In a gritty, defensive slugfest that came down to the final whistle, the University of Sheffield Sabres ended over a decade of frustration on Friday night, defeating cross-town rivals Sheffield Hallam University 10-9.
The victory marks the Sabres’ first Varsity win over the Warriors in 15 years, a historic milestone for a programme that had been dominated by its local rival for nearly a generation.
Under perfect football weather and a buzzing atmosphere at the SHU Sports Park, the 2026 edition of the Varsity Steel Bowl defied regular-season expectations.
Hallam has defeated Uni of in both of their regular season matchups, including a 50-0 demolition in Week 5. Despite that, Sheffield Giants head coach Adam Berry, in attendance, has predicted a much closer contest, citing the intense pressure of the rivalry.
Hallam took the lead in the first half
The first half was a defensive standoff. The Sabres’ defensive unit set the tone early, feeding off the energy of a boisterous sideline chanting “DEFENCE” to force a critical fourth-down stop near midfield on Hallam’s opening drive
Not to be outdone, the Warriors got equally as loud, as their stern defence also forced their opponents to stall in their first drive.
Hallam’s offence struggled early as the Sabres’ secondary effectively clamped the Warriors’ wide receivers, forcing quarterback Jimmy Allen into several errant throws. However, two roughing the kicker penalties bailed out the Warriors, who then marched on down the pitch with a series of big runs. Unfortunately, they could not punish Uni of’s costly mistakes as their own penalties forced them out of field goal range.
Hallam wouldn’t have to wait long to find paydirt. Their run game answered the fans’ call minutes into the second quarter with a big-time play from Samuel Reeksgrant. He rumbled through the Sabres’ defenders, breaking tackles before finding the endzone as the sideline erupted.
The celebration was slightly muted, however, when the Sabres blocked Harvey Evans’ extra-point attempt, a play that would ultimately loom large over the final score.
Uni of nearly tied things up before the half when Marcus Deaves broke out a big run of his own on third down to set them up near the red zone. But the Hallam defence, captained by a relentless Djoss Balela, remained impenetrable, tipping a field goal attempt to preserve a 6-0 lead heading into the break.
A second half to remember
After an energetic performance from the Sabrecats, both teams returned for the last two quarters, with Sheffield Sabres having the ball first.
Phil Jarrett went straight to the ground, utilising his amazing one-two punch, Marcus Deaves and Cooper Massingham. A great work from the OL and the RB duo, who kept on finding the second level and brought a second trip to the redzone for the Sabres.
This time, nothing was going to deny them their first points of the game. Marcus Deaves punched it in from the 1-yard line before finishing things off with an extra point to give the Sabres their first lead of the day.
Down 6-7, Hallam immediately fired back. Jimmy Allen showed off his wheels with a designated QB keeper before finding his trusty wideout Jhamar McDonald for the first down near midfield.
Facing a fourth down later in the drive, Hallam’s head coach Matt Flynn decided to keep his offence on the field. A gutsy jet sweep call for McDonald set up an eventual field goal to regain the lead, 9-7.
The momentum seemed to shift back to Hallam as “The Slim Reaper” Balela continued his dominant performance, recording a sack on Luke Howkins that led to a quick three-and-out. But the Warriors couldn’t capitalise on the ensuing offensive possession.
In a nightmarish turn of events for Hallam, a series of self-inflicted penalties and missed opportunities, including a muffed punt that Balela narrowly failed to recover, allowed the Sabres to march back down the field. The drive ended with a cleanly converted field goal, giving the Sabres a 10-9 lead with less than two minutes remaining.
With less than two minutes left in the game, it was the last chance for Hallam to orchestrate a game-winning drive. Allen found McDonald, but he dropped the ball near the sideline. To make matters worse, another ill-advised penalty pushed Hallam back to a “third and forever” situation. The Sabres remained disciplined enough to neutralise the Hail Mary attempt.
The University of Sheffield claimed a monumental victory
This 10-9 scoreline was a result of a hard-fought defensive battle. Tears of joy had been shed on the eyes of some players.
Sabres’ head coach Phil Jarrett said he did not have to do much to motivate this group of players and only needed to get the ball moving a bit more, which they did to get the touchdown and the game-winning field goal.
Captain Luke Howkins praised his defence and running backs: “The run game was insane, the two running backs, Marcus and Cooper, they’re just unreal. Everything goes to them and the defence.”
“We’re gonna go out tonight, celebrate well. Everyone is overjoyed.”
“I can’t even describe how it feels,” said Marcus Deaves, the hero for the Sabres, “To be the person who got the point [touchdown], I’m so proud.”
Deaves did not forget to praise his backfield partnership, who were instrumental to the team’s win: “I could not ask for a better fresher. He’s just a pleasure to be on the pitch with.”
For the University of Sheffield, the 10-9 victory is more than just a win. It’s the reclaiming of the Steel Bowl and a definitive statement in one of the region’s most storied sporting rivalries. And they are ready to run it back next year.
But for Sheffield Hallam, this defeat definitely hurts quite a bit more. Head coach Matt Flynn rued the self-inflicted mistakes but also credited their opponents: “Flags, bad decision-making in key moments just killed our drives and put them in great field positions.
“The game we threw away, but they fully deserved it. They are the more disciplined team. But it sucks to lose.”
Hallam’s QB Jimmy Allen reflected on the game: “A lot of [passing game struggles] were on me. I made the right read, but couldn’t get it to them. And it just adds up.”
But he is determined to bounce back, as long as he still stands behind centre for Hallam: “They get their win tonight, but we will not let them for the foreseeable future. As long as I’m here, I’m gonna try my best to do that.”
One of Hallam’s best stars, Djoss Balela, was disappointed to go out without winning, but he was proud of what his team had achieved. He said: “Extreme disappointment, but also just pride. The boys have come a long, long way. We’ve faced a lot of challenges, a lot of obstacles, but they all played with pride and showed the Hallam spirit.”
“Just not the way I wanted to go out with. I’ve been here four years, won every Varsity so far, but that’s just how the ball rolls sometimes. But congrats to Uni of, they played really, really well today. They deserved it today.”
