OXFORD’S players returned home to England tired but proud after their historic transatlantic match against Toronto Wolfpack in Canada.

The hosts ran in 12 tries while recording a convincing 62-12 victory to maintain their 100 per cent record at the top of Kingstone Press League 1.

But Oxford – the first English team to make the trip – turned in a spirited display to score two tries in front of 6,281 fans.

The Canadian newcomers had one player sent off and three others sin-binned after losing their discipline and finished the ill-tempered match with just ten men against the Blues, who had their captain Callum Windley sent off.

Prop Jake Emmitt was shown a red card by referee Brandon Robinson for throwing a series of punches after being sin-binned, while Liam Kay, Blake Wallace and Sean Penkywicz were all handed yellow cards.

Toronto were on the board as early as the third minute, when stand-off Wallace evaded a tackle and powered in from 20 metres out.

Oxford responded by recovering a short kick-off and were close to registering their first try when lively forward Casey Canterbury was brought down just short on the last tackle.

However, the Wolfpack dominated the early stages and further tries from Andrew Dixon, Johnny Pownall, Richard Whiting (2) and Ryan Brierley, plus six conversions from Casey Hall put them 34-0 ahead after only 27 minutes.

Determined to stem the tide, Oxford’s Callum Windley fed Canterbury for the visitors’ No 9 to score close to the posts, allowing Harvey Burnett to convert.

But Toronto had the final say of the first half with Dixon catching a goal line dropout and returning the ball 30 metres for a fine individual try to give them a 40-6 interval lead.

The first hints of ill-discipline surfaced three minutes into the second half when Kay was sinbinned for punching following an Oxford infringement.

Undeterred by being a man down, the Wolfpack added eight points through tries from Craig Hall and Greg Worthington.

Penkywicz then found Brierley in the middle of the park with the recent signing from Huddersfield Giants galloping 40 metres for the pick of the day’s tries.

Pownall then scored his second, powering down the right wing after further good work from Brierley and Craig Hall.

In the last ten minutes, the sin-binning of Emmitt led to frustrations boiling over, with the incensed player striking an opponent as he left the field sparking a full-on confrontation involving most of the players.

With Emmitt sent off for his part in the melee, both Toronto’s Wallace and Oxford’s Windley were also red-carded, leaving only 23 men on the field.

Oxford took advantage with a second short-range Canterbury touchdown and then found themselves with a two-man advantage when Penkywicz was sinbinned in the aftermath.

But it was Ryan Burroughs’s score on 75 minutes which ensured that the final try of a ground-breaking day would be scored by a man from North America.

Oxford: Gill, Atkinson, Brooker, Burnett, Newbould, Windley, Riley, Biscomb, Canterbury, McRae, Siddons, Cox, Wright. Subs (all used): Moles, Nicholson, Hayes, Evans.

Attendance: 6,281.