On a Friday afternoon, in the yet empty spaces of the Arts Block — just a few days away from going back to being their usual, teeming selves with the return of old faces and influx of avid new ones — I had the pleasure of meeting with the president of the Trinity Ultimate Frisbee Club, Krishna Mahbubani, to learn and chat about the club. Ultimate Frisbee is hardly a sport that makes headlines; but, perhaps, one of the best things about studying at Trinity is just how easily one can enter into contact with less popular realities.
The basics of the sport are quite simple: two teams face off on a pitch, each trying to bring a disc — the frisbee that figures in the name — to the opposing end zone by passing it amongst its members. Yet, in all its apparent simplicity, Ultimate manages to combine athleticism and competitiveness with striking social chemistry. And this, Krishna argues, makes the perfect recipe for a fresher-friendly sport. “I mainly joined for the social aspect at first, but then the actual competitiveness is what kept me in it. It’s a sport where you can make it as competitive as you want it to be,” he says, speaking of why he would recommend it to other students. “It is quite beginner friendly. […] You can have a higher team with a very good social aspect and a very positive experience to it. Even the best players are the most welcoming.” The club is a place where you’ll find friends for life, and you will enter a network that will extend well beyond your college years.
One of the most outstanding characteristics of Ultimate is its lack of referees, even at the highest level, which is rooted in its countercultural origins. The sport favours collaboration as a way of resolving any issues which may arise on the pitch. This aspect, Krishna tells me, “allows for sportsmanship, honesty and also a good pure integral base in the sport, which I feel it’s something that’s rare in other sports. In some sports, you might have players who don’t always have the best intention, whereas in frisbee, you have to have that intention, otherwise you’d get negatively marked. There’s the competitive side, and then what we call the Spirit side”. This side is so important that the “Spirit of the Game” is awarded to the team which best embodies it at every tournament. And it is easy to see how such prizing of sportsmanship can enhance the student experience and foster personal growth.
It is now time, however, to turn our attention to the tournaments that are planned for this upcoming season. Like in previous years, the main focus will be Intervarsities. The first half of the season will be focused on Indoors, with the tournaments being usually held around late October and November. Then, in the second semester, the focus will pivot to Outdoors. For both sets of tournaments, Trinity will compete in all three divisions — Open’s (which is mainly men, though it can include female players, too), Women’s and Mixed. The captains and coaches will work on the team selection for all tournaments. Seeing as Indoor Intervarsities are rather early, these first two months will allow for them to spot those “diamonds in the rough and star players” among newcomers who will make it onto the first team.
The plan is to send at least two teams for each tournament. Captains and coaches “tend to select the best chemistry and ability players for the first team” Krishna explains. “The second team tends to be more of a developmental team, where players tend to be less experienced, but they are able to grow and develop more. Tournaments are the places where players are able to grow and develop most.” Teams are dynamic throughout the season, being selected anew for each tournament. This gives the opportunity to players who have different strengths and ability to shine throughout the year.
The goal for the season, naturally, is to try and win as many medals as possible at the Intervarsity tournaments. “Our captain this year, Euan Kinsella, is one of the brightest featured talents that we have. He’s only in second year now, so we have him for a few years, hopefully, to push our team to the highest level. We’re trying to build our mixed ability, to try and play mixed frisbee, as the ratio tends to be quite even between male and female players — it tends to be 50/50, which we’re quite proud of” says the president.
Another big goal for the year is to retain the Colours trophy. Last year, Trinity won the traditional match against UCD (which consists in an Open’s and a Women’s game) by winning the Open’s game and drawing the Women’s, so the hope for this season is to win both instead.
Prestigious tournaments, however, are not all that Trinity Ultimate has in store. There will also be some party tournaments throughout the year, “which are more focused on the fun side and the spirited aspect of the team”. Christmas Down Under will be in the first semester, with the Siege of Limerick later on. Trinity hosts its own beginner-focused tournament at the start of the season, Trinity Tea Party. Everyone, from beginners to experienced players, is welcome to join, and will learn a lot from taking part in it.
As far as official competitive tournaments are concerned, the club for now only competes at IVs and Colours, though some Trinity players and alumni can be found on teams which compete at national and international level. However, there is hope to broaden horizons for the club in the future, says Krishna. “Trinity are looking to go to some world tournaments over the summer, maybe, as we’ve seen with other [Irish] colleges, but costs tend to be quite high — so it would only be in the case of us getting grants or a higher budget to allow us to send these players where they can shine. We tend to stick to IV and those fun tournaments, for now.”
We cannot wrap this up without mentioning the social scene of the club. As the sport heavily relies on the chemistry among its players, social events are organised almost every other week; from casual post-training pints, to board game and Christmas nights, social gatherings are a crucial step for team-bonding in the lead up to tournaments, and a wonderful occasion to meet new friends from all over the world.
As we have seen, Trinity Ultimate seems to be in a good place as it gears up for the season. We wish them all success for the exciting ventures of this year, with the hope that the rewards from all the hard work and commitment that the players have already started to put in will be reaped along the way.
