Oxford and Cambridge Cup entry into the boat race. In 1956 New South Wales, 1963 Monash, 1966 Australian National and Newcastle, 1969 LaTrobe and 1973 Macquarie Universities gained entry. The Australian higher education reforms of the early 1990s opened the door for many former Technical Colleges and Colleges of Advanced Education to enter the boat race for the first time. 1968 was the last year that the race was held over the traditional 'Thames Putney Mortlake' equivalent course. Due to increasing pressure for a standardised course distance, fairer courses, and the increasing focus of state and national programs on the Olympic distance, delegates from
Mortlake Ferry grant right of way to the Mortlake Ferry unless they have established radio contact and agreed on priority. A slipway located to the south of the Mortlake approach ramp is used for the maintenance of all the RMS owned ferries operating in the Sydney region. Besides the Mortlake Ferry, this includes the Berowra Waters Ferry, Sackville Ferry, Lower Portland Ferry, Webbs Creek Ferry and Wisemans Ferry, all of which operate on the Hawkesbury River and its tributaries. Mortlake Ferry The Mortlake Ferry, also known as the Putney Punt, is a cable ferry that runs across the Parramatta River in Sydney,