December 8 down the years
Davies can't prevent Oxford victory
Wales and Lions star Gerald Davies made his Varsity debut in 1970
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1970
Welsh winger Gerald Davies captained Cambridge in the Varsity Match, but Oxford dominated the line-outs and ran out 14-3 winners in front of one of the fixture's smallest attendances for years. Davies, who could already boast 13 Wales caps and one Test for the British & Irish Lions at the time, went on to star for the Lions during their historic series victory over New Zealand in 1971. He won a total of 46 caps for Wales and five for the Lions in a distinguished playing career and later worked as rugby correspondent for The Times newspaper. He rekindled his relationship with the Lions as manager of the tour to South Africa in 2009.
1921
The Varsity match was staged at Twickenham for the first time as Oxford claimed the bragging rights. Apart from the inaugural match at Oxford in 1872 and the return a year later at Cambridge, the official series has always been staged in the London area. Seven games were played on Kennington Oval during the 1870s before it became a famous Test cricket venue. During the 1880s, three games were staged on Richardson's Field and four at Rectory Field (both in Blackheath). Richardson's Field was acquired by a Building Society in the early 1880s and developed for housing, forcing the club to move to new premises at the Rectory Field on the Charlton Road in 1883-4. From 1887 to 1920 the Blues met at Queen's Club, Kensington before the fixture transferred to England's HQ.
1952
Former England captain Brigadier Doug Kendrew, later to become Major General Sir Douglas Kendrew, was awarded the DSO for the fourth time. This most recent award was for "dynamic leadership and exceptional skill" while serving for the British military in Korea. He was capped a total of 10 times by England between 1930-36 and also toured Australia and New Zealand with the British Isles in 1930 where he made 11 appearances but failed to force his way into the Test picture. He was later appointed Governor of Western Australia, a position he held between 1963 and 1974.
1906
The original Springboks were held to a 3-3 draw by England at Crystal Palace. The clash marked the final Test match to be played at the London venue which was chosen for it's ability to handle large crowds. The Crystal Palace stadium played host to just one other England Tests - a 15-0 defeat to New Zealand the year before.
1951
Somerset held Cornwall to a nil-all draw at Wellington to win the South-Western group of the County Championship for the first time since the War.
1981
Cambridge's 9-6 victory in the 100th official Varsity match edged them ahead of Oxford on wins in the series for the first time.
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