Oxford pinch laurels from Cambridge

Dark Blues finally justify favourites tag

Oxford regained the MMC Trophy with a narrow 18-11 victory over Cambridge in the 123rd Varsity Match at Twickenham on Tuesday.

Replacement winger Ross Lavery scored the decisive try just two minutes from time as Oxford finally justified the favourites tag they had carried into each of the last three matches.

Oxford had started slowly and fell behind to a well-worked try from Cambridge hooker Allan Gladstone, but hit back to hold a narrow half-time lead at the interval with a magnificent score from fullback Anthony Knox.

Successive penalties carried Cambridge 11-10 ahead 10 minutes into the second half, but Oxford rallied once again and, after fly-half Jon Fennell had landed a penalty, Lavery sped on to an inside ball from Anton Van Zyl to seal the win.

Oxford, having enjoyed a more successful term with victories over sides from Leicester, Bristol Shoguns and Harlequins, entered the game as favourites.

It was a burden they held for the last two years but they failed on each occasion to leave Twickenham with the victory as Cambridge won 15-13 in 2002 and retained the trophy in last year in an 11-11 draw. Today, they thoroughly deserved the win.

The Varsity match may not occupy the same esteemed position in the rugby calendar it once did but it remains one of the game's great traditions and for the two sides involved it is the pinnacle of their year and passions spilled over in the opening seconds.

After Jon Fennell had kicked Oxford ahead, Cambridge looked to keep the ball alive with quick phases and the pressure eventually told as Oxford conceded a costly penalty.

Dafydd Lewis' penalty attempt fell short but Oxford attempted to run the ball out from under their own posts and a sloppy pass from scrum-half Charles Mezger conceded a line-out to Cambridge just six yards out.

Ben Wheeler, son of Leicester Tigers chief executive and former British Lions hooker Peter Wheeler, joined the front of the line, took the throw and popped it out of the tackle back to hooker Gladstone who dived over in the corner.

Oxford were stung but it was their own mistake which allowed Cambridge inside their 22 and they responded with spirit as Ben Durham, a battering ram at blindside flanker, carried them forward.

Carter was proving a rock in the Cambridge defence, but he pushed out of the line to try and cover an Oxford overlap and Knox carved his way through to open a 10-5 lead.

Oxford dominated territory and enjoyed most of the possession but Cambridge consistently dug themselves out of danger.

Lewis reduced the arrears just before the interval and then Ufton landed a long-range penalty just after the restart as Cambridge edged ahead.

The play was loose but the intensity fast and furious. There was little opportunity for either side to take a breather but still Oxford could not make their dominance count.

They spent most of the third quarter camped in the Cambridge half, regained the lead from a Fennell penalty and then secured the win in the closing minutes as Lavery, who had only just come off the bench on to win his first rugby union blue, scooted over in the corner.

The scorers:

For Oxford:
Tries: Knox, Lavery
Con: Fennell
Pens: Fennell 2

Cambridge:
Tries: Gladstone
Con: Lewis
Pen: Lewis

The teams:

Oxford: 15 A Knox (St Andrew's, Grahamstown & Keble), 14 J Boto (Ipswich & University), 13 A James (King Alfred's, Wantage & Wolfson), 12 J Whittingham (King Henry VIII, Coventry & St Cross), 11 J Bradshaw (Rondebosch HS & Exeter), 10 J Fennell (Dublin HS & Pembroke), 9 C Mezger (Radley & Wycliffe Hall), 8 T Hayman (Mount St Mary's & St Cross), 7 R Woods (Blackrock Coll & St Anne's), 6 B Durham (Pate's GS & Keble), 5 A Van Zyl (Rondebosch HS & Templeton), 4 D Lubans (Warner's Bay HS, NSW & St Anne's, capt), 3 S Brophy (Belvedere Coll & St Catherine's), 2 A Dalgleish (Bedford & St Anne's), 1 P Laffin (Wallace HS, Lisburn & St Cross).
Replacements: 16 D Rosen (Brighton Coll & Worcester), 17 M Street (The Ridgeway & Kellogg), 18 A Harris (Hayle Community & St Cross), 19 P Raftery (Bedford Modern & University), 20 J Gaunt (Monmouth & Worcester), 21 D Abbott (Bournemouth & Somerville), 22 R Lavery (Oundle & St John's).

Cambridge: 15 J Ufton (Whitgift & St Edmund's), 14 N Toy (St Kentigern's, Auckland & St Edmund's), 13 S Frost (Kingsway HS, Durban & Hughes Hall, capt), 12 E Carter (King's, Parramatta & St Edmund's), 11 A Abiola (Wellington & St Catharine's), 10 D Lewis (Millfield & Hughes Hall), 9 B Dormer (Christ Coll, Christchurch & St Edmund's), 8 B Wheeler (Oakham & St Edmund's), 7 N McGarry (Haberdashers' Aske's & Trinity Hall), 6 N Alberts (Afrikaanse HS, Pretoria & Hughes Hall), 5 A Gilbert (RGS, High Wycombe & Fitzwilliam), 4 P Robinson (Douai & Emmanuel), 3 T Kirkman (Loughborough GS & St Edmund's), 2 F Gladstone (Gordonstoun & St Edmund's), 1 J Cure (Denstone & St Edmund's).
Replacements: 16 J Greenblatt (Clifton & Corpus Christi), 17 T Martin (St Albans & Trinity), 18 A Clements (Ermysted's GS, Skipton & St Edmund's), 19 A Walters (Tadcaster GS & Hughes Hall), 20 C Worsley (Lord Wandsworth & Hughes Hall), 21 D Jenkins (Stanwell CS, Penarth & Hughes Hall), 22 C Desmond  (Haileybury & Girton).

Referee: Steve Lander (Liverpool)