Rugby commentators are far too articulate to fall back on "it's a game of two halves", but for the Varsity Rugby teams in action today that would have been a pretty accurate summary.
Homerton's Nancy Armstrong Twigg was a starter in the Women's XV for Cambridge, who by the halftime whistle were up 12-5, only to see a strong Oxford recovery to a final score of 12-31 - the first Oxford victory since 2016.
Light Blues Captain Emilia Bushrod said "You would not believe the season we’ve had and I’m very proud of every single one out there. They played with their heart and you can’t ask for more than that."
In the men's match, 10-10 was the scoreline at halftime, after what the captain called "a hell of a battle". Homerton's Connor Fairman (number 18) and Charles Favell (21) came on as substitutes in a match that ended triumphantly at 15-10 for Cambridge - the third year in a row that Cambridge has denied the Dark Blues.
The full line-up:
Cambridge men starting XV
1. Angus Peters (Wolfson), 2. Ben Gompels (Lucy Cavendish), 3. Laurence Marwood (St Edmund's), 4. Matthew Symons (Queen's), 5. Byron Hodge (Wolfson), 6. Stephen Clark-Leonard (Emmanuel), 7. Shawn Ingle (Magdalene), 8. Christian Stehilk (Wolfson), 9. David Holdroyd (Jesus), 10. Jamie Benson (Downing), 11. Samuel Odu (Gonville and Caius), 12. Max Loveridge (Jesus), 13. Tom Molloy (Fitzwilliam), 14. Tim Andrew (Jesus), 15. Ty Willis (Magdalene). Replacements 16. Ben Mills (Wolfson), 17. Danny Collins (Fitzwilliam), 18. Connor Fairman (Homerton), 19. Charles Kantolinna (Jesus), 20. Fergus Hughes (St Edmund's), 21. Charles Favell (Homerton), 22. Tommaso Castello (Hughes Hall), 23. Alex King (St Catharine's)
Cambridge women starting XV
1. Vianny Gomezgil Yaspik (St Edmund's), 2. Great Grabauskaite (Fitzwilliam), 3. Grace Izinyon (Darwin), 4. Hetta Friend (Robinson), 5. Hilde Schneemann (Darwin), 6. Buzz Gilks (St John's), 7. Phoebe Smith (Clare), 8. Rosemary Scowen (Magdalene), 9 Millie Bushrod (Pembroke), 10. Phoebe Jackson (Wolfson), 11. Ellie O'Keefe (Emmanuel), 12. Polly Hipkiss (Queen's), 13. Laura Vass (Fitzwilliam), 14. Emily Bell (Fitzwilliam), 15. Nancy Twigg (Homerton). Replacements 16. Amy Rees (Churchill), 17. Juliette Beunat (Selwyn), 18. Cassie Hayward (Trinity Hall), 19. Bethan Jones (Pembroke), 20. Samantha Mason (Clare), 21. Karla Boxall (Newnham), 22. Poppy Gilks (Trinity), 23. Nalini Ram-Prasad (Corpus Christi)
