Chinnor U17's 33 vs. Cheltenham U17's 10
Sunday 12th September 2004
 

Chinnor had to rely on support from the Under 16’s to fulfil their first fixture of the season. That support was invaluable as the younger participants looked the part.

Chinnor skipper Ross Gehnich won the toss and elected to play into a ten-point wind.

Against all anticipation, Chinnor were the first to put points on the scoreboard. The forwards secured possession and the ball went out along the line for Mark Rumble to break the defensive line ten metres out. Ollie Heath neatly slotted the conversion.

Fifteen minutes later, Cheltenham were awarded a penalty fifteen metres out and they took the points, when their fly half stroked the ball through the uprights. 7-3.

The game progressed at a pace, which belied the fact that the players had not played for four months. Come halftime, it appeared that the referee was more grateful for the rest than the players.

After taking on water, both teams got back to it. Hammer and tongs. First to show was Cheltenham, when they made the most of a penalty close in, to go over in the corner. The touch line conversion attempt was a superb success and it was 7-10.

After some intense and even interchange, it was Chinnor, who quite literally stole the initiative. Tim Hughes pounced on a wayward pass and used his strength and balance to go through the centre of the cover and under the posts. Ollie Heath ensured the maximum to take the score to 14-10. That score ignited Chinnor.

At a lineout on the left, the blossoming Dean Spinks took the throw from Matt Grellier and the rest of the pack protected him. The ball then went wide. When it reached Jordan Weaver, the only thong he could see was the try line. He dodged, spun and forced his way over to make it 19-10. Unfortunately, the ensuing kick by the busy and tenacious Ollie Heath, slid past the uprights.

It was not too long before Chinnor repeated the dose with a carbon copy try. On this occasion, the beneficiary was Mark Rumble. An excellent conversion was added by Ben Hewitt from out wide. At 26-10, the match appeared to be in the bag.

At the death, Chinnor were awarded a penalty just in front of the posts and Mark Rumble was passed the opportunity to notch his hat-trick try. He barged his way over and Ben Hewitt maintained his 100% kicking record for the day.

To a man, Chinnor played well and worked hard. Several players caught the eye at various times, not least Ben Sanders for his potent tackling, Luke Goddard for his general graft and Ross Gehnich for his destructive work in and around the rucks.

On reflection though, a 33-10 score-line may not reflect the effort and ability of a very busy and aggressive Cheltenham side.

Next week it is the opening round of matches in the Berks, Bucks and Oxon league, when Chinnor take on Drifters at home.