Broomsticks, bludgers, golden snitches. There’s no sport in the wizarding world as exciting as Quidditch! Little news to bring to you this week, or at least no transfers and unusual hostilities, just the normal sort we see every week. I have Calista Earnshaw and Christian Hastings helping with this week’s coverage, and with that announcement, we’ll be launching straight into a recap of the matches!
Holyhead Harpies 650 to 450 Wigtown Wanderers
With another week keeping their spot at the top of the league, the Harpies performed beautifully in a game that ended with their victory against the team from Wigtown. Not even two minutes had passed from the start of the game when a quaffle shot by Franchescka De Luca soared towards Wigtown keeper Mick Mooney, knocking him from his broom and scoring the first goal of the match. It seemed the Harpies had a bone to pick with the Wigtown team, not surprising given the explosive relationship between the team’s star chaser and the Irish Loverboy himself. The Wanderers made it clear however that they had no intention of going down without a fight, giving it their all on the pitch. The team had almost closed the gap between themselves and the Harpies and it had become clear that it would be the snitch catch to deserve the fate of this game. And decide it did. Harpies captain Kelsey Galloway secured the match in her team’s favour after a hard fought battle against Evie Proudfoot that incidentally ended with the latter crashing into the earth when she couldn’t pull out of a daring dive.
Banchory Bangers 470 to 640 Chudley Cannons
In one of the most exciting and surprising matches of the season, we saw the Chudley Cannons put on the performance of their lives. What was expected to be a complete shutout ended up with Król, Utkin, and Terrell utterly surprising both fans and opponents alike as they managed to not only keep up with but surpass the Banchory Bangers in points scored. That’s not to say the Bangers didn’t put up a fight with Ellington leading his team in a successful defense against Chudley. Was it enough though? No, despite nearly tying with the Chudley team, between the Cannons’ on fire performance and Trengove’s failure to knock legendary Sayaka Satō from the sky, the Banchory team simply couldn’t keep up and suffered a defeat at the hands of what was once widely accepted as the worst team in the league.
Falmouth Falcons 640 to 700 Caerphilly Catapults
Disappointment was clear in the stands as the Falcons suffered defeat against the Caerphilly Catapults this week. Many were expecting an impressive victory with beloved beater Adam Fletcher returning to the team but unfortunately that simply wasn’t to be. Despite a hard fought battle and a close back and forth over the course of the match, it was the Catapults who secured the snitch catch and the victory this time. This came as an especially hard blow as the Falcons had managed a near 100 point lead before Tracy captured the snitch, ending the game.
Kenmare Kestrels 470 to 610 Pride of Portree
A game so close, it could have gone either way. It cannot have felt reassuring for the Portree side – who are a fraction from the top of the leaderboard – to be so closely matched by Kenmare. Pride, however, came out on top, and Marfa are-we-surprised? Parma was ultimately responsible for taking victory on behalf of her team. This high scoring game had both Pride’s Keeper, Hayoon “Doll” Seol, and the Kestrels’ Reese Barret working under immense pressure. The Griffin twins were undoubtedly Kenmare’s MVPs and Portree, likewise, owes much to the tireless efforts of its Chasers Elliott Reid, Valentine Weekes and Akilina Picasso. But to the victor goes the spoils, and Pride have proved themselves worthy of a top spot yet again.
Appleby Arrows 150 to 120 Puddlemere United
Saved by the bell, Appleby… Or should we say, by the skill of Everett Butcher, who caught the snitch and, in one fell swoop, narrowed the 12-0 goal gap created by United and ended the game. It was otherwise a fairly unremarkable match, but unsurprising given that 17 minutes is hardly long enough for all players on both teams to have a chance to shine. Having said that, Arrows Beater, Turlough Parsons, got in a couple of nasty knocks against the opposition and rewarded the crowd (if they happened to appreciate that sort of thing) with some fly-by sweaty bicep flexing.
Ballycastle Bats 240 to 0 Tutshill Tornadoes
The Bats ruled the skies this match, though the win of this low scoring game – which ended when Avery Whittle caught the snitch – was not their most impressive, by a long shot.
Bats Beater, Caryxander Mordushku, seems set on showing us the most ruthless play this sport has to offer, his rogue bludger sending Tutshill’s Elliot Nelson into the stands (and consequently to St. Mungos) just 15 minutes in. The Bats are playing solidly, albeit brutally this season. Tutshill as a team, meanwhile, are determined to show us why they deserve the bottom spot on the ladder. It is cringeworthy, at this point. You can’t do worse than zero points in a 54-minute game. Or any game.
Wimbourne Wasps 560 to 150 Montrose Magpies
The Wasps out-played, out-flew and ultimately dominated the Magpies and this match, keeping Montrose biting at their heels, one rung below on the leaderboard. Recent transfer, Keeper Kjersti Nathalie, proved to Wimbourne and their competition why she was worth every galleon spared. Likewise, Tryphena Beetlegleam, is every bit as impressive a team player as her former team, the Sofia Fates, boasted. With Onyilgowu and Laufreyn working in tandem on tight and aggressive gameplay, Chasers Peacock, McKowen and Beetlegleam were able to do what they do best, with little threat from the Montrose side. Alec Tollemache took the snitch at 81-minutes in, but with the score already at 410-150 in the Wasp’s favour, and the opposition exhausted, there was little doubt the game would be taken by Wimbourne. Rather, it was a matter of when.
Magpies Captain, Kane Curtis, was a star on the pitch and refused to bow down even when defeat seemed clear. Silver Summerfield was responsible for 10 of the Magpies goals, and regardless of her clear frustration, she remained focused and clearly had support from the fans, the crowd cheering loudly for her throughout the game. Despite turning up for this match in every way possible, and securing a decisive win, The Wasps remain at 7th place on the league ladder, a situation that might change soon if they keep performing like this.
Banchory Bangers 310 to 240 Holyhead Harpies
The Bangers certainly ended this match with a bang. Things seemed to be playing out in rather typical Holyhead form, with the Harpies hitting the pitch charged with energy and drive, scoring consistently and backing each other up with near-intuitive cooperation. Banchory were holding their own, thanks largely to star Chaser Ulysses Ellington, but were outscored by 8 goals as the match entered its 28th minute. At that moment, infamous party boy Seeker, Bryson McConnell, dove down at lightning speed and caught the snitch, thus scoring the Bangers a surprise victory and a better position on the leaderboard. Persephone “Silver Wolf” Vitrac, Jolene Parris and Franchescka De Luca clocked up 8 goals each, and had the game continued, it is possible this goal matching trend would have continued. Lillibeth “Lil” Bennet and Shea “Tempest” Kendrick were in good form too, working hard to prevent the Bangers matching Holyhead goal for goal. And they succeeded for the most part, with a highlight being Kendrick knocking tough nut Doirend Rayne off his broom 11 minutes into the game. Unfortunately for the Holyhead side, their best efforts were not enough to counter a brave and daring Banchory snitch grab. The Bangers now move up the ladder, passing Montrose to earn themselves the number 8 spot, just below Wimbourne.
Caerphilly Catapults 500 to 260 Wigtown Wanderers
It has been said that Caerphilly’s history rests upon the capable shoulders of its Captain, Gabriella Dudley. It is fair to say, too, that this game’s victory lands with Dudley. From start to finish, her captaincy was flawless, and Wigtown did not play poorly, either. The outcome is sure to disappoint fans of new transfer and current Wigtown Captain, Darragh “Danger Zone” Daly, who played a superb, albeit brutal game. Wanderers Keeper, Mick Mooney, was under fire and though his resolve did not waver, the Catapults fired relentlessly. With Wigtown’s Garry Ivers taking a green sparks penalty just 20 minutes into the game, resulting in a 10 minute grounding, Caerphilly made the most of their advantage, scoring an extra 5 goals during the penalty period. With their lead continuing to grow as the match progressed, the Welsh side played a more aggressive game, and the deal was sealed by the catching of the snitch after an exciting 74 minutes of pitch action. Toutorix Tracy, Catapults’ Seeker, has been quite the ace up Caerphilly’s sleeve this season, surprising all – including himself, it would seem – with incredible coordination and unusual opportunistic moves. This game was another chance for the rookie to shine. And that he did, catching the snitch and taking the game for the Welsh team.
Kenmare Kestrels 670 to 360 Chudley Cannons
Another game for the Cannons where the team survived favourably despite their loss. Whilst there was a clear domination on the pitch from the Kestrels, the Cannons put on a good fight during the first forty minutes of the match, with chasers Consus Król and Clarity Terrell scoring most of the points, whilst their teammate Casimir Utkin stole and passed quaffles for them. Fans of the team from Chudley were notoriously crossing their fingers in the spirit of the Team Motto, and even though when their hopes were mildly high -with a score of 360 to 520 for the Kestrels-, the crude reality hit even harder when golden boy Hall Mynnatt caught the snitch, settling for once and for all the end of the match with a victory for the team from Kenmare.
Puddlemere United 310 to 500 Falmouth Falcons
After falling from the top of the league to a respectable third place, the Falcons have been doing their job right, to… At least keep said place. And when we say ‘job right’, we mean ‘job done in Falcon’s style’. Green sparks were shown to Albert Lamb on one occasion as the beater seemed to intentionally hold bludgers to send them off instantly towards Puddlemere’s seeker Callum McClarken. Of course, nothing could be confirmed, and with the uproar of their fans, the game continued with not many more incidents, except perhaps a seagull having to be removed from the pitch to avoid collision with the players, bludgers and quaffles. After 87 minutes of quite a dynamic match, Falcon’s beater Adam Fletcher directed one of his powerful bludgers towards United’s seeker McClarken, and thus gave his own teammate Dot Townsend the perfect chance to catch the golden snitch and achieve victory.
Tutshill Tornadoes 260 to 410 Pride of Portree
Just when it seemed Tutshill could be turning things around, against all odds… no. Another loss to add to the growing shame pile. This game was closely matched, until the formidable Marfa Parma once again saved the day for Portree, catching the snitch at the 41-minute mark. Rumours are now circulating that Tornadoes Beater, Kip Heath, has his sights set on a transfer. The player, who influenced many of the successful plays the Tornadoes made in this match, is said to be furious with the run they’ve had and Tutshill’s last place on the league ladder is thought to be particularly embarrassing for the Quidditch star.
Montrose Magpies 380 to 420 Appleby Arrows
It has been a road with ups and downs for the Arrows. Lately, it seems that they are trying to get on the right path as their matches -even if mildly mediocre, let’s not forget last week’s game- help them to go up in the league. Or perhaps just keep them inside of the top four. With a quaffle possession of 65% for the Magpies, the team from Appleby had to take their chances with their beaters and seeker. Captain and Beater Turlough Parsons played his cards nicely as he aimed at the Magpies’ seeker Arethousa Ainsworth, landing his bludger not even a second after a glint of gold appeared on the pitch, thus giving his own team to catch the snitch and win a game that it could probably had been better for the team of Montrose.
Wimbourne Wasps 250 to 510 Ballycastle Bats
Brutal. Is the one word we can certainly say to describe this match. Or perhaps the actions of one beater in concrete: Caryxander Mordushku. We knew about his relentless dedication to hit bludgers, but perhaps today a new level was reached. With a good start for the Wasps, the scores were showing a bit of what the team had been working on their last matches: confidence and improvement. Layne Peacock scored their five first goals, something that surprised the Ballycastle roaster. The Bats counterattacked quickly, with Avonlea Fox and Deirdre Piper striking the next two and four goals, leaving the score 50 – 60 for their team. With an advantage of ten points, the team from Ballycastle decided to take things more seriously and their offense became the road to perdition for the soul of their ginger beater, at least. The hunt for Wasps’ chaser Layne Peacock was definitely noticeable, as Ballycastle’s Caryxander Mordushku began to exclusively target him during ten painful minutes, causing the fans to uproar and protest to take him off the game. Green Sparks were casted -twice- as Mordushku ended up breaking Peacock’s ribs, which unfortunately grounded the chaser out for the rest of the game. Scores were by then 250 to 360 for the Bats, and the focus on the pitch was not on the game anymore, as things began to get heated. Some threatening words were exchanged -in Swedish- between beaters, as Wasps’ Magnus Laufreyn wasn’t happy with Mordushku’s actions. It took Ayo Onyilgowu’s intervention to get things back to a neutral point and continue with a game that ended with the Bats’ seeker Avery Whittle catching the snitch.The aftermath was clear: Wasps fans weren’t happy, and they kept demanding for red sparks to be given to Mordushku, even after the game. We reached out for some comments after the match, we’ll leave the conclusions for you:
“If a chaser can’t fly they can’t score; if they can’t see they can’t score; if they can’t breathe they can’t score.”
– Caryxander Mordushku.
“F***a!”
– Magnus Laufreyn (when asked for comment on Caryxander Mordushku)
