Melbourne v Monash kicks off varsity sport

‘Sport was the real winner’ is usually a glib line trotted out by pundits and fans alike after a particularly harrowing result, though perhaps in this case the statement is justified, as the dust settles after the first Melbourne-Monash Varsity Challenge.

While Monash will go down in history as the inaugural winners of the event, the two-day sporting feast held across both the Parkville and Clayton campuses proved to be a success for athletes and spectators alike, laying a solid foundation for future varsity challenges.

Unlike their American counterparts, Australian universities don’t often have the opportunity to test themselves on the sporting arena against their peers, with only the Australian University Games (AUG) bringing together a significant gathering of athletes once a year.

MU Sport Development Manager Rod Warnecke says it was the 2013 iteration of the AUG that kick-started the Melbourne-Monash Varsity idea. 

“We played against each other in so many of the gold medal matches – we finished first and second overall – so it seemed only fitting that we should have another opportunity for our students to battle it out against each other, aside from the once a year event.”

“Melbourne and Monash, along with the University of Sydney, are probably the dominant universities in sport at a national level. So for two universities to basically exist side by side in Melbourne and not really meet competitively just seemed a bit odd.”

Mr Warnecke says the event fills a gap that existing competitions don’t provide. 

“We have an outstanding club structure at Melbourne, where our students, alumni and other members of the University community can participate on a seasonal basis. But in terms of playing against other Victorian universities such as Monash, RMIT or LaTrobe, it is very much dependent on occasion, and grade and the sport being played.

“And our success with the Australian Boat Race with the University of Sydney has shown there is significant appetite for these sorts of rivalry-based events.”

The final scorecard certainly favoured the hosts on each day. Melbourne won three of four events on day 1, claiming victories in Women’s Hockey, Women’s AFL and Men’s Basketball. 

When the teams took to the playing ovals of Monash on day 2, it was the hosts who again took the ascendency, claiming titles in Women’s Soccer, Men’s Soccer, Ultimate Frisbee and, for the overall title, Women’s Basketball. The competition sports were decided by previous AUG performance, where both universities were well matched. 

And if the team at MU Sport have its way, inter-university competition outside of the AUG will continue to grow. 

“We’re already looking forward to a revenge match up with Monash in the Varsity Challenge next year, and in the meantime we’ll continue to explore opportunities to expand the number of marquee sporting events we co-host with our traditional sporting rivals,” Mr Warnecke says.