Captain Simon Linsell admitted he was left totally gutted as his University of Exeter side surrendered an 11-point lead to miss out on lifting the BUCS Rugby Union Championship title on Thursday.

Linsell and co were 14-3 up moments before the break, but a resurgent second-half display saw Hartpury College crowned champions – following up their BUCS Super Rugby crown earlier this season.

That made it an extra blow for 22-year-old Linsell, with Harry Randall’s late try salvo snatching the trophy from his grasp as Hartpury College won 27-24 in a thriller at Twickenham.

“I’m gutted for the boys to come second, there’s a lot of disappointment and I genuinely feel we had the ability to win which is why it’s so disappointing,” said the Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies student.

“I don’t think we were outplayed, no disrespect to Hartpury, they just fed off our mistakes and in the second half we lacked any phase play, gave away silly penalties and they capitalised on that.

“We had a fantastic crowd too and that makes a massive difference, even when we looked down and out they were still giving it everything to help us over the line, and that shows what BUCS is all about.

“BUCS has come on leaps and bounds this year, the standard has just rocketed and to get to play the best teams in the country is fantastic. I genuinely think the standard is the highest around outside of the Premiership and Championship.”

As well as this BUCS Rugby Union Championship, the 2016-17 season also saw the introduction of the BUCS Super Rugby League, pitting the eight best institutions from across the country together over the course of the season.

But it wasn’t all doom and gloom on the day, as Linsell’s teammate Tom Lawday was named Player of the Year for his contributions to the season.

That saw him given the award at the home of rugby, an admittedly proud day for a man who has also seen his campaign result in a debut for Aviva Premiership side Exeter Chiefs.

“It means absolutely everything to me, it’s been a fantastic season already reaching the final, but to get this award on top of everything else that has happened is the icing on the cake,” Lawday said.

“We managed to build up a head of steam with eight wins and I got called into the Exeter Chiefs side for the Anglo-Welsh Cup, and since then I’ve had three appearances which has been such an incredible experience and a fantastic opportunity.

“I didn’t have any academy rugby when I was growing up and BUCS Rugby provides an extra opportunity to help push people onto the next level, with someone like me leaving third year with a professional contract.

“Having the final at Twickenham was fantastic, everyone talks about it being rugby HQ and it certainly hasn’t disappointed.”

BUCS Super Rugby is a new national league, bringing together the eight best men’s university rugby teams in the country. The league is run by British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) and powered by Rugby Vertical. For more info visit www.bucs.org.uk/superrugby