Gunisha Vig: “We’re aiming for first or second in the league”

In the competitive world of university sport, where the professionals of tomorrow compete at the highest level and to the finest margins, it’s easy to get caught up in the game and lose sight of what’s most important in what is supposed to be a unifying and entertaining experience for all involved: having fun.

That’s why it’s so refreshing to see the smiling face of Gunisha Vig, Warwick Women’s Lacrosse Captain, beaming back at me as I sit on the benches outside the Terrace Bar waiting to conduct an interview previewing what is a big year for one of Warwick’s largest sports clubs.

Starting with a massive home clash against the Loughborough second team, Warwick will then be taking on Nottingham seconds away from home, before a home game against Birmingham. All in the hope of winning their division, the Midlands 1A league. Gunisha is in full kit and I can see she’s itching to get to training with her team mates, so I begin quickly.

Warwick begin their season with a massive home clash against the Loughborough second team

Boar Sport: Hi Gunisha, let’s start with a bit about you. Did you play lacrosse before coming to Warwick and what attracted you to the sport?

Gunisha Vig: I came from a school where lacrosse was really big. It was the main sport that everyone played and got involved with. I was always sporty from junior school and was involved for the full seven years from when I joined to when I finished sixth form. I was hooked very quickly.

B: Has there been a lot of interest from Freshers and other new lacrosse players this year?

GV: This year has been unbelievable for lacrosse! At the sports fair we had 353 people sign up, and at the girls’ taster session we had 60 attend; 15 of which had played before. That’s the best we’ve ever had!

B: What are your hopes and expectations for the coming year? Is promotion your main aim?

GV: Last year we lost a lot of players from our first team, so we were thinking that this might be a year of transition and development. But in our pre-season tournament we came third, which was a great achievement. I think we can definitely aim for first or second in our league.

B: Is your style of play this year going to differ from previous years?

GV: Yeah last year we had two players who were in the England Ladies team, so a lot of our play went through them. It was still team orientated, but this year we hope for it to be even more so as all of our players are a similar quality. There’s a great balance.

B: Which teams to do you think will provide the toughest opposition? Loughborough will surely be a very tough proposition…

GV: Oxford are a great team, and Loughborough have recently been promoted from their division so they’ll be a new challenge. Both are really good universities for sport.

B: How have you found juggling the responsibility of being a captain with your degree?

GV: I’ve been quite lucky, as an Economics student, that I haven’t had that much work yet. The first two weeks, with the sports fair, taster sessions and picking the new team, have been really intense with lacrosse. Hopefully by the time my degree starts to pick up in week three lacrosse will start to settle down. I obviously love lacrosse so it’s been easier.

B: What kind of special qualities does the role of captain require?

GV: I think getting people encouraged and enthusiastic is the most important thing. We sometimes play late at night and in bad weather, so Louise, my vice-captain, and I want to make sure our team enjoy it. School lacrosse was intense so we wanted to have more fun at uni.

B: When and where can we catch your games on campus?

GV: We play every Wednesday at 2pm. We’re at home on the Cryfield pitches on every odd week of term!

B: Thanks, Gunisha. Good luck for this season!