CURUFC 7

RAF 19

Cambridge University Rugby Union Football Club, Grange Road

Cambridge University Rugby Union Football Club (CURUFC) succumbed 7–19 to a high-flying RAF outfit after a hard-fought and tactically engrossing game of rugby on Wednesday evening at Grange Road.

Having lost 17–39 to an Army team in January, Cambridge were looking to build on a 31–28 triumph over the Penguins last week, naming no less than 12 Blues in their starting line-up in this traditional annual fixture against the three branches of the armed forces.

However, it was their visiting opponents whose game was the quickest to take off. Some lightning-quick running and interchange between full-back Matt Clarke and wingers Sean Webber and Dave Ellis burst through some Light Blue tackles and brought the RAF to the threshold of the try line. One powerful maul later, the RAF opened the scoring through Andrew Stobbs, with the try converted by Mike Robinson for a 0–7 advantage.

The RAF’s early offensive play was too hot for Cambridge to handle, as more penalties were conceded on the right-hand flank. From the scrum, the RAF manoeuvred the ball expertly out wide to the left, with Sean Webber creating an overload that presented Robinson with the opportunity to score the RAF’s second try in clinical fashion.

Cambridge refused to be cowed by these back-to-back blows, and responded in resounding style, with RAF skipper Rob Bell later conceding that his side lost their focus. “I think we got a lead too early, if that’s possible, and we relaxed too much”, he said, as the RAF were lulled into playing what he called “champagne rugby”.

Cambridge then hit back straight away as their opponents dropped off. The impressive Ed Loftus combined well with Tim Bond down the Cambridge right wing and was hauled down inches from the posts. The resultant scrum allowed Cambridge to give the RAF a taste of their own medicine: an overload was manufactured on the right, and Loftus proceeded to exploit the space to get the Light Blues on the scoreboard, which was followed by a superb conversion from a tight angle by fly-half Michael Phillips.

The rest of the half remained even. Despite the occasional inroads made by individual runners, particularly the elusive Lee Queeley, Cambridge remained resolute in defence, counter-rucking effectively and winning penalties to cut short RAF possession and territory.

The majority of the second half picked up where the first half had left off. The two sides effectively cancelled each other out with their uncompromising defensive work, in what was a closely-contested tactical dogfight. Cambridge showed lots of promise at the scrum and in creating fluid phases, but the RAF, flying with gusto into tackles and rucks, showed little sign of cracking under the pressure.

Cambridge captain Tom Stanley regretted the home side’s inability to make more of their possession, opining: “we tended to turn the ball over a little bit too easily, and we couldn’t exploit the opportunities that came our way.” With no clear point-scoring chances presenting themselves, the next score would determine the outcome of the match.

And, with a mere three minutes left on the clock, that breakthrough went the RAF’s way. A lineout deep into the Cambridge 22 led to another advancing maul, and it was Stobbs once more who eventually bulldozed his way over the line to seal the victory for the visitors. Rory Wood’s conversion proved to be the final score as the match ended 7–19.

Reflecting on the evening with Varsity after the match, Cambridge skipper for the evening, Tom Stanley, said: “We defended a lot in the first half, and in the second half we had the opportunity to attack a lot more. It was disappointing, but realistically we’ve got a lot of new talent and it was great to see those guys come on with a lot of energy and exuberance, so it was great to be out there with a bunch of young and developing guys.”

The Kiwi added: “For the older guys like me, it’s a little bit of a case of handing over the torch. Everything is moving towards being able to knock off the Varsity again this calendar year, so it’s all building up towards that game now, and the focus is on going through the standards that we’ve built through this Blues season so that the guys can carry it on next year.”

RAF captain Rob Bell remarked: “We were looking forward to a really hard test, so I think we learnt a lot more from the young lads in a tight battle like that. I think Cambridge showed the respect we deserve by putting 12 Blues out, and the game was a real battle from start to finish.”

Happier with the second-half display, Bell analysed: “In the last 20 minutes we kept the ball – no silly offloads – and I think that showed. We kept the ball when we won penalties. But we lost last year, so we’re really happy coming here and getting a win.”

CURUFC: Briggs, Burnett, Moros, Rose, Bond, Stanley (c), Watson, Bartholomew, Tullie, Phillips, Girling, Triniman, Davies, Loftus, Gillies

Substitutes: Calvert, West, Wilson, Beckett, Troughton, McMahon, Bell

RAF: Challenor, Stobbs, Hopkins, Hutchinson, Oliver, Forbes, Bell (c), Cooper, McDougall, Rock, Robinson, Queeley, Webber, Ellis, Clarke

Substitutes: Harris, Stanley, Williams, Wood, Parker, Stevens, Arnell, Woodcock