In a clash of the titans, or Gladiators if you will, the University of Gloucestershire’s football and American football stars are meeting in the sport of the former for charity.
The two sides (a mix of the men and women’s football teams and the ‘Glads’) will meet at the university’s Plock Court sports campus on Friday afternoon in a bid to raise money for the charity Join Our Boys, who are attempting to combat Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD).
One of the members of the football team, James Workman, spoke to us at Park Life Sport ahead of the game, emphasising the fun nature of the event and reiterating a lack of seriousness when it comes to the game itself.
“I’m really excited. It’s nice to see two clubs come together that don’t usually talk to each other and hopefully this builds bonds for next year.”
Whilst the men’s football team beat the University of Worcester in Varsity 2026, the women’s side lost, and the Gladiators had their game cancelled after Worcester pulled out.
With the potential new bond forming between the two clubs, Varsity 2027 could end up being an even bigger show of the university’s comradery.
Talking about the game itself, Workman continued, “I think it will start tactical in the first 10 minutes, and then it’s all just going to be a free-for-all, I reckon. Score as many as you can, entertain the fans, really get the money for the charity.”
Said charity, Join Our Boys, were founded in 2014 with the ultimate goal of ensuring that a treatment or cure for all children diagnosed with DMD.
Whilst Workman may be optimistic when it comes to the event, his outlook towards his own performance is not so positive.
“I reckon I’m scoring none. They’re all going over the bar.”
Ending his talk with a prediction for the score at full-time, Workman added, “I think 12-4 to UoG football.”
Kick-off at Plock Court is at 3pm, so at 5 we should know for sure whether the UoG charity match ended up being quite as frantic as James Workman predicted.
