Video of the game at https://www.pitchero.com/clubs/chinnor/?section=videos_photos_view&video_id=3815

On a beautifully sunny summer day, these two sides managed to conjure up a grey and uninspiring display which led to a narrow 12-10 victory for Chinnor.

Starting energetically, Chinnor quickly picked up an injury with prop Tom Whelan having to leave the field after just 3 minutes, replaced by Joe Winpenny. Two minutes later, Chinnor got on the score board with a penalty goal from Cathcart. Most of the game in the first half was in the Reading half but Chinnor’s territorial and possession superiority gained them little. Referee Adam Friend had a busy time with the whistle and the game was a stop/start affair throughout. After one infraction too many, Reading’s hooker Fisher was yellow carded on 11 minutes. On the 26th minute, Chinnor lost their second player to injury with captain Hutchings damaging his hand. Macsen Williams replaced him and played brightly throughout. The game meandered until halftime with the score still at 3-0 to Chinnor.

The second half served up much the same fare. Cathcart for Chinnor and Smart for Reading exchanged penalty goals to eke the score up to 6-3 in Chinnor’s favour. On the 65th minute, the large home crowd gasped as Chinnor fullback Cathcart, attempting to field a garryowen, spilled the ball straight into the hands of pacey Reading winger Taniela Bakoso. Casually jogging to the posts, Bakoso put Reading ahead for the first time in the match. Smart converted to give Reading a 10-6 lead. Just a few minutes later, Chinnor were awarded a kickable penalty. With Cathcart now replaced by Wallace, James Hewitt took on the kicking duties to calmly reduce Reading’s lead to 10-9.

With just 12 minutes left, Chinnor upped the pace and a penalty kick from Hewitt was just wide. In the 74th minute, Reading received their second yellow card of the match with no 8 Dan Phillips taking an early shower but Chinnor could not manoeuvre a scoring position. With the referee shaping to blow for full time, Chinnor’s new fly half Chase stamped his mark on the match. From 40 metres out, he coolly dropped a goal to give Chinnor a 12-10 victory.

In a game that saw both sides never get out of second gear, Chinnor will be happy to have snatched victory at the death. With regular scrum half Prescott sidelined with injury, Tom Jarvis had a tidy and satisfying debut in the 9 shirt. Worrying for Chinnor, however, is the mounting casualty list so early in the season.

Chinnor team: Cathcart (Wallace 66), Williams R, Hewitt B, Hewitt J, Shiel, Chase, Jarvis, Stock, Tattersall, Whelan (Winpenny 3), Hutchings (Williams M 26) Black, Gilbert, Hastings, Mowbray.
Reps: Winpenny, Wallace, Williams M