The University’s men’s football first team are determined to finish their British Universities Championship campaign on a high by lifting the trophy in the final on May 11, according to coach Douglas Samuel.

Samuel told The Student: “I’m feeling extremely excited about it. It’s been a memorable campaign so far, having defeated some of the biggest university teams in England. We’ve thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

“It’s fair to say that most people expect us to lose. We’re under no illusions. We’re going in against one of the biggest guns in university football as the underdog, but that was the case where we went to play Leeds and when we played Birmingham. I don’t think that holds any fear for us. If anything, I think that makes the proposition more exciting.”

Samuel said that it would “fantastic” for the team to bring a large travelling support, and praised University fans for their dedication in travelling to the Highlands for the Scottish Cup replay against Brora earlier in the season. “I know that the players and all the staff really appreciate people making the effort to be there and it does make a difference,” he added.

Regardless of the result, the team will take away a wealth of memories from the campaign. “God, there’s so many [memories],” Samuel said. “When we played at Peffermill for the quarter-final of the British Championship [against Warwick], to see Peder [Beck-Friis] score the winner with two or three minutes to go, when I thought we’d been the better side, and dominated but not taken our chances, was pretty special. Scoring a late equaliser against Bournemouth was special too. Those two are the highs that jump out.

“There’s also been some lows in there too. I think you’ve got to learn how to win by tasting some painful defeats along the way.”

The firsts’ preparations for the final have not been entirely smooth, however. Some members of the squad have exams and placements scheduled, and Samuel is negotiating for their release for the game. “Just now we expect the bulk of the squad available. We’re hoping that both the University and the schools that are hosting placements can be flexible and allow for the release of one or two of our players,” he said.

Some star players may also sit out the team’s four remaining games in the East of Scotland League, where the side currently sits in third place, three points behind Stirling University. Samuel said: “We’ve got a tough run-in and I think it’s only right that we prioritise what’s left for us, so we won’t be taking any risks with any of our key players in the remaining league games before the British Championship final. We’ve had opportunities in recent weeks to have collected more points, and unfortunately we haven’t been able to take those opportunities. I think that second place might be out of our reach now.”

A number of familiar faces will be leaving at the end of the season, including prolific Swedish goalscorer Peder Beck-Friis. The club is already talking to “two or three” young players about playing for the University team next year, and some pre-season games have already been arranged. “It’s important that we plan and train at the performance standards we have set,” Samuel said. “That will be extremely difficult as we lose some key players.”