Jesus’ women were today (5/3) crowned champions of this year’s Cuppers competition after beating Newnham/Pembroke (‘Newbroke’) by a score of 3-1.

Both sides made it through to the illustrious final after winning their respective semi-finals games two weeks ago (20/2), with Jesus narrowly defeating St John’s/King’s 1-0 and Newbroke disposing of Churchill/Christ’s/Lucy Cavendish (‘CCC’) 4-0.

Despite the drab weather casting itself over Jesus College Playing Fields, the energy of the travelling Newbroke support, who far outnumbered the home crowd, brought an electric atmosphere to the start of the game.

Jesus boasted several University players in their ranks but Pembroke’s Cuppers pedigree was not to be underestimated having lifted the trophy three times in the last five years prior to the Newnham merger.

After an end-to-end first few minutes, Newbroke midfielder May Bui received the ball in a chaotic midfield and had the composure to release Dyvik Henke behind the Jesus defence with a well weighted ball. Henke, the away side’s co-captain, took a touch to take it round keeper Mia Barnes and rolled the ball into the far corner to the delight of the Newbroke crowd.

However, the early setback did little to unnerve Jesus. Their Blues midfielder, Isobel Boothroyd, soon took hold of the game, with her close control, dribbling, and power in midfield making her near-impossible to stop legally.

After ten minutes, she received the ball on the right wing and drilled a low cross into the centre of the box, which striker Kaya Hardie lifted over a defender and placed into the bottom left corner to level the game.

Jesus continued to enjoy the lion’s share of possession whilst Newbroke remained a threat on the counter. In spite of this, Jesus co-captain Hardie was clearly unhappy with the state of affairs, making a triple substitution midway through the first half to strengthen her side’s position.

In reality, not much changed, as Boothroyd continued to run the show and was granted the opportunity to put her side in the lead after being brought down in the box following another mesmeric run. Converting the penalty with an imperious finish into the bottom right corner, Boothroyd left the score at 2-1 to Jesus come the half-time whistle.

The second half saw Newbroke come out more aggressively to try and disrupt the flow of Jesus. Boothroyd, in particular, was tracked much better by the Newbroke players, limiting her opportunities compared to the first half.

However, Jesus were still on top for most of the half, and their corners caused nervous moments for Newbroke on occasion. Chief among these was the ball coming off the crossbar directly from a corner, and an own-goal from an attempted clearance only being prevented by the post.

Newbroke did threaten with through balls to their attackers, but Jesus centre-backs Katie Sparling and Eva Timlin were able to marshall Dyvik Henke and substitute Elizabeth Blackwell, who often found themselves isolated, and just about prevent any dangerous chances.

With ten minutes left to play, Boothroyd picked the ball up in the Newbroke half with intent and was fouled 25 yards out, in what looked like a wise tactical decision from left-back Vicky Rodriguez Noci. But, she couldn’t predict Boothroyd getting a cruel deflection on her free kick, which semi-finals Player of the Match Dieu Hoa Ha wrongfooted between the sticks, sealing the game at 3-1.

With the two-goal buffer, Jesus grew even more in confidence and Hardie saw a shot from the edge of the box come off the inside of the post and bounce across the goalline before being cleared, while Newbroke tried in vain to fashion a few more chances.

When the final whistle duly sounded, Jesus came away deserved champions, with Boothroyd putting in a phenomenal performance that proved too much for the opposition.

Varsity Player of the Match: Isobel Boothroyd

Teams

Jesus: Mia Barnes, Lauryn Anderson, Katie Sparling, Eva Timlin, Elo Wilkinson-Rowe, Ines Shammah, Maya Birch, Isobel Boothroyd, Francesca Hunnable (CC), Kaya Hardie (CC), Anna Herr

Substitutes: Ellie Doran, Laura Brown, Nadia Chadirchi, Aili Wang, Charlotte Waygood, Katy Cartlidge

Newbroke: Dieu Hoa Ha, Vicky Rodriguez Noci, Monami Yoshioka, Pauline Eller, Delfine Lang, Mairi Eyres, Izzy May, May Bui, Elena Russo, Leonie Kallis, Sophia Dyvik Henke (CC)

Substitutes: Elizabeth Blackwell, Maryam Grassly (CC), Lucy Coleman