Archers Shoot Down Oxford

Cambridge University Bowmen (CUB) managed their 14th consecutive varsity victory against Oxford in the 62nd annual Varsity Match.

The sun shone throughout the day and with only a light tailwind the conditions were near perfect for the shoot at Christchurch College, Oxford. The shoot itself was an Albion (9 dozen – 3 at 80yards, 3 at 60yards and 3 at 50yards) for gents (novice and senior) and a Windsor (9 dozen – 3 at 60y, 3 at 50y and 3 at 40y) for ladies (novice and senior).

The blues shape up at Christchurch

The Cambridge team was bemused by the elaborate warm-up routine and the effort many of the male Oxford archers had clearly put into their dark blue hairstyling.

Despite the loss of Kinsley Warren to injury after only a few ends, the Cambridge senior team, led by Captain Heather Reynolds, put in an excellent shoot and scored a total of 3320 points to Oxford’s 3257.

This meant that for the 14th time in a row the silver rose bowl returned to Cambridge while Oxford looked on wistfully. The four who made Cambridge team were also awarded half-blues for their victory.

The CUB senior team of Otava Piha, Laura Hill, Heather Reynolds and Mike Mitchell

Despite a good effort from the CUB novice archers, the team of Alex Lucas, Julian Landel, Jim Blundell and I only managed 1972 points to Oxford’s 2349, meaning the Oxford novices walked away with the silver novice plate.

However, shot of the day goes to a Cambridge novice, Jim Blundell, who managed to shoot the flag above his target.

Intentional of course!

CUB also sent experienced and novice teams to the BUCS outdoor championship in Telford, Shropshire.

The shoot was a Gents FITA (12 dozen – 3 at 90m, 3 at 70m, 3 at 50m and 3 at 30m) for senior gents, Ladies FITA & Metric I (12 dozen – 3 at 70m, 3 at 60m, 3 at 50m and 3 at 30m) for senior ladies and novice gents, and Metric II (12 dozen – 3 at 60m, 3 at 50m, 3 at 40m and 3 at 30m) for novice ladies.

Teams prepare for BUCS

Recurve, compound, longbow and barebow archers were represented in the biggest university shoot of the year and despite the occasional rain shower the shoot was a great success.

Due to the sheer number of very strong teams CUB failed to win any medals, though the team of Mike Mitchell, Tak Ho, Heather Reynolds and Laura Hill did well to have come 4th overall. However, our team for the ‘boat race’ drinking relay put on a good show, reflecting their dedication to training in the pub throughout the year.