Chichester College teams looking forward to national finals

Two Chichester College sports teams are heading to the AoC (Association of Colleges) Sports National Championship later this month, to compete against the best of the best in college sports.

The college’s men’s volleyball and pan-ability football teams qualified for the competition earlier in the year and travel to the University of Nottingham to represent the South East region in their sports.

The AoC Sports’ National Championship, now in its 42^nd year, is the longest running student sport event in the UK, bringing together almost 2,000 of the country’s young athletes across 13 sports including netball, volleyball, rugby and football.

Jordan Butler – one of Chichester College’s pan-ability footballers – has been selected as the players’ male captain for the South East region and will be carrying the flag for the region during the opening ceremony, while lecturer David Daniel has been named as the male staff captain for the region.

Jordan said: “It’s just an honour. This is a great opportunity for me and I want to set an example for future generations to come.

“I’m feeling confident. We’ve been training hard as a team, and we want to go forwards and to do the college proud.

“I’ve been at the college for a number of years, and I just want to make everyone proud. I feel really blessed by all the amazing coaches, staff and lecturers who have been really supportive.”

Helen Loftus, Interim Principal at Chichester College, added: “We are extremely proud of both our pan-disability and volleyball teams and we wish them all the best of luck in the finals at University of Nottingham.

“For our volleyball team to reach the finals in their very first season is a tremendous accomplishment.

“And to see our pan-disability players come together to overcome their challenges – as a team – is inspirational.” 

The AoC Sport National Championships will take place from Friday 22 to Sunday 24 April at the University of Nottingham.

The Chichester College teams will be joined by two teams – Netball and Women’s Rugby – from Worthing College, who are also part of the Chichester College Group.

Andrew Green, Chief Executive at Chichester College Group, said: “We are absolutely delighted to see four teams from our colleges flying the flag for the South East region at the national finals.

“I know I speak for everyone across the group when I say we’ll all be rooting for them, and we wish them the best of luck. They are among the best teams from across the country – to qualify is a phenomenal achievement in itself and is testament to the hard work and determination of our players and their coaches.”