By Ruairi O’Connor
A De Montfort University Journalism student was elated after being part of the DMU 6th team that beat their University of Leicester counterparts on penalties after a thrilling encounter.
Following a close 1-1 draw, the game was decided by a penalty shoot-out, a shoot-out which was won by DMU.
Dan Nash, a central defender for DMU, described the feeling of winning the game as “unreal.”
“I couldn’t really imagine how big the rivalry between the two Leicester universities was until I experienced it first hand and saw how much it meant to players from both DMU and UoL.
“I absolutely loved the feeling, it means so much to you and your team as it is what you’ve been focused on the for the last few months or so.”
The focus of the team on this game was something Nash was keen to emphasise:
“Pre-game preparation was good,” he said. “We all knew how much it meant as it was drilled into us by players in our team who had played varsity before in previous years and our manager. We started training twice a week which helped a lot.”
The system of penalties is often described as a ‘lottery’, but Nash said the team were confident in the moment, after practicing them in the training sessions leading up to the game.
“In the moment there was lots of pressure, but I had complete faith in the boys who stepped up and took one at the time,” he said.
As a first year student, Nash is eager to add more varsity victories to his name in the following years.
“I am determined to win varsity for the next two years as well, it means so much to everyone at the university and winning provides a real ‘feel-good’ factor around campus.”
