Twickenham Triumph
A POSITIVE, COMPETITIVE and enthralling Varsity match saw Oxford reclaim the MMC Trophy for 2004.
The passion and brilliance with which the game was played surely left any critics with no remaining doubts that this event means the world to the student players. This fixture is truly worthy of inclusion in Twickenham's auspicious calender.
The 40,000 strong crowd saw thirty players proving to the rugby fraternity the determination and quality that can be the hallmarks of this amateur contest on a day where the Varsity Match was the real winner.
Oxford's seven-point victory came as a result of an immense team effort, but several outstanding individuals made their mark. Scrum half Chow Mezgerpanicked Cambridge every time he received the ball, throwing more dummies than a stroppy toddler, side-stepping and darting his way to an inspiring performance.
The game lived up to its billing as a battle between the Oxford forwards and the Cambridge backs, a battle that the Dark Blue pack well and truly won. They were aggressive with ball in hand, and restricted Cambridge with clinical recycling at the breakdown.
The Oxford back row played magnificently to give Mezger space, with Tom Hayman, Richie Woods and Man of the Match Ben Durham relentless in their attempts to dominate the central channels.
Captain Dave Lubans was an indefatigable force in the Oxford pack, banishing memories of his failures to lift the trophy in the past two years.
In a post-match comment that summed up his determination to conquer this game, Lubans said "We had confidence in our system, we had confidence in our players. Any contingency, any hiccup, we were prepared for."
It was Lubans' second- row partner Anton Van Zyl who was the first to experience the bruising defence that came to define this game. Rising above the mêlée to take the catch off the kick off, he was irascibly taken out of the air by the Cambridge forwards. Ox-ford had the penalty, but the Light Blues had struck the first blow.
From the off, the teams exchanged crunching tackles, both sides able to absorb anything thrown at them in open play.
The first fifteen minutes saw Oxford going through a myriad of phases on every play, but Cambridge ensuring that they only gained a Johnny Fennell penalty for their efforts.
The set plays, however, provided more opportunities. Oxford's Paul Laffin and Sean Brophy found themselves able to crumple their opposition in the scrum, but it was Cambridge who struck the first major blow with a well-executed lineout move.
Aggressive running by Captain Simon Frost saw a penalty awarded. The kick had neither the length nor the direction, but Oxford failed to wrap up the ball, conceding a 5 metre lineout. In a crafty move, Number 8 Ben Wheeler then swept round the front of the line and collected a disguised underarm pass from Allan Gladstone, before offloading back to the Hooker who finished from shortrange. 5-3 Cambridge.
The status quo was restored after the first try. Whilst Oxford's forwards remained dominant, allowing their team to gain the majority of possession, Cambridge were using dummy runners and working the angles to some effect out wide. In contrast, the Dark Blues' expansive plays were thwarted by mistakes and interceptions; epitomised by the ball being snatched away from Lubans as he galloped promisingly towards the line.
However, the Light Blues' luck could not last indefinitely. A cruel blow came when their talisman Nicolaas Alberts was stretchered off after colliding with Durham's knee. A few minutes later, full back Anthony Knox surged for the corner, failed, but recovered to collect from Mezger and take the try. Fennell coolly converted to bring the score to 10-8.
Cambridge relied on the high penalty count to stay in touch around the half time mark. Dafydd Lewis reduced the deficit to two points on 40 minutes, whilst Jonathan Ufton put the Light Blues ahead again after the break, ensuring that the second half was just as tense as the first.
Despite Ali James' fantastic break and Fennell's conversion of the resultant penalty, there were moments of panic for the Oxford contingent, especially when an unwise clearance attempt almost gifted Cambridge a try. The Oxford players would probably admit to a secret sigh of relief as Twickenham was subjected to a double 'streaker attack', giving them time to regroup ready to face a worrying onslaught on their line.
The Oxford coaching team knew that with only two points advantage, and with significant added time to come as a result of Alberts' injury, the game remained on a knife-edge.
In an inspired gamble, they backed substitute Ross Lavery to step up to the challenge for his first Varsity Match appearance. He made an instant impact, using his pace to lose his opposite number as James crafted an awe-inspiring break, with James Whittingham and Van Zyl feeding Lavery who sealed the win for his team. His finish made it look like the easiest move of the match, but the jubilation was all the more ecstatic for this dream-like ending to a game characterised by such relentless struggle.
13th Jan 2005