The Scottish Varsity

Last updated

The Scottish Varsity
Contested by
St Andrews RFC Edinburgh RFC
First varsity match1860s
Annual event since2011 (resurrected)
Current champion University of St Andrews, 24-13 (2024)
Location Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh
Current sponsor Royal Bank of Scotland
TrophyThe Scottish Varsity Cup
Website scottishvarsitymatch.com

The Scottish Varsity, also known as The Royal Bank of Scotland Scottish Varsity Match due to sponsorship reasons, is an annual rugby union fixture between the University of St Andrews and the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. The universities are both founders of the Scottish Rugby Union. Fixtures began in the 1860s, making it the oldest varsity match in the world in a code of football. [1] [a]

Contents

The Scottish Varsity was resurrected in 2011 after a hiatus of over 50 years and was staged in London at the home of London Scottish RFC in order to build alumni relations. [5] In 2015, the match returned to Scotland in Murrayfield Stadium and drew a crowd of over 10,000 spectators. [6] In 2021, the match was played at University Park, the home of University of St Andrews RFC, due to Covid-19 pandemic crowd restrictions. The match is normally held in late September and has received coverage from Sky Sports, the BBC and IRB’s Total Rugby. [7]

Men's Results

Varsity matches were initially held on St. Andrew's Day but have been moved earlier to late September, they have attracted notable attendees including her Royal Highness Princess Anne in 2012. [8]

No.DateVenueScoreWinner
130 November 2011 Richmond Athletic Ground, London 32 – 0Edinburgh
230 November 2012 Richmond Athletic Ground, London 28 – 8Edinburgh
328 September 2013 Richmond Athletic Ground, London 24 – 15St Andrews
427 September 2014 Richmond Athletic Ground, London 17 – 12St Andrews
526 September 2015 Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 27 – 26St Andrews
624 September 2016 Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 24 – 12St Andrews
723 September 2017 Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 31 – 7Edinburgh
822 September 2018 Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 26 – 15Edinburgh
921 September 2019 Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 62 – 0Edinburgh
1025 September 2021 University Park, St Andrews 18 – 5St Andrews
1124 September 2022Peffermill, Edinburgh 24 – 14St Andrews
1223 September 2023 University Park, St Andrews 32 – 29Edinburgh
1321 September 2024 Edinburgh Rugby Stadium, Edinburgh 24 – 13St Andrews


By total wins (Men's)

Total matchesSt Andrews victoriesEdinburgh victoriesDraws
13760

Women's Results

In 2014, the inaugural Women's Varsity Match took place in the form of a 7-a-side match. It now continues to take place every year as a 15-a-side match. [9]

No.DateVenueScoreWinner
127 September 2014 Richmond Athletic Ground, London 24 – 0Edinburgh
226 September 2015 Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 36 – 7Edinburgh
324 September 2016 Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 97 – 0Edinburgh
423 September 2017 Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 53 – 5Edinburgh
522 September 2018 Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 49 – 0Edinburgh
621 September 2019 Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 52 – 0Edinburgh

By total wins (Women's)

Total matchesSt Andrews victoriesEdinburgh victoriesDraws
6060

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ The University Match and The Boat Race were first held in 1827 and 1829 respectively and are also varisty matches. [2] The Cambridge and Oxford Athletic Games were first held in 1864. [3] However, the Oxford-Cambridge varsity matches in rugby union and association football were first held in 1872 and 1874 respectively although intercollegiate matches in association football date back earlier. [4] The 1869 Princeton vs. Rutgers football game was the first intercollegiate football game in the United States while the first intercollegiate rugby football game in the United States took place in 1874 when Harvard University played against McGill University.

References

  1. ↑ "Varsity match is coming home". Scottish Rugby News. 19 May 2015. Archived from the original on 8 November 2015. Retrieved 7 December 2015.
  2. ↑ "Varsity". Oxford Living Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 24 September 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
  3. ↑ "The Varsity Match". World Athletics.
  4. ↑ Harvey, Adrian (13 May 2013). Football: The First Hundred Years: The Untold Story. Routledge. pp. 41–45, 150–151. ISBN   978-1-134-26912-9.
  5. ↑ "A Renewed Rivalry". The University of Edinburgh. 26 August 2015. Archived from the original on 9 December 2015. Retrieved 7 December 2015.
  6. ↑ "Students set for Varsity encounters at BT Murrayfield". Edinburgh Evening News. 25 September 2015. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 7 December 2015.
  7. ↑ "The Scottish Varsity Match". Saints Rugby.
  8. ↑ "Scottish Varsity Match". University of St Andrews: Saints Sports.[ permanent dead link ]
  9. ↑ "The Royal Bank of Scotland Scottish Rugby Varsity Match | HISTORY". www.scottishvarsitymatch.com. Archived from the original on 23 September 2018. Retrieved 22 September 2018.
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