Oxford University Australian Rules Football Club
Oxford University Australian Rules Football Club (often referred to as OUARFC, O.U.A.R.F.C.) is an Australian rules football club representing the University of Oxford. The Club operates under the auspices of Oxford University Sport,[1] and is the 2016 holder of the Varsity Cup for Australian Rules Football.[2]
History
The Oxford University Australian Rules Football Club has been playing Australian rules football in Oxford since the early 1920s. The Club's principal match is against Cambridge University Australian Rules Football Club but it has also played against teams from Putney, Reading, and Edinburgh.
Inaugurated by a group of expatriates studying at the universities after World War I, the Oxford v Cambridge game is one of the oldest varsity matches,[3] and an early example of the spread of Australian rules football around the world.
Team composition and notable players
Players have included important and notable Australians such as Supreme Court of Victoria judge Chris Maxwell, Joe Santamaria QC, the prominent businessman Sir Rod Eddington, mining executive Andrew Michelmore, and AFL Commission chairman and former Carlton Football Club captain Mike Fitzpatrick.[3]
The team has usually included multiple Rhodes Scholars,[3] while both teams also often attract an influx of rugby league and rugby union players of Australian heritage.[3]
In recent years, players from Ireland and Canada have become common as the sport's reach extends internationally.[3]
Media coverage
Both ESPN and ABC News 24 covered the 2011 Varsity Match.
