EQC 2017 Group E Preview

With European Quidditch Cup (EQC) 2017 rapidly approaching, the Quidditch Post takes a look at each of the teams competing in this year’s tournament. 

Group E

Antwerp A

By Nick de Leu

Since reaching the final in last year’s EQC with a roster of only 14 players, Antwerp A (formerly known as Deurne Dodos) have managed to not only keep the band together, but they have also added a whole new section. In Mechelen, Belgium, close to their hometown Antwerp, Belgium, they will bring a full roster of 21.

World Cup From Their Perspective: A View From Eastern Europe

By Kinga Robutka, with contributions from Marian Dziubiak (Poland), Martin “Hofi” Hofbauer (Slovakia), and Verena Deutsch and Borut Bezgovšek (Slovenia). 

In comparison to the 2014 IQA Global Games held in Burnaby, Canada, the 2016 World Cup expanded dramatically, with 21 teams competing in the tournament held in Frankfurt, Germany – a stark contrast to the seven teams of the previous event. Being invited to the tournament was a unique chance for smaller developing leagues from around the world to challenge themselves and have what remains their only chance to compete against such international powerhouses such as Team USA and Australia. However, a greater number of teams competing naturally results in greater diversity in the level of play across the tournament. To some commentators, this was one of the main drawbacks of the tournament as the stronger teams, presumably, felt less challenged, especially during the group stages of Day One.

World Cup 2016: Spotlight on Poland

By Kinga Robutka

History

Quidditch first came to Poland during a Harry Potter-themed LARPing camp in Czocha Castle, initiated by Jagoda Sadecka, a prominent figure throughout the development of quidditch in Poland. The first team, the Quidditch Hussars, were originally a community team centered around professors and students of the Summer School of Magic, and in 2015 were transformed into a community team based in Warsaw, with Sadecka as captain. For the 2015-16 season, all three teams registered with Polska Liga Quidditcha, the national governing body of Poland, were community teams based in two biggest cities in Poland – Warsaw and Kraków. The current national champions of Poland are the Kraków Dragons who won the National Cup in January 2016, which was a surprising victory for the new team, started and captained by Olga Krzywicka; the Quidditch Hussars placed second, and the other Warsaw-based team, the Warsaw Mermaids (captained by Marian Dziubiak), came last.

Debutant Dragons Take Polish Title

English version (Polska wersja poniżej)

(By Estera Małek translated from Polish by Kinga Robutka)

Jan. 16 was certainly an extraordinary day for Polish Quidditch. The three Polish teams – Warsaw Mermaids, Quidditch Hussars, and Kraków Dragons – competed against each other for the first time at the second Polish Championship. The stakes were high, as the teams were not just competing to get the national title, but (more importantly) also the right to one of Poland’s two spots at European Quidditch Cup (EQC) 2016. Despite the temperature (which went down to -6 C/21 F) and snow covering the pitch, the games proceeded without any major problems; most players stayed even after the event had finished, in order to play a friendly match.

Polish Championship Preview

By Kinga Robutka

Poland is getting ready for its first competitive tournament of the season – the Polish Championship. On Jan. 16 in Warsaw, Poland the three – yes, three – officially registered Polish teams will compete to win both the title of the best Polish team and the chance to go to Gallipoli, Italy, this spring. Polska Liga Quidditcha (PLQ), the official national governing body for quidditch in Poland, was awarded two places at the European Quidditch Cup (EQC). Two of the teams competing this Saturday, Quidditch Hussars and Warsaw Mermaids, are reasonably well-known and, until last season, were the only Polish teams. However, this year a new team has joined the game – the Kraków Dragons. Although the Polish Championship will not be incredibly competitive, it is still a reason for excitement. Last year’s championship was just a single game between the Warsaw Mermaids and Quidditch Hussars. Adding one new team to the pool of competing teams may not seem like much, but for PLQ it is the first tangible result of its efforts to promote the sport throughout the last year. Several other nuclei of teams are also scattered around the country, showing that quidditch’s popularity in Poland is growing slowly but steadily.

France Captures European Games Over UK

by Andy Marmer (French translation by Sherrie Talgeri and Morgane Leclerc)

A new chapter was added to one of quidditch’s most intense rivalries as the United Kingdom and France met again in a major tournament and, in following recent trends, the latter once again emerged on top, overcoming its rival 90*-50 in the finals of the first ever IQA European Games.

Stampeding to Sarteano: Poland

by Andy Marmer (Polish translation by Jagoda Sadecka)

Introduction

Quidditch came to Poland in 2011 by way of Potter Camp. However, it was 2014 that saw the modern iteration of the sport make its way to the country. Two teams sprouted up last summer: one in Warsaw and the other in the country’s south. Quidditch Hussars trace their legacy to Potter Camp, but made the decision to switch to IQA rules following the 2014 Global Games. The Warsaw Mermaids also popped up that same year with help from Radcliffe Chimeras star Jan Mikolajczak who helped to establish the team during his summer holiday back home in Poland. The two Polish squads have faced off a handful of times with the Hussars coming out superior. Both teams have at times struggled for membership, with the membership of the Hussars encompassing much of Poland while the Mermaids are based more specifically in the country’s south. While international competition has been scarce, with Mermaids players never having competed internationally and the Hussars making their international debut at the 2015 European Quidditch Cup (EQC), the team is passionate about its play. Quidditch Hussars competed valiantly at EQC but were outmatched in their group by the Oxford Quidlings, Paris Frog, and Deurne Dodo A. The team managed a trio of goals over their three pool play matches, and scored five against Division II Champion Leicester Thestrals in their first round bracket matchup, but the ragtag bunch were otherwise overwhelmed. The European Games national team will mix players from both of Poland’s teams as well some outsiders.

EQC Division 1 Team Reviews

On the 18 and 19 April, the 2015 European Quidditch Cup (EQC) was held in Oxford, UK. With 32 teams from 11 regions, it was the biggest quidditch tournament held outside North America to date. Now that the dust has settled, our writers review how each team performed, starting with the 16 teams who made it into Division 1.

Onward to Oxford: Quidditch Hussars

As part of our efforts to preview all 32 teams competing in the European Quidditch Cup (EQC), the Quidditch Post is chatting with representatives from each team. Today we spoke with Jagoda Sadecka, captain of Quidditch Hussars.