Sheffield’s University Challenge team have reached the competition’s quarter-finals for the first time since 2011 earning their spot by beating the University of Aberdeen in their second round tie.
Team captain, Cameron Colclough, has spoken to Forge Press about their success.
Colclough described how his team are feeling following their win.
“We’re elated, albeit pretty bruised! Our second-round match stretched our knowledge a lot more than our previous one”.
He is keen to express that their progress has been a joint effort.
“We’ve each contributed to our success, and that’s one of the key reasons as to why I am so proud”.
In preparation for their upcoming quarter-final, Colclough states his side have a clear focus on “practice games, practice games and yet more practice games!”
“Isobel, our fifth member, has really been putting the shift in to read us all those questions. We wouldn’t be anywhere without her!”
The University of Sheffield has never won an edition of the BBC-run tournament, and finishing as runners-up in 2008 remains the institution’s record performance.
Given this record, the captain is realistic about the prospect of winning the prestigious title: “There are real quality teams in this next round, so whilst we have proven ourselves, we’re not naïve about the task we face.”
“Our second game definitely put into perspective how tough winning [future] matches will be”.
The team kicked off this year’s run with a first-round win over Loughborough University in September 2023.
The exact date of the quarter-finals has not yet been confirmed.
