Oxford University Ultimate is a tempting and optimistic name for a sport. The loss of the additional word ‘Frisbee’ due to its trademarked status was a monumental setback but the game has remained unchanged.

From its invention in 1968 by American high school student Joel Silver, Ultimate has progressed rapidly. It is played by five million in the US and is now played at over 60 universities across the UK. These are fairly impressive statistics for a game I had never heard of it before coming to Oxford, so I decided to give it a try.

As I entered Iffley sports hall, I observed rows of players simply throwing unbranded discs (Frisbee is trademarked remember) back and forth to one another. Simple. My initial confidence was undermined on closer inspection as I realised that the forehand and backhand throws were done with the sort of speed and control of trajectory that was far superior to anything I could manage.

Last year’s president of Oxford University Ultimate, Phil Garner, explained everything for me. Ultimate can be played both indoors and outdoors, there are men’s, women’s and mixed teams and, although there is no formal BUCS league, the teams regularly attend tournaments all over the country which are practice for regional competitions. Success at regional level wins teams the privilege of competing in the Nationals. Inevitably, the year culminates in a Varsity contest, in which Oxford have triumphed for the last two years, for which players can claim a half-blue.

The game is a combination of netball, basketball and American football; you must be stationary when you have disc, you can only hold on to it for 10 seconds, it is non contact and the object of the game is to score a point by catching the disc when you are inside the ‘end zone’.

This makes for a high tempo and intense game, something which American football could take a lesson from Even though it is only 7-a-side, it is played on a pitched roughly similar in size to a soccer pitch with two 18m long ‘end zones’. The seven players are arranged into a formation which consists of two defensive ‘handlers’ who act like quarterbacks, and the remaining five ‘cutters’ constantly make runs to create space and receive the disc. There are three ways you can win back possession from the opposition; by intercepting, a handling error or simply swatting the disc from the air.

One of the more unusual features of Ultimate is that the entire game is self refereed. Whereas anarchy would ensue in most other sporting activities, this is not the case due to the strong ‘spirit of the game’ held by Ultimate. By having no referees honesty, sportsmanship and respect are promoted – qualities which seem have taken an undeserved holiday from most professional sports.

At most Ultimate tournaments, teams are asked to fill in a form where they review their opponents based on the integrity of their calls, fouls and the general spirit in which they played. At the end of the competition an award is given to the team with best score. Maybe UEFA could try something similar for the Europa League.

In case Ultimate isn’t a hyperbolic enough title for you, there are several pretty impressive videos on YouTube, one in particular displaying a move as ‘The Greatest’. It really has to be seen to be believed.

Overall, Ultimate has plenty of advantages, it’s less stop-start than American football and it’s more athletic than netball, so it’s not surprising that it has made the Physical Education curriculum in some areas of the US. If you’re struggling for a sport to play and have a penchant for unbranded discs, this could be the one for you.

If you’re interested in playing Ultimate please contact the captain Sam Vile ([email protected]) or Phil Garner ([email protected])

United were a mess on Sunday for several reasons but their defence, supposedly one of the best in the league, should shoulder a good chunk of the blame. Fergie’s back four has become little more than mediocre.

Rio Ferdinand looks to have completely lost it, and Patrice Evra may well be heading the same way. Jonny Evans remains the Titus Shambles of Manchester while David de Gea looks like to be taking lessons from the Gospel According to Heurelho Gomes.

What about Fergie’s new fledglings? Phil Jones and Chris Smalling are both undeniably talented, but can two players who learnt their trade at Blackburn and Maidstone United really be expected to fill the shoes of Gary Neville and co. so quickly?

Then you’ve got the Reds midfield. Ashley Young and Nani look good on the wings, but United lack serious quality in the middle. City’s David Silva and Yaya Toure look a different class to Darren Fletcher and Anderson. Ryan Giggs, meanwhile, will soon be the wrong side of sixty, and Tom Cleverley – whatever the Old Trafford faithful may tell you – just is not Paul Scholes.

Finally, the attack. Wayne Rooney is his team’s best player, but he still looks susceptible to sudden dips in form and off-field distractions. It’s the issue of who to partner him with that seems to be giving Ferguson a headache, although there’s no reason why it should. Javier Hernandez is the club’s best buy for a long time and should be playing every game for which he’s fit. Danny Welbeck, for all there is to be said about playing home-grown talent, isn’t as good.

Compare United’s assortment of ex-Wigan stars to City’s team of galacticos, and it’s perhaps easier to see why the Reds lost they way they did at the weekend. There are  gaps in quality in most areas of the pitch: Hart beats de Gea, Kompany beats Evans, Silva beats Fletcher, Aguero beats Welbeck.

Roberto Mancini’s reluctance to take advantage of his team’s unrivalled attacking ability last season was probably why they didn’t win more than just the FA Cup, but this season the Italian has finally taken the hint. City are now the force they should have been a while ago.

Of course history tells us that Alex Ferguson is capable of winning silverware however bad his team is. It was a minor miracle that United won the league last season. But I will eat my mortarboard if they win another title this season – and don’t worry, they won’t.

This week the Oxford Blues women’s lacrosse team took on Cambridge in their first clash of the new season, having crushed Bath 15-5 in the middle of a hailstorm last week. Last year’s three Oxford-Cambridge fixtures all resulted in victory for the Tabs but this year Oxford seem determined not to let that happen.

“A new season, a new squad. Everyone is beatable, it’s just a case of composure” were the pre-match words of one of the Oxford coaches. Speaking to defender Gabriel Harris, I was told why the squad were especially keen for victory this week, “It’s both the captain and the vice-captain’s birthday today and so we are especially pumped up and ready to go out there and give it our all.”

Following the Swifts’ 24-1 victory over Loughborough minutes earlier, the players took to the field. As the draw was set up and the umpire called for quiet on the sidelines, the tension mounted and the Blues’ most crucial league fixture got underway. After a couple of minutes of settled play at both ends, Oxford’s Emily Sever hit the post and the Cambridge goalie did well to save another Oxford shot.

The deadlock was broken moments later by vice captain Beth Denham, who was assisted by Sabrina Gordon’s meticulously placed feed. Two minutes later, the same duo combined to give Oxford a 2-0 lead, this time with Gordon firing in a shot. The perfect start continued with Gordon’s third, which forced Cambridge to call an early time out.

Cambridge were obviously frustrated by the home side’s strong start, and despite their captain’s angry words, Oxford remained on top after the 3 minute break with Denham finding more gaps in the Cambridge defence with a drive from behind the goal.

It took Cambridge a good 12 minutes to get into the game but even when they did, their first few shots on target were skilfully blocked by the Oxford goalkeeper, Alice Leach. Ellie Walsh gave Cambridge their first goal after about 15 minutes, quickly followed by a second from Allana Livesey. They could have drawn level but again Leach proved unbeatable in goal and Lucy Andrew scored her first of the match to put Oxford 5-2 ahead. Cambridge pulled a goal back just before half time still leaving Oxford three ahead at the break.

Less than a minute after the restart, Denham drove to goal and completed her birthday hat-trick, making it 6-3 and Emily Sever soon found the back of the net to take Oxford to a 7-3 lead. For the second time in the match, Oxford found themselves 4 goals to the good but Cambridge came out much stronger in the second half.

As a result of the end to end play, both teams had to continually sprint the full length of the pitch after shots were saved or possession was lost. Gabriel Harris and Jane Dougherty proved to be a crucial pairing in the Oxford defence, relentlessly recovering the ball and moving it up into the midfield and attack. Cambridge began to settle on the ball much more but still struggled to convert chances.

A well crafted goal by Cambridge’s Laura Plant was arguably the turning point for the away side and suddenly the Tabs found themselves level after a second goal from Allana Livesey and two in quick succession from Daniella Allard.

Oxford called a time out and suspense built up with only ten minutes to go. Cambridge continued to keep possession threateningly close to goal and to Oxford’s despair, Allard scored her third of the match from inside the fan.

As the clock ran down, a tactical battle arose as Cambridge played a possession game, whilst Oxford pushed up on the attack. With two minutes to go, Oxford gained the ball back superbly and seemed likely to score on the break, but it was too little too late and difficult chances were missed by Murphy, Gordon and Andrew. As the whistle blew for full time it was Cambridge who were celebrating the narrow victory of 7-8.

The overwhelming feeling on the sidelines was that after dominating the first half and playing their hearts out in the second, Oxford were unlucky to lose. It was most certainly a game of two halves; Cambridge learnt from their mistakes in the first and went all out in the second.

Perhaps Oxford should have capitalised more on an early lead but it is far easier said than done, especially against a side of Cambridge’s calibre. The home team demonstrated fantastic teamwork and equal play, whereas Cambridge relied more upon the individual talents of a couple of star players.

After the game Laura Plant, a key midfielder for Cambridge, said, “That was definitely the closest match we’ve ever played against Oxford. Varsity is going to be very tough this year.”  If this game is anything to go by, it most certainly will be.