Robbie Dale arrives back from the Easter break with news of the great annual sporting clash at the university.

IT'S always the same, isn't it? You head back to university after a relaxing break, having conveniently forgotten that your academic department exists.

It's as if, along with all the bumph the university sends you - maps of off-campus residencies you've never heard of, details of how to apply for a biology MA - they include a small instruction leaflet for your friends and family entitled 'How To Make Them Feel Less Guilty About Doing No Work'.

It's all well and good going for a weekend in Clacton with the grandparents, but when you have five essays to hand in by Monday and you're not even sure what epistemology is life is looking bleak.

Oh well, fret not - plenty more fun is afoot in the form of Roses 2004 (April 30-May 2). The annual sporting contest between the universities of York and Lancaster takes place next weekend and promises to be, as ever, a titanic clash.

For the past three years, York has been victorious and topping the table this year would be a record achievement in the event's history.

More importantly, however, this year marks the 40th anniversary of the competition. Celebrations have already begun with an anniversary dinner at the Royal Armouries in Leeds. That was, by all accounts, a grand evening, but now our sportsmen and women have to look to the future in order to wallop Lancaster.

This year sees the inclusion of an expanded timetable, including that most energetic of past-times ten-pin bowling, as an exhibition event. Karting clubs will also be battling it out in a test of endurance, while I'm told that women's hockey and lacrosse are set to be more exciting than ever. And that tip didn't just come from someone who saw the team photos.

Updated: 09:04 Friday, April 23, 2004