We are recapping the first three club events of the 2023-2024 season, analyzing the first relative ranking index (RRI), and previewing exciting matchups and revenge games. Get ready for an action-packed ride!

Remembrance Day

Digu and Urchins made their return to the 4v4 Circuit. Digu showed an impressive improvement with a +208 compared to last year’s Circuit, while Urchins had a tough start with -184. Despite this, Urchins did not lack chemistry and posted wins over Quadstapus and Core 4. Both teams beat Digu by 2, suggesting that the 11-6 game between Digu and Urchins did not accurately reflect the abilities of either team. We may see a tighter rematch between Digu (led by Freddy Lyu from Houndd) and Urchins (led by Ian Dowling-Smout from Mixed Barries) at Jingle January.

Quadstapus, led by Amy Minnikin from PPF, represents Waterloo and has players from Maverick, PPF, and Queen Ps. It is unclear if the team will return to move the needle on their ranking.

Northbound, a second Barrie team, tied for first in Spirit with Urchins, winning the tournament in Spirit and game scores. Rebecca Robitaille from King Bear leads the team, which comprises touring players from Force, Union, and King Bear. They finished second overall of 16 teams in the Circuit Rankings and will have a target on their back at Jazzy January when they match up against almost all returning teams like SGS, Melt, Core 4, and Sour. Expect the Sour and Northbound game to be a nailbiter, with each team needing to fight hard to gain the upper edge.

Core 4, led by John Agda from Maverick, establishes themselves in the middle of the pack with a ranking of 761, playing close games with Urchins and Digu.

SPF 50++, led by Matthew Lam from PIPE, has players from Incognito and Danger Noodle. They had a strong performance at their first 4v4 Circuit event and might maintain a strong ranking with results from Remembrance Day and Dreamy December. However, with no other plans yet to defend their ranking, their results from these events will decay and bring their ranking down.

Nefarious November

SGS, Grand River Book Club, and Melt returned to the 4v4 Circuit with upgraded rosters ready to make a splash. SGS established in the inaugural RRI season in 2017, led by Nicolas Edwards and Lucy Chu, and Melt established the following year in 2018, led by Stephanie Hall from Crux. SGS and Grand River Book Club post similar rankings to last season’s rankings, 1100 (-67) and 1072 (+101) respectively. At Jazzy January, they will compete against Remembrance Day 4v4 champion, Northbound (1467), and another top-ranking team, Sour from Bowmanville (1409). Rankings suggest that Barrie and Bowmanville will maintain a 4-5 point win over the Circuit veterans, but expect the shooters to come out firing that day.

Melt looked naturally comfortable on the 4v4 field and had a surprising 1-point loss to a young taco hub team led by Leah Tackberry-Giddens (from 6ixers and Union). Taco hub sustained a couple of injuries that day and could not hold onto their momentum after their close win, but won Spirit for the tournament. Chilly Dawgz also made their debut in the Circuit, comprised of talent from university series, Local 613, and Axiom and headed by Jacob McKee from GT.

Golfi gets it sold made a splash at Nefarious November, a top-tier roster led by Amanda Hadwen from 6ixers and Team Canada in Australia at the World Ultimate Championships next year. They started with a tight +2 win over veterans SGS, then dominant wins over the rest of the pack, finishing with +4 against both taco hub and Grand River Book Club. At Flashy February, we’ll see Golfi gets it sold face off against SGS and Grand River Book Club in a revenge rematch, and they’ll also take on Sour, who currently edges them out by +95 in ranking. This could be a universe point matchup!

Dreamy December

Lucky Huckers made their second appearance in the 4v4 Circuit and improved their ranking significantly, despite ending the tournament with a 1-4 record. Sanjay Parker’s team comprises players from Incognito, Crank, Zen, Remix, and Houndd.

BUBS, led by Jamee Nepom, a UNION captain, made a strong debut in the Ontario 4v4 Circuit. Even with core players away at the Pan American Ultimate Championships, they noted that “every point matters” in the RRI and logged dominant wins across the tournament.

The closest match to BUBs was against Royal City Flatball from Guelph, with a score of 17-9. Led by Nate Hunter, the rookie 4v4 team is self-described as a “veteran touring team members who are now older, slower, and way more shifty” and brings together Notorious KWG, old Crash, and players doing double duty, such as Amy Minnikin who captains Quadstapus. They tied for first in Spirit with SPF 50++ and ranked third in the event’s RRI, based on a 1-point loss to Sour from Bowmanville.

Digu made their second appearance in the Circuit but struggled to fight as several players went down with injuries. In the first round, they played tight with Sour at 10-12, but eventually, the small roster took its toll, and they lost steam for the rest of the day. Certainly, a healthy roster suggests they would play closer to the top of the rankings, but that is part of the challenge.

Sour, sitting at fourth overall, is led by Kelly-Anne Fagan who played with OLU this summer. Sour brings together players from Foxx, Dinner at 4, and Houndd. Their day started shaky with only a +2 win over Digu who finished 594 at the tournament, and a -11 loss to BUBS, who set themselves apart from the crowd, but later posted confident wins over SPF 50++’s second showing and Lucky Huckers. The 1-point win over Royal City Flatball pulls these two teams slightly higher in ranking over the rest of the field.

Meanwhile, SPF 50++ had a 1-point loss to Royal City Flatball, but the larger gaps in their losses and not-as-large wins pushed them to -118 below Royal City Flatball.

That’s a wrap for the first three tournaments in the Club division of the Ontario 4v4 Circuit! The next three tournaments are sold out, and we’ll see exciting matchups that will sure to shake up the rankings. We see many teams back hungry for a fight, and four new teams to the Circuit. There is still room in March Mayhem and March Madness, so be sure to register (and pay) to lock in your spot and get ranked across provincial competition.