Varsity match winner Sam Egerton becomes the first person to be sent-off after he is deemed to have eye gouged an opponent during Oxford University's victory over Cambridge University
Egerton scored the match-winning try last season and was on the scoresheet again this year before making history in becoming the first player in 132 years to receive a red card
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Your support makes all the difference.The 132nd annual Cambridge University v Oxford University varsity rugby match took place at Twickenham Stadium on Thursday, with Oxford taking the spoils 33-15.
However, it was last year’s match winner Sam Egerton that stole the headlines once again, but this time for all the wrong reasons as the Oxford scrum-half became the first player to be sent-off in the history of the match.
Egerton’s dismissal is made even worse after the Television Match Official decided he was guilty of eye gouging Cambridge replacement Nick Viljoen. Egerton starred in last season’s encounter which gave the Dark Blues a late comeback victory and secured their first Varsity hat-trick in 11 years.
He appeared to be on form once again after he scored Oxford’s third try from their dominant scrum, but he was shown a straight red card less than 10 minutes later for the incident.
Oxford’s captain John Carter and Henry Lamont scored first half tries to give the defending champions a 13-10 lead at the break, with Egerton and Nick Gardner adding to the score line as Oxford romped clear in the second half. Fly-half Jonathan Hudson added 13 points from the boot to round out the scoring, with Nick Jones and Toby May scoring in return for the Light Blues.
Despite the sending-off, Oxford were able to hold firm and claim the trophy for a fourth straight year in front of 24,463 at the home of rugby.
The irony comes in that Egerton's Twitter account @SamsonEgerton reveals he is currently studying a law degree, and he could well be preparing himself for a hearing should any further disciplinary action be taken.
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