The event will feature more than 1,600 competitors from across Queensland and northern New South Wales.
The NUG event is one of four regional University Games held simultaneously across Australia, with a range of sports serving as qualifiers for 2017 Australian University Games (AUG) on the Gold Coast (24-29 September).
UQ will field a total of seven teams at NUG, competing in Basketball, Beach Volleyball, Hockey, Futsal, Golf, and Touch.
Team UQ will be captained by Women’s Hockey player Alice Lane, who led UQ at 2016 AUG in Perth.
Lane said it is an honour to be selected as team captain for a second time.
“We had outstanding results at AUG last year with Team UQ finishing sixth overall and Queensland’s top-performing university, so we’re looking forward to again proving ourselves at NUG,” Lane said.
“We have a relatively small team heading away to Rockhampton with UQ expected to field around 20 sports at AUG, but I’ll definitely be encouraging our representatives to get around and support all of UQ’s teams.”
Lane will feature for Team UQ’s Women’s Hockey side, which claimed a silver medal at 2016 NUG on the Sunshine Coast.
“Our team is looking really strong this year, and having the UQ Synthetic Fields Precinct on campus has made it so much easier to train as a team more regularly,” Lane said.
“It’s always hard to know what opposition you’re coming up against, but we’ll definitely go out there and give it our all.”
UQ’s Mixed Touch team head to NUG as a serious medal contender.
The team won gold at 2016 AUG, going through the tournament undefeated, as well as a silver medal at last year’s NUG event.
Mixed Touch captain James Sharp said the squad has experienced a major shakeup since its AUG gold medal triumph.
“After breaking the Touch Football gold medal drought last year in Perth, our team has had a high turnover for Rockhampton,” Sharp said.
“That being said, we’re really looking forward to welcoming back a few old faces as well as a number of new players who will be coming away for their first taste of Uni Games.”
“The competition looks set to be very difficult this year with strong teams being entered from just about every university, but I believe we have players who can put us in a great position to win our first NUG gold medal since 2010.”
In other sports, Team UQ will defend its NUG Beach Volleyball gold medal in the Mixed Fours competition.
Last year, UQ quartet Zac Laird, Zac Burch, Bara Falcmanoba and Jamie Liu went undefeated in the competition, conceding only a single set across 12 matches.
UQ will also field two Men’s Basketball sides at Rockhampton and Yeppoon, with the teams looking to improve on a bronze medal at 2016 NUG.
Team UQ will compete in Men’s Futsal for the first time at an NUG event, while Nicholas Lim is UQ’s sole competitor in Men’s Golf.
2017 NUG results and fixtures will be updated on the Australian University Sport website.
Media: Jamie Mitchell, UQ Sport, JamieM@uqsport.com.au, 0423 785 752