2013 Annual Report - Jesus College - University of Cambridge

SPORTS CLUBS I Jesus College Annual Report 2013 127
in the team. On top of this, a number of serious injuries and a certain familiarity with the
Dean’s office left the team severely depleted at times. Compared to recent successes, this
has been something of a fallow year for JCRUFC, with sub-par achievements in both
Cuppers and the league.
That said, the season did not pass without event. Though five weeks of snow at the
start of Lent term prevented the league from being concluded, for a long time the club
was in the running to win the league, and was let down by just a couple of fixtures.
Additionally, the old rivalry with St John’s seems to have been settled somewhat,
on both a personal and sporting level. Our boys gave St John’s a hell of a beating at their
own ground in our only encounter with them this season. However, in the absence of any
truly dominant force from either college, the season undeniably belongs to Downing, who
came out on top in both competitions; for those still reading the Sport section in The Tab,
history was quite literally written by the victors, much to the chagrin of all others.
Jesus was also able to field a 2nd XV for Cuppers, who reached the semi-finals of the
Shield, but in the event the deepening injury crisis forced a forfeiture.
Notwithstanding the above, the spirit of the club is alive and well, particularly amongst
a strong fresher contingent. Gladly, any lack of action on the pitch was more than balanced
by a steady stream of social fixtures – too many, some might say. Our performance next
season might prove critical in determining the short-term future of JCRUFC.
This year’s committee was particularly proud to achieve third place in the Fair Play
Trophy (for those not aware).
2012/2013 committee: O. Jones (Captain); O. Exton (Secretary); T. Hudson and
O. Colegrave (Mascots). Next season’s committee: H. Rose (Captain); C. Whittaker
(Secretary); N. Hudson and E. Robinson (Social Secretaries).
Oliver Jones
Football
2012-13 was another very successful season for all three of Jesus’ men’s football teams.
The first team, led by captain Niall Purcell, reached the Cuppers final. Played on a
freezing Monday night under the floodlights of Grange Road, the team put in a strong
performance in a typically cagey affair but eventually lost 2-1 after extra time. It was a
frustrating evening for the side and was typical of so many matches this season; Jesus
played the better football but failed to turn the possession into goals. Had the team
notched a few more early on in the season and turned draws into wins, they would have
mounted an even stronger challenge for the First Division league title. They finished
fourth as unbeaten Fitz went on to do the double, but enjoyed some memorable
performances along the way, not least the 9-1 thrashing of Emmanuel.
A relegation and a promotion last season led to the unlikely scenario of the Jesus
second and third teams both playing in Division 4 this year. The derby match they played
early on in the season drew a healthy crowd to the Jesus pitch. The thirds, under Ryan
Malone, were hunting a famous victory and went into the game on the back of a 14-game
unbeaten streak, with Billy Haslam’s second team all too aware of the humiliation
anything but a win would bring. A contentious penalty decision gave the seconds a goal
lead after a tight start to the game and they ran out 3-0 winners in the end; a result that
would spur them on to achieve a deserved promotion back to Division 3 as runners-up.
The thirds were also challenging for the league title until late on having beaten several
college second teams in impressive fashion, but will be very proud of retaining the Vase
trophy for the third consecutive year.