It was a victorious day for the Lionesses as they sealed victory against Worcester 1’s in a dominant performance, taking the game 69-42 to progress into the cup final.
After Birmingham’s previous tight quarter-final affair against Exeter 1st, they returning roaring to show a strong Worcester side just what UoB were made of.
As the Lionesses took to the court, confidence as rife within the team: they knew this game would be theirs. Worcester were only one place ahead of Birmingham in their BUCS division so this game looked like it would be another tight fixture for the Lions. However, UoB ultimately outplayed Worcester in every department to take an incredible win.
Birmingham came out determined taking an early lead within the first few minutes to make the score 3-1 to Brum. Throughout the first quarter, the Lionesses set the tone in terms of energy and passion for the entire game. The vocal team ensured every pass, every move, and every drive was clinical and this did not fade for the duration of the game. The first quarter ended with Birmingham taking a dominant lead: 20-12. This quarter gave belief that the Lionesses were going to triumph.
During the first and second quarters, Worcester struggled to keep up with Birmingham who were stamping their authority across all aspects of the court and Worcester had no answers. Worcester also had a plethora of unforced errors courtesy of Birmingham’s solid defending. There were a vast number of instances where they had to play the ball back because they had limited options, or had to throw a wayward pass given the 3 seconds nearly being up which threw them off and enabled Birmingham to turn over and play to their advantage.
Entering half time, the Lionesses were leading 37-21 and their energy and clinical performance did not falter in the second half. The talent continued all throughout the third quarter which ended with Birmingham running away with the game with 50-33. For a game between two very close teams on the league tables, this was not what either team were expecting: UoB brutally perfect whereas Worcester didn’t seem to settle into the game.
Star Lionesses in this match were goal defence Poppy Bathurst who made it look easy collecting rebounds, aiding movement down the court and being a play maker, as well as the centre Kathryn and goal attack Faye Dunn. These players supported by a talented side played a magnificent semi final and took the game away from Worcester in the fourth and final quarter, blowing them out of the water and the competition, taking it 69-42. The Lionesses will be playing in the final next week and from all of as BURN FM, good luck (not that they need it if they continue to perform like this)!
