U13 Chinnor 75 v Oxford Harlequins 0

It was a brilliant, crisp and clear morning, perfect for rugby and the first match of the season between these two clubs. With both clubs missing their School of Rugby players it was a opportunity for others to step up and shine. Gosford All Blacks had joined forces with Quins for this fixture to create a mixed squad. Chinnor had a couple of late sicknotes and were loaned Paddy, a Quins number 8, to help shore up our depleted pack.

The Game started with Chinnor staring into the blinding sun which may have contributed to a lot of handling errors and scrums but when the ball got to Biss in the centre he punished Quins with a couple of early tries under the posts. While both teams struggled to get going Chinnor did have the upper hand in terms of possession and moved the ball wide easily to allow Mendi to score. Half time 21-0 and we paused to observe the 2 minutes silence to remember those who had fallen in the defence of our country.

Mendi scored again just after the re-start and Chinnor were beginning to get into the groove by raising the tempo and removing the handling errors of the first half. Some excellent forward play and Pearce crossed followed soon after by a brilliant try by Pietersen taking a flat pass from Thompson at speed and running a superb straight line through the centre of the Quins defence to score under the posts. Chinnor tails were up and the forwards waded in with Zychowicz first and then Pearce grabbing a second. Scorey crossed in the corner after some excellent back handling out wide followed by another Biss blitz down the centre with the defence very ragged. The final score came when Constable finished off with aplomb from 1 yard after a great run from Zychowicz who offloaded when held up short of the line.

With only one conversion missed between Buckland and Thompson the ffinal score was 75-0. Its fair to say Quins rarely threatened the Chinnor 22 let alone the line but they did show terrific endeavor and spirit to keep going and trying to play against a stronger and superior team on the day. Well done to Quins and Gosford for their commitment and sportsmanship and thanks to Paddy our Quins ringer who helped steady the pack.