A-Z SPORTING SPOTLIGHT:

J... is for Jiu Jitsu he spearheaded a rejuvenated England side. Former captain, Joe Root, oozed class as both a player and a man as he not only continued his sparkling form, but showed no spite to his successor, and despite his captaincy struggles, openly backed the new regime throughout the summer. Stokes’ England then became the first team to secure a whitewash in Pakistan, as they brushed them aside 3-0. This series win was made even sweeter by the lack of variation in the pitch. A batsman’s paradise that was somehow exploited by Stokes and his bowlers to take twenty wickets in the

Jiu Jitsu is a martial art that focuses on grappling with opponents and using throws, joint locks and strikes to take them to the floor where they can be controlled. This is done using timing, technique and by taking an opponent’s balance rather than simply using sheer strength, making it a practical and accessible activity for everyone.

As well as the traditional selfdefence aspect of Jiu Jitsu, there is also a competitive sporting element. Entrants seek to pin or submit an opponent while grappling on the ground, or aim to throw their opponent during standing grappling contests.

Our club has grown back stronger than ever since the end of the pandemic, with our Women’s Team finishing joint 3rd place at the 2021-22 BUCS Jiu Jitsu Championships and our current Club Secretary Lydia claiming silver in this year’s BUCS Women’s Individual event. We’re currently looking forward to our next big national competition at the end of April where we hope to see even further success!

After this resurrection of English cricket, the test squad turn their attention to 2023. A home Ashes series awaits Stokes and McCullum, which will be their biggest test yet. First, though, the squad travel to New Zealand in a two-match series, in which they welcome seam-bowling veteran, Stuart Broad back into the side, having missed the Pakistan tour due to the birth of his child. Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett look set to keep their place opening batters, with up-and-coming Yorkshireman, Harry Brook, being the most-anticipated batsman to watch this series. The reliable trio of Broad, Jimmy Anderson and Ollie Robinson will be partnered by spinner, Jack his retirement from test cricket. Tim Southee will do the brunt of the bowling, with Neil Wagner offering his unique left-arm pace. Tom Blundell and Daryl Mitchell provided the only real resistance against England last time out, and will hold the key once again with the bat as the out of form Kane Williamson will look to regain his touch ahead of the series.

Blundell and Mitchell provided the only real resistance against England

In only our 6th year as a club Newcastle University’s Korfball Club are reaching new outstanding levels of success. This season within BUCS our first team has qualified for the Korfball National Championship which will take place at UEA on 18th/ 19th March. This automatically places us within the top 16 university teams across the country an impressive feat that Newcastle have never before achieved.

Leach, as England’s four man attack will look to exploit the batsman friendly conditions that they are likely to face.

the Black Caps will be without primary bowler, Trent Boult, who has announced

The day-night aspect of this series will certainly fascinate viewers with the pink ball offering a new dimension to the final session of play. Victory is essential for New Zealand, who seem to be losing their way as a test force, whilst England are flying, and will look to continue their excellent form as they prepare for Australia in the

However this year we also fielded a second BUCS team for only the second time in our club history. Despite most of the team being brand new to the sport they played excellently and narrowly missed out on a place at BUCS Shield.

Furthermore our first team remain unbeaten in the local league and we now look ahead towards the Northern Regional League promotion play offs.

This is the first time the University has qualified for these play offs and is a huge step forward for the club. In addition to our on court success we hosted our first tournament in October where we welcomed teams from across North England and Scotland, rebranded as the Newcastle ‘Sharks’ and have boosted our club membership throughout the year!

If you fancy trying out a new fun, friendly, mixed gender sport and representing Team Newcastle at BUCS give us a message on our Instagram @nclkorfball