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Sussex Women's Hockey Team celebrate a 6-0 victory

For the tenth year in a row, the University of Sussex has triumphed over the University of Brighton in our annual Varsity sports competition. This year there were 13 fixtures across 10 different sports, with the final score being 10.5 - 2.5 in Sussex’s favour.  

Check out the Varsity photo highlights, or read on for a full recap of an amazing fortnight… 

A perfect start 

On Sunday 8 March, Sussex Swim got our Varsity fortnight off to a perfect start, with a convincing 24-11 win over at the Hillbrow pool in Eastbourne.  

At the same time, climbers from the Sussex Mountaineering Club were closing out a win of their own at Boulder Brighton in Portslade, where they completed 10 routes to Brighton’s 7. 

The following week saw the first event on campus, with Sussex Archery descending on the Sport Centre to take home a 6,761-5,824 win after two and a half hours of intense, focused competition. 

Closely fought contests 

With three sports played, Sussex held a 3-0 lead but were heading into a difficult run of away fixtures, hosted on Brighton’s campus.  

As expected, the evening of Monday 16 March proved to be pivotal.  

First, the two Badminton teams went head-to-head. Singles, doubles and mixed doubles games were played in front of a vocal Brighton crowd. At half time it was 4 wins each. At full time it was 9-8, with Sussex triumphing in a tense mixed doubles match to take the overall win. 

Then, all eyes turned to the basketball games that would take place in the Meads building. The Women’s Basketball game was close at halftime, with a scoreline of 35-30, but Sussex’s superior long-range shooting ability helped us close out a 62-44 win in front of a sell-out crowd. 

Not to be outdone, Sussex Men’s Basketball then produced a game for the ages. Sussex hadn’t won this fixture since 2018, and when our team found themselves 10 points down with only a minute left on the clock, history looked like repeating itself. However, two long range efforts and some heroic last-ditch defending saw Sussex win by one point in a 78-77 classic that players and fans will remember for many years. 

Overall victory secured 

With the overall score at 6-0, Sussex only needed one more win to take home the Varsity title for a tenth year in a row. 

Up stepped Women’s Volleyball, one of our strongest teams, who brought home a dominant 3 sets to 0 victory in their Tuesday night game at the Brighton Sport and Health Complex. Men’s Volleyball then followed suit, winning their game 2 sets to 1.  

Varsity secured!  

Super Wednesday 

Wednesday afternoon saw the biggest spectator events of the fortnight, with hundreds of students from each university making their way up to a sun-drenched Falmer Sports Complex for three eagerly awaited games. 

Women’s hockey and women’s football kicked off at the same time on adjacent pitches, with the area between packed out by supporters wearing their teams’ colours and waving home-made signs to cheer on their friends.  

Before each game and at half time, fans were treated to high-energy, acrobatic displays from Sussex Swallows and The Waves cheer teams, who deserve huge credit for their contribution to the incredible atmosphere throughout the day. 

Sussex Women’s Hockey won their BUCS competition the previous week, and they took their strong form into the game against Brighton, winning 6-0. Despite the scoreline, the Brighton team played hard and were commendable in defeat, dancing with their supporters and contributing to the great pitch-side energy. 

Less than a stone’s throw away, Sussex Women’s Football were locked in a closer contest against a much-fancied Brighton side. One team would score, then the other equalise, leaving supporters on edge going into the final minutes. With five minutes to play Sussex were 3-2 down, before launching a free kick into the box and scrambling in a final goal to close out a draw that was celebrated like a win. 

After a short break, the Men’s Football match began – a high-intensity affair, with Team Brighton looking to build some momentum. Brighton took a deserved 2-0 lead in the first half and, despite a stronger second half from Sussex, Brighton ended up winning 2-1 for their first full Varsity point. 

Meanwhile, the Sussex Women’s Rugby wrapped up a massive 43-24 win in their game at Horsham Rugby Club, taking home the title of Varsity winners for the second year in a row. 

A fitting finale 

Traditionally, the Varsity netball match has been one of the best-attended fixtures in the Varsity calendar, and this year was no different. 

On the final Friday of competition, Sussex Netball arrived at the Meads Centre as favourites, having competed in a higher league than Brighton this season. However, Brighton were determined to end their Varsity campaign on a high, taking an early lead that they never surrendered throughout the match. Roared on by raucous home support, their sharp passing and accuracy in front of goal led to a deserved 50-33 win.  

The teams congratulated each other on the court and mingled with celebrating fans, bringing Varsity 2026 to a fitting conclusion. Final score: 12.5 - 2.5 to Sussex, our tenth win in a row! 

A big thank you 

A huge number of people have been involved in making this year’s Varsity one to remember. Making sure that Varsity runs safely and smoothly requires a truly collaborative effort, led by the Sussex Student’s Union but involving a large number of staff as well. 

Special thanks go to Sussex Sport staff for facilitating and stewarding the events on campus and helping to arrange logistics with their Brighton counterparts.  

Speaking about the collaboration required for Varsity, Ella Goodchild, Sports Societies and Events Officer from the Sussex Student’s Union, said, 'Varsity is a celebration of our student athletes and a time to champion the achievements of our amazing, dedicated students. I can speak for the whole sports team at the Students' Union when I say that we’ve really enjoyed working alongside the University to deliver the Varsity programme this year. It’s fantastic to see how committed the students are to university sport and a pleasure to help the fortnight come to life!”  

Visit the Sussex Sport Instagram from more photo and video highlights from this year's Varsity. And roll on 2027!