Blues' Match Reports

Nottingham 1sts 14/10 (h)

Lost 38 - 44

In the first game of the 2009/10 season, Oxford were edged out in a close encounter with Nottingham. The score was nip and tuck throughout, with both sides struggling to build momentum and the opposition always staying within a couple of scores. Most of the tries came as results of a lack of familiarity in both sides' defences, but Paul O'Connor crafted a couple of excellent individual tries from hooker, scoring five in total. Oxford didn't lack any fight, Tom Barker and Charlie Thompson defending particularly stoutly and Josh Halstead offering a lot of aggression in the tackle. The game was taken out of Oxford's reach at the end by Nottingham's strong left side, which scored most of the away team's points.

MOM - Paul O'Connor

Loughborough 2nds  21/10  (a)

32-8

Exeter 1sts  28/10  (h)

24-44

After having faced off three times last year, these two sides had become pretty familiar with one another's style of play. Oxford therefore were very hopeful of getting a result on home turf. The first half was very close, Oxford's defence was shaping up well, and the pack were getting some good service from newly converted hooker Robin Talbot. At the break the sides went in with little to separate them. The second half saw a very different Oxford come out however, and as the Blues’ defence became sloppy they had to watch the game slip out of their grasp as Exeter piled on the pressure and ended the game with a flattering score line.

MOM -

UWIC 1sts  4/11  (a)

26-22

Due to road works on the way to Cardiff, Oxford arrived much later than planned so were forced to play following only a bare-bones warm up. Despite this poor preparation, Oxford looked the sharper side out of the blocks, scoring an early try through the industry of the big starting pack. The return of hooker Paul O'Connor made Oxford very dangerous from dummy-half, especially as the forwards were securing quick play-the-balls after carries. Oxford scored again – half back George Dean putting second row Greg Coates through a gap 15 metres out. However UWIC replied with two tries of their own, including one length-of-the-field effort after a poor kick-chase from the Blues. At the interval Oxford were ahead by 2 points.

The second half was very close, with neither side building up significant leads in the greasy conditions. UWIC's left centre made a number of opportunities and looked the most likely to break the deadlock. Sure enough he scored a late try, which was then converted to leave UWIC two ahead with 5 minutes to go. Oxford rallied, but didn't keep their heads in the UWIC half to get the score they needed. A succession of penalties gave the Welsh an easy kick to lead by four with a minute to go which was enough to see out the game.

MOM - Josh Halstead

Northampton 1sts  11/11  (h)

28-14

Still smarting from their defeat at the death a week ago, Oxford came out of the traps fast against Northampton, their early intensity shocking the away team and earning two quick tries which were both converted by stand-off George Dean. First of all, an excellent break by loose-forward Hugh McCormick followed by a very strong carry from prop Jonny Hawkins allowed Paul O’Connor to dive over from close range. The Blues’ second try was again created by McCormick, this time creating a half-break ten metres out before finding an offload to the supporting Dean. Unfortunately Oxford let these early tries go to their heads and tried to overplay, giving the aggressive Northampton pack opportunity to drive down the field and score to keep the game in reach.

In a testy game, it became clear that the side which kept their heads and discipline would prevail, and Oxford endeavoured to stay cool as penalties were given against both sides. This kept the home team's noses ahead until the final ten, but with Northampton never more than a score or two behind.

It was McCormick who settled Oxford nerves with a fine try from the back of a scrum with 7 minutes to go, which made a home victory almost assured. The next attacking set for Oxford settled the affair, with a fine chip from Dean bouncing perfectly for the prodigal wing, James Batstone. He gathered cleanly at full pace and scored under the posts to give a gloss to the score that Oxford felt they fully deserved.

MOM – Hugh McCormick

Nottingham 1sts   (a)   18/11/09     6-36

The Blues headed up to Nottingham on a high after breaking their duck against Northampton, confident that they could continue to perform at the same level and push on from that win. Due to last minute injuries, a few players had to withdraw from the side, and Oxford had to play a man short despite James Ibbetson-Price coming along at short notice to make his debut. In the first half Oxford were playing up the slope of the pitch and, despite looking to have the edge on Nottingham in terms of size and power, they soon found themselves on the back foot. Nottingham attacked with furious intensity, making big gains against some lazy defending. Within minutes of kick-off Oxford conceded the first try of the game, Nottingham making yards through the middle of the park and then exploiting gaps out wide to send their wing in from half-way. The first half continued in this vein, with Oxford looking lethargic in both defence and attack, and Nottingham in no mood to let them get away with it. At half-time Captain Paddy Boyle roused his men from their torpor with some strong words which hit home, especially in the case of prop Olly Nash who came out a man possessed after the break, skittling defenders in the centre of the park with some powerful carries. The team took their lead from his play and turned over a new leaf in the second half, keeping Nottingham in their own half defending for almost the whole 40 minutes. Unfortunately Oxford only scored one try through Josh Halstead, so never really threatened to catch Nottingham. The result obviously was a disappointment, but Boyle was hopeful that the character shown in the second half could be put to more use in the games to come.

Loughborough 2nds   (h)  25/11/09   20-36

Oxford started the game against Loughborough 2nds strongly, with all the players determined to put the performance against Nottingham behind them. Early on Oxford looked the dominant pack, using their extra weight in the pack well to put their opponents on the back foot. The first half was very competitive, the sides exchanging a couple of scores. Oxford took a direct route, with their props and back row taking on a lot of work in the centre of the park to drive downfield and then score.

Loughborough used their backs more and scored through the wide channels after bad numbering-up from Oxford left them big gaps to exploit. At half-time Oxford were up and seemed to be in a good position to push on and take the game. Unfortunately they couldn't take advantage of their dominance in the forwards, with many good scoring positions deep in Loughborough territory going begging due to strong defence and less than brilliant finishing. Loughborough didn't ease up in attack, and showed Oxford how to finish clinically out wide.

Exeter 1sts   (a)  2/12/09   24-4

Oxford travelled down to Exeter thoroughly sick of losing games that looked to be winnable to any observer, and the long drive gave all the players time to steel themselves for what was sure to be a tough encounter. Captain Paddy Boyle had made clear how keen he was to win this game, with the Blues not having beaten Exeter in 5 hard matches in the last three seasons. Upon reaching the south coast it appeared as though the game might not be able to go ahead, as the pitch was a quagmire. Fortunately both sides were keen to play one another and the referee was happy to continue. The game started furiously, with both sides ripping in straight from the off and the Exeter captain having to go off in the first few minutes after a bang to the head in a tackle.

The muddy conditions suited Oxford well, and their pack imposed themselves superbly on Exeter, leaving them well on the back foot.

Paradoxically, the difficult conditions also brought out the best in the Oxford backs, with Jack McGinn threatening on the wing.  Against the run of play, Exeter scored the opening try with a length of the field interception. For once this didn't seem to trouble Oxford, who just took the play back to Exeter again. Paul O'Connor surprised the opposition with his lightening feet after a quick play, and he went the length to score. Oxford followed this up with a second to go in at the break with a lead they felt they could build on. This confidence proved to be well-placed, with O'Connor scoring again, along with McCormick and Halstead in the second half. The Exeter team began to lose their discipline in the face of the immovable Blues pack, losing their hooker to a sin-binning and later a red card.

Exeter rarely threatened the Oxford line after their early try, and Oxford came out deserving winners, George Dean adding a late penalty.

With the Maroons convincingly beating Warwick also, an aggregate score of 106-10 for the two Oxford teams on the day was an excellent and encouraging result to take into the winter camp in Portugal.

Mom : Brett Marshall

27/1/2010    Northampton 1sts (a)   30-10

The Blues travelled to Northampton brimming with confidence from the emphatic weekend victory over UWIC and looking to finish their season with aplomb to get themselves the best possible league position. The last game between the two sides had been an Oxford win, so the Blues were keen to start the game well and reassert their dominance.

Northampton were very aware of this, and started strongly themselves.

Unfortunately for them, Oxford's first attacking set culminated with Batstone being fed in space on the right wing by his centre, then beating his opposite man and going half the length to open the scoring under the posts. Northampton dusted themselves off and took the game back to Oxford, but again their defence was found lacking with Hugh McCormick driving through to score himself, not having to resort to Greg Coates on his inside.  Soon after this Oxford found themselves deep into Northampton territory on 5th tackle, and Ben Calverley's maverick bomb was taken by Tom Barker to score on the right hand side. This was converted by Ross Swanson to take his tally to three from three. Before the break Northampton had time to pull one back due to some very lax tackling as it appeared complacency might creep into Oxford's game.

The second half was a lengthy arm-wrestle in the middle of the park, with both sides having large packs, but seemingly lacking the execution to create and finish any good chances with their backs. About 15 minutes into the half, Northampton broke down their left, only to be stopped by wing Batstone covering back. However, in an effort to prevent a try, the Oxford try-scorer held down his man for far too long and could have no complaints about his sin-binning. Then followed a period of sustained pressure, Northampton camping on Oxford's line for a number of sets, and eventually breaking through the determined defence to score a try and take themselves to within two scores. After his 10 minutes off the field were up, Batstone returned to crush Northampton's revival, defusing a high-bomb and then going the length to score after Calverley had hurried the tap-twenty. This took the wind out of Northampton, and then they were finally finished off by a well-taken try from loose-forward McCormick. Swanson again converted from out wide to finish with 100% kicking stats.

MOM - Patrick Boyle

17/2/2010    BUCS Trophy - St Mary's (H) 44-22

A valiant team performance saw OURLFC overcome ‘Super 8’ side St. Marys in the BUCS Trophy competition today, leaving Oxford with a run of six wins ahead of their clash with Leeds Met A next week.

A physical opening set the precedent, with the Marys side clearly having something other than Rugby League in mind at occasional points throughout the game. Despite missing key players in Ross Swanson, Paul ‘Mouth’ O’Connor and Josh ’Angel’ Halstead, the Blues fronted up and met the Mary’s challenge head on. Persistent hard work from the dominant Blues pack, notably in the form of solid prop Charlie Thompson and tireless loose-forward Brett Marshal, gave the talented Oxford back-line some room to manoeuvre. The opening score started with a break from Oxford flyer

Jack McGinn, and was finished beautifully with a one-handed touchdown from George Dean.

MOM - Hugh McCormick

4/5/2010    Varsity - Won 32-22

A disastrous opening 16 minutes saw the Blues narrowly failing to score and the Light Blues going on to score a point a minute!

However, as the half progressed, the Dark Blues steadied the ship, stuck to their game plan, and clawed their way back into the game. Two unconverted tries were just reward for their efforts.

The second half saw Oxford at their best. Their attack was clinical and defense awesome.

After half an hour the score was a comfortable 26 - 16. Cambridge looked totally demoralised. Demoralised, that is, until they scored. It was now Oxford's turn to be on the back foot as the seconds dripped slowly away.

With 40 seconds left on the clock Cambridge narrowly failed to score, the ball going dead. Instead of meandering for a 20 m restart, the Dark Blues rushed to the restart and gradually forced their way downfield where, at the death, they scored the final try!

A thoroughly enjoyable game to watch [onceOxford gained the lead!!], and a great advert the TGG [The Greatest Game].