Oxford University Handball Club (OUHaC) was founded and registered as a club at the University of Oxford in 2001 and has since established itself as one of England's most successful clubs. It is a member of the England Handball Association since 2002 and the Association of British Universities Handball Clubs since 2011. Every year, OUHaC competes in the English Handball League, EHA Cup and the British University Championships.[1] Beginning in 2014, the club has played in the varsity match against the Cambridge University Handball Club.[2][3] In 2016 and 2017 respectively, the women's and men's teams were granted Half Blue status by the Blues committees of the University of Oxford.[4][5]
| Oxford University HC | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Full name | Oxford University Handball Club |
| Short name | OUHaC |
| Founded | 2001 |
| Arena | Iffley Road Sports Centre |
| President | Zoé Lacour |
| Head coach | Jan Kropf |
| League | Regional League - South |
| Club colours | |
| Website Official site | |
Teams
editMen's team
editThe men's team won the British University Championship title 9 times (in 2004–07, 2009, 2013, 2014, 2023 and 2024)[6][7] as well as the English National League in 2006, being the first ever university team in the history of English handball to win the National League title.[8][9][10] Additionally, they were the first university team to compete in the EHF Challenge Cup (2006–07 and 2007–08). They have also won two mixed English Beach Handball tournaments. The team won the EHA League Cup in 2016 and reached the semi-finals of the EHA National Cup in 2017.[11]
Women's team
editThe women's team was created within the club in 2003. The team's greatest achievements include winning the EHA National League 1st Division in 2015 and 2016 as well as the British University Championships in 2016. Moreover, they defeated the University of Cambridge in five consecutive Varsity matches from 2015 to 2019.[12]
International competitions
editThe men's team of the Oxford University Handball Club has participated twice in European competitions, the EHF Challenge Cup both in 2006 and 2007. They qualified for the first round as winners of the English league in 2006 and as winners of the cup in 2007.[13][14]
| Season | Date | Team 1 | Result | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006–07 | 29 September 2006 | B.B. Ankara SK | 38–14 | Oxford University HC |
| 30 September 2006 | Oxford University HC | 12–56 | RK Konjuh Namjestaj Zivinice | |
| 1 October 2006 | Riihimäki Cocks | 43–22 | Oxford University HC | |
| 2007–08 | 28 September 2007 | St Patrick's College | 25–24 | Oxford University HC |
| 29 September 2007 | Oxford University HC | 14–34 | Ankara Il Özel Idare SK | |
| 30 September 2007 | Arkatron Minsk | 39–19 | Oxford University HC |
Results summary
editMen's team
edit| Season | English League Division 1 | English League Division 2 (Regional) | EHA Cup/Shield | University Champs | Varsity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001-02 | - | - | - | 3rd | CUHC founded in 2013 |
| 2002-03 | - | - | - | 2nd | |
| 2003-04 | - | - | - | 1st | |
| 2004-05 | - | - | - | 1st | |
| 2005-06 | 1st | - | 3rd (Cup) | 1st | |
| 2006-07 | 3rd | - | 3rd (Cup) | 1st | |
| 2007-08 | 5th | - | 3rd (Cup) | 2nd | |
| 2008-09 | - | - | - | 1st | |
| 2009-10 | - | - | - | 4th | |
| 2010-11 | - | 1st | QF (Shield) | 2nd | |
| 2011-12 | 4th | - | - | 4th | |
| 2012-13 | - | - | 1st | ||
| 2013-14 | - | - | - | 1st | 32 - 26 |
| 2014-15 | - | - | - | - | 31 - 24 |
| 2015-16 | - | - | 1st (Shield) | 3rd[i] | 19 - 27 |
| 2016-17 | - | 2nd | SF (Cup) | [i] | 26 - 38 |
| 2017-18 | - | 1st | QF (Cup) | [i] | 29 - 31 |
| 2018-19 | - | - | - | [i] | 8 - 23 |
| 2019-20 | Cancelled due to COVID-19 | 3rd[i] | 26 - 32 | ||
| 2020-21 | Cancelled due to COVID-19 | 1st[i] | 36 - 30 | ||
| 2021-22 | - | 1st | - | 4th | 31 - 32 |
| 2022-23 | - | 1st | R2 (Cup) | 1st | 44 - 23 |
| 2023-24 | - | 1st | 39 - 7 | ||
Women's team
edit| Season | English League Division 2 (Regional) | English League Division 3 | EHA Cup | University Champs | Varsity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001-02 | - | - | - | - | CUHC founded in 2013 |
| 2002-03 | - | - | - | - | |
| 2003-04 | - | - | - | - | |
| 2004-05 | - | - | 2nd[i] | - | |
| 2005-06 | - | - | - | - | |
| 2006-07 | - | - | - | - | |
| 2007-08 | - | - | - | - | |
| 2008-09 | - | - | - | - | |
| 2009-10 | - | - | - | - | |
| 2010-11 | 1st[ii] | - | - | - | |
| 2011-12 | - | - | - | - | |
| 2012-13 | - | - | - | - | |
| 2013-14 | - | - | - | - | 12 - 23 |
| 2014-15 | 1st | - | - | 3rd | 31 - 21 |
| 2015-16 | 1st | - | - | 1st | 31 - 14 |
| 2016-17 | - | - | - | - | 27 - 21 |
| 2017-18 | - | 4th | - | - | 16 - 14 |
| 2018-19 | - | - | - | - | 25 - 15 |
| 2019-20 | Cancelled due to COVID-19 | 4th | 21 - 23 | ||
| 2020-21 | Cancelled due to COVID-19 | - | Forfeit | ||
| 2021-22 | - | 1st | - | 1st[iii] | 30 - 21 |
| 2022-23 | 3rd | - | - | 8th | 28 - 14 |
| 2023-24 | - | 7th | 24 - 19 | ||
References
edit- ^ "Handball". www.bucs.org.uk. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
- ^ Oxford University Sport: Spoils Shared In First Handball Varsity Matches on 17 February 2014
- ^ Cambridge Match Report, Club homepage.
- ^ Half Blues Sport (Oxford University Sport)
- ^ Oxford University Sports: "Handball Half Blue 7 awards maximum awarded by Club President"
- ^ "Handball Blues celebrate national success". The Oxford Student.
- ^ "Handball: Championships 2022-23". www.bucs.org.uk. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
- ^ "En Oxford se estudia, se rema, y se gana la liga de balonmano", Marca (Madrid), 17 Nov 2006.
- ^ Waz.de (paywall).
- ^ a b "Historic League Winners". Google Docs. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
- ^ EHA news, May 2017.
- ^ a b "Varsity". Oxford Handball. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
- ^ "Oxford University HC". Eurohandball. Archived from the original on 13 March 2021. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
- ^ Pressball.by, 2nd Oct 2007
- ^ "Fixtures & Results". Oxford Handball. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
- ^ "University Championships". Oxford Handball. Retrieved 24 May 2023.