Between 1906 and 1911, Oxford were unbeaten in six Varsity
Matches, having a particularly talented pool of students from which
to choose. Among those students was Ronnie Poulton, who arrived at
Balliol College from Rugby School in 1908. In his first term at
Oxford, Poulton played several games for the university team but he
missed out on selection for the famous Varsity Match, perhaps being
deemed too unpredictable for his own teammates - he had a deceptive
style of running, 'swinging the ball from side to side as if he
were rhapsodising on a concertina, compelling the defence to follow
him spell-bound' (The Times). One bemused opponent said:
'How can one stop him when his head goes one way, his arms
another and his legs keep straight on?' The England selectors
took a chance on him, however, and he was called up to play against
Ireland, Scotland and France that season. For the 1909 Varsity
Match, Oxford found a place for him on the left wing. Such was his
impact on the game, it would come to be known as 'Poulton's
Match'.
The match took place on 11th December 1909 at the Queen's Club,
Kensington. Oxford fielded a particularly strong team - all seven
of their backs were already internationally capped, or would go on
to receive their first cap that season - and they put on an
accomplished performance. With this ball, Poulton scored an
extraordinary five tries, which remains a record for either side in
a Varsity Match. Spare a thought for Oxford's Hugh Martin, whose
impressive tally of four tries that day has been somewhat
overshadowed by Poulton's achievement! Their haul of nine tries
resulted in a final score of 35-3. Remarkably, Oxford had played
with only fourteen men for most of the match after one of the
centres broke a collarbone early in the first half.
Poulton played in two further Varsity Matches. In 1910, he
scored two tries - one that drew them level, and one that sealed
their win, 23-18. In 1911, he was rewarded with the Oxford
captaincy. In the first ten minutes, he scored one try and created
two more, before a torn hamstring forced him to take a
backseat.