There's also some stuff being shown via youtube. Alas, we can't see it at our present location, but post any tips in the comments!
We love the tinkering on this profile shot of our pal Reece.
We should also point to the full preview over at Forcesideline!
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Ok, Let's (Quickly) Talk Mixed Nationals 2010
[Editors Note - This mammoth post has gotten out of control and we're out of time to finish it properly. Apologies for this. But given the work that's gone into it, we'll leave aside our usual quality controls and post it anyway. Apologies again for those who don't get the attention they deserve]
So earlier this week, Nat and Tati and child and the QUDA trailer set off forBethlehem we mean Bathurst for the promised land of Mixed Nationals 2010 (is that enough mixing of metaphors for you?), and thereby flagging the start of the exodus (dig that Bible as a cultural touchstone) that leave those of us who can't go missing out on League games at BPL and WUFL this Thursday, and BUML next Monday (although there'll be pickup available instead).
Anyway, enough gripes, let's check out the tournament and who we're sending.
Mixed Nats 2010 is being hosted once again by the fantastically well organised Hills Ultimate Club, based out of Western Sydney. They're holding the event in Bathurst because its practically impossible to find a suitable venue in overcrowded Sydney. In contrast, regional centres have the space and moreso are exceptionally welcoming to the idea of a bunch of nice frisbee players coming to spend thousands of dollars locally.
Apparently there's been some whining about going to Bathurst, but the BUB totally supports the venue, and reminds the whiners that nobody is forcing them to go.
Anyway, Mixed Nats is a three day tournament, this year featuring 26 teams. The draw is over here and essentially starts with four pools through the first day and a half. After that the top team in each of the four pools go direct to quarterfinals. The teams that came second and third in each pool cross over to battle for the remaining quarterfinal places. And those eight teams battle it out from there. There's a similar structure for the bottom half of the draw.
Queensland is sending four teams to battle for Mixed supremacy over 20 or so other teams from around the joint, which includes NZ this year.
John Doe - "Eeeeere we go!"
John Doe is the top ranked South Queensland team, and goes to the tournament seeded 11th overall and into Pool D. The Does have prepared with a heavy training schedule, and championships from the Queensland Qualifier and Halibut under their belts. Under their belts is also where they keep those loud loud shorts that Maylin's teams keep coming up with.
Day one should start relatively smoothly against Mr Burns' Casino who came eighth in the NSW Championships, despite a solid build-up via Halibut. But things will toughen up real quick and spotters will be making their predictions on John Does' final resting place when they face NSW number two's Jericho Turnpick Bandits and Canberra's best in Team Happy . A hard hard first day is then finished with a fourth game, this one against Tasmania's finest LOG! The Musical(featuring Huddy) who are seeded 14th based largely on their effort at Mixed Nats 2009, and which may well determine who goes through to the pre-quaters and who doesn't.
If exhaustion allows them, the team will party hard that night, before returning to face The Incredibles (SA's third ranked team, seeded 19th) then finishing up Pool D against locals the Bathurst Bulls (26)
Sugar - seeded 16th Pool B
Joyfully start the tournament on Friday morning with a game against top seed 1980 (the gag is all the players on the team were born in 1980) as a warmup. Dusty doesn't get out of bed to piss for this kind of stuff, but hopefully they'll still score a few points thanks to Paul. Sugar then sweeten up against eighth seed Friskee (NSW3) and Megapussi from the North Island of the Eastern Territories (aka NZ). Sadly, I think we can suspect that the NZ teams are all seeded very low. Day 2 should be a bit easier but more vital in terms of the eventual placing in the tournament, against South Australia's Ultimate Evolution then the big battle against Bender.
UQ Ultimate Lovers - seeded 18th Pool C
It all depends on Nathan's clutch. The pool is also smaller giving less margin for error. Day 1 against seventh seed Funny Duck (Vic 2), half of Newcastle Pie, Canberra B aka SOMA. Day 2 is against second seed and top Victorian team Moredisco, and Warpath.
Townsvillains - seeded 20th (top seed from North Queensland) Pool E
Their first two games are really must win, against middle to low range NSW teams the Mix Masters, Wagon and Special Cause, before finishing Friday against Hills who will be tired but still very deep and strong and probably whip some exhausted Villains we're afraid.
Day 2 is against an underseeded Blacksheep of NZ, and then it'll be time to get out the Gargamel outfits for the game again the best of South Australia in Smurf.
BEST OF LUCK QUEENSLAND, and make sure you have fun and mix it up if you can.
Special kudos also to the Hills Ultimate Club, who are now pretty much the default organising committee for any major tournament you'd care to think of.
Party Theme is Golden. I shudder to think the number of folks who're going to turn up in shower curtains.
So earlier this week, Nat and Tati and child and the QUDA trailer set off for
Anyway, enough gripes, let's check out the tournament and who we're sending.
Mixed Nats 2010 is being hosted once again by the fantastically well organised Hills Ultimate Club, based out of Western Sydney. They're holding the event in Bathurst because its practically impossible to find a suitable venue in overcrowded Sydney. In contrast, regional centres have the space and moreso are exceptionally welcoming to the idea of a bunch of nice frisbee players coming to spend thousands of dollars locally.
Apparently there's been some whining about going to Bathurst, but the BUB totally supports the venue, and reminds the whiners that nobody is forcing them to go.
Anyway, Mixed Nats is a three day tournament, this year featuring 26 teams. The draw is over here and essentially starts with four pools through the first day and a half. After that the top team in each of the four pools go direct to quarterfinals. The teams that came second and third in each pool cross over to battle for the remaining quarterfinal places. And those eight teams battle it out from there. There's a similar structure for the bottom half of the draw.
Queensland is sending four teams to battle for Mixed supremacy over 20 or so other teams from around the joint, which includes NZ this year.
John Doe - "Eeeeere we go!"
John Doe is the top ranked South Queensland team, and goes to the tournament seeded 11th overall and into Pool D. The Does have prepared with a heavy training schedule, and championships from the Queensland Qualifier and Halibut under their belts. Under their belts is also where they keep those loud loud shorts that Maylin's teams keep coming up with.
Day one should start relatively smoothly against Mr Burns' Casino who came eighth in the NSW Championships, despite a solid build-up via Halibut. But things will toughen up real quick and spotters will be making their predictions on John Does' final resting place when they face NSW number two's Jericho Turnpick Bandits and Canberra's best in Team Happy . A hard hard first day is then finished with a fourth game, this one against Tasmania's finest LOG! The Musical(featuring Huddy) who are seeded 14th based largely on their effort at Mixed Nats 2009, and which may well determine who goes through to the pre-quaters and who doesn't.
If exhaustion allows them, the team will party hard that night, before returning to face The Incredibles (SA's third ranked team, seeded 19th) then finishing up Pool D against locals the Bathurst Bulls (26)
Sugar - seeded 16th Pool B
Joyfully start the tournament on Friday morning with a game against top seed 1980 (the gag is all the players on the team were born in 1980) as a warmup. Dusty doesn't get out of bed to piss for this kind of stuff, but hopefully they'll still score a few points thanks to Paul. Sugar then sweeten up against eighth seed Friskee (NSW3) and Megapussi from the North Island of the Eastern Territories (aka NZ). Sadly, I think we can suspect that the NZ teams are all seeded very low. Day 2 should be a bit easier but more vital in terms of the eventual placing in the tournament, against South Australia's Ultimate Evolution then the big battle against Bender.
UQ Ultimate Lovers - seeded 18th Pool C
It all depends on Nathan's clutch. The pool is also smaller giving less margin for error. Day 1 against seventh seed Funny Duck (Vic 2), half of Newcastle Pie, Canberra B aka SOMA. Day 2 is against second seed and top Victorian team Moredisco, and Warpath.
Townsvillains - seeded 20th (top seed from North Queensland) Pool E
Their first two games are really must win, against middle to low range NSW teams the Mix Masters, Wagon and Special Cause, before finishing Friday against Hills who will be tired but still very deep and strong and probably whip some exhausted Villains we're afraid.
Day 2 is against an underseeded Blacksheep of NZ, and then it'll be time to get out the Gargamel outfits for the game again the best of South Australia in Smurf.
BEST OF LUCK QUEENSLAND, and make sure you have fun and mix it up if you can.
Special kudos also to the Hills Ultimate Club, who are now pretty much the default organising committee for any major tournament you'd care to think of.
Party Theme is Golden. I shudder to think the number of folks who're going to turn up in shower curtains.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Over the Wire
Follow all the action at the Australian University Games in Perth via Forcesideline (they're doing such a good job, we're not going near it, aside from saying go UQ and QUT!) Div 1 and Div 2
Today is the last day you can order Mixed Nationals 2010 clothing.
WFDF have posted the minutes of its 2010 congress, for those who like to keep an eye on what Pottsy and friends are up to.
Following yesterday's announcement, Black Betty have posted updates to their website.
Today is the last day you can order Mixed Nationals 2010 clothing.
WFDF have posted the minutes of its 2010 congress, for those who like to keep an eye on what Pottsy and friends are up to.
Following yesterday's announcement, Black Betty have posted updates to their website.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Six Weeks Until Mixed Nationals 2010
Its only six short weeks until four Queensland teams venture south to golden Bathurst for the 2010 Australian Mixed Ultimate Championships.
Qualifiers are run, slots offered and the rosters are starting to fill up.
Let's check in with the teams:
SQ1 John Doe
A Halibut win under their belt, this team has been training for some time, and looks pretty good. Objective: Win Mixed Nationals.
SQ2 Sugar
Oh honey honey, you are my candy girl, and you've got me wanting you. Objective: Make your life so sweet, yeah yeah yeah. (Side note: does Dusty or Paul = Jughead?)
SQ3 UQ Lovers
Just ran a fab tournament on the weekend, so probably need to catch their breath for a second before embarking on this campaign. Objective: Friending, with occasional lovering.
NQ1 Towns Villains
Let's hope them flights are booked, as its a long way to hitch. Objective(s): 1. Rule the world, muhaha. 2. Be despicable. 3. Get someone onto the roster.
Qualifiers are run, slots offered and the rosters are starting to fill up.
Let's check in with the teams:
SQ1 John Doe
A Halibut win under their belt, this team has been training for some time, and looks pretty good. Objective: Win Mixed Nationals.
SQ2 Sugar
Oh honey honey, you are my candy girl, and you've got me wanting you. Objective: Make your life so sweet, yeah yeah yeah. (Side note: does Dusty or Paul = Jughead?)
SQ3 UQ Lovers
Just ran a fab tournament on the weekend, so probably need to catch their breath for a second before embarking on this campaign. Objective: Friending, with occasional lovering.
NQ1 Towns Villains
Let's hope them flights are booked, as its a long way to hitch. Objective(s): 1. Rule the world, muhaha. 2. Be despicable. 3. Get someone onto the roster.
Monday, September 06, 2010
South Queensland Mixed Nationals Qualifier - Results!
Results from Saturday's tournament are creeping in, but its clear that congratulations should be extended to Halibut Champions John Doe, who continued their winning ways over the weekend. Commisserations to the mighty Heroes, who missed out on a trip to Bathurst (rumour has it though there will be earlier preparations for 2011).
Round 1:
John Doe 15 def Sugar 3
UQ Lovers 15 def Heroes 9
Round 2:
John Doe 15 def Heroes 0 (pants)
Sugar 14 def UQ 10
Round 3:
John Doe 15 def UQ Lovers 2
Sugar 12 def Heroes 3
Ranking for South Queensland Teams for Mixed Nats 2010
1. John Doe
2. Sugar
3. UQ Lovers
--------
DNQ Heroes
UPDATE: And here's the photos - http://www.nsphoto.com.au/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=188134
Round 1:
John Doe 15 def Sugar 3
UQ Lovers 15 def Heroes 9
Round 2:
John Doe 15 def Heroes 0 (pants)
Sugar 14 def UQ 10
Round 3:
John Doe 15 def UQ Lovers 2
Sugar 12 def Heroes 3
Ranking for South Queensland Teams for Mixed Nats 2010
1. John Doe
2. Sugar
3. UQ Lovers
--------
DNQ Heroes
UPDATE: And here's the photos - http://www.nsphoto.com.au/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=188134
Monday, August 16, 2010
Queensland Qualifer Confirmed - 4 September 2010
In lieu of this being able to be posted on the official QUDA website, the Brisbane Ultimate Blog is proud to host the following information.
QUDA will be hosting a short tournament to determine qualification and ranking for South Queensland teams seeking to represent our region at the upcoming Australian Mixed Ultimate Championships 2010 (aka AMUC or Mixed Nats) in Bathurst.
Four teams from Southern Queensland have provided Expressions of Interest to QUDA, and AFDA has offered three slots to the region. QUDA will therefore host a short tournament to determine which three teams get to go, and provide ranking information to AFDA.
Only these four teams will be eligible to compete in the competition. These are: John Doe; Sugar; UQ Lovers and Heroes. Players need to register on their teams at the earliest opportunity.
(Note that QUDA received one EOI from North Queensland (from the Towns Villains), and AFDA has offered one slot to that reason, so job done).Date: Saturday 4 September
Venue: JF O'Grady Field, Fairfield
Price: Cheap - discuss with your Team Management. Fees cover field hire and AFDA/QUDA fees only. This will total to be about $6-10 per player, depending on team size.
Note: To keep the cost minimal, teams will provide their own food and be rostered to certain duties at the event, including filling their own water container.
Draft Schedule
8am - John Doe and Heroes to set up tents and fields.
9am - Round 1 - John Doe vs UQ; Sugar vs Heroes.
11am - Round 2 - John Doe vs Heroes; UQ vs Sugar.
1.30pm Round 3 - John Doe vs Sugar; UQ vs Heroes.
3pm - Sugar and UQ to pack up tents and fields.
Rules
The event will be held to be consistent with the AFDA Tournaments Manual, in liaison with the Captains.Captains will be jointly responsible with a QUDA representative for all TD
responsibilities.More to come.
Saturday, November 07, 2009
Saturday Catchup - Delirium at Mixed Nats
So one of the roles of the Brisbane Ultimate Blog is to serve as a bit of a corporate memory. We don't do our collective history very well in Ultimate, and all that (although we're sure Notty can list off every game she's ever played - and there's a few).
So we should pass on congrats to Delirium, who represented, Brisbane, Queensland, yay the whole Northern half of Australia, at the recent Mixed Nationals down in Hobart.
We heard on the grapevine that the two-headed ones ran a great event, showing twice the smarts of many other organisers, and also getting the weather just right.
Delirium came in 12th overall, after looking threatening early in the tourament. Tired legs in the end.
So we should pass on congrats to Delirium, who represented, Brisbane, Queensland, yay the whole Northern half of Australia, at the recent Mixed Nationals down in Hobart.
We heard on the grapevine that the two-headed ones ran a great event, showing twice the smarts of many other organisers, and also getting the weather just right.
Delirium came in 12th overall, after looking threatening early in the tourament. Tired legs in the end.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
And the Winner Is ... Tasmania!
Mixed Nationals 2009 will be held in Hobart, Tasmania, from Saturday 10 to Monday 12 October.
This is the first time a national Ultimate event has been held on the island state since 1989 (I think?) Twenty years ago!>?!
Wise Ultimate travelers will consider taking a week to explore the Apple Isle, before backing up for the Two Hat, which is usually held in mid-October (date to be confirmed).
(We've been wanting to use this pic for ages!)
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Music at AMUC Party
If you're going to the AMUC party at the Uber Bar this Sunday night (day 2 of AMUC), and want to put in a musical request, do so over here.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Queensland Qualifier
The Queensland Qualifier tournament is on this Saturday.
Spectators most welcome - particularly for the Final! Supporter drinks will be available.
Spectators most welcome - particularly for the Final! Supporter drinks will be available.
Team fees are expected to be announced today via email - just waiting on the UQ Club to forward its budget to QUDA for approval.
This will be a tough event - the team that comes first will gain a very high seed at Mixed Nats, thanks to Bootius' success last year on behalf of the South Queensland zone.
Questions and tips can be posted in the Comments section below.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Qualifier Update
The official email won't be going out from the QUDA Communications Bunker until tomorrow, but news on the wire is that next weekend's Queensland Qualifier has been reduced to four teams and a one day event.
Miscommunication led the Townsville based Hand of God to register even though they weren't planning to make the 1000km trip down, while UQ Happy and the Channon's Mismatch, realising that bringing their new players to the tournament would result in some potentially demoralising defeats by the elite of South Queensland Ultimate, particularly with the more amenable Lovefest only a few weeks away, wasn't the best idea ever. Meanwhile, the Slamtown Flatball Club is missing some key leadership folk and Byron Bay's the Pass is in a bit of a lull.
So, if you live in SEQ and want to play at Mixed Nationals 2008, you should do yourself a favour and get onto either the UQ Lovers, the Lounge Lizards, Great!Sugoi! or the venerable Mind the Gap, as quick as you can. The way we at the BUB understand the rostering rules for AMUC - they are such that teams can only pick up one male and one female that haven't played with the team in the previous two years - so playing the QQ with your preferred gang is a way to make sure you're all good.
Anyway, please await the official communication via the usual QUDA outlets.
Miscommunication led the Townsville based Hand of God to register even though they weren't planning to make the 1000km trip down, while UQ Happy and the Channon's Mismatch, realising that bringing their new players to the tournament would result in some potentially demoralising defeats by the elite of South Queensland Ultimate, particularly with the more amenable Lovefest only a few weeks away, wasn't the best idea ever. Meanwhile, the Slamtown Flatball Club is missing some key leadership folk and Byron Bay's the Pass is in a bit of a lull.
So, if you live in SEQ and want to play at Mixed Nationals 2008, you should do yourself a favour and get onto either the UQ Lovers, the Lounge Lizards, Great!Sugoi! or the venerable Mind the Gap, as quick as you can. The way we at the BUB understand the rostering rules for AMUC - they are such that teams can only pick up one male and one female that haven't played with the team in the previous two years - so playing the QQ with your preferred gang is a way to make sure you're all good.
Anyway, please await the official communication via the usual QUDA outlets.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Qualifying for Mixed Nationals
So just to repeat some stuff emailed elsewhere.
1. Southern Queensland is able to send up to four teams to Mixed Nats 2008 (to be held in Brisbane on 18-20 October).
2. To be one of these four, teams need to compete in the Queensland Qualifier, to be held on 30-31 August (two weeks away).
3. To compete in the qualifier, you need to have your team registered by today (or have talked to the QUDA-nominated competition manager, JdR), and have your roster pretty much finalised by this Friday.
4. The qualifer will help to determine who gets to go to Mixed Nats, as well as providing seeding information for that.
5. Nonetheless, non-qualification seeking teams are welcome to play in the Qualifier tournament, noting though they they're likely to get beaten somewhat badly by some highly motivated quality teams!
Tournament information from the hosts, UQ Ultimate, will be out in the next few days.
1. Southern Queensland is able to send up to four teams to Mixed Nats 2008 (to be held in Brisbane on 18-20 October).
2. To be one of these four, teams need to compete in the Queensland Qualifier, to be held on 30-31 August (two weeks away).
3. To compete in the qualifier, you need to have your team registered by today (or have talked to the QUDA-nominated competition manager, JdR), and have your roster pretty much finalised by this Friday.
4. The qualifer will help to determine who gets to go to Mixed Nats, as well as providing seeding information for that.
5. Nonetheless, non-qualification seeking teams are welcome to play in the Qualifier tournament, noting though they they're likely to get beaten somewhat badly by some highly motivated quality teams!
Tournament information from the hosts, UQ Ultimate, will be out in the next few days.
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
Mixed Nationals Slots for Queensland
The AFDA has released the initial allocations for slots for teams to go to Mixed Nationals, as well as the order in which unused slots will be reallocated.
Initially, South Queensland has been allocated two slots, but South Queensland also gets the first two unused slots (such as those that NT or Northern WA are unlikely to take up). Hence South Queensland can be 99% certain it'll be able to send four teams to Mixed Nats.
You may recall North Queensland automatically gets a slot and the Townsville crew are champing at the bit to take that up (and they might be able to pick up a couple of extra ladies from elsewhere).
Don't forget the qualification event for the South Queensland slots will be over the weekend of 30-31 August (it will likely be a one dayer if there's five teams or less).
More to come on that once we get through Halibut, but if you're thinking about playing Mixed Nats you might like to start getting your team together!
Initially, South Queensland has been allocated two slots, but South Queensland also gets the first two unused slots (such as those that NT or Northern WA are unlikely to take up). Hence South Queensland can be 99% certain it'll be able to send four teams to Mixed Nats.
You may recall North Queensland automatically gets a slot and the Townsville crew are champing at the bit to take that up (and they might be able to pick up a couple of extra ladies from elsewhere).
Don't forget the qualification event for the South Queensland slots will be over the weekend of 30-31 August (it will likely be a one dayer if there's five teams or less).
More to come on that once we get through Halibut, but if you're thinking about playing Mixed Nats you might like to start getting your team together!
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Halibut and Mixed Nationals Qualification
Halibut is on the horizon (only five and a bit weeks away - got yourself on a team yet?), and has traditionally been billed as the Queensland Championships.
Meanwhile, its been confirmed that teams from South Queensland wishing to attend Mixed Nationals in October and Brisbane will have to go through some sort of qualification process.
Just to pass on the information from the Halibut and Mixed Nats organising committees:
So get on out there an organise or get onto a Halibut team and have a fun weekend, and come August or September we'll be sorting out getting yourself to Mixed Nats.
Halibut's vision is for every Ultimate player in Queensland and anyone who wants to come and visit to get on the field.
Update: The team rego goss for Halibut at the moment is:
Confirmed: iCarrot (Brisbane), Plan B (assorted southerners), Mellow Yellow (Brisbane), Goldiggaz (a better type of southerners), SFC1 (Gold Coast).
On the Grapevine: UQ Lovers, QUT-Qs, SFC2, Byron, plus various players from Townsville and maybe Armidale will be looking for teams. Plus no doubt a few more that we haven't heard about yet.
Meanwhile, its been confirmed that teams from South Queensland wishing to attend Mixed Nationals in October and Brisbane will have to go through some sort of qualification process.
Just to pass on the information from the Halibut and Mixed Nats organising committees:
Halibut will NOT be part of the South Queensland qualification process for Mixed Nats.
So get on out there an organise or get onto a Halibut team and have a fun weekend, and come August or September we'll be sorting out getting yourself to Mixed Nats.
Halibut's vision is for every Ultimate player in Queensland and anyone who wants to come and visit to get on the field.
Update: The team rego goss for Halibut at the moment is:
Confirmed: iCarrot (Brisbane), Plan B (assorted southerners), Mellow Yellow (Brisbane), Goldiggaz (a better type of southerners), SFC1 (Gold Coast).
On the Grapevine: UQ Lovers, QUT-Qs, SFC2, Byron, plus various players from Townsville and maybe Armidale will be looking for teams. Plus no doubt a few more that we haven't heard about yet.
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