Richards try sees Cambridge home

UCT old boy James Richards scored a crucial try to help Cambridge record a hard-fought 31-27 victory over Oxford in the 128th Varsity match at Twickenham on Thursday.

Richards, a lively fullback – who also had a stint in Japan, scored in the 66th minute (“from a perfect line of running”, according to the BBC Sport match report) and his try put Cambridge ahead at a crucial moment.

Replacement scrumhalf Jamie Hood grabbed a late try to keep his team ahead, but Richards’s try was seemingly the major difference in the final analysis.

Cambridge were captained by Wallaby veteran Dan Vickerman, also a former UCT student.

The scorers:

For Oxford:
Tries: Davies, Haydon, Cheesman
Cons: Swanson 3
Pens: Swanson 2

For Cambridge:
Tries: Greenwood, Jones, Broadfoot, Richards, Hood
Cons: Broadfoot 3

The teams:

Oxford University: 15 Christopher Mahony, 14 William Browne, 13 Alex Cheesman, 12 Julian Allfrey, 11 Timothy Catling, 10 Ross Swanson, 9 Nick Haydon, 8 Christopher Davies, 7 Stanley McKeen, 6 John Carter, 5 Nik Van Zyl, 4 Ian Kench, 3 Oliver Tomaszczyk, 2 Daniel Rosen (captain), 1 Richard Lutton.
Replacements: 16 David Rogers, 17 William Johnson, 18 Karl Outen, 19 Makoto Tosa, 20 Willem Klopper, 21 Rhodri James, 22 Sean Morris, 23 Govind Oliver.

Cambridge University: 15 James Richards, 14 James Greenwood, 13 Frederick John Alexander Shepherd, 12 Fred Burdon, 11 David Riley, 10 Ross Broadfoot, 9 Doug Rowe, 8 Ben Maidment, 7 Joe Wheeler, 6 Ed White, 5 Daniel Vickerman (captain), 4 William Jones, 3 Tom Harris, 2 Patrick Barry Joseph Crossley, 1 Niall Conlon.
Replacements: 16 Jamie Stuart Davidson Gilbert, 17 Andrew Daniel, 18 Predee Anuvatnujotikul, 19 Haden Henderson, 20 Jamie Hood, 21 Sandy Reid, 22 William Balfour, 23 Alexander Cheetham.