Charlie Amesbury leads Cambridge to Varsity Men's victory over Oxford
Cambridge University captain Charlie Amesbury embodied his side's resolve as he led a second consecutive Varsity Match triumph over Oxford and saluted the tenacity and toughness of the Light Blues at the final whistle.
The former Bristol full-back, who retired from professional rugby in May, was denied a first-half score by the television match official after burrowing over with a first-half pick-and-go. However, he was back among his exceptional forwards with 10 minutes remaining, joining a driving maul to give Cambridge a 20-10 lead that they refused to relinquish.
"The game was played in a tremendous spirit but I just think we had a bit more fight in us,” Amesbury said. “We’ve been to some dark places this season and I think that showed. It’s an amazing feeling.
“I knew we had the ascendancy in the maul all game. It was a case of one more body and, luckily, that body was mine.”
“Last year I felt I could have done a bit more in attack. Unless you’ve played this game once, you don’t know what it’s about. Playing it twice was really valuable for me - I felt I could grow into it a bit more.”
With the torrential rain of earlier in the day giving way to a crisp afternoon, Cambridge started the brighter. They boxed Oxford inside their own 22 and almost took the lead within three minutes, but number eight Buchan Richardson was bundled into touch close to the right corner.
The Dark Blues arrived at Twickenham on the back of some impressive results and were fluent once they began to string phases together. The footwork of full-back Sam Edgerley, an ex-England Sevens regular, looked particularly dangerous and only two intercepted offloads, openside flanker Andy Saull and then number eight Will Wilson, allowed Cambridge to escape. Oxford would be punished for those slips.
Although Amesbury was adjudged to have been held up in the dead-ball area and left wing Henry King spilled from five metres out, the Light Blues pack surged through to win the resultant scrum against the head. Scrum-half and man of the match Chris Bell went over untouched. Mike Phillips missed the conversion but Cambridge led 5-0 after 29 minutes.
Oxford's riposte, via a penalty from skipper Conor Kearns, was rapid and they were granted two slices of luck to end the half. Phillips squandered another chance from the tee and then a fine try from Harlequins Academy centre Jake Hennessey was chalked off for a forward pass. Cambridge lead 5-3 at the break - a smaller cushion than it might have been.
Newcastle Falcon Dom Waldouck emerged for Oxford following the half-time break but Cambridge drew first blood in the second period and seemed in control. Phillips added a penalty to make it 8-3 and Archie Russell's finish with 25 minutes to go, thanks to a strong outside break, brought a 10-point buffer.
Again Oxford responded swiftly and the outstanding Wilson shunted over to reward their concerted pressure on 65 minutes, Kearns converting. Amesbury dotted down at the tail of the telling maul soon afterwards, though, and his team rode out a frantic finale.
Cambridge right wing Ollie Phillips, a former world sevens player of the year on an executive MBA course, bowed out of the sport with this win. Praising the “phenomenal” Amesbury, he looked forward to returning to his day job as a director at PwC.
“When I was 18, this is how I wanted to finish,” explained the 35 year-old. “This was always the final chapter, and it’s closure for me.
“I’ll be at my desk tomorrow morning, nursing a very thick hangover…but that’s what makes this so special. That’s the magic of it. All the build-up for 12 days, the traditions and the history is incredible.”
Oxford: 15. Sam Edgerley (St Catherine’s); 14. Ed David (St Hilda’s), 13. Dan Moor (Christ Church), 12. Sam Moorby (Queen’s), 11. Tom Stileman (St Peter’s); 10. Conor Kearns (Jesus, captain), 9. Tom Kershaw (Worcester); 1. John Aaron Henry (Somerville), 2. Ed Elvin (St Hugh’s), 3. Kieran Ball (Trinity), 4. Lisiate Fifita (St Edmund Hall), 5. Charlie Pozniak (St Benet’s Hall), 6. Rob Talotti (St Peter’s), 7. Andy Saull (Kellogg), 8. Will Wilson (Keble) Replacements: 16. Will Thornton (Lady Margaret Hall on for Talotti, 59), 17. Noah Miller (St Peter’s, on for Henry, 48), 18. Ben Parker (Brasenose), 19. Hugo McPherson (Lady Margaret Hall, on for Fifita, 59), 20. Ollie Adams (Lady Margaret Hall, on for Pozniak 77), 21. Alex Hogg (Keble, on for David, 65), 22. Dom Waldouck (Kellogg, on for Moorby, half-time), 23. Dan Barley (St Edmund Hall, on for Edgerley, 78)
Cambridge: 15. Charlie Amesbury (Queens’, captain); 14. Ollie Phillips (Queens’), 13. Archie Russell (St Edmund’s), 12. Jake Hennessey (Trinity); 11. Henry King (St Catherine’s); 10. Mike Phillips (Emmanuel), 9. Chris Bell (Girton); 1. William Briggs (Magdalene), 2. Andrew Burnett (Jesus), 3. Jonathan Dixon (Downing), 4. Nick Koster (Queens’); 5. Andrew Hunter (St Edmund’s); 6. Matt Watson (Corpus Christi), 7. Stephen Leonard (Emmanuel), 8. Buchan Richardson (Selwyn) Replacements: 16. Miles Huppatz (Downing, on for Burnett, 78), 17. Will Dean (St John’s, on for Briggs 77), 18. Sam Troughton (Robinson, on for Koster, 77), 19. Henry Rose (Jesus, on for Watson, 51), 20. Tyler Hammond (Queens’, on for Hunter, 70), 21. James Elms (Magdalene), 22. George Griffiths (St John’s), 23. Rory Triniman (Hughes Hall on for Phillips, 70). Hunter back on for Dixon, 78.
Referee: Christophe Ridley (RFU)
Scoring sequence (Cambridge first): 5-0 (Bell try, 28 minutes), 5-3 (Kearns penalty, 33 minutes), 8-3 (Phillips penalty, 48), 13-3 (Russell try, 55), 13-10 (Wilson try, Kearns conversion, 65 minutes), 20-10 (Amesbury try, Phillips conversion 70)
