While the population of England, Ireland, Wales and France sit transfixed in front of the Six Nations Championship games this Saturday, a slightly smaller group of supporters will be cheering on two teams in a game that means as much to them as the championships. This is the Bottle Match, the second oldest varsity match in the world, played between the Royal School of Mines, of Imperial College London, and the Camborne School of Mines, of Exeter University. Played since 1902, this Saturday marks the 101st year of the event.

RSM has won the match for the last 6 years, and team captain Tim Praill is feeling quietly confident that the team can make it a winning streak of seven. The team has been training hard all season, winning the majority of their games. Veteran of three Bottle Matches, Doug Smith of the RSM feels that this is the toughest match of the year, but the team are looking forward to the challenge, and feeling positive.

The origin of the name Bottle Match came from the tin bottle ‘acquired’ from the top of a Bass-Charrington beer lorry, which was presented as the trophy for the game. The game stirs intense emotion from both colleges, and many students, both past and present, turn up to lend vocal support to their teams. The Bottle itself, emblazoned with the crests of the two mining colleges, resides pride of place in the Union Bar at Imperial, where the RSM intend it to say.