Varsity 2026: Eleven heaven for men’s hockey to complete morning double for Warwick

There was further hockey success for Warwick at Varsity 2026, as the men’s side dispatched Coventry by a score of 11-1 to secure their 33rd straight victory in the annual competition.

With players of both sides having watched the closing stages of Warwick Women’s Hockey’s earlier 9-1 win, the atmosphere was certainly swaying in the away side’s favour inside Coventry’s hockey pitches. A cooler of Red Bull – never too far away from any student event – kept fans and athletes refreshed, and both sets of players blasted warm up anthems from competing speakers.

Coventry came into the game one man lighter than Warwick’s eleven, and were soon made to pay in the opening exchanges. Coventry’s keeper was forced to make a low save after one minute of play, and when his last defender was dispossessed in the third minute, he could do nothing to prevent Warwick from opening the scoring.

Warwick converted a penalty corner in the seventh minute to double their advantage, before another corner ended up in the net seven minutes later, courtesy of a deflection from the edge of the box.

Coventry did well to deny further blows shortly after, with the home keeper palming the ball out of harms way with his pad after a quick Warwick counter. The home side held on for much of the first half with the score at 3-0, with Warwick denied goals on two occasions for fouls.

Warwick ended up playing some of their best hockey in front of a lighter crowd

The floodgates couldn’t hold forever, and shortly before the break Warwick rallied to match the score of the Women’s side an hour or so earlier. A fast break from Warwick created a fourth from close range, and on the stroke of half time poor defending let Warwick in again to make it five.

The atmosphere was decidedly muted for the remainder of the game, with many Warwick fans moving on to pursue other varsity commitments. The arrival of Sports VP Louis Gosling to cheer on the team was a plus, and Warwick ended up playing some of their best hockey in front of the lighter crowd.

A first yellow card of the morning for Warwick did little to halt their attacking momentum. A sixth goal was fired into the top left corner around 10 minutes after the restart, and Warwick may have found themselves further in front shortly after, save some very committed Coventry defending.

A seventh goal would come after 55 minutes, followed by an eighth within 60 seconds. Just as Warwick seemed to be cruising to victory, Coventry got their goal. A free kick was sent into the back of the net via a hefty deflection, and although Warwick took it on the chin, they were evidently frustrated to lose out on a clean sheet.

Warwick Hockey can take pride in contributing vital points to the Varsity tally

Warwick translated their frustration into three more goals to see out the game. The ball trickled over the line moments later to make the score 9-1, and in the final five minutes Warwick’s pressure resulted in two more close range chances and goals. Coventry still showed flashes even in the final minutes of the game, but their only remaining attack threatened little aside from a poorly placed pitch-side salad.

With the men’s final score in the double figures, Warwick Hockey can take pride in contributing vital points to the Varsity tally in comfortable fashion. After plenty of joy on an otherwise cold and dreary morning, UWMHC will already be looking forward to doing it all again next year.