Match Report by Gregory Kemp and Tom Alexander

The coach arrived in good time at Trowbridge Rugby Club which gave the squad valuable time to shake off the fatigue caused by the long journey. The pitch was in amazing condition and the stage was set for what was sure to be tough a battle between the two sides. The warm up built in intensity from simple handling drills to a full team run through, from start to finish the mentality was faultless. By the time the team went into the changing room for the last time before kick off, their loyal fans had arrived and were in good spirit despite almost nothing being known about our opponents: Topsham RFC.

Everything seemed to be going our way, including the toss which allowed us to receive first and get straight back at Topsham with the wind behind us. Every player, coach and supporter was itching to get the game started and show what we could do. Topsham kicked off and there was a massive anti-climax when the ball sailed straight into touch. However, this gave us the opportunity to test their defence immediately. The pack dominated the resulting scrum which led to a perfectly executed move allowing Alex McDonald to slice straight through the defence. He showed unbelievable speed leaving defenders trailing in his wake, beat the fullback before just being brought down 5 meters out after an amazing 50 meter run. Reinforcements arrived in numbers to quickly secure the ball before skipper Freddie Barnes was able to power over the line. Ollie Pell faced a tough conversion that was beautifully struck but just drifted off target leaving us with a 5-0 lead early on.

We stayed alert at the kick-off, securing possession and clearing our lines, but the relief was short lived. Topsham made ground and kept the pressure on before slick handling put their winger away down the left touchline to score in the corner. Their kicker missed the conversion keeping the scores level at 5-5. Once again Topsham were able to secure possession and field position where they used their line-out to good effect. The pressure on our defence told and Topsham crossed our try line again, this time almost directly under the posts resulting in an easy conversion and giving them the lead for the first time in the match.

This score spurred the Chinnor lads on acting as a reminder for the rest of the game as to what the opposition are capable of. The team’s response was superb, we won a penalty just inside our half and Sam Coldicott’s quick tap won us another ten meters when he caught the napping defence offside. From this point it was Jacob Whitfield’s turn to tap and go to good effect. Powerful carries from the likes of Brad Harewood, Meli Kini, Owen Sumersbee and Abram Smith took us to within striking distance. It was Jacob Whitfield who finished the move that he started by busting through the goal-line defence. The conversion was just missed with a very unlucky ricochet off the post. The Chinnor players kept up the intensity from the kick-off recycling well to get quick ball out to the backs. Great running lines and power by Dan Pearce and Oscar Clayton led to a try from Harry Gillett that Jonah Lomu would have been proud of. We went into the break with a narrow lead of 15-12 but, confident we could finish the job.

The second half began with the same passion and intensity as the first, a perfectly timed kick chase led to George Hanley and Alfie Sherlock dragging the Topsham receiver into touch. Our backs really began to show their class in the second half; Andrew Prosser looked dangerous as always with the ball in hand keeping Topsham on edge. However, we didn’t quite manage to convert the pressure into points early on. As the final whistle drew closer we were let off the hook when a silly penalty nearly drew the opposition level. Another penalty in our half a few minutes later gave Topsham a lineout on our five-meter line. Their driving maul was well disrupted by our forwards in desperate circumstances. A perfectly executed turnover then allowed us to clear our lines. We still struggled to gain possession but, a number of big hits from Freddie Barnes and Ed Skinner left their attacking options depleted. Topsham still kept the pressure on us and had possession in our 22 for most of the last ten minutes. A strong bench bolstered Chinnor’s defensive efforts with every player sticking to the systems that had been practiced every Thursday evening. The squad showed great heart in eventually winning a penalty and retaining possession for the last minute before being crowned U17 South-West Champions! It was a great day with all players, coaches and supporters playing their part in bringing home the Silverware and reaching the penultimate round of the National Cup!

From the coaches a big thank you to Greg and Tom for being the face of the Club in their Blazers, I know for both of them they would have done anything to have been out there with their team mates making the hits and putting their bodies on the line. You both have done a great match report. Also Cam Hill who after playing for the 1st team the day before was on the bus with his younger team mates while revising for his Spanish A level. Top work all round.