OURFC Men's Blues v Brookes

Men’s Blues v Oxford Brookes 1st XV Friday 16th February 2024

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OURFC Welcomes Welcome from OURFC Men’s Captain Jack Glover Welcome to the Oxford University Rugby Football Club, where I had the privilege of being a part of this remarkable club during my time at university last year. Much of what made this experience unforgettable can be attributed to the extraordinary community that this club has fostered.

Within the hallowed walls of our pavilion, you'll find the legacy of some of Test Rugby's most illustrious players. The sacred grounds of Iffley have borne witness to iconic matches that will forever be etched in the annals of rugby history. The distinguished dark blue jersey holds profound significance for countless individuals, and we take immense pride in our rich history as members of OURFC. Tonight is a historic night for the club as the Men’s Blues take on Oxford Brookes. After a testing encounter over in Dublin against TCD, we are looking forward to our last outing ahead of the Varsity Match on 2nd March. With local pride on the line, tonight will help to prepare the squad for the emotions involved in the Varsity campaign. Please do ensure you come and support both the men’s and women’s squads at StoneX. YIDB Jack Glover

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Men’s Blues v TCD Match report Dark Blues visit to the Emerald Isle. Whilst this might just sound like a Varsity match promo, as Cambridge’s ‘blue’ seems to bear a striking resemblance to an emerald green rather than any shade of blue that I’ve ever seen, it is actually a reference to the Oxford teams fixture last week. The Blues went international, travelling to Ireland, to play the historic fixture of Oxford vs Trinity College Dublin.

They were greeted by a strong north-south gale that they were forced to play into in the last half under dark and stormy conditions. Early doors the Blues looked rather shell shocked and struggled to repel the quick, physical attack of the Trinity forwards. This led Trinity to take a substantial lead of 21-0 in the first 15 minutes. This spelt trouble for the rest of the game, however, as the Blues entered the second quarter they began to front up in the contact area more and force numerous Trinity mistakes. Two notable breakaway runs by the Brasenose due of Otis Walker and Tom Mewes allowed the Blues to penetrate deep into the Trinity half and a poor exit from the hosts gave the Oxford forwards a platform to truck over the line for their first score of the game. This put the half time score at 21-7 and with Oxford having the assistance of the wind in the second half the score line promised an exciting final 40 minutes.

The second half began with various kicking battles between the two teams backfields as both Oxford and Trinity showed a stubbornness in giving away an early field position. The majority of the second half saw level contests in the middle third of the pitch as both teams struggled to make decisive breaks. Ten minutes from the end the two teams had exchanged tries leaving the score at 2612 and Oxford very much in the game. Unfortunately, this is when Trinity turned the screw and some physical pick-and-go and mauling allowed them to cross the white wash two more times before the final whistle was blown. Final score Trinity College Dublin 38-12 Oxford.

As ever the Trinity boys were great hosts and it was an absolute pleasure for all the Oxford boys to play on their historic pitch and be shown around their beautiful University and city

Teams OURFC Men’s Blues

v

Oxford Brookes 1st XV

15 14 13 12 11 10 9

Sam Reynolds * University

Oscar Robinson

Hector Skipworth St Edmund Hall

Tristan Koch

Tom Mewes* Brasenose

Matt Mills

Wolfe Morn Christ Church

Charlie Collins

Harry Bridgewater* Lincoln

Joe Watts (vc)

Archie King St Catherine’s

Will Fitzgerald

Vasco Faria* Exeter

Owen Hewett

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Tom Robertson Oriel

Jack Syradd

Harry Scoble* Kellog

Joe Jones ©

Michael Fankah* St Peter’s

Hamish Janaway

Seth Dockery St Edmund Hall

Alex Fakatou

Matt Cook St Lady Margaret Hall

William Webb

Edward Blake* St Hilda’s

Max Orr

Zenden Rozenbroek St Hilda’s

Oliver Smith

Jack Glover* © St Peter’s

Will Fountaine

16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23

Noah Zenios* Magdalen

Alex Cole

Harry Pratt Queen’s

Harry Bennett

Joel Anjorin Keble

Tom Ponting

George Fowler* St Hilda’s

Bert Reed

Otis Walker Brasenose

Archie Walwyn

George Morgan New

Jac Cross

Ben Scher Wolfson

Fraser Mcdonald

Paddy Mayhew New

Ben Jones

Head Coach: James Wade

Head Coach: Tom Varndell

Assistants: Nick Smith & Nick Civetta*# *Denotes Blue #Denotes International

Assistant coaches: Tom Whelan & Tom Barber

Referee: Rob Cross (Oxfordshire Society) AR1: Peter Bramley (Oxfordshire Society)

AR2: Paul Costello (Oxfordshire Society)

OURFC Women’s Blues v Cambridge Match report Wednesday 7th February 2024 Last minute equaliser ends in a thrilling draw between Oxford and Cambridge just weeks before the Annual Varsity Match. The Drunken Ferret opened for business on Wednesday night as supporters gathered to watch the Women’s Blues take on our rivals at home. With the 26-28 defeat at the Other Place just two weeks before, and Varsity just three weeks later, this was a highly anticipated match. The Women’s Blues arrived with heads high, and prepared to defend Iffley Road in front of the home crowd.

The Dark Blues won a turnover from the kick off, from which we pushed into the Cambridge half, who kept us at bay for a good while. After some strong runs from the backs, the ball came to Lauren Webb, who tore through the Light Blue line of defence and scored the first try for Oxford.

Unconverted, the Blues were an impressive 5-0 up in the first quarter. The possession after this shifted, with Oxford now having to defend their line for what felt like a while, until Cambridge got through, in a try that was very nearly held up in a noble effort from our forwards. The try was converted, putting Oxford on the backfoot for the rest of the half. The game from this point onwards was as messy as it had been at Grange Road, with multiple knock on and penalties forced by both sides that slowed down the play. Oxford was awarded a penalty in the middle of the pitch close to the Cambridge try line, which we attempted to kick through the posts to put us ahead of the opposition, but in a moment of intense silence the goal was narrowly missed. The game continued at a frustrating pace, before Oxford managed to maintain possession towards the end of the half. We determinately ran the ball up the pitch to pave the way for Webb to tear through the opposition’s defence once again, who apparently scared of tackling her, allowed her to score her second try in the first half. With this try converted by Stella Farmer, the half time score was an exciting 12-7 to Oxford. The next 40 minutes felt somehow longer than the first. The ball paced back and forth in true ping pong fashion, with multiple turn overs and knock-ons to define an intense second half. Cambridge seemed to dominate in terms of possession, as the Oxford defence put in a huge shift to keep the white shirts at bay. Eventually their efforts to cross the line succeeded, and with a clean conversion the score flipped in favour of the tabs, now 14-12 up. After more to-and-fro from both teams, Cambridge were eventually awarded a penalty kick for one of our chasers being offside from our own penalty kick. With this taking place in the middle of the pitch and close to our try line, the Light Blues tactically opted for a kick, which they achieved, taking the score to a threatening 17-12. As time went on, and the clock drew closer to 80 minutes, Oxford had to fight to win back possession. Crucially our defensive line forced a knock-on from Cambridge near their 22, granting us a scrum, and our very last opportunity to not admit defeat at home. Determined to stay in the game, the Blues charged towards the opposition, with the forward pack breaking ground for Lauren Webb to swoop in and complete her hattrick in the 83rd minute. Try unconverted to leave us with a 17-17 score. A thrilling end to the match, and a near triumphant moment for Oxford, who though were pleased to have scored, could still not celebrate a win. There is all to play for when we meet Cambridge again on the 2nd March at Stone-X.

Hilary Term Fixtures

CANCELLED

CANCELLED

Photos Action from the Men’s Blues v RAF Wednesday 24th January 2024 Photo credit: Steve Karpa

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