Oxford loosehead prop Lewis Anderson could make Varsity Match history at Twickenham today when lining up against Cambridge.

The 24-year-old sociology student will become only the third Dark Blue to play in five matches against the old enemy, joining another prop, Tim Enevoldson (1976-80) and wing Rupert Vessey (1984-88).

But a fifth victory would put him out on his own with the most wins in the prestigious fixture for either side.

“I wanted to progress academically and stay at Oxford and it’s given me a brilliant opportunity to go for five in a row,” admitted Anderson.

  •  Latest Sport news

“I have only recently found out about the history.

“It’s exciting to know that there have been more than a century of players playing this match before us.

“It would be great to write my name into the history books, but I will be focusing all my efforts on the match – the records are just a footnote.”

Anderson will again be lining up with his front row colleagues, hooker Nick Gardner – a former pupil at Magdalen College School, Oxford – and tighthead Ian Williams, who laid the platform for the Dark Blues’ resounding 33-15 victory.

That made made it a record- equalling four wins in a row for Oxford, who are now homing in on Cambridge’s overall best of five successive victories.

The Dark Blues pack also contains in the back row an England Under 20 Junior World Cup winner in Gus Jones, who will be earning his third Blue, and England Students cap George Messum at No 8.

Messum, last season’s Loughbor-ough Students skipper, will be one of only three new Blues in the Oxford starting line-up.

Outside half George Cullen, who was turned down by Cambridge for whom his father, John, won three Blues at scrum half, makes his debut at No 10 and Fergus Taylor got the nod to play in the second row ahead of Graham MacGilchrist.

Cambridge will be pinning their hopes on flanker Richard Barth-olomew, who is the only Light Blue to have tasted victory at the home of English rugby.

The 29-year-old returns to the Cambridge line-up for a fourth Varsity Match, seven years on from his last battle with the Dark Blues.

But now he is not only back at Cambridge, doing postgraduate research, but back in the game.

A win today would put him alongside Carl Aarvold (1925-28) and Richard Bramley (1994-1997) as the only Cambridge players to win four times at the Varsity Match.

TODAY'S VARSITY MATCH LINE-UPS

OXFORD UNIVERSITY
15 JACOB TAYLOR (capt)
Age: 27. H: 5ft 11in. W: 13st 5lb. Canberra Grammar School & Keble. Has won one Blue.
14 ED DOE
Age: 23. H 6ft. W: 13st 4lb. Cathedral School, Llandaff & Kellogg. Has won one Blue.
13 MATT JANNEY
Age: 22. H: 6ft 1in. W: 14st 2lb. KCS Wimbledon & Oriel. Has won two Blues.
12 ZANDY MACDONALD
Age: 25. H: 6ft. W: 14st 7lb. Bishops, Capetown & St Peter’s. Has won one Blue.
11 HENRY LAMONT
Age: 20. H: 5ft 8in. W: 12st 8lb. Cranleigh School & New College. Has won two Blues.
10 GEORGE CULLEN
Age: 21. H: 5ft 10in. W: 13st 4lb. Bishop’s Stortford College & Kellogg.
9 SAM EGERTON
Age: 22. H: 6ft. W: 13st 7lb. Adams’ Grammar School & Keble. Has won three Blues.
1 LEWIS ANDERSON
Age: 24. H: 6ft. W: 15st 5lb. Bexley Grammar School & Trinity. Has won four Blues.
2 NICK GARDNER
Age: 24. H: 5ft 9in. W: 14st 7lb. Magdalen College School, Oxford & St Anne’s. Has won two Blues.
3 IAN WILLIAMS
Age: 24. H: 6ft 4in. W: 19st 6lb. Sherborne School & Kellogg. Has won one Blue.
4 FERGUS TAYLOR
Age: 22. H: 6ft 1in. W: 17st 4lb. Sherborne School & Regent’s Park.
5 TOM REESON PRICE
Age: 22. H: 6ft 4in. W: 15st 5lb. Eastbourne College & St John’s. Has won one Blue.
6 FRASER HEATHCOTE
Age: 20. H: 6ft 1in. W: 15st 6lb. Leys School Cambridge & St Edmund Hall. Has won one Blue.
7 GUS JONES
Age: 20. H: 6ft 1in. W:15st 2lb. Eton College & St Catherine’s. Has won two Blues.
8 GEORGE MESSUM
Age: 23. H: 6ft 2in. W: 16st 2lb. Aylesbury Grammar School & St Anne’s.
Replacements: James Wisson, Jamies Scaife, Guy Western, Graeme MacGilchrist, Will Thomas, Henry De Berker, Henry Hughes, Basil Strang.
CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY
S Allen, I Cherezov, T May, F Gillies, G Smith, D Stevens, H Peck (capt), W Briggs, T Pascoe, J Poulton, J Baker, R Hall, R Bartholomew, H Kelly, S Farmer.
Replacements: M Montgomery, O Exton, F Sanders, C O’Sullivan, D Dass, S Tullie, J Wylde, A Rees. 
Referee: L Pearce (RFU).

  •  Do you want alerts delivered straight to your phone via our WhatsApp service? Text NEWS or SPORT or NEWS AND SPORT, depending on which services you want, and your full name to 07767 417704. Save our number into your phone’s contacts as Oxford Mail WhatsApp and ensure you have WhatsApp installed.