Winslow 1st XV 5
vs. Chinnor 4th XV 24
Saturday 15th March 2008
Friendly
Following a narrow defeat
at Phoenix (only the second this year), and a cancelled league fixture last
week, Chinnor IV’s travelled to Winslow this week. Led by the IV’s own Gene
Hunt, Gordon “Voldemort” Fennel, back after weeks of injury, Chinnor were
greeted by soggy conditions at the Winslow Marshland.
With a few regular faces
missing on other duties, the side was boosted by Ryan “Dusty” Binnie at
scrum half, Tom “Did you” Warner, and making his first senior appearance,
Greg “Not so” Devine in the pack. Chinnor, although unsettled to start with,
soon gelled and put together some good Rugby. Early pressure from the
Winslow 10 saw Pete “Shakespeare” McDermott tidy up, assisted by Tom “Did
you” Warner and Rowan “48 Hours” Foster on each occasion.
Chinnor would play into
the Winslow half, get kicked back then move back up field through “Dusty”
Binnie. 15 minutes in, and Chinnor started to show their mettle. A breakdown
near the half way saw “Voldemort” break, gaining yards he drew a defender
and off loaded to Rob “Scabbers” Hill at speed. “Scabbers” Hill tucked in
his tail and sprinted for the corner, tackled by the defending winger, he
made some great off the ground play, passed to Jamie “ Um Betty” Spencer
running at an acute angle to touch down. “Dusty” Binnie slotted a nice
conversion from near the touchline, 0-7.This early score boosted the
visitors, and they kept play in the Winslow half.
The front row of John
“Bean” Cann, “Scabbers” and Rob “Roy” McLachlan, backed up by Tony “Arfur”
Daley and Gregg “Not so” Devine in the second row, were working well and
giving good possession. Minutes later Chinnor found themselves with another
breakdown inside the home 22. Securing the ruck, the ball was span out to
“Um Betty” Spencer who popped a neat pass to Andy “Not related” Healey at
speed, who crashed through near the posts, 0-12.
Chinnor’s firm defence in
the backs from Joe “Wilson” Pickett, Tom “Did you” Warner Rowan “48 hours “
Foster and Gavin “Arfur2” Williams, again forced the home side to kick. This
they did well which gave the Chinnor lineout ample opportunity to show its
skill. With “Harry Potter” and “Jabba” absent, Adam “Nureyev” Woodliffe and
“Voldemort” filled in well.
Another clearance kick
from Winslow was collected by “Shakespeare”. Wrong footing the pursuing
players, he gained yards back into the 22, then cutting left found “Arfur2”
in space and lofted a pass out. “Arfur2” cut back inside, was tackled yards
out but not held, then scrambled his way over the line to touch down, 0-19.
The second half saw some
changes. “Shoes” Halson, Andy “Limpy” Ardron were on for “Arfur” Daley and
“Did you” Warner. Winslow upped their game and showed their intent from the
off.
A battle between the
forwards was on, and as the pressure mounted a few
macho Mata Hari’s appeared.
“Wilson” Pickett had a discussion with the Winslow 9. Andy “Not related”
Healey, found himself under duress, and voiced his concern to the crowd,
following a nose bleed due to altitude. A rare moment from “Nureyev” saw him
exit right after the referee gave him a short rest after seeing how fatigued
he was.
Despite all
this extra entertainment, the Chinnor backs kept their focus. A few wrong
decisions clearing, kept the visitors under pressure, but Chinnor held out
each time. Then playing out of their half, they were awarded a scrum just
inside the Winslow 22. “Nureyev” picked up, popped to “Dusty” Binnie who
passed out to “Wilson” Pickett. “Wilson” drew his man and passed out to
Rowan “48 hours” Foster on the wing. “48 hours” cut back inside, side
stepped and went over for Chinnors last score.
Winslow did
not let up, and kept on with wave after wave of attacks shortly after wards.
Chinnor repelled the first 3, but on the fourth following a penalty, their
10 went over in the corner, 5-24.
A game
played in good spirits; it was a good opportunity to have some of the
visiting clubs younger players get experience at senior level, a role the
IV’s have filled well over the years. The IV’s have another friendly at home
on the 22nd and will welcome their fans then.
Scorers:
Tries: Jamie "Um Betty" Spencer, Andy "Not Related" Healey,
Gavin "Arfur" Williams, Rowan "48 hours" Foster, Ryan "Dusty" Binnie
Conversions: Ryan "Dusty" Binnie (2)
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