OURFC Cuppers Programme 2024

CUPPERS RUGBY FINALS DAY

IFFLEY ROAD OXFORD, OX4 1SR

10:45am - 7:00pm

2024

SATURDAY

4TH MAY

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WELCOME & THANK YOU FROM SIMON Let me extend a warm welcome to all the players, officials, management, committee members and supporters to Iffley Road for Cuppers Finals Day. Today aims to be a real celebration of College Rugby and a chance for us all to bring the curtain down on what has been a wonderful 2023-24 season. Following on from the success of last year’s event which attracted well over 2000 spectators throughout the day, we are hoping for a similar if not greater attendance today.

On behalf of OURFC, I would like to express my thanks to the OURFC Referees Society, Jon Buddington and his grounds staff, the medical team, Ian Kench, Peter Bridges, David White, Tim Stevens, Graham Robinson, Elizabeth Knowles Anna Jay, OU Sports Federation, Steve Murphy, the Crown Committee and all of our match programme contributors and generous sponsors.

Rugby Football is built on the character building values of discipline, integrity, passion, respect and solidarity. These are the values shared by the OURFU College Rugby Clubs and I am sure will be on display throughout what promises to be an exciting Cuppers Finals day.

I would like to wish all the College teams the very best of luck for their individual finals and take a moment to appreciate what you are part of today.

Simon Brown OURFU College Rugby Administrator Head Coach of Mens Whippets Rugby Team

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W E LC O M E FROM TIM

Let me also extend the warmest of welcomes to everyone to Cuppers Final day, without doubt one of the highlights of the year for Rugby at the University.

To all the players I hope you have your best game of the season; to the referees likewise; to supporters I hope you have a lot of fun; to the dons, thank you for supporting Rugby in your college; and to the volunteers, medical teams and organisers thank you for your invaluable support.

A good moment too to thank Simon Brown, the college rugby administrator, for his sterling efforts to keep the College rugby programme on track through the year.

I only played in one final despite 6 years of trying but I remember well the delight in getting to the final in 1985 and the thrill on the day. Sadly Univ lost to the Hall but the occasion was raucous and a lot of fun. Players from that team ‘the Univ Occasionals’ still meet up regularly which suggests lifelong friendships will be cemented today.

So it simply remains to wish the best of luck to all the College teams involved today and I hope you feel part of something very special at Iffley Road.

Tim O’Brien OURFU Council Representative

FOREWORD Cuppers rugby is a wonderful thing. As with any “cup run”, it’s beginning brings excitement, planning, dreaming. Knock-out games guarantee jeopardy, drama, missed opportunities. Progression grows expectations. As rivals fall, dare I say it, hope. And then the finals, the climax. A chance for victory, glory, immortality in college folklore. And all of this with the beautiful joy of amateur sport. 15 players on the pitch simply because they want to be there. Playing sport to express themselves for 80 minutes. For camaraderie.

For stories to share. For a sense of freedom?

Finals days are special and I’ve learned the hard way that they don’t come around that easily! I was lucky enough to be involved in a couple of finals during my time at Pembroke – a victorious 2012 campaign to lift the plate and the glory of a 7’s title in 2014, only partially soothing the disappointment of our Cuppers semi-final defeat in the same year. Great memories to this day.

Congratulations to all the teams that have made it here to compete today, and good luck. But thank you also to all the colleges that entered this great tournament – without amateur sport in all its weird and wonderful guises the world of sport would be a much less colourful place.

Will Rowlands Wales 2020 Pembroke 2011-2014

PRESIDENT Welcome to Iffley Road for the 2024 finals of The College Cuppers competition. This is one of the great Oxford rugby occasions of the year, and I am delighted to be able to welcome you all to support and/or play for your college team. Last year’s event was a fantastic occasion with outstanding wins in the Men’s and Women’s Cup competitions

by St Edmund Hall and Worcester/ St Catherine’s. With a break from the cold and some sunny fine weather (hopefully!), I am sure we will be able to build on that success and put on another great show this year. Enjoy the day.

Rugby across the country has been on a slow recovery path following the enforced lay offs of the Covid pandemic, but the 2023/24 season is finally seeing a return to former levels of participation in the Men’s game which came under the most pressure from the lockdown. Sport England’s recently published Active Lives survey showed rugby participation up 13% in 2023/24 season (to almost 190,000 Men per week and 34,500 women), almost returning to the pre Covid level for the Men’s game; only Basketball among the team sports exceeded that growth rate. Much of that success in driving the recovery is down to the sheer hard work and commitment of volunteers in the clubs, keeping alive the opportunity to play, coach and referee in relevant and exciting competitions and innovating with new formats and laws for the game. To all the captains and administrators who have brought your teams

together in their different combinations and ensured this traditional end of season Oxford Rugby finale continues for another season, we owe you a loud shout of thanks.

At our last committee meeting at OURFC in April, we reviewed the performance and activity levels of rugby across the University and considered the challenges ahead. We recognised that we have much to do, from recruiting new coaching teams and players to our University level sides, to rebuilding the standing of the Varsity Match at its new home in the Stonex Stadium. We also need to enhance the Iffley Road facility, which we have to recognise is looking a little tired after many years of under investment. Rugby is now an all embracing, inclusive sport at the University with 6 Men’s and Women’s teams, college rugby in flexible combinations of colleges and differing formats of the game (touch, mixed and 7s). For everyone to have the opportunity of playing at our famous Iffley Road ground, and to enjoy the historic match day experience, we will need to modernise and revitalise our playing and training facility.

As President of our club, taking over from Sir Ivor Roberts after a decade and more of secure leadership through turbulent times, I am committed to a project of restructure and renewal and of Oxford Rugby to equip us for the challenges of the future. Thank you for your attendance and participation today and I look forward to seeing and meeting you on that journey in the future.

Stephen Pearson OURFC President

M ATC H D AY C O M M E N TAT O R A graduate of this shire, Jon’s first ever commentary was on a 10m high scaffold at Iffley Road as OURFC defeated Leicester Tigers.

He then moved into his first paid job in sports commentary in Paris in 2000 with Eurosport.

Over the course of the past 24 years he has been part of the Premiership commentary set up for BT Sport, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, and now TNT. Other major events include the Tour de France, Olympic Games, and Rugby World Cup. Commentary takes a back seat to teaching these days at St Hugh’s School just up the road near Faringdon, but it’s great to back behind the mic today.

Jon Harris-Bass

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A PERSON The memories are fading into sepia now, but those that remain are strong. Cuppers was pretty much the pinnacle of rugby for me. Sadly I was never going to win a Blue, but during my Oxford days, College sport provided me with the happiest of times. There really is no greater joy than to play with your mates, bound by a tribal love of your College, against a load of others who feel the same about theirs.

At Teddy Hall we had a proud rugby tradition – still do! The ceremonial presentation of our Cuppers shirts was a major event. We gathered in the lower part of the College bar (where else?) and the captain called out our names and positions. I played at scrum half through school and in the regular league games for College, but we had the Blues No9 in our ranks, so when Cuppers came around I had to make way. Instead I found myself wearing No10. Years before, a certain Stuart Barnes had worn the same Teddy Hall shirt, before going on to play fly-half for England. The legacy was made clear upon presentation, and I felt a keen pride, as well as a great sense of responsibility.

I think I’m right in saying we reached the semi-finals in my final year (1996).

In front of what felt like most of the College, we were roared onto our pitch in the University Parks. We were significant underdogs as Keble had several

NAL VIEW Blues in their side, including the University captain who spent the first half on the touchline in jeans and a T-shirt. At half time, we led by a small margin.

With the very real threat of a Teddy Hall win, the Blues skipper disappeared, raced back to College (handily positioned next to the Parks) and came on for Keble in the second half. Again my memory is hazy, but I’m fairly certain he scored the winning try in the dying moments. We were suitably outraged, denied our Cuppers glory by what we considered to be an underhand strategy. The bar eased the pain. Happy days!

Alastair Eykyn Is the lead rugby commentator for TNT Sports, covering the Gallagher Premiership, Investec Champions Cup and Autumn Internationals.

Previously 11 years at BT Sport in the same role. Before that 12 years as rugby and tennis commentator for the BBC.

Alastair Eykyn Teddy Hall 1993 -1996

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T H A N K YO U T O A L L O F O U R S P O N S O R S A N D A DV E RT I S E R S

I am delighted and honoured to associated with the Player of the Match award for the women’s cuppers competition. My rugby career began at Oxford: I loved both college and university rugby and spent a lot of time training and playing (somewhat too much according to my DPhil supervisor!).

I played with some amazing ladies, many of whom went on to representative honours, and I believe that I am still the only member of OURFC to have played and won 7 varsity matches in a row. We were fortunate to have wonderful support, helping to establish women’s rugby as mainstream in Oxford and enabling so many women to enjoy our sport.

After Oxford, I played for Richmond and was very privileged to represent England in 7s and 15s. The Oxford rugby community was a major part of my life; I found an amazing team spirit and work ethic, made lifelong friends and even married one of our coaches!

I wish all those taking part the very best of luck today: treasure these experiences, friendships and the memories made!

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I am very pleased to be presenting a cup for the Player of the Match in the Men’s Cuppers Final. I am a ‘town’ person rather than a ‘gown’ person having lived in Oxford all my life working in the retail motor trade. However, I first supported Oxford at Twickenham way back in, circa, 1959 and have been to the Varsity match almost every year since then. I became closely involved with OURFC some 25 years ago and since then have been Chairman and President and have chaired the Recruitment Committee for many years until this coming AGM when I shall step back. I was honoured to have been appointed an Honorary Life Vice-President. I have always enjoyed watching College Cuppers which, to my mind, offers what is best in amateur rugby in terms of spirit, enthusiasm and playing for the love of the game. I hope Cuppers is a great success this year and I look forward to presenting the trophy on Saturday.

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SHIELD FINAL MEN’S 1 0 . 4 5 a m KO W O R C E ST E R / LINCOLN

QUEEN’S / BRASENOSE

1. Reeza Ansari 2. Felix Palmer 3. Henry Shaw 4. Rabi Sharif 5. Ben Stratton 6. Ayomilekan Adegunwa 7. Ollie Dixon-Szul 8. Oscar Godden (c ) 9. Jack Skinner 10. Harry Bridgewater 11. Peter Braybrook 12. Rory Marples 13. Milo Wills 14. Alfie Smith 15. Oli Priest

1. Harry Orwell 2. James Nicholas 3. Levi Fraser 4. Tom Batchelor 5. Neil Beaton 6. Nathan Buchan 7. Barney Cowles 8. Harry Pratt 9. Dan Kelly (c ) 10. Tony Cowen 11. Dan Cox 12. Tom Mewes 13. Otis Walker 14. Rory Ward 15. Ollie Nichols

16. Aldrick Ang 17. Harry Emes 18. Ioan Baxter 19. Luca Moretto 20. Alasdair Shaw 21. Atty Mamman 22. Bryn Mollet 23. Jack Crowther

16. Barney Mills 17. Roman Pitman 18. Cosmo Siddons 19. Josh Sneddon 20. Harry Kyd 21. Seb Steven 22. James Gallagher 23. Milind Khashu

Referee: Ken Brockless | Assistant Referee 1: Graham Robinson Assistant Referee 2: Gavin Allinson | 4th Official: Inigo Stratton

BOWL FINAL MEN’S 1 2 p m KO ST C AT H E R I N E ’ S / C O R P U S C H R I ST I / S O M E RV I L L E / MERTON / MANSFIELD

EXETER / UNIVERSITY / TRINITY

1. Victor Angelov 2. Freddie Spence 3. Freddie Scowen 4. Alex Higson 5. Josh Swain 6. Hugo Crawford 7. Luke Newland 8. Lucas Heys 9. Lucas Inman 10. Jack Musselwhite 11. Immanuel Isingoma 12. Luca Tonelli 13. Jonty Scott-Brown 14. Max Choudhury (c ) 15. Theo Saitch

1. James Trenaman 2. Sam Monro-Davies 3. Peter Moor 4. Manan Pant 5. Sam Beverly 6. Ramsay Davis (c ) 7. Will Bidwell 8. Will Howe 9. Vasco Faria 10. Murray Sanderson 11. Sam Reynolds 12. Kuba Surga 13. Tom Lascelles 14. Sam Oades 15. James Hughes

16. Ben Hayes 17. Jack Wiggin 18. Ashley Williams 19. Jack Potter 20. Enzo Perry-Poletti 21. James Moses 22. Theo Norton 23. Theo Coney

16. Louis Mcauliffe 17. Marcus Burns 18. Amardip Ahluwalia 19. Giorgi Gvaradze 20. Seb Beltran 21. Aidan Smith

Referee: Gareth Sheer | Assistant Referee 1: Paul Roblin Assistant Referee 2: Ben Aldridge | 4th Official: Ken Brockless

P L AT E F I N A L MEN’S 2 p m KO ST J O H N ’ S / ST A N N E ’ S

ST E D M U N D H A L L

1. J Hindle 2. Jacques Bowkley (c ) 3. Ed Patrick 4. Ivan Paul 5. Guy Griffiths 6. Josh Ejovi 7. Paddy Breeze 8. Dan Haywood 9. Owen Cassles 10. Patrick Meigh 11. Andy Huey 12. Edmund Hall 13. Ben Holdsworth 14. Alex Middleton Hill 15. Luke Moore

1. Harry Mehta 2. Jasper Singh 3. Sam Treweeke 4. Seth Dockery 5. Jake Tomasi 6. Archie Powell 7. Tommy Brommage 8. Will Truss (vc) 9. Dan Record 10. Alex Burson (c ) 11. Ed Blackman 12. Teddy Thomson 13. James Maddocks 14. Connor Araujo 15. Hector Skipworth

16. Sam Dayan 17. Leif Findlay 18. Josh Werret 19. Elias lemoniatis 20. Ben Scher 21. Nathan Spiller

16. Ben Keates 17. Charlie Lucas 18. James Morgan 19. John Boy 20. Tom Rawlinson 21. Joshua Withey 22. Finlay Gers 23. Caspar Soyoye

Referee: Charlie Stevens | Assistant Referee 1: Quentin Gueroult Assistant Referee 2: Joshua Grier | 4th Official: Graham Robinson

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EMMA BIDD The women’s Cuppers trophy is named in honour of Emma Biddiscombe who sadly died in November 2020 from cancer. Emma (or Bids as she was affectionately known by her friends) studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Keble College from 20162019; she joined OURFC in 2018 and played centre for the Blues, Panthers and KCRFC. She was an immensely valued member of OURFC and KCRFC and her passion for rugby inspired countless women from different backgrounds and drew them to our club. Bids undertook many other projects whilst studying for her PPE degree, from being Careers and Alumni Officer for Keble College JCR, to leading on the marketing for several student plays.

Bids was a fan of all levels of rugby, but her true love was reserved for development rugby. She was heavily involved with the Panthers and the Keble Women’s Squad during her time in Oxford. She managed both teams to success in 2018-2019, with the Panthers celebrating a historic Varsity win and KCRFC competing in the Cuppers final 2019. This was the last Women’s Cuppers final with the competition being disrupted for 2 years due to Covid; the final was one of drama and great contention and the tales of Keble vs Turl Street can still be found two years on if you know the right people to ask – although these tales may vary from person to person! We hope this final can be similarly memorable.

DISCOMBE However, balanced with her competitive edge was her belief that rugby should, most importantly, be fun. A belief that manifested in her enthusiastic and fancy-dress fuelled management of the Panthers, and as self-appointed KCRFC social sec. Bids’ true gift was her ability to selflessly share in the joys and experiences of her teammates making her a fantastic training and pitchside presence. Not only did she bring people to the sport, but she uplifted them throughout their journeys, paying extra attention to that member of the team taking part in their first training session or playing their first rugby match. Many players who still play today were recruited to the OURFC community through Bids’ passion and encouragement.

Her commitment to the club and its players was outstanding. It was simply not enough for her to attend every OURFC match as a student; in the year after her graduation, she attended multiple OURFC games, often taking annual leave to do so. She was a true supporter of the sport and an uplifting teammate and friend. Her legacy will be one of ambition, inclusivity, and most importantly friendship. We are grateful to have had the privilege of experiencing Emma’s brilliance.

Rachel Martin

CUPPERS FINAL WOMEN’S 4 p m KO C O R P U S C H R I ST I / ST C AT H E R I N E ’ S / ST C R O S S / S O M E R V I L L E / ST H U G H ’ S / E X E T E R / ST E D M U N D H A L L / ST P E T E R ’ S

W O R C E ST E R / J E S U S / UNIVERSITY / C H R I ST C H U R C H / GREEN TEMPLETON

1. Grace Lawrence 2. Juliet Hill 3. Ella Downham 4. Maeve Ewing 5. Mareve Elgaard-Jespersen 6. Michelle Szegda 7. Steph Dai 8. Lauren Webb 9. lzzy Lundberg 10. Beth Thomas 11. Mollie Densley Robbins 12. Lily Spencer 13. Katie Driver 14. Alisa Kanganis 15. Phillipa Rolfe

1. Estelle Onwuka 2. Aria Nikpay 3. Hattie Short 4. Frankie Coy 5. Ruby Sayer 6. Clara StrØmsted 7. Tolu Atilola 8. Marged Williams 9. Kat Vincent 10. Tabs Preston 11. Gaya Wimalasundera 12. Amelie Harris Lovett 13. Lauren Forbes 14. Imi Culhane 15. Iona Bennet

16. Olivia Brown 17. Emily White 18. Jaid Debrah 19. Ellie Hopkins

16. Stella Farmer 17. Clodagh Holmes

Referee: Granville Williams | Assistant Referee 1: Nomtha Gray Assistant Referee 2: Felicity Lucas | 4th Official: Joshua Grier

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Wednesday 4th December

VENUE: TIME:

Iffley Road Rugby Ground, Jackdaw Lane, Oxford 11.00am Marquee and Bar open 11.30am Women’s Match Kick-off 1.15pm Lunch Served 3.45pm Men’s Match Kick-Off 5.30pm Drinks in the Marquee and Meet the Players

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CUPPERS FINAL MEN’S 6 p m KO MAGDALEN / ST H I L D A’ S

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1. Noah Zenios 2. Anthony Vakis 3. Teddy Munroe Davis 4. George Cooper 5. Tomi Wilcock 6. Zenden Rozenbroek 7. Niccolo Alborosa 8. Edward Blake 9. Luc Gamber 10. Luke Wyllie 11. Eliot Wood 12. Toby Olorenshaw (c ) 13. Izzy Adjei 14. Sam Doubleday 15. Tom Milton

1. Dominic Shaw 2. Theo McAuliffe 3. Freddie Hawkins 4. Alex Sokolov 5. Adam O’Neil 6. Jack Botham 7. Tom Ricketts 8. Matt Wall 9. Alex Albright 10. Patrick Mayhew 11. Alfie Massey 12. Noah Miller 13. Jack Sander 14. Max Woodford 15. George Morgan

16. Gillies Macdonald 17. Ollie Stanton 18. Nick Crawford 19. George Fowler 20. Ollie Simonetti 21. James Mackenzie 22. Robert Dowsett 23. Alexander Johnston

16. Matt Lewis 17. Joe Mahoney 18. Alessandro Lombardi 19. Eyta n Brown 20. Paul Apostolides 21. Ethan Walker 22. Josh Adeyemi 23. Ashwin Sibi

Referee: James King | Assistant Referee 1: Granville Williams Assistant Referee 2: Charlie Stevens | 4th Official: Steve Murphy

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CUPPERS R Sunday 7th May, saw the conclusion of the 2022/23 Inter-Collegiate 15-a-side rugby season, with Cuppers Finals Day at Iffley Road. Due to the Coronation on Saturday, the event was delayed 24hrs, and what good fortune that was as the players and spectators enjoyed an afternoon & evening of glorious spring sunshine and temperatures in the late teens!

Matches commenced at midday with the Men’s Bowl final, which saw Queen’s take on Christ Church, with ‘House’ securing a 31 points to 7 victory, a strong late second half performance, capped off with a brace of tries by Greyhounds wing Will McGowan, saw them home.

Next up was the Men’s Plate Final where Pembroke faced Worcester, once again the result was confirmed with a strong second half performance, with Pembroke running out winners by 27 points to 12.

At 4pm, the women took centre stage when the Corpus/LMH/Trinity/St Hilda’s Cluster, looked to retain their Cuppers crown when facing Worcester/ St Catz Cluster. A thrilling 60 minutes followed, which went right down to the final play of the match, when Corpus/LMH/Trinity/St Hilda’s Cluster scored a try on full-time, only for the conversion to be missed to leave Worcester/ St Catz victors by 17 points to 15 and lift the Emma Bidiscombe Cuppers Trophy. Honorary mentions were made to Lauren Webb (Corpus) for her two tries & non-stop running, Flo Baker-Masters (Catz) for an excellent showing at scrum-half and Elisa Smith (Hilda’s) for her powerful ball running, but the Lizzie Knowles Player of the Match award went to Maria Watt ( Catz’s ).

R E V I E W 2 3’ With the sun dipping down behind the west stand, the day came to a ‘crescendo’ with the Men’s Cuppers Final, which saw last year’s runners-up St Anne’s/St John’s face college rugby ‘powerhouse’ St Edmund Hall in front of a large, vocal but on the whole respectful crowd. Teddy Hall scored first, emphasizing their prematch favorites tag, but Saints hit back to go in at half-time leading, perhaps surprisingly, by 17 points to 5. Teddy Hall came out after the break determined to right the wrongs of their first half efforts, and soon took back the lead with two converted tries, but Saints were not going to be overwhelmed and quickly narrowed the gap to one score with a well struck penalty. With the clock ticking down Hall scored a fourth converted try, to extend the lead to what proved a match winning 11 points, but it was Saints who had the last word, with a try in the corner to make the final score 31 points to 15, to see Teddy Hall claim their first crown since 2019 and their 35th overall. Honorary

mentions were made to Piers Von Dadelszen (Hall) for his excellent lineout play, Ned Russell (Saints) for expertly directing his team from fly-half, and Teddy Thompson (Hall) for his all-action display, but the Peter Bridges Player of the Match Award went to Hector Skipworth (Hall) for his two well taken tries that proved decisive.

Thanks to OURFC President Sir Ivor Roberts, for presenting all the trophies and awards throughout the day.

Huge congratulations to all those players who took part in Cuppers, not only on Sunday at Iffley Road, but in all the previous rounds leading into the showcase finale, once again highlighting the passion for rugby union right across the entire University community.

Thanks and congratulations to all the match officials, medics and other volunteers who contributed to ensure Sunday and previous rounds ran safely and smoothly.

Finally thanks and congratulations to Simon Brown, OURFU College Rugby Administrator, for coordinating the entire Cuppers programme and facilitating such a great event on Sunday.

Here’s looking forward to another successful season in 2023/24. Men’s Cuppers Finals score was 31 - 25

Tim Stevens OURFC Alumni Relations Officer

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BOWL WINNERS

Christ Church College

P L AT E W I N N E R S

Pembroke College

WOMEN’S CUPPERS WINNERS

Worcester College / St Catherine’s College

MEN’S CUPPERS WINNERS

St Edmund Hall

CUPPERS RUGBY FINALS DAY

MEN’S SHIELD FINAL W O R C E ST E R / LINCOLN

VS 10:45 a m

QUEEN’S / BRASENOSE

MEN’S BOWL FINAL ST C AT H E R I N E ’ S / C O R P U S C H R I ST I / S O M E RV I L L E / M E RT O N / MANSFIELD

EXETER / UNIVERSITY / TRINITY

VS 12 p m M E N ’ S P L AT E F I N A L

ST J O H N ’ S / ST A N N E ’ S

VS 2pm

ST E D M U N D H A L L

WOMEN’S CUPPERS FINAL C O R P U S C H R I ST I / ST C AT H E R I N E ’ S / ST C R O S S / SOMERVILLE / ST H U G H ’ S / E X E T E R / ST E D M U N D H A L L / ST P E T E R ’ S

VS 4pm

W O R C E ST E R / JESUS / UNIVERSITY / C H R I ST C H U R C H / GREEN TEMPLETON

MEN’S CUPPERS FINAL MAGDALEN / ST H I L D A’ S

VS 6pm

NEW COLLEGE