Chinnor Wildboys produced a majestic performance of running rugby which saw them claim the County Cup Final. A stunning display of 14 tries and 10 conversions was just too much for a plucky Banbury as Chinnor powered to their 9th Oxfordshire Cup. Ironically the 90-5 victory surpassed the previous record of 68-0 which was held by Chinnor against Witney in 2010, a game that featured both Chinnor coaches James Cathcart and Wheels.

In another nod to history Chinnor’s last victory in 2013 against Oxford University also featured Jon Lavin and Sam Ludgate who both put in superb shifts in the front five, a fantastic tribute to the longevity of these evergreen Chinnor legends.

The Wildboys signaled their intent to play an expansive game early when a fluent backs move released Henry Stainton down the left, he made good ground then found his inside support runners which saw Toby Cook dot down for the first of his brace. Chinnor quickly repeated the dose and this time it was the prolific Andrew Prosser that was the scorer. Pross was to enjoy an incredible performance, almost unstoppable with the ball in hand he repeatedly caused havoc in Banbury’s midfield defence and would finish with 4 tries and 4 assists and a more than worthy recipient of the Ron Grimshaw Player of the Match Trophy. Next up was Sam Boyne who supported a powerful break from Monty Graham down the right wing and crashed over, Dom Coe’s conversion made it 17-0 after 15 minutes.

Banbury got some respite and got on scoreboard after taking the restart and eventually releasing their left wing to score in the corner. However, this comeback was short lived and Chinnor started to motor through the gears. Any attempt of running was met with some huge hits from captain Tom Alexander and Sam Ludgate. A powerful burst from the unstoppable James Taffs from a well-executed lineout saw him drive deep into the 22 before popping a pass to Prosser to score under the posts. Taffs was another who enjoyed a towering game with his ball carrying a constant threat either in traffic or in wider channels. A big midfield bust by Ryan Collins saw him surge to the line and dot down under the posts and with Toby getting his second a few minutes later Chinnor notched a convincing 38-5 half time lead.

Chinnor were in no mood to ease of the accelerator and the second half turned into a thoroughly impressive display of all court rugby executed with an abundance of skill and power. A surge down the left by rangy full back Dom Coe saw him score a try to go with his 10 conversions and a personal tally of 25 points. Not to be out done Ralph Jones decided a gap at the ruck was too good to turn down and scooted in from 25 metres, much to the derision of his watching brother. This was followed by a close range try from Nick White which was a reward for the front five for their sterling work.

The game then turned into the Prosser show as he made ridiculous metres seemingly every time he touched the ball, including a try for the ages as he slalomed through multiple defenders to score from 80 metres. Another Prosser break saw him release Henry Stainton for the mercurial left winger to notch his try.

Harry Lowe then came to the party with a dazzling late cameo. His brace of tries showed off his dangerous running skills. He stood up his winger and full back after a good carry from the impressive Harry Mahoney for his first and then drifted inside to support an incisive William Vaughan break to finish off the scoring amidst raucous chanting from his adoring fans on the sideline.

A hugely impressive performance from a rampant team playing exhibition rugby. Banbury gave everything but on the day it would have taken a very good team to compete with such a dominant all round display.

Chinnor- Ludgate, Church, Taffs, White, Lavin, Mahoney, Boyne, Alexander © , Jones, Cooke, Stainton, Prosser, Collins, Murray, Coe
Replacements- Blackwell, Roberts, Vaughan, Lowe
Tries- Cooke x2, Prosser x4, Lowe x2, Collins, Boyne, Jones, Stainton, Coe, White
Conversions- Coe x10