National Cup, National Shield and NVL preview (14th and 15th November) - Last 32 ties take centre stage

There are 41 ties across the Women's and Men's National Cup and National Shield, with Last 16 places at stake. 

 

Women's National Cup 

There are just three Last 32 Women's National Cup ties with the rest of the teams receiving byes, but, of those, two feature MAAREE Women's Super League sides. 

Last year's fourth-placed side in the top tier who have started with two wins and a defeat this time, Malory Eagles, hosting Reading Aces, who have had a tough start in Division 1 South. 

Newly-promoted London Giants, meanwhile, make the trip up to Merseyside to face Division 1 Everton Belugas. 

There is also an interesting match-up between two teams hoping to win promotion from Division 1 North at the end of the season in the shape of Leeds Gorse and Cambridge ARU. 

 

Men's National Cup 

Team Essex Blaze are the only Super League representatives in the six Men's National Cup ties, playing on Sunday. 

They will look for a repeat of last week's first league victory at St John Payne School when last year's National Shield winners Darkstar Derbyshire visit. 

 

 

The other Sunday tie sees in-form table-topping Loughborough Students of Division 2 North, take on a Sheffield side who are also unbeaten and flying high in Division 1 North. 

First, on Saturday, four fixtures begin with the lunchtime encounter between Division 1 North's Black Country and London League side London Lionhearts. 

Also in action in the early afternoon are last season's beaten National Cup finalists Legends Oldham, of Division 3 North, who will bid to shock Division 1 North's Coventry and Warwick Riga. 

There's a long trip in prospect for early Division 1 North leaders Durham Palatinates, who journey south to take on Division 1 South's Dartford Crossers. 

A battle of two Division 1 South sides in Cambridge ARU and Bristol rounds off the day's fixtures. 

 

Women's National Shield 

Yorkshire and Division 2 North rivals Leeds Gorse 2 and Sheffield are among the raft of Women's National Shield fixtures set to be contested. 

Another side from the White Rose County are also ready to do battle as The Miners Doncaster, of Division 2 North, face Division 3 North Chester Amazons. 

Division 2 North pacesetters, Newcastle Staffs will start as favourites against Division 3 North's Nuneaton Flames, while Division 3 Central's unbeaten Cambridge 3 playing host to Essex Ravens. 

Cardiff Falcons are looking to bounce back quickly to Division 2 and the Division 3 South West side have a test of their credentials when they played Division 2 South's Wessex who have won both their league games so far. 

Bristol 2 have found the step up to Division 2 Central level a difficult proposition so far, but they have the opportunity to give their season some momentum with a Shield victory, though their match with unbeaten Wiltshire Mavericks is far from a foregone conclusion. 

DIvision 3 Central Northampton 2 take on non-NVL side Wapping Wildcats in the last Saturday game to get underway before Division 2 Central table toppers Bedminster meet DIvision 2 South Ashcombe and Dorking in Sunday's first game. 

Black Country will have home advantage in their clash with Division 2 Central and West Midlands rivals Tamworth Spartans, while Darkstar Derbyshire 2 will hope to continue their flying start in Division 3 North when they lock horns with Division 3 Central's Coventry and Warwick Riga. 

 

 

Division 3 North meets DIvision 2 North as Everton Dugongs and Manchester Liberators go head to head in the North West while St James School hosts the eagerly-anticipated game between unbeaten sides Rhinos Cambridge, of Division 3 Central, and Spelthorne Future Stars, second in Division 3 South East. 

Over in Kent, London Ravens, who are again unbeaten in Division 2 South after storming to promotion at Division 3 level will be keen to advance against the team currently bottom of their division in Dartford Chargers. 

The Herewoode Academy is the venue for Leicester Athena Nova's meeting with Wombourne, with the two sides currently occupying the bottom two places in Division 2 Central. 

Division 2 North's York Falcons head across the Pennines to meet Manchester Marvels Mystics from their own division while Division 3 South East meets Division 3 South West when Farnborough Phoenix and Bedminster 2 play in Hampshire. 

 

Men's National Shield 

A Manchester derby between Division 2 South's Manchester Liberators and Division 3 North's Manchester Marvels Marauders get things up and running in the men's National Shield competition on Saturday morning.  

At Lavington School, Wiltshire Mavericks, second in Division 3 South West, entertain non-NVL side Newbury. 

On the South Coast, Division 2 South's Weymouth will bid to bounce back from recent league disappointment when they host struggling Division 3 South West side Worthing.  

 

 

Midlands pair Nottingham Rockets, of Division 2 North, and Birmingham City, of Division 2 Central, will vie for superiority. 

Further north, Division 3 North Hull Thunder welcome non-NVL side University of Leeds, while in-form Division 2 North front runners Leeds Gorse 2 have home court advantage against Division 3 North's Liverpool.  

The majority of the men's ties – 10 – take place on Sunday, opening up with Bristol 2's clash with Team South Wales, who make the short trip across the Severn Bridge from Cardiff. 

Newmarket are three from three in Division 2 Central and can keep their good form going if they can get the better of Division 2 Central side Spelthorne Future Stars. 

Onyx London have only played one league game this season – winning it 3-2 – but the Division 2 South side are unlikely to have it all their own way against a Norwich Spikers side who are flying with six wins out of six in DIvision 3 Central. 

It's Division 3 South East against non-NVL as Guildford International meet Oxford Buffalos and another non-NVL side Sheffield 2 host Division 2 Central Leicester. 

Division 3 North Manchester Moss Side Jaguars host Division 2 North's Everton Dugongs as Division 3 Central's GNG Bedford go to South East's Newmarket 2. 

After picking up their first Division 2 South win last weekend, Kent Invicta head to Division 3 South East's Team Essex Estonians, who are still seeking their first victory of the season having played just one league match. 

The last two matches of the weekend pair non-NVL BDS Gurdwara Birmingham – previously winners against Nottingham Trent University – and Division 3 Central Darkstar Derbyshire 2 while non-NVL Rise go head to head with Division 3 Central's Tamworth Spartans 2.   

 

NVL  

With a busy calendar of knockout tournament matches, just four matches are scheduled in the NVL across the weekend. 

The inactivity of most other teams gives Team South Wales the opportunity to go top of Division 1 South if they can make it four victories from four at Eastern Community Campus when facing Oxford Eagles. 

The winner of the match between London Inter Crocs and Team Essex Trinity can also make real progress up the table. 

 

 

The other two matches are in Men's Division 1 South where London Aces will seek to go a full 15 points clear at the top with a magnificent seventh successive victory, this time hosting Oxford Bulls. 

Dartford Crossers and Southampton meet at Dartford Technology College knowing that whoever comes out on top will finish the weekend higher in the table. 

---

Find out more about the National Cup and Shield here.

Find out more about the NVL here.