The Development Cup, also known as Dev Cup, is a British quidditch tournament that runs parallel to the annual British Quidditch Cup, catering for those teams that did not qualify for the latter. The tournament is organised by QuidditchUK, the sport's national governing body, and follows International Quidditch Association rules. The inaugural event, held on 29–30 April 2017, was won by the Liverpuddly Cannons from Liverpool.
Structure The Development Cup consists of a round-robin of all nine teams, in order to give each side the maximum amount of competitive experience.
First tournament, April 2017 The first annual Development Cup took place on the 29–30 April 2017 at Horspath Athletics Ground in Oxford. There were nine teams in attendance. Four of whom, the Liverpuddly Cannons, St. Andrews Snidgets, Holyrood Hippogriffs, and UCLan Quidditch entered after coming in the bottom four places at Northern Cup 2016. The only team from Southern Cup 2016 to not qualify for British Quidditch Cup 2017 in this manner was The Flying Chaucers from the University of Kent. They declined to attend the Development Cup or any team event for the remainder of that season. Also amongst the teams at Dev Cup were those who had either failed to attend regionals or whose teams had been created after. The newly minted seconds teams of the Sheffield Quidditch Club and the London Unspeakables competed as well as the Bournemouth Banshees, Glasgow Grim Reapers, and Bath Quidditch Club.
For several sides, including Bath and Glasgow, it was the first tournament they had competed at. Liverpool and Edinburgh would go essentially unchallenged for the entire event, their match against each other being the only snitch-range game (played within 30 points) either would contest over the weekend. They went 7-0 and 6-1 respectively and won gold and silver. Bath established themselves in third place with a 5-3 record, which included a double-overtime result against London.
Bath Quidditch Club 190* 20 Sheffield Steelfins Bournemouth Banshees 40 100* Preston Poltergeists Glasgow Grim Reapers 30 90* London Unbreakables Holyrood Hippogriffs 2nds 50 60* Liverpuddly Cannons St Andrews Snidgets 110* 40 Sheffield Steelfins Bath Quidditch Club 220* 50 Bournemouth Banshees Glasgow Grim Reapers 10 130* Holyrood Hippogriffs 2nds London Unbreakables 60 60* Preston Poltergeists **
Indicates that this score included a snitch-catch during regulation play. ^Indicates that this score included a snitch-catch during overtime play. London defeated Preston 100^-60 in overtime. Bath defeated London 100^*-70 in double overtime. Preston defeated Glasgow 70-60 in double overtime.
Final standings The final standings at the end of the tournament were: PlacementTeam1stLiverpuddly Cannons 2ndHolyrood Hippogriffs Seconds 3rdBath Quidditch Club4thLondon Unbreakables5thSt Andrews Snidgets6thPreston Poltergeists7thGlasgow Grim Reapers8thBournemouth Banshees9thSheffield Steelfins
Second Tournament, April 2018 The second Development Cup took place on the 14–15 April 2018 at the University of York. It did not follow the round-robin format of its predecessor, instead utilising a rotating pool structure followed by a knockout bracket. The rotating pool format, known as the 'Naftel Slide', would seed a Pod 1 team into each of four pools with two unseeded opponents. After an initial round-robin, the top team in each pool 'slid' into the pool to the left, and the bottom team similarly moved to the right.
Development Cup 2018 featured 13 teams, most of whom having attended their respective regional tournament but not having qualified for the British Quidditch Cup. Three teams were 'mercenary' squads formed from the merger of two existing clubs who had been unable to field a full roster alone. The teams were grouped as follows: +Pool APool BPool CPool DGlasgow Grim ReapersSt Andrews SnidgetsBath Quidditch ClubOxford QuidlingsStirling RidgebacksPreston PoltergeistsNorthern Wyverns - BelfastManchester MinotaursNorthern LightsLondon UnbreakablesSheffield Sea LionsThe Flying CatapultsDerby Daemons
First round The first round of gameplay proceeded as follows: +Pool A Pool BPool CPool DTeam 1ScoreTeam 2Team 1ScoreTeam 2Team 1ScoreTeam 2Team 1ScoreTeam 2Glasgow Grim Reapers 110*-40Northern LightsSt Andrews Snidgets 30-130* London UnbreakablesBath Quidditch Club 70*-60 Northern Wyverns BelfastOxford Quidlings 30-100* Derby DaemonsGlasgow Grim Reapers 130*-60Stirling RidgebacksSt Andrews Snidgets 160*-40 Preston PoltergeistsBath Quidditch Club 100*-40 Sheffield Sea LionsThe Flying Catapults 130-60*Manchester MinotaursNorthern Lights 110-120* Stirling RidgebacksLondon Unbreakables 80-40*Preston PoltergiestsNorthern Wyverns Belfast 120-40* Sheffield Sea LionsOxford Quidlings 90*-40 The Flying CatapultsDerby Daemons 150*-30 Manchester MinotaursOxford Quidlings 110-30* Manchester MinotaursDerby Daemons 130*-30 The Flying Catapults
Second round The teams at the top of each pool; Glasgow, London, Bath and Derby, all as-yet undefeated, moved one place to the left, whilst the bottom teams (including the bottom two teams from Pool D) moved one place to the right. The new pools thus constructed were; Pool APool BPool CPool DLondon UnbreakablesBath Quidditch ClubDerby DaemonsGlasgow Grim ReapersStirling RidgebacksSt Andrews SnidgetsNorthern Wyverns - BelfastOxford QuidlingsThe Flying CatapultsNorthern LightsPreston PoltergeistsSheffield Sea LionsManchester Minotaurs This led to a second round of pool play with the following results: Pool A Pool BPool CPool DTeam 1ScoreTeam 2Team 1ScoreTeam 2Team 1ScoreTeam 2Team 1ScoreTeam 2Stirling Ridgebacks 80*-60 London UnbreakablesNorthern Lights60-110* St Andrews SnidgetsPreston Poltergeists 0-90* Northern Wyverns BelfastGlasgow Grim Reapers 100-30*Sheffield Sea LionsLondon Unbreakables 140*-10Manchester MinotaursNorthern Lights 20-90* Bath Quidditch ClubPreston Poltergeists 10-110* Derby DaemonsGlasgow Grim Reapers 90*-40Oxford QuidlingsStirling Ridgebacks 140-150* The Flying CatapultsSt Andrews Snidgets 70*-20 Bath Quidditch ClubNorthern Wyverns Belfast100*-60 Derby DaemonsSheffield Sea Lions 40*-100 Oxford QuidlingsStirling Ridgebacks 130*-10Manchester MinotaursLondon Unbreakables 100*-30 The Flying Catapults
Final rounds Following this second stage of pool play, the teams were divided between those who had played four games and those who had played five. The top four teams in each category entered a single-elimination bracket, whilst the bottom five played a consolation round comprising play-in elimination matches and a round-robin of the three surviving teams. The tournament was won in a commanding fashion by the Glasgow Grim Reapers, who defeated an injury-laden Bath Quidditch Club 160*-0. Meanwhile the St Andrews Snidgets picked up Bronze over the Oxford Quidlings.
Final standings PlacementTeam1st Glasgow Grim Reapers 2ndBath Quidditch Club 3rdSt Andrews Snidgets4thOxford Quidlings5thLondon Unbreakables6thDerby Daemons7thNorthern Wyverns Belfast8thStirling Dumyat Dragons9thNorthern Lights10thPreston Poltergeists11thThe Flying Catapults12thSheffield Sealions13thManchester Minotaurs
Third tournament, March 2019 The third Development Cup took place on the 2–3 March 2019 at the Salford Sports Village in Manchester. 11 teams competed over the weekend and three slots at the British Quidditch Cup in April 2019 were available for the winners. These were claimed by Winchester Wampus, London Unstoppables and the Chester Centurions (although Winchester Wampus did not attend BQC 2019). There were also coaching workshops scheduled over the weekend with the aim to help improve teams' skills and knowledge on topics such as ball handling, contact and refereeing. PlacementTeam1st Winchester Wampus 2ndLondon Unstoppables 3rdChester Centurions4thLoughborough Longshots5thCambridge University QC6thKeele Squirrels7thStirling Dumyat Dragons8thManchester Minotaurs9thSheffield Steelfins10thBangor Broken Broomsticks11thFalmouth Falcons
Fourth tournament, March 2020 The fourth Development Cup took place on the 7–8 March 2020 and was again held at the Salford Sports Village in Manchester. 9 teams competed over the weekend, with three slots available for the winners at the upcoming British Quidditch Cup in April 2020. However BQC 2020 ended up being cancelled due to COVID-19. Just like in the previous tournament, various coaching workshops were run over the weekend. In phase 1, teams were split into three groups of 3 teams each and played in a round-robin style. Phase 3 consisted of a knockout tournament to determine the final winner.
The full results were as follows:
Phase 1 - Group stage Group AGroup BGroup CTeam 1ScoreTeam 2TimeTeam 1ScoreTeam 2TimeTeam 1ScoreTeam 2TimeManchester Minotaurs230 - 30*Kent Quidditch Club42:16Durhamstrang0 - 150*London Unbreakables28:39Radcliffe Chimeras220* - 0Sheffield Steelfins27:51Bangor Broken Broomsticks80* - 0Manchester Minotaurs21:07London Unbreakables140* - 0Stirling Dumyat Dragons22:49Radcliffe Chimeras150* - 40Swansea Scorpions30:07Bangor Broken Broomsticks160 - 60*Kent Quidditch Club33:19Durhamstrang120* - 50Stirling Dumyat Dragons19:42Sheffield Steelfins40 - 190*Swansea Scorpions25:36 +Group rankingsPlacementGroup AGroup BGroup CTeamWLTeamWLTeamWL1stBangor Broken Broomsticks20London Unbreakables20Radcliffe Chimeras202ndManchester Minotaurs11Durhamstrang11Swansea Scorpions113rdKent Quidditch Club02Stirling Dumyat Dragons02Sheffield Steelfins02
Phase 2 Team 1ScoreTeam 2TimeBangor Broken Broomsticks120* - 10Durhamstrang22:33Swansea Scorpions120 - 40*Kent Quidditch Club29:38Bangor Broken Broomsticks220* - 10Sheffield Steelfins27:25Radcliffe Chimeras170* - 30Manchester Minotaurs20:54London Unbreakables110* - 50Swansea Scorpions20:51Radcliffe Chimeras160 - 60*Stirling Dumyat Dragons27:10Durhamstrang180* - 10Sheffield Steelfins22:37London Unbreakables200* - 30Kent Quidditch Club23:44Manchester Minotaurs200* - 40Stirling Dumyat Dragons41:10
Phase 3 - Knockout tournament/Consolidation Round Robin
+Consolidation Round RobinTeam 1ScoreTeam 2TimeStirling Dumyat Dragons70 - 50*Kent Quidditch Club38:39Stirling Dumyat Dragons90°° - 70*°Sheffield Steelfins38:53Kent Quidditch Club120° - 30°Sheffield Steelfins45:00
Final standings PlacementTeamStage1st Radcliffe Chimeras Final2ndLondon Unbreakables Final3rdBangor Broken BroomsticksSemi-final4thSwansea ScorpionsSemi-final5thManchester MinotaursQuarter-final6thDurhamstrangQuarter-final7thStirling Dumyat DragonsConsolidation Round Robin8thKent QCConsolidation Round Robin9thSheffield SteelfinsConsolidation Round Robin
Fifth tournament, April 2022 Due to COVID-19, no Development Cup took place in 2021. The fifth tournament took place on 23 April 2022 at the Derby Rugby Club in Derby. 3 teams competed over the day with Bangor Broken Broomsticks winning the tournament.
The full results were as follows: Round Robin 1Round Robin 2Team 1ScoreTeam 2TimeTeam 1ScoreTeam 2TimeBangor Broken Broomsticks110 - 50*Bristol Bears23:02Bristol Bears170 - 40*Glasgow Grim Reapers27:33Bristol Bears120* - 0Glasgow Grim Reapers19:00Bangor Broken Broomsticks120* - 60Bristol Bears18:51Bangor Broken Broomsticks180* - 20Glasgow Grim Reapers18:13Bangor Broken Broomsticks170* - 30Glasgow Grim Reapers
Final standings PlacementTeam1st Bangor Broken Broomsticks 2ndBristol Bears 3rdGlasgow Grim Reapers
Sixth tournament, April 2023 The sixth Development Cup is scheduled to take place on 15 April 2023 in Derby.
References