Amesbury to leave Bristol for Cambridge University

Bristol winger Charlie Amesbury will leave professional rugby at the end of this Premiership season to captain Cambridge University while studying.

The newly-crowned Men’s Varsity Match champions elected Amesbury to take over from outgoing Daniel Dass, and Amesbury will be leaving Ashton Gate at the end of this season to continue the good progress that was made by the Light Blues last year which culminated in their 23-18 Twickenham triumph.

The 30 year-old has scored 20 tries for Bristol since joining the club in 2013.

“It's a great feeling to be captain. I have a lot to live up to with the history of the position, but with such a great group of players we can put in the hard work to make sure we have another successful year," Amesbury said.

“Dassy has set down some very strong foundations. Alongside Head Coach James Shanahan, he has left a vastly improved squad in terms of skills, conditioning and especially culture, from which to pick from.”

Meanwhile Oxford have named Conor Kearns as their Varsity Captain for 2017. The 23-year-old full back takes over from Fergus Taylor and becomes the first Irishman to captain the Dark Blues since Tyrone Howe in 1995.