Oxford (13) 33

Tries: Carter, Lamont, Egerton, Gardner ; Cons: Hudson 2; Pens: Hudson 3.

Cambridge (10) 15

Tries: Jones, May; Cons: Stevens; Pens: Stevens.

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Oxford beat Cambridge 33-15 in the 132nd Varsity Match at Twickenham, despite having to play with fourteen men for much of the second half.

Oxford scrum half Sam Egerton was sent off with thirty minutes to play, but his side’s power in the scrum and domination of territory was enough to see them to victory.  Oxford scored four tries to Cambridge’s two, as the Dark Blues equalled their best run of four straight wins in The Varsity Match.

Oxford were dominant in the scrum to the point that they did not need to worry about dropping the ball.  The Oxford pack won a penalty from the very first scrum, but Hudson’s attempt at goal from nearly forty metres out fell well short.

Yet it was Cambridge who were first on the scoreboard with a try inside 8 minutes.  After only a couple of phases, Cambridge’s Jones found himself in enough space on the right wing to sneak in for a try in the corner.  The Television Match Official scrutinised two passes in the build up and the grounding, but the try was duly awarded.  Stevens bisected the posts beautifully from the touchline to give Cambridge a 7-0 lead.

Cambridge failed to consolidate their early advantage with scrappy line outs delivering field position to Oxford.  But the line out was the least of their set piece worries when Oxford elected for a scrum from a penalty five metres out.  Such aggressive tactics from the Oxford captain and man of the match John Carter, were rewarded as he personally touched down from the back of the scrum after his fellow forwards rumbled over the line.

Hudson’s missed conversion meant Cambridge kept the lead, which Stevens soon extended to 10-5 with a long range penalty.  But Cambridge’s kicker, who has been metronomic this season, was on the receiving end of a monstrous tackle from Jones soon afterwards and had to be substituted.  With number eight Farmer already on the Cambridge injury list from earlier in the match, Cambridge were without two key players after just over a quarter of the match.

Oxford’s left wing Lamont replied with a superb individual try, wriggling through three tackles to score in the corner.  A second missed conversion, this time from Janney, left the scores level at 10-10.

Oxford continued to look threatening following a long delay for a serious-looking injury to Oxford flanker Harris.  It was again the scrum that proved Cambridge’s undoing, as the pack conceded a penalty straight in front of the posts.  Hudson slotted his first goal of the match to give Oxford a 13-10 lead to take into half time.

Just three minutes into the second half, Sam Egerton touched down under the posts after a wrap around pass with prop Anderson, Hudson’s conversion giving Oxford a ten point cushion.  However, Egerton turned from hero to villain as he was sent off for eye-gouging on Cambridge lock Nick Viljoen. 

Cambridge were unable to secure the territory needed to turn their man advantage into points.  Oxford remained overwhelmingly dominant in the scrum despite Cambridge's half-time substitutions in the front row.  Janney missed an opportunity to put Oxford further ahead as his penalty attempt drifted wide, and Carter was unable to captialise fully after charging down a rarely misjudged box kick from Cambridge’s Peck.  Only conceding a try allowed Cambridge a chance to get out of their own half, as Oxford hooker Gardner drove over from close range after 61 minutes.

Cambridge showed the first signs of a comeback from 27-10 down as replacement prop Yeeles was held up over the line.  As the Oxford defence drifted to try and cover for their man disadvantage, May cut back inside from the resulting scrum to score Cambridge’s second try.  Morrison’s missed conversion left Cambridge requiring twelve more points to get back on terms.

But this was Cambridge’s last score of the match, as Oxford pitched camp in the Cambridge twenty-two.  After Peck dropped the kick off, Oxford won a penalty at the scrum, with Hudson kicking the points to put the Dark Blues more than two scores ahead with ten minutes to go.  A final penalty goal from Hudson settled the issue, as Oxford triumphed 33-15.

Earlier in the day, Cambridge U21s survived a spirited second half comeback to beat their Oxford counterparts 30-19.  This success added to a 24-22 victory for the LX club and a 31-5 win for the Colleges XV earlier in the term, along with a 17-32 loss for the U21As.