History for Chinnor in Stortford thrill ride
CHINNOR welcomed Bishop’s Stortford to Kingsey Road knowing that defeat to the league leaders would end their own title chances and possibly a place in the play off for promotion to National One.
But they extinguished those fears with a hardfought victory that moved them within seven points of their opponents as they sit level with Old Elthamians on 107.
Thomas Banks gave the visitors an early 3-0 lead, but straight from the restart Luke Hibberd collected the kick and went in unopposed – Jonny Bentley converting.
It was end to end stuff and when Chinnor gave away another penalty Banks was on hand to narrow Stortford’s deficit.
But Chinnor then pressured in the middle and on the 27-minute mark flanker Ben Manning cut through and went over near the posts – Bentley again converting.
The visitors stormed straight back after Chinnor had lost a third lineout and winger James Rea took a hanging kick to stretch over the line near the corner – Banks adding the extras to trail by one at the break, with Chinnor hampered by losing skipper Danny Barnes to a suspected concussion.
A penalty on 50 minutes to Stortford was kicked to the corner and from the lineout Declan Caulfield rumbled over to score, but Banks’ kick was wayward.
Chinnor came straight back and from a lineout on the Stortford 22, scrum-half Greg Goodfellow broke and fed Bentley to go over for a third try he converted to retake the lead.
There was no let-up as Stortford looked to regain the initiative and replacement Nic Clancy scythed
through the Chinnor defence to score a superb individual effort – Banks converted to give Stortford the lead again.
A Bentley penalty meant Chinnor trailed by one with 15 minutes to play, and another on 70 minutes – following a fine break from Goodfellow – put the home side back into the lead.
From the restart Chinnor infringed but Banks missed the kick which would have put them ahead – and he missed again minutes later as the visitors’ chances ran out.
It was the first time Chinnor had ever beaten Bishop’s Stortford and the visitors’ coach, Andy Long, was left thinking what might have been.
“We are disappointed, it was a fierce match on a knife edge. We put ourselves in a good position to win. We will move on from this with three games left,” he said.
Meanwhile Chinnor boss Matt Williams was delighted with the victory but frustrated at letting the bonus point slip.
“The heart and desire the boys showed makes last week’s result an even bigger pill to swallow,” he said. “We now have given ourselves a real chance to fight to the end of the season with Old Elthamians.”